Sounds of walking: Can sound re-present the embodied experience of movement time and distance in the landscape?

Martin P Eccles

In this thesis, having introduced my research questions, in Chapter 2 I present a layered analysis of the important contexts of my practice—walking, sound, walking poetry, and place. In Chapter 3 I present and discuss three works that together explore how it is that I know the world as a sensate embodied walker. In Chapter 4 I develop what I came to call replicated walks—walks made more than once in the same place. Begun in order to re-configure time, they also led me to extend my consideration of place beyond that defined by geography, to place defined by biological phenomena or socio-cultural coherence. In Chapter 5 I describe my emerging ideas of human-scale of place and my underlying ideas of island-ness. Initially I worked on real islands, walking circumferential routes and those defined by chance procedures. From this I developed an imaginary island in the foothills of Northumberland’s Cheviot Hills; made from the human-scale of my embodied walking this led to my creation of an imaginary pandemic island of containment, created in a city, in my locale, made, and made real, by the traces of my embodied walking. Together my works constitute a body of work that represents a contribution to knowledge with specific contributions of: the use of Replicated Walks as a method of experimenting with time and place; Walking Words – the presentation of poetic text in forms (concertina-fold books, scripta continua, scrolls) that requires walking to engage with it, and that also function as metonyms for my original walking act; Walking Islands –the use of human-scale walking to imagine an island into existence, and then invoke the island as a lens through which to continue to pursue the idea. My work also contributes knowledge to the methods of how to record the sounds of the world whilst walking through it, over extended distances and time.

Appendix A. Contributing works

This appendix presents the works that contributed to and were presented during the time of this creative practice PhD. They are ordered chronologically by type of presentation (installation, radio programme etc.).

Those chosen for the examiners to listen to are **highlighted**.

Installations/Performances

2016

1. Fair Isle Reels 4x2 (after John Cage), 28 min., four-channel sound installation; ‘Schhh…Culture’, Culture Lab, Newcastle University, 21^st November 2016. [5.4.1 Fair Isle Reels]

2017

2. Four Northumbrian Rants, 60 min., performance, four-channel sound work mixed live, accompanying score and poems; ‘Material Potential’, Culture Lab, Newcastle University, 10^th March 2017. [5.4.2 Four Northumbrian Rants]

3. 4 Island Reels (after John Cage), 20 min., sound installation, 200 cm concertina-fold A5-size book of poems, 30 cm concertina-fold A8-size score; Sound+Environment, Hull, 1^st July 2017. [5.4.1 Fair Isle Reels]

4. Around the Wind, 10 hr. 27 min., nine-channel sound piece, mixed live, 2300 cm floor text work); Culture Lab, Newcastle University, 25^th July 2017. [5.3.1 Around the Wind]

2018

5. trace no trace. No.1: ‘trace’, 100 min., eight-channel ambisonic sound installation and performance; Allenheads Contemporary Arts. 20^th–22^nd April 2018 and No. 2: ‘no trace’, 107 min., eight-channel ambisonic sound installation, two 220 cm composite text and image works; Cheeseburn Grange 19^th–20^th & 26^th–28^th May 2018. [3.2 ‘trace no trace’]

6. No. 2: ‘no trace’, Digital Lounge, Tyneside Cinema. 18^th October 2018. Also installed in Culture Lab, Newcastle University (Nov 6^th–8^th). [3.2 ‘trace no trace’]

2019

7. begin to hear, 104 min., eight-channel sound installation and poetry work; XL Gallery, Fine Art Department, Newcastle University, 23^rd & 24^th October 2019. [4.2.5 begin to hear]

8. No.2: ‘no trace’ (version 2) (Št 2: ‘brez sledi’), 106 min., eight-channel sound installation; Steklenik Gallery, Ljubljana, 16^thNovember 2019 to 11^th January 2020. [3.2 ‘trace no trace’]

9. No.2: ‘no trace’ (version 2) (Št 2: ‘brez sledi’), 25 min., eight-channel, live performance; Steklenik Gallery, Ljubljana, 19:00 19^thNovember 2019. [3.2 ‘trace no trace’]

10. four rants for the summer solstice (after John Cage, 1977), 3 hr. 56 min., four-channel installation; The Arches, Newcastle University, 09:00 21^st December 2019 to 09:00 23^rd December 2019. [5.4.3 four rants for the summer solstice (after John Cage, 1977)]

