Recomposing Multitudes

Lecture performance by Daphne von Schrader

Recomposing Multitudes delves into the concept of the human body as a collective organism, where billions of microorganisms co-exist and co-evolve. It challenges the idea of individual boundaries, revealing that we are deeply interconnected with the microbial world. From a microbiome perspective, the idea that we are autonomous or separate from nature dissolves—our bodies are vibrant ecosystems shaped by symbiotic relationships.

This performance invites audiences to reconsider their bodies through sound. Drawing on scientific research, it explores how specific frequencies can influence not only our bodies but also the bacteria within them. By blending sonic and light elements, participants are encouraged to imagine their bodies as living, networked ecosystems—transforming into hybrid beings, more plant than human, and interconnected with the world around them.

Through this immersive experience, Recomposing Multitudes prompts us to rethink our identity as human, asking us to embrace our collective nature as part of a larger, microbial and environmental whole.

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Daphne von Schrader is a visual artist whose work spans installation, film, and sound performance. She is currently studying Art and Intervention/Environment at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. In 2020, she co-founded "Klub Møntage," an interdisciplinary research and improvisation project, and curated the six-day "Møntage Camp" festival for sound and media art in August 2024. Her sound practice focuses on repurposing and recycling found audio material, transforming hijacked audio fragments and disjointed sound elements into unfamiliar sonic landscapes. In one of her recent pieces, she explored the biological impact of specific frequency ranges, investigating how sound can affect a listening organism. By weaving together noise synthesis, frequency manipulation and love songs, she reshapes acoustic environments and creating narrative sonic phenomena.