Listening session by Haseeb Ahmed.
Pantha Rhei on the Rhine is an artistic and scientific research project by Studio Haseeb Ahmed. Presented at Kunsthalle Basel as a collective listening session, it features three radio plays by Pablo Diserens, Diana Duta, and Flurina Mia Häberli. Anchored in Heraclitus’ dictum “Panta rhei” (everything flows), the project frames the Rhine as a narrative system, using sound to follow the river’s journey from alpine headwaters to industrial delta. By engaging with collaborators—Diserens with alpine rock ptarmigans, Duta with the sirens of Lorelei, and Häberli with noise pollution—the project examines the river’s origins, myths, dangers, desires, and future acoustic ecologies.
Supported by Synergies from the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, the project unfolds through a series of listening sessions in partner institutions strategically along the Rhine. These sessions, at the Rehmann Museum near the headwaters, the Mesodrome in Antwerp for the middle section, and V2_ Lab in Rotterdam at the river's mouth, trace the river’s transformation. Kunsthalle Basel’s session, positioned near international borders, highlights Basel as a point of transition and underscores the project's aim to connect narrative, geography, and sound.
Pantha Rhei on the Rhine is an artistic and scientific research project by Studio Haseeb Ahmed. Presented at Kunsthalle Basel as a collective listening session, it features three radio plays by Pablo Diserens, Diana Duta, and Flurina Mia Häberli. Anchored in Heraclitus’ dictum “Panta rhei” (everything flows), the project frames the Rhine as a narrative system, using sound to follow the river’s journey from alpine headwaters to industrial delta. By engaging with collaborators—Diserens with alpine rock ptarmigans, Duta with the sirens of Lorelei, and Häberli with noise pollution—the project examines the river’s origins, myths, dangers, desires, and future acoustic ecologies.
Supported by Synergies from the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, the project unfolds through a series of listening sessions in partner institutions strategically along the Rhine. These sessions, at the Rehmann Museum near the headwaters, the Mesodrome in Antwerp for the middle section, and V2_ Lab in Rotterdam at the river's mouth, trace the river’s transformation. Kunsthalle Basel’s session, positioned near international borders, highlights Basel as a point of transition and underscores the project's aim to connect narrative, geography, and sound.
