Reimagining your past (Shepherd's Bush)

Shepherd's Bush reimagined by Conor McCafferty.

"My aunty lived in Shepherd's Bush for many years, having moved over from Ireland when she was young. I visited her there several times, and got to explore London as a teenager, getting to know the Tube system, streets, neighbourhoods, markets and museums. Visiting in 2000 with my brother, we crossed the swaying pedestrian bridge to visit the new Tate Modern, I got my picture taken with ET in the Millennium Dome and we bumped into John Humphrys in the lift on a tour of Television Centre.

There were so many options with this recording. The density of the original recording resonated with my experience of Shepherd's Bush: lots of movement and music on the street; heavy bass from the soundsystem of a moving car; never-ending chatter, clamour and confusion; unseen action and possibilities. As I was working through the material, I tried out a number of different things, either embracing the mess or reducing down. I wasn't planning on something so melodic, but in the end the short fragment that drew me in (it seems to be an orchestral or chamber work amplified, maybe for a street performance) set me off in that direction. This fragment had its own momentum already built in, and I liked layering in new conflicting, out-of-phase rhythms. The piece turned out a little more forward and sharp-edged than I was expecting, and not quite as ambient and subdued as I had intended, but that's something to develop for another day.

In my research I listen to a lot of field recordings from all over the world, mainly urban scenes, exploring how sound mapping can be used to understand architectural and urban space. Aside from my research, I also make music — as you might be able to tell, I quite like arpeggiating basic synth sounds. But the two worlds don't usually meet, and I wouldn't often mix synthesisers with this kind of sampling. So making the piece was a nice change and it gave me a new perspective.

"The man who is tired of London is tired of life," my aunty used to tell us, quoting Samuel Johnson, and it's something I took to heart. I still have friends and family living in different parts of London, and I still visit often, finding new connections to add to my personal map of the city — it's a wonderful puzzle of a place for me. For her own part, my aunty loved getting back to the quiet, peace and fresh air of the Donegal countryside where she lived her young life. The fleeting burst of one of my own field recordings at the end of the piece is a nod to that. I remember telling her I was so bored by the country and loved the action and bustle of the city — but as time goes on, I understand a little better how she felt."

Part of our project The Next Station, reimagining the sounds of the London Underground and creating the first ever tube sound map. August 2016 - for more information see www.citiesandmemory.com/thenextstation