The unspeakable, the inexpressible

The unspeakable, the inexpressible

2024

Sound Corner/ 71, a program by the curator Anna Cestelli Guidi.

Parco de la Musica Ennio Morricone Rome, March 1–31, 2024


© AE

Sound installation on the observable loss of humanity in form of a lament, employing artificial intelligence in text-to-speech synthesis. AI generated voices rise to sing, expressing the unspeakable and inexpressible, quoting Ernst Jandl and Elfriede Jelinek.


© AE
© Andrea Jemolo

In her sound installation Anke Eckardt is exclusively relying on AI tools. She crafts a diverse group of synthetic voices delivering sound poetry. Departing from flawless, primarily English-language voice synthesis, she places the software in the realm of technological artifacts. The synthesized voices rise to sing, expressing the unspeakable and inexpressible. 

The lament opens with a quote from Ernst Jandl, a representative of 20th-century experimental poetry: „Humanitäääääät, die könnte wir schon ein bisserl brauchen“ (translated: „Humanitarianism, we could do with a bit more of that“). A subsequent response by Elfriede Jelinek from a current article on the Middle East follows. “Humanitarianism becomes a piece of paper on which many beautiful things have been written down and then set alight.” The synthesized voices lead the listener into song, into mourning.

The artificial voices may lack national identity but aren’t without interests. Another power agenda resonates – that of the tech industry. The software used by Eckardt, known for browser-based, AI-supported text-to-speech applications, was founded just a year and a half ago. Despite its youth, it just has raised $80 million from a group of prominent investors led by Andreessen Horowitz, Nat Friedman (former GitHub Chief Executive) and Daniel Gross (startup investor). A former funding round included prominent personalities such as Mike Krieger (co-founder of Instagram) and Tim O’Reilly (founder of O’Reilly Media).