Stationary steam engines
Stationary steam Eegines at the Coleford Festival of Transport. The stationary steam engines at the Coleford Festival of Transport always attract attention with their mechanical symphony of rhythmic chugging, the high pitched hiss of steam, and the clanking of rods and flywheels. The sounds of this engine were particularly beguiling. It sometimes faltered, and for a moment it seemed like it wou...
2m Mar 13
2m
A Century of Sounds live - conversation panel 2, 27 February 2026
Artists in conversation with the Pitt Rivers Museum curatorial team at the Century of Sounds launch event in Oxford on 27 February 2026. Featuring: Ilaria Boffa Salma Ahmed Caller Neil Spencer Bruce Panel presented by Philip Grover, Pitt Rivers Museum A Century of Sounds is a partnership between Cities and Memory and the Pitt Rivers Museum (https://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/) , inviting listeners to ...
31m Mar 05
31m
A Century of Sounds live - conversation panel 1, 27 February 2026
Artists in conversation with the Pitt Rivers Museum curatorial team at the Century of Sounds launch event in Oxford on 27 February 2026. Featuring: Laura Irving laura dymphna Nick Drake Panel presented by Christopher Morton, Pitt Rivers Museum A Century of Sounds is a partnership between Cities and Memory and the Pitt Rivers Museum (https://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/) , inviting listeners to explore ...
29m Mar 05
29m
A Century of Sounds on Battiti, Rai Radio 3, February 2026
A Century of Sounds feature on the Battiti show on Rai Radio 3 in Italy, broadcast on 26 February 2026. Featuring: - Drawn to the circle by Ana Habesh - Mwana wevhu by Ndinibeatz - Kinnaur calling by Sonic Soma Plus discussion of the project and our partnership with the Pitt Rivers Museum.
22m Feb 26
22m
We sing together
When I first heard this recording of men gathered around a guitar, singing fragments of traditional songs and inventing lyrics on the spot, with women and children laughing in the background - it hit me: music isn’t just sound, it’s connection. It's a reminder of the timeless beauty in coming together, sharing stories, passing down traditions, and creating something meaningful in the moment. C...
2m Feb 22
2m
Nothing changes (a begging I will go)
This piece is built around a field recording from the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum of Berber beggars singing for charity. Listening to this recording, across time, what struck me was not difference but familiarity. Themes of begging, homelessness and poverty recur in traditional songs from all cultures, spanning the centuries. Despite differences in place, language and technolog...
5m Feb 22
5m
Sapeh (three-stringed boat lute)
"Sapeh (type of three-stringed boat lute) being played": the instrument was recorded in Sarawak by collector Leslie Bennett. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being one of a small number of recordings of the musical instruments in the institution's collections being played or discussed. Recorded by W. Leslie Bennett. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, Uni...
6m Feb 22
6m
Beggars singing for charity
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of reel-to-reel tape recordings of Berber (Ait Haddidu) music and soundscapes made by members of the Oxford University Expedition to the Atlas Mountains of Southern Morocco in 1961. Recorded by Audrey Butt, Michael R. Emerson or Ralph Hudson Johnson. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of ...
3m Feb 22
3m
Afternoon beneath a palm shelter
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of cassette tape and digital audio tape recordings of Bayaka music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno mainly in the Central African Republic (and the Republic of Congo) between 1986 and 2009. Recorded by Louis Sarno. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ...
14m Feb 22
14m
To the land of the hornbills
I listened to the piece and researched any historical links between Plymouth, my home town and Sarawak, were the original recording by Leslie Bennet was made. It turns out there were three white "Rajahs" of Sarawak and they were members of the Brooke dynasty: James Brooke, who founded the rule in 1841; his nephew Charles Brooke, who succeeded him; and Charles' son, Charles Vyner Brooke. Althou...
7m Feb 22
7m
The rainforest
The field recording that inspired this composition features a Bayaka musician playing the geedal, an instrument whose sound is deeply connected to the forest, communal memory, and oral transmission. When I first listened to the recording, what struck me was not only the melody, but the space around it: the breath, the rhythm, and the sense of conversation between the player, the instrument, and...
3m Feb 22
3m
Duet for conch shell and synthesisers
The recording I worked with was pure beauty. A simple, pure sound of a conch shell being played - according to my further research, these conches can be hand-stopped to produce different notes and tones, and when played on the reefs in Vanuatu, can “make the whole reef resonate in sympathy”. Conch shells are also used ceremonially, for instance, to celebrate and denote the quality of boars tha...
