Björk: Biophilia Live

In Björk’s unique universe, it makes perfect sense for a concert to begin with an introduction by David Attenborough. Biophilia is the love of nature in all its manifestations, he explains. This is the idea behind multimedia project Biophilia, which brings together nature, music, and technology. Fascinated by the newly introduced iPad, Björk experiments freely with the new possibilities that touchscreens offer for a more intuitive way of making music.

Each song describes a natural phenomenon and follows its own internal logic. In this dazzling concert film, shot with 16 cameras, multiple layers of imagery are superimposed. Björk, the 24-strong Icelandic women’s choir, and the musicians on stage are thus surrounded by steaming lava, stormy skies, bizarre-looking organisms, and fascinating time-lapse footage.

Everything in Björk’s complex but earthly Gesamtkunstwerk inspires a sense of wonder. Not least the instruments she designed, including her version of the singing Tesla coil, which during “Thunderbolt” not only produces organ-pipe sounds but actually emits bolts of lightning.

This film is part of Snapshots in Concert, this year’s summer program presenting five legendary artists captured at defining moments in their careers. Supported by the Brook Foundation.