The histories of architecture in the city are ‘scrolls’ waiting to be discovered and ‘read’ (Calvino, 1972). While investigating these scrolls through the practice of walking the streets of the city accompanied by wheeled luggage, I have found a ‘stylus’ for reading the pavement topography, the skin of the city. The wheels of the luggage bag connect directly with the built environment, rather like putting the needle on a record: a record that is city-sized and can be played in any direction. This practice presents a way of recording, mapping, and sonifying the streets of the city.
Put The Needle On The Record was created by Loz Colbert. Find out more about the project here.
From my sound diary that day 04102019: Boulder, the sound of the wind in the trees, finally! There has been a distinct lack of the sensation of seasons, only glaring persistent heat, until now. In the evening of today, a marching and dancing band in the public square, the tuned bass drums made a great watery sound; the snare drummers were excellent and highly choreographed…
Street-wise, Boulder was more dainty, neat and connected overall. The street surface was mainly small slabs and neat tiles. The luggage bag clacks along happily with regular, unbroken and repetitive sections. We were based more directly in the city centre for this concert, and an acceptance of ‘culture’ seemed to shine out here and be an appreciated jewel in the community, as the photo below shows, and as opposed to the somewhat sleazy sub-cultural status of the locations where bands like ours might play in Austin and Dallas. There was a community feeling here, there were student villages and parks. Most notably for me here: a gust of wind or two, and a cool freshness in the air – finally the suggestion of a season – autumn, fall. We had previously been told we don’t really have any seasons in Texas anymore … due to global warming…
