For one Storm King alumnus, musician, and artist, the world has become his instrument. Meet William Close, Class of 1988. Creative in nature and adventurous in spirit, William has been redesigning the music experience through his creation of innovative, architectural string instruments for more than 20 years. His most famous musical creation, the Earth Harp, transcends space, geography, and form; transforming his concert venues into multisensory experiences that bring his audiences inside the resonant chamber of the instrument itself. Whether a theater or concert hall, a rugged, cliff-lined valley, or a giant skyscraper, William has the ability to see the instrument in everything. For his audiences around the world, his music is his art, and the venue is his instrument.

Country, Culture, Architecture, Sailing 

Growing up in Pound Ridge, New York, a small town in Westchester County, William says he was exposed to the best of both worlds – the beauty of the country and a close connection to New York City. “My mother was an architect and my father was a stockbroker. Their influences still play a big part in my work today,” explained William. “My artistic side was prevalent from a young age. Mirroring my mom’s interests, I got into art very early and had a strong design background. The music came later.”

“Another key influence was that I grew up on sailboats. We spent a lot of time on the Long Island Sound, Buzzards Bay, and Martha’s Vineyard. Many pieces I’ve created are based on those experiences– construction, sailboat riggings, sails…I still love to sail and I have a great sailboat in LA which I pretty much live on. I’ve sailed ocean passages; sailed in Mexico to Isla Catalina. The Pacific coast is wild, rugged, powerful, and beautiful, not to mention very cold.  These experiences have all influenced my work.”

Adventures on the Mountain

William arrived at Storm King in the middle of his sophomore year after a stint in public school. “I found myself getting lost in public school. We began looking for a more college-like environment that would give me the flexibility to do the things I wanted to do. SKS allowed me the space and mental peace to focus on my art. My father always said that SKS saved me in a lot of ways. It allowed me to come into my own as a person. I am still grateful to my art teacher, Bonnie Cayea (Newman). She really helped me focus and develop my creative side.” While at SKS, William received the school art award and was dubbed “Most Talented” in his yearbook’s senior superlatives.

“Another important aspect of my time at SKS was my profound connection with nature. Mr. Priest, another great teacher, taught the Mountaineering course. We would all go rock climbing in New Paltz’s Shawangunk Mountains, including my friend, Andrew Cohen ’88. It’s amazing up there. We also spent a lot of time in the woods hiking on the mountain around Storm King. These are some of my most memorable experiences. After graduating from SKS, Andrew and I traveled and lived in Nepal together. In our late 20s, we began working on projects together and have been since then. Both Andrew and I developed this interesting sense of adventure at SKS. I’m not sure why it occurred there, but it did.”

The First Earth Harp

Adventures out in nature were not the only thing Andrew and William shared. The two friends enjoyed jamming out on campus in their own band. “I used to play guitar and percussion and Andrew played guitar. We were just having fun, but I guess you could say that was my start in music. My musical side really developed while studying at the Art Institute of Chicago, which was a top art and music school at the time.”

Now, fast forward a decade to the turn of the millennium when William invented the first Earth Harp. How did it come about? “I was able to successfully mount four large resonators and a bridge, roughly the size of two grand pianos, to the ground on one side of a valley. Then, I ran the strings almost 1,000 feet across to the other side, creating a giant harp out of the landscape. Actually, I developed over 100 instruments before the first Earth Harp. One thing leads to another. It started with ‘what happens if I run a 20 foot string from my apartment building…Then, learning to play and tune it. It’s like any inventive process. You try different things with a lot of trial and error until it works.”

The World is His Instrument

Since his initial discovery, William has had the honor of installing the Earth Harp all around the world in many different forms including giant festival stages out over the crowds, from the tops of skyscrapers, across canyons and valleys, from mountain peaks and ancient temples, across and into lakes, pools, and beaches–the list is long. Wherever he installs the Earth Harp, William says “it creates a symphonic musical experience that brings focus, awareness, and honor to the places in which it is installed and played.”

William continues to develop “the sonic beauty of the instrument,” always refining and trying new designs. Today, he has designed and built over 50 different bridges and resonating chambers for the Earth Harp and he has 15 of his top designs to pick from when he goes to install a new Earth Harp project. In 2014, he received the Guinness World record for the “longest playable stringed instrument in the world.” This occurred at his first skyscraper installation in Singapore. “The strings of the Earth Harp went 1,000 feet from the plaza stage to the top of a beautiful, new, 1,000 foot skyscraper building,” explained William. “Recently, we had a wonderful show in the cenotes, near Cancun, Mexico. It was spectacular. The Earth Harp has traveled to at least 20 countries and every installation has its own story. This gets back to the adventurous spirit I cultivated at Storm King. Every project is an adventure.”

Celebrating the Earth

Closer to home, William has been using his talents to bring awareness to preserving the natural landscapes of California, especially the redwoods. “I’ve been working on a big film project with the Post Ranch, an environmentally correct, sustainable hotel that has teamed up with an environmental organization there. We did an initial film (the first in a series) to celebrate the Earth and the different landscapes of California. Having lost my home in Malibu Canyon during the 2007 wildfires, this project is close to my heart. It was upsetting, of course, but it was also a blessing in disguise. Ultimately, I rebuilt all the instruments I lost in the fire, and a new piece of architecture on the same site. I met my partner and our son, Phoenix, now 10, was born in the new house.”  

Life Ebbs and Flows

“Today, I have my studio in the Hollywood area, we spend a lot of time on our sailboat, and rent out the Malibu place,” William continued. “Every day is an adventure. My life is a project-based one. Sometimes I’m on for long periods, then off. It ebbs and flows, and I think it all gets back to this adventurousness I have that was born at Storm King. I hope SKS students today can experience the same feeling and pursue their passions as I have. I would encourage them to believe in themselves and go on adventures into the world. It’s the same thing I say to new artists: don’t leave any stone unturned and use your time to explore. A lot of the adventurous aspects of my life – travel, art, music, and sailing – came as a result of my time spent at Storm King, looking over the valley every day, finding myself. I was very lucky to have that experience.”   

William Close ’88 is the recipient of the 2023 Alumni Arts Award. The Alumni Arts Award recognizes exceptional artistic contributions and achievements in the visual and performing arts. William’s award was presented at Reunion 2023.