A group of 17 people stand together, imitating the sounds of guinea-pigs. No one is watching them, no one is recording it. This, according to the former KLF musician Bill Drummond (yes, the one who burnt loads of money), is the future of music. The17 is a choral project that Drummond has been developing, largely in schools, as an exploration of what music might mean in the postdigital world. Ease of access to recorded music, Drummond argues, means that soon, “music will no longer contain the meaning it once held for us . . . We will begin to seek out music that is both occasion and place-specific.”

Working with children in schools around the country, Drummond has developed a series of “scores” for an ad hoc choir of 17 people (The17), who could be anyone from a bunch of lawyers to visitors to a gallery. Indeed, on four dates in November and December, Drummond will be holding performances at the conveniently named Seventeen Gallery in East London. No one knows what score will be followed, or if by booking a place, you’re volunteering your voice. Previous scores have included said guinea-pig imitations and listening to the gurgling sounds made by another group member’s tummy. Any recordings made are deleted at the end of the performance.

“The era of recorded music is now passing and within the next decade it will begin to look and sound like a dated medium,” Drummond claims. Once you’ve heard 17 gallery-goers honking away like rodents that might well seem like a good thing. www.the17.org; www.seventeengallery.com

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