Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest · 43.9438° N, 71.7017° W

Bansuri Flute Melodies from Hubbard Brook

A Data Sonification of Hourly Measurements from the White Mountains, New Hampshire

Listening Guide

The bansuri is an ancient bamboo flute originating from India, and often accompanied by the dholak (wood drum) and tabla (metal drum) in Indian classical music. The bansuri's airy, earthy timbre has always reminded me of the forest, and I wanted to see whether I could use the Hubbard Brook Forest Data to create rich melodies for it!

In this piece, each year of data (2024, 2025, 20256) becomes its own musical voice. Variables like temperature shapes the flute’s pitch, evapotranspiration helps set the tempo, solar radiation affects the note loudness, and wind changes how the melody moves. Rain and snowmelt data are used for percussion (dholak and tabla) in the background.

As you listen, try to hear when the years agree and when they pull apart. When forest conditions are similar across the years, the three bansuri voices blend together; when the data differs, they separate into more tense or dissonant lines. The piece also follows the seasons: winter sounds slower, lower, and darker, while summer becomes faster, brighter, and more active. Some moments to listen for are the wet January of 2026 compared to the much drier January of 2024, a big flood in March 2026 where one voice suddenly rises, and the middle of the track where summer heat and evapotranspiration push the music into high, cheerful energy.

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Annual average across 2024–2026

Temperature → pitch range — —

Streamflow → pitch shift — —

Evapotranspiration → tempo — —

Solar radiation → note loudness — —

Wind speed → melodic interval size — —

Precipitation → dholak drums — —

Current Condition —

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