Cities and Memory - remixing the world

"The originating field recording is - frankly speaking - quite monotonous along its ten minutes... Thus my intention was/is to open up that monotony by overlaying various instruments. 

"Defining C major as fitting main root note, I stacked several VST midi instruments, mostly using the pentatonic scale, over the field recoding. The latter is doubled by itself at double speed (used two times in a row); both are regulated in volumes against the the instruments, but they never fade out totally. The midi instruments used are: two synth pads, church organ, and two choirs."

Dartmoor streams reimagined by Andreas Pirner. 

A peaceful recording of a natural pool fed by flowing streams, where you can wild swim and immerse yourself in the sounds of the surrounding landscape.

Located near Okehampton, Devon, this tranquil spot captures the gentle movement of water and the quiet atmosphere of the natural environment. One of nature’s simple gifts.

Recorded by Jake Edwards. 

"There are memories in everything.

"In nature, in our voices, in all of the world.

"This field recording may sound like the memories of others, but at the same time it sounds like a shimmer of my own memories.

"In a shared landscape, individual memories accumulate to form a faintly sacred scene.
People can access memories which can’t be touched but are nonetheless real, sometimes close sometimes distant.

"If we try to touch it, it may disappear, but like a wave, it ebbs and flows, approaches and recedes. These memories fall under my loving gaze.

"By varying the levels of the ambient sounds (such as the waves) throughout the piece, I sought to represent our continuously changing proximity to our memories. I recorded improvisations on the piano and keyboard, imitated the sound of the wind using my voice, and overlaid spoken word recitations.

"Depending on our state of mind, our impressions of even a single memory can wildly differ, so I processed the same material in different ways to reflect this, sometimes making it brighter, and sometimes heavier."

Nature walk in Stary Sącz, Poland reimagined by Lisa Nanzaki.

In Vilnius we were grateful that the Black Ceramics Centre welcomed us into their studio for a behind the scenes close recording session of their manufacturing processes. Here, Ieva Paukstyte is kneading together a blend of wet and dry clay until it becomes usable for moulding her work, with the squelch and thump down onto the table. 

Black ceramics in Lithuania ― one of the types of black-smoked ceramics, produced using a special technology. It is also called: black-polished, black, grey, smoky, smoked ceramics. Such products have a black colour with a metallic, green or purple sheen, but without the use of dyes. Lithuanian black ceramics are one of the oldest in Europe. This technique was very common in the medieval Europe. Archaeological research in Lithuania has proven that already in the 14th century black ceramics were widespread in the area of modern Vilnius. The Modern Age saw enamel techniques gaining prevalence and black ceramics pushed aside. During the 20th century black ceramics became a rarity. Lithuania is one of the few European countries that has preserved the art of black pottery.

Recorded in October 2026 by Cities and Memory. 

Platforms 9 and 10 at Oslo central station, waiting for a train to depart, we hear arrivals and departures, loud train sounds, trolley bags, announcements and the general hum of a major railway station. 

Recorded in 2025 by Cities and Memory. 

The sound of the ocean on the beaches of Cabo Frio, Brazil - a cloudy day with little wind. 

Recorded by Patricio Lerma.

"The piece represents a busy few minutes on Track 9 of Oslo station. All the sounds are made up from sections of the original field recording - sampled, sequenced, pitched, grained, wave-tabled and just generally mashed up whilst the original recording runs in parallel."

Oslo train station soundscape reimagined by Simon Woods.

"I always thought that the waves have their own grooves. My piece follows, complements and builds upon the rhythm of the waves in the recording I have chosen. It aims to be straightforward and slightly hypnotic like the waves of an ocean. Incantations is based on a live jam and it was recorded with an eight track recorder, without the use of a computer."

Waves in Cabo Frio reimagined by Rin Kaseya.

"The original recording is processed through a series of tuned resonators and combined with granular based background sound."

Vilnius black ceramics kneading reimagined by Wolfgang Ludewig / Radialfilm.