Soundwalk Reaction

For the soundwalk experience, I decided to do Her Long Black Hair. The storyline of the walk seemed very intriguing and I wanted to explore Central Park.

From the very beginning of the audio walk, I felt my reality and the audio walk perfectly mixed together, because the sound from the audio walk fits exactly to the location. It was quite disorienting in the beginning for me. I found myself constantly checking to see my surrounding, to figure out what was actually happening and what was from the audio. Once I adjusted myself to the changes, I felt Janet was walking with me. It was an intimate and comfortable feeling, like walking with an old friend. As I followed Janet’s path in the park, I intuitively stopped and took pictures of the landmarks that she pointed out during the walk. Although she was not there, in that moment I felt like I want to take a photo and share it with her.

The sound from the audio walk added a new layer to my surrounding. I would imagine all the scenes from the audio walk. For example, when I walked into the tunnels, I looked around and imagined there were street performers, even though there was no one but me. Throughout the walk, she asked me to do experiments: licking my finger, syncing to her pace, walking backwards, and breathing with her. I feel those experiments acted like a mechanism for me to be physically present with her, as she was investigating another woman’s journey in Central Park.

The only times that I found myself tune out were instances when she made references that I did not know. I wish I knew all of the references, so the experience would be even more meaningful. As we discover the location of the last photo was taken, we breathed together and it ended. It ended abruptly; it didn’t fade out. I felt abandoned. All of sudden, I felt alone and lost without her direction.

This audio walk was a new, intimate, and wonderful experience for me. It made me more aware of sound. I experienced a brand-new dimension that sound can bring.