SoundSpace at Earth Sanctuary – A Chambered Mound Performance Space

We are building a monumental work of art at Earth Sanctuary on Whidbey Island designed to inspire sound and musical exploration, spiritual growth, and healing experiences. SoundSpace will be a chambered mound that evokes feelings of connection, peace, and wonder through the power of sound. Such a sacred place has not been created anywhere in the world for thousands of years.

The Earth Sanctuary Chambered Mound will be a sonic journey into the unknown realms of the human psyche. The space itself is a sacred container.
– Susan Elizabeth Hale, author of Sacred Space, Sacred Sound

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Experience Awe, Surprise, and Wonder

SoundSpace at Earth Sanctuary promises to offer an experience of awe, surprise, and wonder through its blend of sound science and sacred artistry. Visitors will feel connected to a deeper reality, leaving with a sense of renewal, amazement, and gratitude for both sound and silence.

Experience Transcendental Auditory Phenomena

Experience the extraordinary at Earth Sanctuary by being a part of creating the SoundSpace chambered mound. Inspired by the mystical Maes Howe chambered mound on the Orkney Islands, this project is 25 years in the making. With community support, anyone will be able to experience the most transcendental and unusual auditory phenomena of the natural world here on Whidbey Island.

Grounded in research from Dr. Aaron Watson, the world’s leading acoustical archaeologist, the SoundSpace chambered mound is designed to evoke spiritual, transcendental, and shamanic sensations through the natural resonance and toning unique to such sacred spaces.

Learn more: If you are intrigued and want to learn more about getting involved, please contact Chuck Pettis at cpettis@earthsanctuary.org

The First Modern Chambered Mound

Maes Howe Chambered Mound

SoundSpace Chambered Mound

An Acoustically Vibrant Transformative Performance Space

The SoundSpace at Earth Sanctuary will be the first acoustically-tuned chambered mound built in modern times, bridging ancient wisdom and modern technology. This ambitious project is spearheaded by environmental artist and Earth Sanctuary creator Chuck Pettis and inspired by the 5,000-year-old Maes Howe chambered mound, the finest acoustically vibrant example of a chambered mound. SoundSpace will be a transformative space that harnesses the power of sound for spiritual exploration and connection with the natural world.

I believe your chambered mound will deliver as a performance space which closely reproduces the crucial features of its prehistoric equivalents.
– Dr. Aaron Watson, leading acoustical archaeologist.

This is the passage of Maes Howe in Scotland. The SoundSpace passage will be ADA-friendly for easy accessibility.

The Structure: A dark rectangular passage flanked by standing stones that opens into a large stone chamber with three symmetrical alcoves, designed to shut out sound and light.

The Journey: As one enters the passage, you leave the outside world and embrace stillness. You move from sunlight to darkness into a space with unfamiliar sights, sounds, and sensations.

The Inspiration: 45 years of research and study by Chuck Pettis of England’s and Scotland’s ancient monuments, specifically the Maes Howe chambered mound.

The Visitors: Educators, students, meditators, musicians, performers, researchers, workshop leaders, and vocal groups will journey from near and far to visit SoundSpace. It will be a safe, ADA-accessible, and welcoming place for everyone.

A Sanctuary for Sound

SoundSpace will use several key acoustical phenomena to create a unique experience:

Exclusion of Background Noise: The chamber’s concrete walls block external sounds, creating a profound silence that helps visitors focus on their inner experiences and the sounds within the space.

  • Let us be silent that we may hear the whispers of the Gods. – Ralph Waldo Emerson, reflecting the intended atmosphere of the SoundSpace.

Acoustic Resonances: The chamber’s shape and materials reflect sound, amplifying chants or tones into a harmonious blend that makes voices seem to merge into one, creating a “heavenly” atmosphere.

Standing Waves: Sound waves of equal frequency generated by chanting, toning, drumming or musical instruments travel in opposite directions within the chamber creating alternating zones of loud and quiet areas. As visitors move, they experience shifting sound intensities, with some sounds feeling as though they come from within their own bodies.

Helmholtz Resonance:  When a drum is played at the chamber’s resonant frequency (natural frequency of vibration), it produces a powerful, low-frequency sound that is physically felt.

The combination of silence, reverberation, shifting sound zones, and the physical impact of infrasound creates an environment where the boundaries between internal and external experience can become blurred, leading to altered states of consciousness and spiritual experiences.

3D printed model of SoundSpace.

Transformations of the Mind, Body, and Spirit

Sound has the power to connect us to something beyond ourselves. It can shape the mood of a space, stir emotions, and bring the world around us to life. Inside the quiet and dark chamber, we will create unique soundscapes to spur individual and collective transformation.

  • Sound Science: Explore acoustical phenomena like Helmholtz resonance and the 111 Hertz effect that unveil the mysteries of sound science within an ancient design, creating bridges to past knowledge and future potential.
  • Profound Performances: Encounter the full spectrum of sound from subtle whispers to intense vibrations. From chanting to musical performances, each experience is designed to connect you to the unknown realms of your own mind.
  • Sacred Silence: Engage the senses and create a sanctuary for meditation and prayer where sound and silence combine for deep inner transformation and spiritual clarity.
  • Restorative Resonance: Activate healing through chanting, singing, sound waves, and meditative silence for deep inner healing and wholeness.

Your tax-deductible donation is needed to help us construct and move SoundSpace to a public opening.