Modern Biology

Tarun Nayar is a musician and biologist who creates ambient music by improvising with the natural vibrations of plants and places. Using modular synthesis, handbuilt synthesizers, and analog equipment, he captures plant bioelectricity, electromagnetic radiation, and the earth's resonant frequencies. Trained in Indian classical music from childhood, he applies the raga system to shape his compositions by time of day and season. His work aims to bring listeners into the present moment through vibration, space, and connection to the natural world.

Nayar's videos have been viewed over 100 million times and earned him more than 1 million online followers. His work has been featured by The Guardian, LA Times, BBC, Genius, Vice, The Verge, and DJ Mag, and his recent albums have received editorial support on Spotify's Music for Plants, Deep Listening, and Lava Lamp playlists.

His 'Field Trip' project invites audiences to assemble in public parks, forage for plants and mushrooms, and then listen to music improvised from the bioelectric impulses of what they've collected. Recent field trips have taken place in New York City, San Francisco, San Diego, Vancouver, and Toronto.

Recent live performances include Art Basel (Miami), MOCA (Los Angeles), New York Botanical Garden, and the Vancouver Art Gallery. In fall 2023, Modern Biology opened the Nobel Prize Museum's Fungi Exhibition in Stockholm.

Nayar is committed to protecting wild places and directs the majority of this project's proceeds toward supporting the natural world.