Cities and Memory - remixing the world

"I approached the piece with the idea of creating multiple songs to weave into the original recording of the events in Tiananmen Square in 1989. This would be a sort of sonic tryptic as if dialling through imaginary radio waves backwards and forwards in time. 

The first part is a simple refrain with organ like tones interspersed with "turn of the dial" like static and half heard voices. Snatches of the developing story can be heard. 

The second part a fleeting moment of footwork inspired sonic exploration possibly as the dial moves through the radio waves and we travel briefly to a moment of reflection in the future. 

The third part is a more frenetic free form electronic drone cut through with the refrain "this is Radio Beijing". The jingle for Radio Beijing has been reversed at the end of the track and acts as a moment to reflection on an event we sadly cannot reverse."

Composition by Andy Billington.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"It's all about the feeling of awe. 

A few minutes in space could be few years on Earth. This hypothesis isn't new but it's still mindblowing. As much as a sheer vastness of space and it's incomprehensible scales. How infinitesimally small we are in comparison! But I believe we all feel just how deep the inner spaces of our minds can be.

That's what I was thinking when I heard the original recording. With these thoughts in mind I've recorded a drone piece. Monumental, slowly evolving organ-like timbre and randomly processed original recording are doing the job. And while editing the recording I was constantly remembering scenes from Stanley Kubrick's 2001: Space Odyssey. Hence the name of the piece.

When I think of it all now, it's just simply amazing how astronaut's conversations recorded via radio circa 1986 can resonate here & now. And well into the future."

Composition by Vlad Suppish.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"The radio announcer discourses on the necessity of improvisation for dealing with uncommon occurrences such as disasters. This became my watchword. 

This piece is an improvisation. Organized in a generally haphazard fashion, but an improvisation nonetheless."

Composition by Paul Collins.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"The original file was a recorded transmission between earth base station and the crew in a spaceship.

 

Outer space is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and between celestial bodies.

I have composed an ambient cinematic soundscape, where the listener will find a plethora of layers, orbiting sounds, moving stereo meteorites , floating pads , a soundtrack for outer space. 

The vastness of space, the silence, gave me the opportunity to fill the void with atmospheric elements, wide and deep sound movements.

Esoteric worlds expanding through the sound forces into the outer spaces and beyond, sound is the language of the Universe."

Composition by John Ov3rblast.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"I'm Irish but live in Bulgaria. Like most countries in Eastern Europe there are remnants of Communism everywhere. Although the sample I worked with related to the Communist downfall in Romania, it got me thinking about all the transmissions that must have occurred at the time across this part of the continent. My track is a reflection, or interpretation, of the voices that might never have been heard."

Composition by Ronan Considine.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"To mark the 30th anniversary of the Romanian Revolution, a recording of "Austrian Shortwave Panorama", Radio Austria International's weekly DX programme presented by David Hermges.  This was a special edition broadcast a few days after Romania's 1989 revolution originally broadcast on 31st December 1989 (although this recording is of a repeat from sometime in 1990).  Contains off-air recordings of Radio Bucharest and Radio Free Europe (in English, Romanian and other languages) recounting the events of the revolution. 

Frequency: 13.730  MHz

Reception location: Birmingham, UK  

Receiver and antenna: Toshiba portable, telescopic antenna."

Recorded by Tim Harrold, courtesy of the Shortwave Radio Archive.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"During the Tiananmen Protests in 1989, a courageous announcer at Radio Beijing went on the air with the following announcement:

“This is Radio Beijing. Please remember June 3, 1989. The most tragic event happened in the Chinese capital, Beijing. Thousands of people, most of them innocent civilians, were killed by fully armed soldiers when they forced their way into the city. Among the killed are our colleagues at Radio Beijing. The soldiers were riding on armored vehicles and used machine guns against thousands of local residents and students who tried to block their way. When the army convoys made a breakthrough, soldiers continued to spray their bullets indiscriminately at crowds in the street. Eyewitnesses say some armored vehicles [inaudible] foot soldiers who hesitated in front of the resisting civilians. Radio Beijing’s English department deeply mourns those who died in a tragic incident and appeals to all its listeners to join our protest for the gross violations of human rights and the most barbarous suppression of the people. Because of the abnormal situation here in Beijing, there is no other news that we could bring you. We sincerely ask for your understanding and thank you for joining us at this most tragic moment.”

The above announcement was followed by a regular newscast.

According to some sources, the announcer was apprehended by the authorities almost immediately and detained for several years where he was separated from his family and underwent extended reeducation campaign."

Recorded by Tom Gavaras, courtesy of the Shortwave Radio Archive.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"Rutan Model 76 Voyager Experimental Aircraft was the first aircraft to fly around the world without stopping or refueling. It was piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager. The flight took off from Edwards Air Force Base's runway in the Mojave Desert on December 14, 1986, and ended 9 days later on December 23, setting a flight endurance record. This shortwave recording is a sample of some of the communications between Dick Rutan and his ground crew including a debate if Dick should walk out of the aircraft after it lands.

Note: Best estimate for date of recording is December 22, 1986."

Recorded by Tom Gavaras, courtesy of the Shortwave Radio Archive.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"Announcement explaining the reason for a reduced signal strength. Cyclone Tracy put the Darwin transmitter site off air. News bulletin plus other selected items that were broadcast relating to the evacuation of Darwin.  Because the local 8DR MW transmitter was damaged a microwave link was set up between Darwin and Shepparton with the programme transmitted back to Darwin on shortwave.

Date of recording: 12/25/1974

Starting time: 2100 UTC

Frequency: 9.58 MHz

Your location: Lower Hutt, New Zealand, 26 December NZDT

Receiver and antenna: Trio 9R59DSM communications receiver with a random length long wire."

Recorded by Paul Rawdon, courtesy of the Shortwave Radio Archive.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave

"Recently I came across QSLs that I received from the Voyager crew from their historic 1986 circumnavigation of the earth. After continued searching I also came across the cassette recordings I made of some of their communications between Dec 20 - 22, 1986. The first hour provides the most compelling listening, as I started the tape just before Voyage unexpectedly ran into severe weather issues off the coast of Brazil. The small aircraft was tossed to a bank angle of 90 degrees, which theoretically it shouldn't have recovered from, yet Rutan was just barely able to maintain control and keep flying. At the worst possible time, the Vandenburg transmitter went down leaving Rutan and Yeager out of communication with their weather team who they were depending on to give them a safe heading to fly out of the storms. The stress and tension of the situation are very evident in the voices. I have several hours of additional comms, but this excerpt is the most compelling."

Recorded by Bruce Frederick, courtesy of the Shortwave Radio Archive.

Part of the Shortwave Transmissions project, documenting and reimagining the sounds of shortwave radio - find out more and see the whole project at https://citiesandmemory.com/shortwave