Over the course of two 2 hour sessions with Jose, I have learnt and explored how to process, engulf and evoke sound in a naturalistic environment.
The first walk, took place on the 27th of November, in Dulwich, South East London.
Jose led us into a park, just beside the Horniman museum. There, we were split into pairs, one being given a blindfold, the other a blind man’s cane. The task was for one to lead the other (blindfolded) through the open space, provoking the blindfolded person to listen, process and map to the world around them.
At first, I found myself at a great discomfort, having one of my major senses completely closed off, and having to rely on the others in order to comprehend what was happening. After a few minutes of this, I started to subconsciously zone out, focusing just on what I was hearing, and how I was processing each new or reoccurring sound. As well as this, I found myself attempting to visually map out the open space in front of me, in accord to what I was hearing. Due to the park being a large open space, large stretches of grass with trees wide to either side, each sound was incredibly clear, whether it be birdsong, or people talking whilst walking past.
For the second part of the walk, Jose led us into a different park: Dulwich Wood.
Once again, as soon as I was blindfolded, a sudden discomfort washed over me, although this time, only lasting around 30 seconds before I was at ease with the environment.
Dulwich wood is very different to the Horniman gardens. It is a lot denser with trees looming over you in every which way, as well as the ground being a combination of branches, leaves and mud, the sound of each step being very different to what was heard at the gardens.
Visually mapping the wood was more difficult too, with barely anyone there but us, and the birdsong seeming to be further and further away with each step. The denseness of the wood and the lack of other human presence is what ultimately distorted my senses this time. I left the second part wondering if I’d actually heard anything at all.