Unsilent Night is an original composition by Phil Kline, written specifically to be heard outdoors in the month of December. It takes the form of a street promenade in which the audience becomes the performer. Each participant gets one of four tracks of music in the form of a cassette, CD, or Mp3. Together all four tracks comprise Unsilent Night. The fact that the participants play different “parts” simultaneously helps create the special sound of the piece. Participants carry boomboxes, or anything that amplifies music, and simultaneously start playing the music. They then walk a carefully chosen route through their city’s streets, creating a unique mobile sound sculpture which is different from every listener’s perspective.

I participated in this year’s event in Asheville, NC. I carried in my right hand a portable amplifier (Roland Mobile Cube) connected to my iPhone running the Unsilent Night app, and a portable recorder in my left.  Here is an excerpt.

Don’t miss the saxophone at the end, courtesy of an Asheville busker, playing Happy Birthday!