Buzzing like a bee: simulation and cross-species empathy in sound installations

Abstract

ABSTRACT Recent sound installations at major international museums and public venues simulate the sounds of the European honeybee. In this article, I discuss how and to what effect “buzz” is used in selected installations in London, New York, and Montréal. In these immersive works, listeners are invited to “be a bee” and mimic behaviours such as flight, pollination, and hive activity. The works suggest that to behave like a bee is to empathise with a bee’s experience – an exercise that cultivates compassion and, possibly, activism. Reflecting on these installations and my experiences thereof, I consider the possibility of cross-species empathy through methods of simulation, immersion, and witnessing.