Requiem for the Living and the Dead

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Kate interacts with a shallow square pool of water as sound vibrations create ripples in the water which are reflected onto a wall

Music & Light Symbiosis | Piece No. 1

Dover Collective Studio Space, Astley Avenue, Dover.

Friday 11th November 2016.

Kate interacts with a shallow square pool of water as sound vibrations create ripples in the water which are reflected onto a wall
Documentary photo of the ‘Requiem for the Living and the Dead’ performance.

Developing the idea of water being moved by the vibration of music, Kate expanded on previous experiments with this first Music & Light Symbiotic Event, combining a musical performance of the vibraphone with a large, square pool of water.

Silhouetted hands holding drumsticks play the vibraphone
Vibrations from the vibraphone reflect off the water on to the back wall.

Kate created a square, shallow pool of water made withe burnt black beams of wood.

This water sculpture was called ‘Requiem’


On the evening of 11th November 2016, the first Music & Light Symbiotic event, Music & Light Symbiosis | Piece No. 1’, ‘Requiem for the Dead and the Living took place with a large audience.

The water was initially moved very subtly by the vibrations of the vibraphone, then the water was touched and more elaborate refractions developed.

Vibraphone - Dave Robinson

Water shaper - Kate Beaugié

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“Vibration and sound are at the root of existence, mostly felt, but rarely manifested together. The piece was a poignant and transporting example combining water, sound and image. A transformative and essential work for meditation and expanding awareness.”
Paul Cheneour, Flautist/composer
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“Witnessing Kate Beaugié’s Requiem for the Dead and the Living was a truly mesmerising experience. The combination of spatial installation, light and performance created an ephemeral and ethereal Gesamtkunstwerk and the symbiosis of sound and vision transformed the space of the studio into a fully immersive environment.”
Gabor Stark, Dipl.-Ing. Arch. SFHEA, Senior Lecturer & Course Leader MA Urban Design, UCA Canterbury
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“A beautiful experience which surprised me by eliciting a deeply emotional response. The blending of sound with moving images and the use of light was sensitive and inspirational. I found the work moving and would be excited to see any other work from Kate.”
Jenny Loe, Specialist Teacher (SEN) and trainee yoga teacher



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“Kate’s piece delivered a strong and powerful experience. It elevated the mind to a state of contemplation, as a Zen rock garden does. But her landscape was charged, fluid and alive with sound and movement. The pool of water, with its illuminated surface, ripples and reflections, was an ever-changing canvas; a playground for physics; a mirror to grand complex forces. The interplay of the projections with live music created synesthetic feedback loops that saw patterns arise from chaos, semantics from rhythm, existence from non-existence. Kate compels her audience to contemplate life’s stark realities. Yet at no time do you feel adrift. She welcomes you to the dark and glittering universe beyond the gallery walls with a gentle, human hand.”

Georgina Treloar, Writer/Musician