7m Feb 22
7m
Mwana wevhu
This project is inspired by a 1958 field recording of a Bamum girl singing a religious song in Fumban, West Region, Cameroon, recorded by Lois Mitchson on a ¾-inch reel tape. The archival voice forms the emotional and conceptual core of the project. The recording of the young girl singing praises about the Sultan Njoya who was part of the monarchy which dates back to the fourteenth century, is ...
7m Feb 22
7m
Balonyona playing the geedal (bow harp)
.From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of cassette tape and digital audio tape recordings of Bayaka music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno mainly in the Central African Republic (and the Republic of Congo) between 1986 and 2009. Recorded by Louis Sarno. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ...
3m Feb 22
3m
Natar (song) on conch and musket
Natar (song) with Markany Lei on conch and Wani on musket. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of reel-to-reel tape recordings of music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Raymond Clausen mainly on the island of Malekula (Malampa Province) in Vanuatu between 1960 and 1979. Recorded by Raymond Ernst Clausen. Copyright...
2m Feb 22
2m
Bamum girl singing religious song
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of reel-to-reel tape recordings of songs and musical instruments made by journalist Lois Mitchison in Cameroon during 1958. Recorded by Sonja Lois Mitchison. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ——— Part of the project A Century of Sounds, reimagining 100 sounds covering 100 yea...
2m Feb 22
2m
Drawn to the circle
Drawn to the Circle began with a field recording of a boar tusk horn calling people into a full circle. The sound comes from Malekula Island in Vanuatu, performed by Melteg Ike and Mal Maru of the Big Nambas cultural group, and recorded by Raymond Clausen in 1962. When I first heard it, I was struck by how two players became one sound. It felt less like music and more like an invitation — a cal...
3m Feb 22
3m
Broken
When I first heard "Mekana discussing a case of adultery", I really wanted to know more about the background to the recording. My research led me a to 1983 Granada Television Programme from the Disappearing Worlds Series which introduced the idea of "Benge", the poison oracle used by the Azande People of Central Africa to answer questions relating to, amongst others, infidelity. It was also viv...
5m Feb 22
5m
The hills remember
“The Hills Remember” is a concept piece on the “domination paradigm” — a cultural logic shared across systems of oppression. The work explores the intersections of religious nationalism, religious violence and colonisation, authoritarianism, capitalism, misogyny, domestic and child abuse, gender- and sexuality-based violence, racial oppression, and rape culture — systems all linked by hierarchi...
20m Feb 22
20m
Sound weaver's incantation (for capturing and preserving the sounds of life)
I selected the recording of a night forest in the Central African Republic without looking at the description, simply because it sounded magical. I usually search the recorded sounds for inspiration to tell stories that are more or less personal, but this time it was different. As I started reading about the origin of the sound, chosen solely for its magical aspect, I found myself lost in the d...
5m Feb 22
5m
Talea
A talea is both faithful and transformed. It remains genetically identical to the source, yet grows into something new through a different environment. It is not preservation or betrayal. It is organic continuation, the way traditional music has always moved through time and space. Our composition embodies the talea principle by maintaining an unbroken genetic thread to the source field record...
13m Feb 22
13m
Likimbi forest camp late at night
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of cassette tape and digital audio tape recordings of Bayaka music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno mainly in the Central African Republic (and the Republic of Congo) between 1986 and 2009. Recorded by Louis Sarno. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ...
28m Feb 22
28m
For the sun
Researching this sound and the U’wa people gave me an opportunity to scratch the surface of their deeply complex seasonal customs, involving dance, storytelling and performance. Ann Osborn (the sound recordist) documents this in her study "The Four Seasons of the U'wa: A Chibcha Ritual Ecology in the Colombian Andes". What I learned inspired me to tell a new story. In this piece you hear about...
6m Feb 22
6m
Geedal in the forest with male voices
Geedal (bow harp) played in the forest with male voices accompanying. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of cassette tape and digital audio tape recordings of Bayaka music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno mainly in the Central African Republic (and the Republic of Congo) between 1986 and 2009. Recorded...
