Mission

The Resonant Lung is a project conceived and created by Colin McIntyre, an Austin based sculptor and sound artist.  This work consists of a sculpted sound chamber built into a climate controlled shipping container.  Within the chamber,  the 7 octave instrument is built from remnants of two antique pipe organs, controlled by modern digital interface. This allows composers to design musical works or soundscapes to be featured on the pipes using any hardware or software MIDI interface they wish.  The Resonant Lung sits in the outdoor sculpture garden of Dimension Gallery in East Austin. 

The project began in 2016 with compositions by McIntyre and by his first guest, Ricardo Donoso, then evolved into a revolving program of live presentations, featuring local and international artists such as Adi Newton, R. Lee Dockery, Henna Chou, T. Putnam Hill, The Viewer, Primary Mystical Experience, and Curved Light, among others.  Enhancements that have been made since the project launch include additional ranks of pipes (for increased timbral diversity), luxurious seating for attendees, and electronically controlled LED lighting throughout.  Future upgrades to the project will include a house projection system and a multi-channel house sound system for presenting amplified sound in sequence with the pipes.

The mission is to provide an active sound chamber venue for attendees to experience experimental sound works in an intimate, immersive environment unlike any club or concert venue around.  For the musician/composer, the Lung offers a chance to interact with an eccentric adapted instrument, to step outside of your creative comfort zone, and to see what inspiration arises.  The chamber seats 14 for a very personal show.  Most shows happen in a two-set evening, with an early show and late show, and offer a listening room in the adjacent gallery for non-ticketholders to hear a live audio feed from inside the Lung.