BeatMaps. Sound workshops for young people

What does the city sound like? This question has already been asked by many. After all, our sound environment gives us a sense of belonging — we become attached to the sounds and noises that surround us. Let the first stone be thrown by the one who, after a long trip, has not been moved by the sound of the bugle!

So it would seem that awareness of the importance of sound in the city is already almost universal. And yet, in many projects at the intersection of urban planning and music, we forget that human beings are also part of this environment. It is we — the inhabitants of a given space — that pollute the soundscape. But it is also we who listen to our places, choose them and give meaning to what we hear!

The aim of the BeatMaps workshop is to highlight this subjectivity and to provide tools that allow you to develop your own creativity. During the meeting, we will go online together. Participants will learn about examples of grassroots and widely available web applications related to sound, and then set off on their own in the Wesoła district for a special sound walk. All this in order to finally create their own application together — BeatMap of the district, which is a living and interactive composition consisting of recordings collected in the field. Everyone will become a sound detective, composer and programmer in one for a while!

The workshop will be led by Joanna Wabik and ehh hahah.

Joanna Wabik — author of music, site-specific spatial and sound installations and activities on the border of experimental music, visual arts, sound art, conceptual art and performance, improvising pianist, architect and educator. Her installations could be heard or seen during festivals such as ArtBoom (Fresh Zone), Survival and the Days of Contemporary Art in Bialystok. He collaborates with filmmakers, visual arts, music and dancers. Short films with her soundtrack have been presented and awarded at numerous festivals in the country and in the world. She participated in numerous concerts and conducted workshops, familiarizing the youngest listeners with contemporary and experimental music.

ehh hahah — sound artist from Cracow, associated with the online community of independent electronic music since 2015. He has released nine albums revolving around ambience, sound collages or IDM in physical (cassette, flash drive) and digital editions. At the same time, he produced remix albums (inviting many artists from Poland and beyond), building an archive of consistently developed artistic language. Organizer of grassroots music events, including a series of “concerts (with) field recordings” — well-received chamber events promoting the field recording genre. Co-creator of installations and contemporary art events, in which he took responsibility for the sound layer. Professionally a web application developer with five years of experience.

The workshop is designed for people aged 14—18 years.

Hosted by Joanna Wabik, ehh hahah

Each participant should have a charged smartphone with them.

The number of places is limited.

Classes will last 4 hours.

The workshop takes place as part of the SCT Hub — Codesign the Future of Sustainable Cultural Tourism project funded by the European Urban Initiative programme.