“Soundstair: Vinfen” installed at VINFEN Social Services Facility

8.24.22, Cambridge, MA- VINFEN, a leading provider of community-based services to individuals with mental, developmental, and behavioral health challenges, is excited to announce the commission of Christopher Janney’s “Soundstair:VINFEN” on its’ main stairway. As part of the organization’s continued commitment to making creative environments for exercise of both staff and patients, Janney designed a installation activating the first 16 steps of the stairway with photo-electric cells, custom Phenom ’22 software and a 4-channel speaker system.

Doreen Hiltz, PhD, Director, VINFEN/Brighton Day Center, states, “Since ‘Soundstair: VINFEN’ has been in place not only are our members enjoying the use of the stairs, but our employees are also opting to get a little more exercise. I have had referral tours with prospective members, and when we use the stairs I enjoy their responses. I have been getting lots of positive feedback on the improved stairs! Thank you, Christopher Janney.“

“My philosophy has always been that art should be part of one’s daily life,” said Christopher Janney. “I can think of no better example of that philosophy than this installation at VINFEN. I’m thrilled that it provides a venue for “creative play,” and brings both activity and a smile to patients and staff alike.

Trained as an architect and a jazz musician, Janney created the first Soundstair installation as part of his MIT graduate thesis titled “Urban Musical Instruments” in 1978. Since then, he toured the world combining architecture and music in both permanent installations and performances, from the “Spanish Steps” in Rome, Italy to major music festivals- Coachella, Bonnaroo in the US and Glastonbury in the UK. For more information, visit www.janneysound.com.

Established in 1977, VINFEN is a nonprofit, health and human services organization and a leading provider of community-based services to individuals with mental health conditions, intellectual and  developmental disabilities, brain injuries, and behavioral health challenges. Our services and advocacy promote the recovery, resiliency,  habilitation, and self-determination of the people we serve. For more information, go to https://vinfen.org.

“Soundstair:VINFEN” was made possible with grant from the Oeschle Family Foundation as well as in-kind contributions from Harmon International, Apple Computer, and Rockwell International/Allen-Bradley.

 

    

Hi Christopher,

Thank you for speaking with my mom yesterday and agreeing to share with me your intentions behind the innovative Soundstair at Boston Children’s Hospital. My memory of the stairs is suprisingly pretty clear to me, considering I only walked down them one five years ago. I realize that the stairs are practical, yet are a welcome distraction from their daily life. I’m not sure if I realized this at the time, in hindsight the stairs were relaxing and seemed therapeutic.

With that, I would enjoy understanding your intentions of incorporating a musical element onto the hospital stairs. This and the glimpse of a patient room was one of the highlights of my three-hour private tour (not as a patient). Now as a high shcool student, I am applying to a medical program to futher my interest in  medicine. I was hoping to include a quote or likely paraphrase your ideas behind the stairs.

Thank you for what you have created for the patients and staff in the hospital!

Emmie

Teen Cancer America
AYA Medical Congress
Atlanta, GA

Visitors, patients and staff all enjoy the “Soundstair” installation in our new Main Lobby, thoughtfully designed by Christopher Janney.  The lyrical sounds, and activity it generates, with the children and staff has absolutely transformed the Lobby and enlivened the normal function of walking up and down stairs.

Charles Weinstein, Esq. / Boston Children’s Hospital “Till every child is well”

“Soundstair” (Musical Stairs)

Soundstair (musical stairs) is an interactive sound environment that “plugs into” an existing architectural stairway. It is composed of photo-electric sensors, placed one per step, that are wired to a computer, sound sampler, amplifier and speakers. As individuals traverse the stairs, they activate a series of melodic and natural sounds. The sounds can be scaled to change pitch according to ascending or descending movement. For example, ascending the stair might trigger a bamboo flute and springtime garden sounds, like birds and a light breeze. When an individual stops in the middle, the sound “disappears”, fading away. If they continue climbing, the sound returns. Another individual using the stairs an hour later might hear an entirely different set of sounds. In Soundstair, sound is used to “color” the space, creating a “responsive architecture” that reacts to people moving through it. In this way, sound changes the quality of the space without changing any of its physical form.

Performances: (partial list) Spanish Steps, Rome, Italy; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA; Stads Schouwberg, Eindhoven, Holland; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

There are a number of permanent Soundstair installations in the US including The Boston Museum of Science (Soundstair: SciMuse), The Science Museum of Minnesota (Soundstair: Minnesota), The Doseum, San Antonio, TX, Curious Kids Museum, St, Joseph, MI, St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.