Cities and Memory - remixing the world

"Naja haje: the way knows the way honours the Egyptian cobra as a guide across myth, land, and memory. Inspired by ancestral ties to Morocco and our life in the Pacific Northwest, we entered into dialogue with the field recording—looping rhythm, layering voice, chalumeau, recorder, and drum—to explore how sound can restore relationships with the more-than-human world. The piece asks how honouring the serpent—through tending to habitat, safety, and community—can help heal the self. Marrakech traditional music soundscape reimagined by The Binary Marketing Show (Abram Morphew & Bethany Carder).

"Where does humanity presently sit in terms of faith, spirituality and striving for greatness? |Our recorded history manifests as a unified drive toward the divine. Modern existentialism folds in elements of increased division and loss of direction on the path to fulfilment. "We live in an era that measures progression and success with an obsessive focus on wide-spread improvement at every level. Yet, when we look at examples of achievements in history, we feel an unnerving disconnect that we cannot define. We have a need to engage with true greatness. Increasingly though, it is a shadow of the past. "This piece reimagines the sonic artifacts from this sacred and inspiring cathedral space from the field recording and presents it as a remake for modern consumption. Something that, on the surface, implies a betterment of sorts. But also suggests that perhaps not all is as it should be. Catedral Basílica, Santiago de Compostela reimagined by Gerald Fratzl.

"The track was built around a single, imperfect moment in time: a field recording I captured while walking through a tunnel by the main market. You can hear distant voices trading words, footsteps, fragments of conversations and the natural reverb of the tunnel itself. That recording became the spine of the piece – I didn’t treat it as background noise, but as the main “instrument”. "I started by isolating the most atmospheric sections of the recording, then layered and looped them so the voices and echoes slowly morph into a constant, breathing texture. Multiple delays with different feedback times smear the sounds into long, ghostly trails, while deep reverbs exaggerate the tunnel’s natural space and push everything further into an ambiguous, dreamlike distance. "From there, I added subtle filtering, pitch shifting and modulation effects to carve movement inside the static drone, so the ambience never sits still. Underneath, a restrained dub techno pulse emerges – low-end hits, soft chords and minimal percussive details – all heavily processed with send delays and tape-style saturation. The result is a slow, hypnotic piece where the original tunnel recording is still recognisable, but transformed into a drifting soundscape: half real-world memory, half submerged, echoing dream." Jingzhou City South Gate sounds reimagined by Yiannis Vlastaris.

"I wanted to create a musical bed of just the bird vocalizations in the Jardin de Ayora without any instruments so I grabbed different moments in the recording, cutting and looping the parrots, pigeons and some migratory birds in the park. It took me some time to create the bed of bird sounds but I knew that I needed some low end emphasis so I introduced a bass drone and some other small, minimalist musical elements. I applied some effects to a couple of the tracks of the singing birds but I left most of the tracks untreated." Jardin de Ayora, Valencia reimagined by Bill McKenna.

‘Tre Visi’ explores the sonic identity of Treviso, Italy, anchoring itself in a field recording of the city’s Fontana delle Tre Facce (Fountain of the Three Faces). The piece explores the ambiguity of the city’s history and the debate between its potential ‘Three Hills’ Latin etymology and its Celtic origins. The production includes processed samples from a Celtic-like vocal melody alongside the fountain's texture, creating a new space for three voices to navigate an expansive aural space of possibilities. Sample credits: ’Chorus 1’ by Valerie-Vivegnis Fontana dei Tre Visi, Treviso reimagined by Luca Nasciuti.

I chose this field recording because its sound world echoed the early-morning atmosphere of the Columbia River, a landscape that grounds me. I wove fragments of the original birds and frogs into a reimagined piece that balances two emotional currents: the meditative stillness of nature and the anxiety that often shadows life in the US right now. Asokore-Dabiasem amphibian sounds reimagined by Christi Denton.

