How To Be A Whale

Bring along your yoga mat and cushions and lay back on the Museum floors to immerse yourself in the world of whale song with author Tom Mustill and sound sculptor Vahakn Matossian.

Hear from Tom Mustill, the author of How to Speak Whale, about how pioneers in modern technology, big data and AI are working to decode the mysteries of whale song and what it is beginning to reveal. Make sure to bring along yoga mats and cushions to lay back and experience it yourself as sound sculptor, Vahakn Matossian, immerses you in their world featuring over 300 bio-acoustic recordings under the Museum lights. The event is suitable for all ages and includes a chance to buy a copy of How to Speak Whale, discuss more of the recent developments in whale communication with Tom and meet our curators while examining some cetacean specimens from the Museum’s collections.

Part of the Oxford IF festival.

Tickets cost £10. Book online.

Tom Mustill is a biologist, filmmaker and writer of How to Speak Whale, a New Yorker Best Book of 2022. His film collaborations, many with Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough, have won over 30 awards including a BAFTA, two WEBBY’s and an Emmy nomination, been played at the UN, Times Square, projected onto the cliffs of Dover and on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury. Tom was made an Ambassador for Whale and Dolphin Conservation travelling to COP28 to advocate for cetaceans using their voices.

Vahakn Matossian is a composer, producer and one half of the electro-acoustic duo SONNEN. He is also a designer-builder of musical instruments for players with physical disabilities, collaborating with the likes of MIT, BFI, Yamaha, the British Council, and British ParaOrchestra.