Journey into the secret

Initiation into the Poro, or secret society, constitutes the rites of manhood for the Mende people in Sierra Leone. As a means to develop the emotional landscape of this piece, I sought to put myself in the shoes of initiates, attempting to capture their feelings of excitement and anticipation. I was particularly intrigued by the call-and-response singing between the leader and choir. 

This inspired me to resample the field recording into a looper/FX unit. I then re-recorded it playing forwards and backwards at varying speeds. Stitching several of these processed samples together into a new sonic tapestry helped to form the rhythmic backbone of this piece. Sounds from the Mende Poro flutter among an energetic and hypnotic drum beat. Psychedelic layers of rich, analogue synthesizer enhance the musicality of the field recording samples, bringing about a sense of wondrousness and mystique.

Mende Poro song reimagined by Hellcat Sneer.

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Part of the project A Century of Sounds, reimagining 100 sounds covering 100 years from the collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford. Explore the full project at citiesandmemory.com/century-sounds