Florida Museum offers night of wild music July 15

July 1, 2011

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Join the Florida Museum of Natural History from 6:30 to 9 p.m. July 15 for a night of live music and explore the new temporary exhibit “Wild Music: Sounds and Songs of Life.”

The free event offered as part of the University of Florida’s Creative B program features performances from “Deezy Pete,” a classic jazz trio, the Florida League for Independent Performance and other musicians. The museum’s permanent and temporary exhibits will also be open, excluding the Butterfly Rainforest. There is only an admission fee for the “Wild Music” exhibit.

Admission to “Wild Music” is free for UF students with a valid Gator 1 ID and museum members, but regular ticket prices apply to other visitors: $8 for adults ($7 Florida residents) and $5.50 for youth ages 3-17.

“ ‘Wild Music’ focuses on all of the natural music surrounding us, from oceans to city noises,” said Florida Museum education assistant Tiffany Ireland.

The exhibit, on display through Jan. 2, 2012, takes visitors on a journey through the forest, city and sea to experience the melodies found in each environment.

The city setting radiates the sounds of markets, street cars and outdoor cafes as well as groups at work hauling nets, moving logs and pounding grain. Visitors may also compose masterpieces using pre-recorded sounds and percussion instruments in a sound proof “Jamming Room” and record themselves describing the memories evoked by different types of music for an ongoing project at the University of North Carolina Music Research Institute.

In the forest, listen to the songs of a variety of bird species and discover their influence on human composers, including Mozart. Visitors may also use a parabolic microphone to find a variety of sounds hidden throughout this area of the exhibit.

In the sea, observe a trolling motor and ratchet underwater using a hydrophone; see, touch and hear shell trumpets; and listen to whale songs as well as human compositions inspired by their aquatic harmonies.

The exhibit also features a seven-minute video describing how animals use sound to advertise their presence, communicate with one another and form and nurture social groups. Guests may also examine a collection of unusual instruments like a didgeridoo, an Australian instrument made from a hollow log, African talking drums and a 53,000-year-old cave bear bone flute replica.

“The museum is a great place for a group of friends — or even a date — to come in and just enjoy natural history,” Ireland said.

The Florida Museum of Natural History located near the intersection of Southwest 34th Street and Hull Road in the University of Florida Cultural Plaza in Gainesville. Hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Butterfly Rainforest admission is $10.50 for adults ($9 Fla. residents) and $6 for ages 3-17. Prices subject to change.

For more information, including directions and parking, visit http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/ or call 352-846-2000.