Peace Wall Belfast Soundwalks

6 ECHOES

Peace Wall Belfast Soundwalks (sound walk at the Peace Wall Belfast) ~1hr15min

A binaural immersive experience with six soundscapes composed to highlight relationships between realism and perception of different sonic markers or events occurring throughout the year. It questions how we listen to what we’re seeing, and what we’re seeing is it being heard?

Join me for a binaural soundwalk exploring and listening to soundscapes inspired by the spaces surrounding the Peace Wall.

What you need: Mobile phone + headphones/earphones Instructions: Go to one of the 6 locations on the map (listed below), walk into the circle, and audio will play (can press pause/play also). Each recording lasts 3 mins to allow you to then listen to the space.

Locations:

1.St. Gall’s Ave (bottom) 2.St. Gall’s Ave -Bombay St (Green field) 3.Bombay St – Kashmir Rd 4.Cupar Way – Lawnbrook Ave 5.Cupar Way (middle) 6.Cupar Way – Conway St

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More information about the Peace Walls: According to CAIN: “Peacelines, or peace walls, are physical barriers between the Protestant / Loyalist community and the Catholic / Nationalist community in certain areas in Northern Ireland. The walls are usually constructed of concrete, stone, and / or steel, and can be over 6 metres tall. The ‘official’ peacelines grew out of barricades that the local communities erected themselves during periods of intense conflict in 1969 (and in later years). When the British Army was deployed in August 1969 it replaced the existing barricades with barbed-wire barriers of its own. It had been hoped that these would only be needed temporarily. However, the barbed-wire barriers were replaced with more permanent structures and over the years new peace walls have been erected and older ones extended in length and height. The peacelines represent the most visible form of the ‘sectarian interfaces’ between the two main communities in Northern Ireland.” (Ulsteracuk, 2019)

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Thank you for visiting and experiencing this artistic research project. If you would like to fill out a quick survey about your experience today please click the link: https://forms.office.com/r/kTe0EMWstu

Feel free to spread the message and share the link with whoever may be interested.

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The project was first conceived in 2019, as part of my Masters in Research (MRes) final project for the Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC) at Queen's University Belfast. More information about the full research and projects can be found here: https://georgiosvaroutsos.com/peace-wall-belfast/

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Information Creator: Georgios Varoutsos, PhD student at the Sonic Arts Research Centre, Queen's University Belfast Website: https://georgiosvaroutsos.com/

Georgios Varoutsos

I am a sonic artist and researcher from Montreal, Canada. I am currently completing my PhD studies at the Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC) at Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland. As an artist, I explore the field of sound through an extensive range of projects and performances. My audio creations derive from different inspirations such as field recordings, digital recordings, amplified sound materials, audio processing, synthesis, and experimental techniques. Presently working on research consisting of spatial audio, urban arts, sound studies, sonic arts, and socially engaged arts. I am also focusing on the combination of sonic material within immersive environments through VR, AR, AAR, and spatial audio techniques.