The city Tunes Itself

Lee Patterson (UK)

The City Tunes Itself explores the hidden sounds of the city – not the sounds that bounce off it’s many surfaces but the vibrations within it’s materials and structures. Presented in four parts on media players and headphones or available as a download, each movement is composed for located listening in specific parks and gardens in the south of Brussels, with the sounds gathered from the surrounding areas. Urban features such as tram pylons, metal railings and sign posts act as tuning forks embedded into the city’s fabric, filtering its‘ sounds according to their resonant properties. Electro-magnetic fluctuations from passing cars and trams feature alongside the sounds of co-existent organisms such as plants, birds and fish. The City Tunes Itself reveals the musicality and inefficiency of energy flow through the urban environment as sound energy is transformed by the city’s resident materials. To the roadside railing or lamp post, a passing car or tram is like the bow to the violin.
[lang_nl]Deze wandeling onthult de verborgen geluiden van de stad. Vier onderdelen zetten aan tot luisteren in specifieke parken en tuinen in het zuiden van Brussel. Typische stadsgeluiden treden in dialoog met natuurlijke organismen die zich in dezelfde omgeving bevinden. Het werkt illustreert de muzikaliteit en klankenergie van de stad door stedelijke elementen gericht in te zetten.[/lang_nl]
[lang_fr]Cette promenade dévoile les sons cachés de la ville. Quatre éléments incitent à l’écoute dans des parcs et des jardins spécifiques au sud de Bruxelles. Des sons typiques de la ville entrent en dialogue avec les organismes naturels qui les entourent. L’oeuvre illustre la musicalité et l’énergie des sons de la ville par l’utilisation réfléchie des éléments urbains.[/lang_fr]

appearance at Tuned City
Brussels / Situational Listening – 29. June 2013