6m Feb 22
6m
Lozorüü - Angami Naga love song
"Lozorüü" (tune: "Hoiyi Olle"): an Angami Naga love song performed by two men and two young women ("Though the villages are separated the herds graze together./ Upon the ridge there is a great stone to sit on"). From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of wax cylinder recordings of Naga (Angami, Sümi, Lotha, Chang and Sangtam) songs ma...
3m Feb 22
3m
Mekana discussing a case of adultery
Spoken word recording of Mekana discussing a case of adultery. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of wax cylinder recordings of Zande songs, dances and spoken language made by social anthropologist Edward Evans-Pritchard in South Sudan between 1928 and 1930. Recorded by Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum,...
4m Feb 22
4m
Merer Pake: nDavu trumpet signal
"Merer Pake": an nDavu trumpet signal for a full circle tusked boar. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of reel-to-reel tape recordings of music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Raymond Clausen mainly on the island of Malekula (Malampa Province) in Vanuatu between 1960 and 1979. Recorded by Raymond Ernst Clausen. ...
1m Feb 22
1m
U'wa drones
U'wa drones from the Andes in north-east Colombia. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of reel-to-reel recordings of U'wa songs and stories made by anthropologist Ann Osborn in the Northern Andes (Sierra Nevada del Cocuy region) in Colombia between 1969 and 1977. Recorded by Ann Osborn. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University o...
1m Feb 22
1m
A Vanuata hymn
I heard the piece, which is a Vanuata hymn called 'You say you no want ’im married long me,' and connected with it immediately. Despite not knowing what the lyrics were about the singing was filled with emotion and a kind of melancholy that I often bring to my own work. I contacted Pitt Rivers for details on the lyrics, as I thought I would like to add my own singing to the piece, but unfortuna...
2m Feb 22
2m
On the tide
I haven’t sung professionally in over 21 years and had long stopped writing and recording music. I am trying to return to it but these things are easier said than done. I was immediately drawn to this 1987 recording of a woman singing with harmonium recorded by David Mowat in the town of Mahalingapur, in the Indian state of Karnataka. It was perfect as it was – and in choosing it I knew I woul...
5m Feb 22
5m
Narel
The song "Narel" made me think about the power of separate and unique voices working together. The name Narel in Hebrew also mean "singing". I was inspired to use the field recording to make new voices that I could remix in different ways and recombine to form a new whole. In my version of "Narel", the field recording is manipulated in various ways to create different instruments - choirs, guit...
8m Feb 22
8m
Narel (song)
Narel (song) performed by Peter, Sali and Mal Sekini. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of reel-to-reel tape recordings of music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Raymond Clausen mainly on the island of Malekula (Malampa Province) in Vanuatu between 1960 and 1979. Recorded by Raymond Ernst Clausen. Copyright Pitt...
4m Feb 22
4m
"You say you no want 'im married long me"
"You say you no want 'im married long me" (song performed by men, women and children). From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of reel-to-reel tape recordings of music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Raymond Clausen mainly on the island of Malekula (Malampa Province) in Vanuatu between 1960 and 1979. Recorded by Raymo...
2m Feb 22
2m
Woman singing with harmonium
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of cassette tape recordings of songs and instruments made by playwright David Mowat across several different states in India during 1987. Recorded by David Mowat. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ——— Part of the project A Century of Sounds, reimagining 100 sounds covering 10...
5m Feb 22
5m
Int. exteriors (day)
The field recording that I worked with was a wax cylinder recording of a Zande funeral song. One of the things that really struck me when I first listened to it was how this funeral song is buried beneath the imperfections of its recording medium – you just hear this single impassioned, grieving voice breaking out through layers of noise and obfuscation. I thought there was something strangely ...
3m Feb 22
3m
Forever lost
I saw this recording before I heard it. At the Pitt Rivers Museum at the start of the project. The physical object: an original Edison wax phonograph cylinder from 1914. I was struck by how modern it seemed in some ways; the corporate branding on the label. I imagined it being purchased from a shop. Then I saw it was a recording made in Nagaland and I thought of my friend, Temsu, an artist fro...
10m Feb 22
10m
We dance, we dream, we love (for Timon Beri)
This has been the most difficult piece I have ever written for Cities and Memory. What could I add to a recording made by Patti Langton of a young Moru man - Timon Beri? The recording was of Timon singing and playing a lamellophone. Whatever I ever I did, it felt like cheap exploitation. The recording was beautiful, authentic and real. In my research I came across a paper by Patti Langton call...