2020

11. One Day in June, 60 min., two-channel sound installation and poetry work; XL Gallery, Fine Art Department, Newcastle University, 12–14^th February 2020. [One Day in June]

2021

12. Walking Contención Island was presented in the Online Gallery of Walking Publics / Walking Arts: walking, wellbeing and community during COVID-19 (a  research project  funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council  exploring the potential of the arts to sustain, encourage and more equitably support walking during and recovering from a pandemic) (https://walkcreate.gla.ac.uk) at https://walkcreate.gla.ac.uk/portfolio/walking-contencion-island-martin-p-eccles/October 2021. [5.5.2 Walking Contención Island]

13. Alnay, 4 hr. 19 min., four-channel installation; The Arches, Newcastle University, 15:58 20^th December 2021 to 15:58 22^ndDecember 2021. [5.5.1 Alnay]

2022

14. Walking Contención Island, 15 hr. 34 min., three-channel sound installation with six floor placed text works; The Hatton Gallery, during Mycelium (MFA Summer Show), 20^th August to 3^rd September 2022. [5.5.2 Walking Contención Island]

15. seven days in June, 3 hr. 38 min., seven-channel sound work with poetry and images presented in a 5-metre concertina-fold book; Mycelium (MFA Summer Show), 20^th August to 3^rd September 2022. [4.2.6 seven days in June]

16. No 2: ‘no trace’, 107 min., four-channel sound work with spoken poetry; The Arches during Mycelium (MFA Summer Show), 20^th August to 3^rd September 2022. [3.2 ‘trace no trace’]

Radio Broadcasts

2018

17. Orford Replication, 57 min., stereo broadcast, Framework Radio #627. (http://www.frameworkradio.net/2018/02/627-2018-02-04/). [4.2.1 Orford Replication]

18. Beàrnaraigh, 24 one-hour episodes, Resonance Extra, 2^nd November 2018 to 10^th May 2019, (https://extra.resonance.fm/series/bearnaraigh) (https://www.mixcloud.com/martineccles2/playlists/bearnaraigh/). [5.3.2 Beàrnaraigh] **Chosen for examiners** (2 episodes)

2019

19. Búðahraun, 117 min., stereo broadcast, Flux #2, Resonance Extra, 3^rd February 2019, 16:00–18:00, (https://extra.resonance.fm/episodes/flux-number-2-budahraun ;https://www.mixcloud.com/martineccles2/playlists/búðahraun/). [4.2.3 Búðahraun]

20. Beàrnaraigh, 24 hr., stereo broadcast, Radiophrenia, 26^th May 2019 11:59 pm to 27^th May 2019 11:59 pm; (http://radiophrenia.scot/may-26th/ ; http://radiophrenia.scot/news/). [5.3.2 Beàrnaraigh]

21. One Day in June, 57 min., stereo broadcast. Framework Radio #687. Aired on Resonance^FM 23:00, 22^nd September 2019, (https://www.mixcloud.com/framework_radio/framework-687-20190922/) (http://www.frameworkradio.net/2019/09/687-2019-09-22/). [One Day in June]

2020

22. No. 2: ‘no trace’, 107 min., stereo broadcast, FM Radio (88.8 MHz) and internet radio (www.radiocona.si)), 20:00, 21^stJanuary 2020. Broadcast during radioCona: StoryscapesSE, FM sound art exhibition, live from Ljubljana, Slovenia, Sat 18^th - Thu 23^rd January 2020, each day 18:33 - 23.30, (http://www.radiocona.si/blog/2019/12/18/radiocona-krajine-pripovedi-jv/ ; http://www.radiocona.si/program-po-dnevih_radioconakrajine-pripovedi-jv/). [3.2 ‘trace no trace’]

23. The 42 Walks of Contención Island, 57 min., stereo broadcast, Framework Radio #728. Resonance^FM 23:00, 4^th October 2020, (http://www.frameworkradio.net/2020/10/728-2020-10-04/). [5.5.2 Walking Contención Island]

24. Back Up The Long Wall: four midsummer dances for an imaginary island, 4 hr., stereo broadcast, Radiophrenia 15^th November, 06:00–10:00, (https://radiophrenia.scot/schedule/15-sat/). [5.4.3 Back Up The Long Wall: four midsummer dances for an imaginaryisland] **Chosen for examiners**

