Observation: RAIN!!!!

After writing on the drought in Catalonia, I was blessed with a day of rain! Barcelona is a beautiful Mediterranean city in the municipality of Catalonia. Although the weather is temperate all year round, lately there has been a lack of precipitation causing worry among the people.

Sitting in studio working on our project, the day dreary and gray, we were surprised to hear the rain. It's rained on a few occasions- at night and for short bursts- throughout the entire time we've been here. The rhythmic noise of the rain hitting the surfaces of the city is refreshing and welcoming, increasingly so because of the drought. The peaceful sound fills the city, rejuvenating it physically and psychologically.

This impact on the urban scale is evanescent, the sound only last as long as the weather, but thats what's intriguing about sound. Specific sounds are never perpetual, some are reoccurring though. The noises that are reoccurring trigger memories and associations, while newer sounds trigger curiosity at the source. Both types, reoccurring and newly occurring, can be (and are) used to impact the perception of a space. Water is added to spaces to tangibly refresh and cool, but the sound of water is just as important. Water fountains that create the trickling noise from their flowing water are advertised as "calming" and "refreshing." The sound of the water is what brings about these feelings. On an urban scale, water features (like the linear path of flowing and cascading water from Joan Miro to near the MNAC) fill the garden space with a memory of refreshment as well as the tangible. Materiality within buildings effects the soundscape as well. Tin roofs ping with the impact of rain, while tiles absorb more of the sound.

As kitschy as it may be, when I'm inside and I close my eyes to the sound of rain, I can feel the wet drops, drawing from previous experience. Eric reminds us that any writer can describe rain as wet, but only a good writer can make the reader feel the wetness of rain. I'm not a prolific writer, but I'm becoming a better designer.

Observation: Placa Espana

Although Catalonia is in a drought, major landmark fountains come on in the warmer weather. Fridays and Saturdays from 7-9 on the half hour Placa Espana is flooded with people enjoying the fountain show. A grand axis from the traffic circle up to the MNAC is dotted with water features, including the main fountain shown. Choreographed to music and lights, the water dances to the beat.

The music fills the air of Montjuic. As I walked down the mountain from the Fundacion de Joan Miro on Friday I could hear the crescendo of the music and I could envision the rise of the fountain to match its tenacity. Sound used in the urban landscape in this manner is used to draw people in. Visually and acoustically attractive, the water show is a tourist attraction as well as a draw for the locals. Although the main point is the beauty of the water, music enhances the patterning of rise and fall.

Observation: Morocco

Compared to Istanbul, which is covered in older and grander mosques, Morocco declares its religious zeal modestly. Although multiple minarets topped with megaphones aren't found surrounding every mosque, call to prayer is still vocal in this younger city. Morocco is substantially more conservative Muslim than the European-style Istanbul (interesting because Morocco was founded by Europeans). Smaller and more frequently occurring, mosques are found throughout Morocco; tucked in between shops in the Medina, or situated on corners in the newer parts of Fes. Their prevalence makes up for their size in creating a presence in the urban environment acoustically. Call to prayer is still heard throughout the city 5 times a day. Shopkeepers will put a piece of wood across their booth, signifying their absence due to prayer. Meanwhile, neighboring shop owners will chaperon the store until the return of the actual owner. Again, this act of faith is beautiful and very evident to someone visiting, leaving an impression on visitor's perception of the city: sound shaping memory.

The mihrab is the non-electrical megaphone of the mosque. The person leading salat (prayer) faces the wall and speaks loudly. The sound bounces off the curved surface and intensifies in volume, echoing loudly to the faithful lined up for prayer facing the qibla (wall facing Mecca containing the mihrab).

Mihrab

Observation: Istanbul

Call to prayer echoes across the cityscape, blaring from megaphone speakers affixed to the minarets. Five times a day the Arabic chanting fills the corners of the cities. It begins as a hum and grows rapidly, beckoning followers to show their faith and love for Allah. Filling the inside as well as the exterior courtyards, people gather in the mosques to practice the forms of the body movements of prayer. Aligning themselves parallel to the ground, groveling in their earthly ways and then raising up to reach the heavens in a symbolic connection to a higher being.

The beauty of this ritual strikes me as a Catholic living in a city with more churches and cathedrals and actually practicing Catholics (exaggeration, but it feels that way). Although I know that not all Muslims are conservative or even diligent in their prayer, Istanbul city echoes faith and tradition in its soundscape. It could be the megaphones that allow great amplification or the urban planning that placed the great mosque structures upon hills. Also, the highest points of the city in the old city, by law, are the minarets and domes of the religious buildings, leaving the speakers unobstructed and granted more clarity in their projection.

Night prayer at the Blue Mosque

Observation: the Metro

The metro of Barcelona has interconnecting tunneling hallways within its stops where lines intersect. These hallways carry stories...sounds of the city. Located centrally in these hallways is a tiled marker for performers. Performers don't make the only acoustical influence in the urban environment, but they usually are the most memorable.

Walking down these hallways you do more than just pass from one train to the next, or try and just find the right street exit. If you're not engrossed in your iPod or the newspaper, and you begin to absorb the sounds of the other passengers, the music of an erhu (traditional Chinese violin), the sellers with their mix of candy, scarves and knick knacks, the smell of coffee at the little bar cafes, those transitory experiences are more than just a passage- they become a place.

The acoustics of these spaces effects me the most. Maybe its because I studied music for most of my life...I'm not really sure, but the feelings noise (including music) can evoke in a space, transform the space.

Blog Assignment

We're supposed to start to explore a thread, a pattern, a reoccurring theme that has become evident or has captured our curiosity within the urban environment. I've been looking at how people gather in spaces and the acoustics of the spaces. Street performers chose certain corners and their music drifts through the corridors of the old city. Other performers chose large placas to fill with an audience. It's an interesting pattern within the urban spaces of the void.

So stayed tuned for updates on my Spanish adventures as well as my new focus into the acoustics of urbanism. :)

Runaway Train (Plaza Mayor, Madrid)

This is the sweet video I took of the street performer. If you didn't read my previous post, he had to unplug from his amp because amplifiers aren't legal for street performers. That's why the video kind of cuts short of the chorus. Oh and yes- I stood in the middle of the square spinning :)

Observations: Placa Reial

Street performers set up virtually anywhere in the square. They have their backs against the colonnades because people usually move through the center. Acoustically, the square is large enough and the buildings low enough that there is little echo or reverberation.

What a beautiful day :)

This is a video of the exterior of Maria del Mer last Sunday afternoon. The woman singing opera made me think of Grandma Ginny :)