A SOUNDWALK THROUGH BUDAPEST
[47.499553° N, 19.054739° O]
a blend between a realistic urban- and surreal soundscape composition
"A Soundwalk Through Budapest [47.499553° N, 19.054739° O]" is an auditory representation of a field-recording session in Budapest on February 16th, 2022. This sonification of the city is created by several recorded one-shots and ambiences, placed in chronological order, resulting in this soundwalk concept.
The soundwalk starts in the elevator of the apartment complex located on Király Utca. As we exit the building, we are greeted by various street ambiences and daytime sounds. These ambiences form the basis of the intro, interludes and outro in "Buda’s Barrels" and "Madách Imre," which can be found on the same record. As tourists from a country with a different currency, the abundance of available ATMs in the city is really useful. Along the way we noticed that each ATM has a different pitch, timbre and processing. As the street ambiences evolve, its supported by these authentic sonic pulses from several ATMs.
The second location we arrive at is the Danube River. We are on a boat tour to capture the city’s illuminated landmarks, such as the Chain Bridge, Buda Castle District, and the Hungarian Parliament. The rumbling engine of the boat and the sound of moving water are accompanied by classical music and multilingual speeches, which are captured from the audio guide on the tour as a representation of tourism in this bustling city.
After the boat tour, we once again arrive on the city streets. Budapest, with almost 1.8 million residents, is under constant development, which can be heard as construction noises dominate the street ambiences. As we continue walking, the construction sounds gradually fade away as we arrive at Madách Imre út. On this street, we find several empty barrels. Each barrel has a different timbre and resonance, which can be heard in the presented hits.
As the barrels slowly disappear, our soundwalk continues at the tram station and then leads us to Budapest Airport, which slowly transitions to the flight back home to Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam.
"A Soundwalk Through Budapest [47.499553° N, 19.054739° O]" is released on December 22nd 2023.
The recordings are made in Budapest, Hungary on February 16th 2022.
All sounds are recorded with two unidirectional condenser microphones in X/Y setup.
"A Soundwalk Through Budapest [47.499553° N, 19.054739° O]" is part of the project "Buda's Barrels", released under Sem's organic dance alias, OKIN-OMIS. Besides the soundwalk, the record contains three dance tracks.
The project “Buda’s Barrels” is a sonification of Budapest and created by several recorded one-shots and ambiences from the city. The empty barrels, also mentioned in the soundwalk description, form the main percussive framework of the project.
This collection of raw material from Budapest results in unique auditory experiences and a distinctive artistic expression. By converting these surroundings into machines, “Buda’s Barrels” results in a sonic landscapes that immerse listeners in danceable sonifications of biotic rhythms and organic textures.