Cities and Memory - remixing the world

Shanghai train reimagined by Barkode/Martin de Korte.

"Most of the manipulating and composing of the new sound layers for this remix was done with a setup of the Moog Grandmother, Moog Dfam and 2 Moog Mother 32s, besides several eurorack modules and Akai Tape recorders.

"The original version was filtered and sampled thru eurorack modular filtering modules such as Mutable Instruments Clouds and the T-Rackonizer Filter Matrix.

"The work was arranged and mastered in Ableton Live.

"Vocals by Winnie Sy Chan."

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

At this time of January the Neva river in St. Petesburg is usually frozen. The 2020 winter was extremely warm. The sound was recorded on the bank of the Peter and Paul Fortress. You can hear the waves and some sounds from under the stone arch wave echoes.  

Recorded by Masha Sha.

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Rione Monti reimagined by Emiliano Venanzini.

"Based on a recording taken in Rione Monti, Rome. The raw recording is divided in 3 moments, in the first we can hear cars, birds and people working (hammering  far): though there are some city sounds it has somehow a calm atmosphere. Second moment consists mostly in different people talking various problems in a very crowded square (piazza degli zingari), and some tourists too. The third moment starts again with working noises (a saw) but becomes quickly more calm (getting far from the crowded square) till a moment near the end in which there is almost absolute silence, before it gets broken by a car passing far and a flock of seagulls cawing.

"Seagulls are an important ecological change in Rome: they started establishing there in the last 15-20 years, looking for food and finding trash in the bins, or sometimes eating pidgeons.

"I made a musical composition trying to emphasize the 3 "moods" of the raw recording, but keeping 2 fundamental elements (main pad and synth delayed chords) all the same all across the composition, while other elements start and change in different points; so in the beginning music is more quiet, in the middle is a bit more more anxious and in the end returns quiet but not as in the beginning.

"The composition is made from 8 sounds: the recording (and some sample from that), 3 drum pieces (kick, snare, hihat) a pad, 2 different synths and a piano."

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Neva river reimagined by Hayley Suviste.

"The Neva River would usually be frozen by this point in winter, however the river remains unfrozen. This work traces the sound of the Nera River from its frozen form to its fluid. 

"The world is warming. The ice is melting. The sea levels are rising. Our future cities and homes may be lost."

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Malaysian ferry reimagined by Miranda Taylor.

"The ferry horn being the focus of this sound, it is imposing and grumbly. The pitch and tempo differences construct a state of urgency, however this concentrates more on the ferry rather than the transit."

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

This is a passenger's journey on "Pulau Undan", the name of ferry as part of the oldest ferry operation in Malaysia. This recording depicts a cross-strait transit from Butterworth to George Town on the upper deck, at the moment when the ferry approached the terminal.

Recorded by O.W. Chow.

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Porta Portese market reimagined by Clelia Ciardulli.

"In hearing the sound of people in the Porta Portese Market in Rome, I felt my heart skip (un tuffo al cuore): the sound of my father's accent, an accent that embodies his attitudes, his mannerism... my dad's world.  

"It sparked a series of memories, vignettes, the stories of his family, of the Roman character, and my longing for him.  

"I play the flute in an attempt of living, speaking that belonging, while the original sound recording splinters in images and sounds. And noise, an element of sound that has slowly but surely emerged more and more in the soundscape of our lives."

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Porta Portese is Rome's largest flea market that is held every Sunday in the Trastevere area. This soundwalk captures the very lively atmosphere.

Recorded by Colin Hunter.

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Recorded by Valerio Orlandini.

"The Mercato Centrale (central market) is a big indoor market existing in this form since the XIX century. In Mercato Centrale there are many sellers of typical Tuscan food, and it is appealing both to tourists, who can enjoy a very peculiar experience, and to locals, who can buy quality food at good prices. The soundscape is dense and chaotic, and changes from one stall to the other. If it wasn't for its beauty, walking across it with eyes closed and ears open would be the best way to enjoy this lively place, which is able to constantly change without losing its identity."

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities

Shibuya crossing reimagined by Narcosislabs.

"What do the dreams of the streetlamps at the Shibuya crossing sound like after the last train and everyone has gone home? "

Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities