Most of us see a bridge as a means to cross over something.
Many bridges are feats of genius engineering and architecture, but the Mid-Hudson Bridge in Poughkeepsie, New York, has two other very unusual attributes: the bridge’s towers form huge angels and the structure itself serves as a musical instrument.
From the time it was built in 1930 until 2004, no one had discovered its musical properties. Then composer, pipe organist and gong collector Joe Bertolozzi came along. His discovery of the bridge’s musicality came one day when his wife, standing in front of a poster of the Eiffel Tower, mock-swung at it like it was a gong.
“Wow, that would work,” said Joe. But instead of playing the Eiffel Tower, he decided to start with something a little closer to home. To help with approval and funding, he needed a structure tied to an event. He found it in the 2009 Quadricentennial celebration of Henry Hudson’s exploration of New York and the Hudson River.
The Mid-Hudson Bridge had several features going for it: its shores weren’t too far apart and musicians could play it without safety issues. First, though, he had to convince the bridge authority to let him play.
“I knew there was this kooky factor I had to overcome,” Joe admits. So at his first meeting with the authority’s head engineer, he played some of his own compositions and outlined his concept for composing using the bridge. The authority agreed to allow him to “harvest” some sounds and return with a demonstration.
“If they didn’t like it, then no harm, no foul,” says Joe. So he went out with a few helpers, a sound engineer and a microphone. Cables, guardrails, spindles, I-beams, plates, grates, towers and signs were all mined for their unique sounds. The engineers, at first skeptical, liked what Joe created.
So Joe forged on for three years, collecting sounds, composing and fundraising. His original vision was to perform several live bridge concerts for the Quadricentennial, with audiences on either shore and an international telecast. But he couldn’t raise enough money.
Still Joe didn’t give up. He continued to compose using the bridge’s sounds, and found two ways to get his bridge music heard. In June 2009 speakers were installed on the towers at each end of the bridge, “like a giant jukebox,” Joe explains. A bridge visitor can push a button to hear the music. A local radio station, 95.3, also plays a looped recording.
So what’s next for this colossal composer? Playing the Eiffel Tower, of course.
Listen to a selection of Bertolozzi’s bridge music. For more information visit Bertolozzi’s website.
