SOA

SOA is an extraordinary film about listening and sound. Director and sound artist Raquel Castro spent several years accumulating interviews with various specialists who all have a thoughtful relationship with the sonic environment: soundwalkers, sound artists and theorists, field recordists, scientists and architects. Each has a fascinating perspective and the film’s aural collage makes you hear anew. Screening with the short film Pripyat Piano, exploring abandoned pianos in the Chernobyl radiation zone, the only inhabitants who can maintain its sounds even if the surrounding walls collapse.

‘Sounds are ecological properties of our surroundings, and affect our perception of space and our relationship with activities occurring within cities. Different places have identifiable sonic identities relating to their specific locations and the auditory culture of the place. We are influenced by the environments we live in, but mostly not aware of them. There is a need for a more activated way of listening to our environment, which can lead to greater awareness of what’s around us. Artists can help with this. Works [like SOA] help us to experience sound deeply, making us aware of our ears and bodies which listen all the time, are more necessary than ever.’

KMRU, sound artist.