American Mr Fontana has created works around some of the world's most famous locations – including the Arc de Triomphe in Paris and San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.
And he is set to apply the same groundbreaking techniques he used in San Francisco to the Finnieston Crane.
Mr Fontana, a composer and artist, said: "I'm incredibly excited to be staging my latest installation in Glasgow – it's a wonderful city with an international reputation for its vibrant music scene and rich industrial heritage.
"The Finnieston Crane is an emblem of the city's engineering past, and I hope this project will uncover sounds that will fascinate and surprise the people of Glasgow and beyond, as well as tap into the history of this iconic structure."
The installation will involve attaching microphones to pick up the sounds the crane makes, which are not audible to the human ear.
Called Silent Echoes – Finnieston Crane – Glasgow, the live sounds and images from the crane will be transmitted via satellite to city's Gallery of Modern Art.
The project, the first of Glasgow's UNESCO City of Music commissions, will open on April 18.
Mr Fontana, one of the world's leading sound artists, has created installations in San Francisco, New York, Paris, London, Berlin, Venice, Sydney and Tokyo.
His Finnieston installation, commissioned by Glasgow UNESCO City of Music with support from Creative Scotland, is the culmination of more than a year of development.
Svend Brown, director of Glasgow UNESCO City of Music, said: "By linking top-class international work like Bill's to iconic aspects of our landscape we take the name of Glasgow far and wide.
"We're thrilled to be working with Bill on our very first Glasgow commission – this series will continue to see more of the world's greatest artists create work reflecting our city and its history."
catriona.stewart@ eveningtimes.co.uk
