I have now completed both sound installations for this project.
For the Pines Calyx location I have used a combination of the flints that I have sourced from the Pines Gardens as well as recordings from Ian Cross’s experiments recreating flint instruments that could possibly have been used in the Upper Palaeolithic age. The resulting composition is a repeating sound score that can be listened to in the circular white building pictured in one of the previous posts.
As a reference to time passing, the music’s notes beat on the second every second, giving way to a hypnotic composition that hints at the stones’ physical properties and serves as a reminder to their role as foundational tools in creating the world as we know it today.
In the Charlton Centre Car Park I have installed a recording that I have made of a male nightingale. This bird is an endangered species, at least in the UK, that visits this time of year. On arrival, the bird sings during the night in order to attract a mate.
In a similar manner, my installed birdsong also calls out: not only to the wildlife but to other users of the Car Park, encouraging questions relating to its identity as well as its relationship to the space. The nightingale’s song has components that remind me of the sound of the car engine, and this also helps connect the bird to this particular location.
Targetfollow (the owners of the Car Park) have really taken to this particular installation and are enquiring about the possibility of installing birdsong in its other car parks nationwide!
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