Always Sunny on the 4850, flute and electronics
- feat. Janet MacKay-Galbraith
Animation by Joseph Ibbett - Underground Ambience Recorded by Joshua Willhite of the Sanford Underground Research Facility - Neutrino Image of the Sun by Super Kamiokande
Even deep underground, our sun still shines in neutrino light. "It's always sunny on the 4850" is engraved on a plaque on the 4850th level of the Sanford Underground Research Facility, and is a poetic reminder that wherever we are on earth - even at night - our sun bathes us in an enduring neutrino glow.
My composition is inspired by this fact: growing from absolute darkness to radiant light as the neutrinos cast their tracks in subterranean particle detectors. The rhythm consists of a beating drone made from three detuned sine tones - their subtly detuned frequencies modeled after the three neutrino mass states (estimated at the time of writing). Against this, the flute plays a stately Sarabande, adding layer after layer of melody as neutrino light fills the cavern to reveal a solar image on the detector display.
MicroBooNE - feat. Beth Sterling
Dedicated to Bonnie Fleming, the MicroBooNE Experiment
and the hunt for the electromagnetic excess
Nu - Proton - Electron - Cascade
I counted up
The blows that came our way
It’s not enough
To turn my love away
Ionize inside!
Ionize inside, ionize inside!
Particles come raining down
Annihilates my pride
Tears are pooling on the ground
In scintillating light
Ionize inside!
Ionize inside!
I come up short but you still caress
When I’m caught in electromagnetic excess
You show up strong make my tears fluoresce
I’m lost in electromagnetic excess
Living life as three of us
Was starting to make sense
But if you call another name
I’ll break my model down again
Ionizing sky!
Ionizing sky!
Find the gap, find the gap, find the gap!
Particles come raining down
Annihilates my pride
Tears are pooling on the ground
In scintillating light
Ionizing sky!
Ionizing sky!
Find the gap, find the gap, find the gap!
I come up short but you still caress
When I’m caught in electromagnetic excess
You show up strong make my tears fluoresce
I’m lost in electromagnetic excess
I come up short but you still caress
When I’m caught in electromagnetic excess
You show up strong make my tears fluoresce
I’m lost in electromagnetic excess
Ionizing life!
Ionizing life!
Find the gap, find the gap, find the gap!