Sonic Pavilion Behind-the-Scenes: 1000 Footer
1000-Footer by M. Azevedo celebrates the tireless service of the thirteen mighty thousand-foot Lake freighters. Too large by far to navigate the locks of the St. Lawrence Seaway, these thirteen titans will spend their entire service lives traversing the Great Lakes, hauling ore from the Minnesota iron fields to southern ports in Lake Michigan and Erie. The piece uses a mix of musical sounds and field recordings of the freighters that translate the paths of the ships into motion around the 24 channel Pritzker Pavilion sound system. 1000 Footer premieres at Sonic Pavilion Festival September 12-14, 2026.
On August 7, 2026 as part of his research, M. Azevedo visited the Mesabi Miner freighter. The M/V Mesabi Miner is a 1,004-foot-long self-discharging bulk carrier that operates as an active lake freighter on the upper North American Great Lakes.