Jingzhou City is said to be one of China’s best-preserved ancient cities, dating back to the Warring States period, with its existing walls standing for 350 years—the most intact city relic in southern China. Unlike other cities turned into gated tourist sites, Jingzhou’s residents still bustle through its gate passages. This recording, captured in the South Gate’s barbican during the morning traffic peak, hums with people and vehicles. Different from the past are the cars and shoes on the stone path; similar are the local dialect accents; unchanged is the echo within the barbican. Recorded by Digimonk.

The "fountain of three faces" in Treviso, Italy has water coming from a three-faced figure on one head - here we move around the fountain to listen to it from different angles. Recorded by Cities and Memory, August 2024.

Amphibian voices at dawn at Asokore-Dabiasem, Eastern Region, Ghana, recorded in A-B stereo. Identified frog species: Phrynobatrachus latifrons (Puddle Frogs) vocalising in granular textures. In the background are domestic fowls, birds, subtle swarm of unknown insects, human activity and low frequency engines. Asokore-Dabiasem is a new addition to areas in and around Koforidua where wetlands have been highly affected by building and construction activities. Recording by Abigail Baffoe, Ghana. Field Recording Mentoring by Emmanuel Baffoe, Ghana. Monitoring, Editing, and Mastering by Samuel Kudjodzi, Germany. Abigail is one of 5 trainees selected for the Soundscape Ecology Education Ghana program organised by Samuel Kudjodzi, Founder of CSEM (Center for Soundscape Ecology and Multimedia) @csem_official. She is also being trained to lead, coordinate, and educate young and professional women in CSEM`s WISEA (Women in Soundscape Ecology Africa) project. This project is supported by earth fm with a field recording equipment set.

This is a recording from Jemaa el-Fnaa Square in Marrakech, where locals are playing traditional Moroccan instruments. Among them is a special flute known for mesmerizing rattlesnakes, adding to the mix of curiosity and fear among us visitors. The atmosphere in the square was lively, with perfect weather, and the crowd couldn’t help but cheer and gather around the musicians. Recorded by Xiaoya Zhao.

Within the hallowed expanse of Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, the organ resonates through centuries of devotion and artistry. Heard in this recording, the profound sonic environment of the historic basilica emerges as each note played on the grand organ seems to breathe life into the walls, carrying the weight of countless pilgrimages and prayers. As the music unfolds, it fills the space with transcendent quality, blending seamlessly with the ambient acoustics of the Romanesque architecture and Baroque embellishments. The rich tones of the organ evoke a sense of awe, paying homage to the cathedral's role as a sacred endpoint for the Way of St. James - a journey steeped in history and spirituality. This sound setting not only preserves the majestic beauty of the organ but also invites the listener to reflect on the timeless significance of this revered place. It is a sonic offering that mirrors the cathedral’s enduring legacy as both a spiritual sanctuary and a monument to human devotion. Recorded by Serge Bulat.

This was our last day in Valencia. After an amazing lunch of empanadas and waffles, my girlfriend and I decided to take a walk to the park near the metro station we'd use later for a quick commute to the airport. The park was filled with quaker parrots, pigeons, and collared doves, all singing, flying, mating, fighting, and creating a strange but very satisfying symphony (especially from a field recorder's perspective). Recorded by Tomasz Buga.

"Working with a field recording of an air show has been deeply gratifying. On an emotional level, it has allowed for something like sublimation or integration. Having attended the 1988 Flugtag air show in Germany (in which 70 people were killed and hundreds wounded), I still tend to experience visceral reactions to the sound of fighter jets or aerobatics. Creating something of my own out of this field recording has ended up being a form of emotional processing as well. "On a technical level, the original recording proved to be highly malleable source material, and it is the sole sound source I used in my track. As the sound of jets is effectively rhythmic noise (and thus full of frequencies), I decided to slow it down drastically, reverse and granulate a brief segment, and then pitch shift that result into additional notes to form a chord. I then pulsed various strains of that chord with looping envelopes and ran them through spatial and time-based effects that morph ever so slightly over the duration of the track. The result, I hope, is something of a meditative repetition that rewards close attention." Red Arrows display in Southport reimagined by Jerome Veith.

