Using the words “rain“ and “forest“ as inspiration, the show begins with a sound picture of the water cycle. From splashing rain and rushing water (crackle-paper, rainmaker with Piezzo-microphone) over the thick leaves trickle drops (Mouth-pops and drops) through the babbling streams and rivers (bubble-bottle with microphone), until the sea (Wave-Drum) where the water is evaporated by the sun (sun-gong) and is taken by the wind (flute) in the form of clouds, back to the Rainforest again.

The forest itself consists of wood; with a contact-microphone even a simple branch can produce a fascinating sound and the boomstick can also make wood-music.

Then we meet the inhabitants of the forest. A jungle-piano of 10 children performs an animal-sound symphony. At the same time they learn about the function of animal sounds: marking territory, courtship, threatening, orientation in the dark... They also learn about the type of animals who live in the rainforest and in which area of the forest they live.

People also are inspired to make music by the Echo of the Rainforest: the Yodelling of the Bayaka-pygmies from Congo is fascinating and wonderful to hear.

Many of the sounds are amplified by microphone in order to create a „sound-carpet“ for the following larger sound-picture.

Michael Bradke plays from his large collection of surprising rainforest-sound-tools and animal sounds and the audience takes part as well. Many different bird-whistles circle through the room, everyone joins the troupe of apes or the mosquito swarm, let creak-boxes and crackle-paper sound...., a rousing and furious finale in which everyone takes part!

References
Knauber Freizeitmärkte; Schulmuseum Steinhorst; Grundschule Lerchenberg, Wesendorf; Kinderkulturfestival Duisburg; Tages des Spiels – München

The “Rainforest Soundscape“ performance is the result of many performances with the Monteure Theatre 1990-92 of the prize-winning Dance-Theatrepiece “Rainforest“. This has been completely revised and reworked to produce the new solo-performance for music alone. Michael Bradke has also left the sounds of the rainforest ringing in a “Dark room“ in a large children’s museum exhibition and in the “Rainforest playspace“ of the Maximilian-Parks Hamm.