9m Feb 22
9m
Zande funeral song for a woman
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of wax cylinder recordings of Zande songs, dances and spoken language made by social anthropologist Edward Evans-Pritchard in South Sudan between 1928 and 1930. Recorded by Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ——— Part of the project A Century of Sou...
4m Feb 22
4m
Ishi no ghi sholu: agricultural work song
"Ishi no ghi sholu": an agricultural work song performed by a group of Sümi Naga male singers. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of wax cylinder recordings of Naga (Angami, Sümi, Lotha, Chang and Sangtam) songs made by administrator and anthropologist John Hutton in India between 1915 and 1919. Recorded by John Henry Hutton. C...
3m Feb 22
3m
Sanza (lamellophone) music
Sanza (lamellophone) music performed by young Moru man Timon Beri. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of cassette tape recordings of music and spoken language (principally Laarim) made by anthropologist Patti Langton in South Sudan during 1979 and 1980. Recorded by Patti Langton. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxfo...
3m Feb 22
3m
The land is our mother
The Land is Our Mother is based on a collection of field recordings of digeridoos made for the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies from the archive of the Pitts River Museum. Information about the recordings is limited but they were originally recorded on reel to reel tape. The recordings are rich and varied, some including song, but I eventually had to choose some of my favourites to b...
6m Feb 22
6m
How I learnt to live with ghosts
I chose this recording - an orchestral Korean recording from Seoul, 1972 - after initially earmarking another sound, but this one spoke to me with its uplifting, playful and mischievous spirit & felt right. Atmospherically, it evoked a busy market place or a ceremonial dance, putting me in mind of the benevolent chaos of the ‘hungry ghost’ concept - more of which later. The instruments feature...
8m Feb 22
8m
Nip nap
The sound that I was allocated for this track was described as a Zande drinking song, from a collection of wax cylinder recordings of Zande songs, dances and spoken language made by social anthropologist Edward Evans-Pritchard in South Sudan between 1928 and 1930. I spent some time thinking about the collection of songs that was taking place across the world from the end of the 19th Century ri...
4m Feb 22
4m
Didgeridoo music
 "Didgeridoo music": collection of didgeridoo recordings prepared by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (now the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies), with commentary. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being one of a number of miscellaneous or individual ethnographic field recordings (rediscovered during a ...
17m Feb 22
17m
Instrumentals featuring the hyang piri and hojok
Korea: three instrumental pieces of music, featuring the hyang piri (double-reed wind instrument or oboe) and hojok (double-reed wind instrument, also known as taepyeongso), recorded at the Institute for National Classical Music in Seoul. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being one of a small number of recordings issued or released by foreign broadcast...
4m Feb 22
4m
Bayaka women singing yeyi in the forest
Bayaka women singing yeyi (polyphonic song) in the forest. From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of cassette tape and digital audio tape recordings of Bayaka music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno mainly in the Central African Republic (and the Republic of Congo) between 1986 and 2009. Recorded by Louis S...
6m Feb 22
6m
V4-4
This track is based on the recording of Metimbo of the Aka tribe in the Central African Republic playing the Bubulu (Potbowl). I chose this recording because the rhythmic complexity of the playing was so interesting to me. At first, I was thinking of approaching this exciting recording through many pre-planned ways, but it was proven to be unsuccessful. So I decided to return to the recording ...
6m Feb 22
6m
Yeyi
Hearing the vocal music of the BaAka for the first time was a powerful, emotional experience for me. This led me to explore some of the other sounds in the Louis Sarno archive, and to his book and film "Song from the Forest", where I learned more about the context and culture behind this music. In arranging and orchestrating my piece, which blends electronica with neocIassical elements, I want...
4m Feb 22
4m
Zande drinking song
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of wax cylinder recordings of Zande songs, dances and spoken language made by social anthropologist Edward Evans-Pritchard in South Sudan between 1928 and 1930. Recorded by Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ——— Part of the project A Century of Sou...
4m Feb 22
4m
Women singing
From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a collection of reel-to-reel recordings of music and spoken language (principally Thulung Rai) made by anthropologist Nicholas Allen in Nepal and India between 1970 and 1981. Recorded by Nicholas Justin Allen. Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford. ——— Part of the project A Century of Sounds, ...
4m Feb 22
4m