25. A Very Random Lockdown: 42 days walking an imaginary island, 60 min., stereo broadcast, Radiophrenia 22^nd November, 07:00–08:00 (https://radiophrenia.scot/schedule/22-sun/). [5.5.2 Walking Contención Island] **Chosen for examiners**

2022

26. Walking Contención Island, 30 min., stereo broadcast, Radiophrenia, 9^th February, 14:00–14:30 (https://radiophrenia.scot/calendar/wednesday-09/). [5.5.2 Walking Contención Island]

27. Seven days in June, 2 hr., stereo broadcast, Radiophrenia, 13^th February, 07:00–09:00 (https://radiophrenia.scot/calendar/sunday-13/). [4.2.6 seven days in June] **Chosen for examiners**

28. walkplacedistancetime, Resonance Extra, 15:00–16:00 on the first Saturday of each month, started 5^th March 2022; ongoing, broadcasts available at https://extra.resonance.fm/series/walkplacedistancetime Broadcasts from included works

05 March 2022 four Northumberland rants

02 April 2022 No 2 no trace **Chosen for examiners**

07 May 2022 4 island reels

04 June 2022 No1 trace

06 August 2022 An Orford Replication

03 September 2022 A walk round Contención Island

01 October 2022 a kittiwake triptych step 1, Skerwink

05 November 2022 a kittiwake triptych step 2, Cullernose

03 December 2022 a kittiwake triptych step 3, Dunstanburgh

2023

29. walkplacedistancetime, Resonance Extra, 15:00–16:00 on the first Saturday of each month. Broadcasts from included works

05 August 2023 One Day in June: Movement 1

30. Island Suite: movement 2; Alnay, 4 hr. 15 min. stereo broadcast, Radiophrenia, 3^rd September, 05:45–10:00 (https://radiophrenia.scot/calendar/sun-03/ ). [5.5.1 Alnay]

Presentations

2018

31. ‘trace no trace’, presented in ‘Desire Lines, Dawdles and Drifts: Walking together as research’, Royal Geographical Society (with The Institute of British Geographers) Annual International Conference, Cardiff, 29^th August 2018.

32. ‘trace no trace’, presented at 4^th World Congress of Psychogeography, Huddersfield, 7^th September 2018.

2020

33. Walking slowly while recording the unseen, 90 min., panel presentation and discussion with John Beauchamp, Jeremy Evans andAndy Fell; chaired by Andrew Stuck. Sound Walk September; Walk, Listen, Create, 17^th September 2020, (https://walklistencreate.org/walkingevent/walking-slowly-while-recording-the-unseen/).

2021

34. Walking Contención Island, 20 min., Audio Paper. ‘Walking as a Question’, Prespa, Greece, July 2021.

35. Pandemic Walking, 60 min., panel discussion with Ana Correo Do Lago and Giorgios Varoutsos; chaired by Lydia Matthews: at ‘Walking as a Question’, Prespa, Greece, July 2021.

2022

36. My Practice, CAKE 49: Exploring Sound and Emotion, Durham University, 28^th April 2022.

37. Walking Contención Island. 10 min. oral presentation/performance in Walking Well? Stepping Through and Beyond The Pandemic, Royal Geographical Society (with The Institute of British Geographers) Annual International Conference, Newcastle upon Tyne, 1^st September 2022.

Engagement

38. Contención Island works added [No 60] to his ‘Day of Access Creative Toolkit’ by Alec Finlay, 1^st March 2021, (https://www.dayofaccess.co.uk/2020/03/covid-19-creative-tool-kit.html).

39. Walking Contención Island, recording a year of walking under restrictions in the north east of England, a guest post on the Walking Artists Network (WAN) blog, 22^nd March 2021, (http://www.walkingartistsnetwork.org/2021/03/22/walking-contencion-island/).

40. Búðahraun; interview and feature in Katarina Radaliac; The Art of Sound Walks. Radio broadcast 22^nd September 2021, (http://www.steklenik.si/en/katarina-radaljac-the-art-of-sound-walks/).

Appendix B Digital Audio Workstation composition images

Appendix C Walking sound recording; learning by doing

Back to Table of Contents

Tip

Tip

Appendix A. Contributing works

Installations/Performances

Radio Broadcasts

Presentations

Engagement