Hanoi Soundwalk 2014

Echoes commissioned artist Lương Huệ Trinh to create a walk for Hanoi city centre.

Trinh’s walk in Hanoi starts from Lý Thái Tổ park, and continues around Hoàn Kiếm lake, covering the oldest and most iconic parts of Hanoi while traversing the beautiful parks in a comfortable strolling area.

"Through the process of working on the Echoes project, and on the choosing of sounds for each spot on the map, I had the idea to create an open space for the imagination, for participants who took part in the soundwalk. I thought carefully and chose special sounds for each set of places in Hanoi, and at the same time to connect each sound in Copenhagen that sound artist Hans Sydow sent.

I used some original sounds that don’t exist on the streets today, for example the sound of the electric tram, some traditional music like the type of ‘hát xẩm’ music that was performed on the trams, and a number that still exist such as street calls, the sound of idle conversation, and the sound of vehicles that I have processed and convolved together, sometimes deformed, broken up or echoing as if coming from a dream. I wanted each participant to hear two sound sources at the same time, one that is being heard directly through the headphones and the second that is more abstract, that opens a larger space in that space. From these two sound sources, they can link between the present and the past to feel and experience Hanoi in a totally new way."