"This work originates from a field recording captured in Madobag Village on the Mentawai Islands in Indonesia. In the recording, the sounds of children playing around an old well echo through the space. For me, this recording is not merely documentary material; it functions as a sonic memory that can transport me back to a particular moment and setting. It triggered my reflection on the gap between the fleeting serenity of travel and the pressures of daily life and became the starting point for the work’s narrative. "The piece unfolds around the tension between two acoustic worlds. The opening section extends the calm atmosphere of the island from the original soundscape, using soft drones and drifting textures to form a dreamlike space situated between the external environment and internal perception. It's not a literal dream but rather a sonic reimagining of how memories emerge and rearrange themselves during times of exhaustion or yearning. "The subsequent sonic rupture arising from the cold, piercing tones of phone alarms and everyday noise breaks apart this inner soundscape. This interruption not only signifies the collapse of the imagined space but also contrasts fond memories and apparent daily pressures. In the latter part of the piece, fragments of the field recording intertwine with real-world sounds, placing the listener in a blurred state between wakefulness and recollection, where attempts to re-enter the dreamlike space become increasingly unstable. "Ultimately, the work sustains an open, unresolved narrative tension, oscillating between memory and the present, desire and helplessness, and revealing how memory, longing, and soundscape continually shape one another." Indonesian village soundscape reimagined by Boyi Bai.

"This composition was created using exclusively a recording of a traditional Vietnamese funeral ceremony. Fragments were taken from the original track and subsequently manipulated. "In particular, the resonances produced by the percussive instrument were extracted, thus creating long sound bands, onto which the distant dirge is grafted. The intent was to create an internal acoustic vision imagined from the deceased's perspective." Funeral soundscape in Vietnam reimagined by Nicola Fumo Frattegiani.

The Red Arrows display team flying over Southport at the annual air show in July 2024, with the sound of spectators in the background. Recorded by Stewart Hoyle.

Immerse yourself in the joyful ambiance of Madobag village, Mentawai Islands, where children's laughter and playful shouts fill the air. This soundscape captures the carefree moments of youngsters gathered around an ancient well, their giggles and splashing sounds blending with the serene atmosphere of the surrounding environment. Recorded in Indonesia by Farhan Boy.

My grandfather's funeral was according to village customs. Recorded in Vietnam by Nhat Vuong Nguyen Trinh.

"I first visited Portland in the early 2000’s, as part of a DIY west coast tour with a band from my, (at the time) home of Brighton UK. "When I saw the option to work with a piece of Portland audio for this project, something resonated, connecting me to the idea of distance between then and now in my own life, and that of my bandmates. That sense of how things move forward, inevitably, but that an aspect can also remain, that can be conjured up, and reconnected with, like a talisman or a map. "Sonically, I was drawn to create a piece consisting of several distinct movements, utilising a broad range of sounds, and a narrative that draws in the listener. I welcomed in happenstance, and several aspects came about by what my former A’level art teacher would refer to as ‘a happy accident’, including some of the vocal work between myself and collaborator Nicky Rushton - these were nice surprises, and I kept them in the final piece. "Elsewhere, I used small sections of the original recording, sometimes rhythmically, others atmospherically, and at others to inform melodic phrasing. "I called the piece ‘Portland dreams’ in reference to the original audio, and in the way that a dream is a kind of memory, but can also be a vision for the future. Portland, or rather, the symbolism of Portland, can still be that place full of possibilities and freedoms I experienced for the first time back then, despite all the many changes in the world and myself since." Portland Memory Den reimagined by Suzi Lamb with Nicky Rushton.

I've always enjoyed Leo Villareal's "Multiverse" (2008) which is located between the East Building and the West Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC. The work, made of light-emitting diodes, surrounds you as you are transported via a moving walkway. In the recording, you can hear the sound of people chatting and laughing, (I swear I hear someone happily say "Jamiroquai!" towards the end), heels clacking as some choose to walk instead of using the walkway, and beginning at the eight-minute mark you can hear a child say "wow!" a few times. Their father is holding them in his arms and, as they get near, you can hear him sing the end of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Recorded by Bill McKenna.