The shape of things

It is said that the aboriginal people of Australia use songs to navigate their way around the desert landscape. Walking along in the featureless plains they will sing a song to themselves, feeling how the song flows not only through them but also through the environment around them. They then navigate by this feeling of connectedness. When the song feels out of tune, or does not fit they know that they have taken a wrong turn or have gone too far. Feeling "in tune", feeling a resonant connection with the world around them is essential to tracking their way through this ancient wilderness.

Resonance can be a powerful thing. All young engineering students are imprinted with the fantastic images of the Tacoma Narrow Bridge progressively ripping itself apart. Cars are thrown from the bridge as concrete is turned into jelly as the resonant energy progressively builds in amplitude.
As the human species moves progressively from relying purely on the innate abilities of our bodies to a more augmented experience of time/space we will surely develop a new form of resonance with our environment. During the great Tsunami there were some interesting observations about ancient tribes, especially the Andamanese, surviving the onslaught due to innate awareness of the impending disaster. A nearby tribe, assimilated into more western lifestyles were struck badly, as their innate senses were dulled.

Psychogeology has played a fundamental role in the development of man's consciousness. Louis Liebenberg wrote a phenomenal book on how tracking is the origin of science. Our orientation in space is one of the first challenges we face as babies. As we grow up and evolve we develop a more intricate way of finding our way about, even defining ourselves by the piece of political geography we are born in.

Increasingly however this link is becoming more tenuous. Geography is no longer destiny. As greater distances develop between the cause and consequences of our daily lives, it becomes harder to pinpoint the exact location of our awareness. Weren't we all in New York on 9/11. Are we not all sharing in the 14 hour day of the sneaker stitchery?
The new map of the world, with shifted experiences, assimilated awareness's and a sharing of emotional insecurity is heralding a new form of tracking. We still carry songs with us as we navigate the urban landscape. The songs are now entering an open source plug and play environment with mobile devices becomming our most intimate confession booths.
Songs are important because they provide an emotional resonance. The church and before that the shamans knew this. Religion, rituals and a connection with god is so innately connected with music that they are indistinguishable. The Resurrection of Apple was entirely defined by it's embrace of music. Interestingly, Steve Jobs's brief for the first Macintosh computer to Harmut Esslinger was "Make it look like a Bob Dylan song sounds". Shape and sound, sound and resonance, resonance and shape. A closed loop where things are shaped by the resonance of their ambient sounds.

Defining the shape of the future consumer experience is the interesting thing from the marketing point of view. The interplay between shape and sound is what gives resonance it's power. How do we incarnate the emotions that are locked up in music? How do we provide physical reality to emotional engagement? Will we provide the urban soundtrack for the day? Walking through town looking for a new coat, the songs will guide me to perfect match for my budget and style? When I walk off Oxford street I start hearing 80's tunes?
Increasingly however the resonance we seek, the emotional resonance, will match a process and not just a well designed product. Sustainable production processes, green and eco profiles that connect beyond the immediate moment of gratification. Perhaps the new form of navigating an emotional landscape is the evolutionary necessity for surviving in a world plagued by climate crisis and individual isolation?