The Past in the Present
Exploring the Soundscape of Kowloon Walled City Park
This project combines elements of a soundmap and a sound composition to explore the soundscape of Kowloon Walled City Park, a site with a rich and complex history. Once home to the infamous Kowloon Walled City, the location was a dense, chaotic settlement known for its unregulated nature and vibrant activity. Demolished in 1993, it has since been transformed into a tranquil park. Through this project, I aimed to document the park’s current soundscape while incorporating echoes of its past, creating a piece that intertwines the present-day atmosphere with the lingering memory of its history.
Project Concept and Methods
To capture the soundscape, I used a Zoom H3 for ambisonic recordings and a Sennheiser boom mic connected to a Zoom H4 for stereo recordings. The ambisonic recordings provide an immersive spatial representation of the park, while the stereo recordings focus on specific sound details, such as voices, footsteps, and environmental noises.
Key locations were carefully chosen to highlight the park’s unique auditory characteristics. For example, I recorded at the Officers’ Pavilion, where a tour guide was sharing the history of the Walled City. After seeking permission to use these recordings, I integrated them into the project to reflect the park’s present function as a space of reflection and remembrance.
To deepen the connection between the park’s past and present, I warped archival sounds of the Kowloon Walled City and incorporated them into the final mix. These altered recordings evoke a ghostly, haunting presence, emphasising the memory of the Walled City that still permeates the park.
Challenges and Adaptation
The process of creating this project was not without obstacles. Initially, my concept relied heavily on 360 video to pair visuals with sound. However, after encountering technical issues with two faulty 360 cameras from the production center, I had to abandon this approach and reimagine the project and the concept as a whole as an audio-focused piece.
Additionally, Jasmine and I (who I grouped with for equipment booking purposes), faced difficulties during group recording sessions, requiring multiple attempts to produce usable recordings, mainly due to faulty 360 camera and unexpectedly rainy days. We finally succeeded on our fourth try; I, however, conducted a fifth solo recording session to finalise my own project, which presented new challenges.
Managing equipment and belongings alone was difficult, and I was followed by a stranger for two hours, which added even more stress. My most significant setback, however, was losing over 60 stereo recordings after the Zoom H4 was formatted when I lent the device to a friend without me having saved them beforehand.
Despite these challenges, I prioritized testing and retesting equipment before recording, ensuring the quality of the final ambisonic and stereo recordings.
Significance of the Location
Kowloon Walled City Park was an ideal location for this project because of its layered history. The Walled City was once home to over 30,000 people in an incredibly small area, defined by its bustling, chaotic energy. Its demolition and rebirth as a serene park symbolize a dramatic transformation, yet the weight of its past still feels present, even in the quiet ambience of the greenery.
Through this project, I wanted to explore how sound can carry memory and create a connection between past and present. The current soundscape, with its calm and reflective tones, contrasts sharply with the energetic and chaotic sounds of the old Kowloon Walled City. By combining these auditory layers, I sought to highlight the tension between what the space once was and what it has become.
This approach draws inspiration from R. Murray Schafer’s concept of the soundscape, which emphasises the role of sound in shaping our understanding of a place and its history. By weaving together present-day recordings and warped archival sounds, I aimed for this project to bridge the gap between documentation and artistic expression.
Reference
Schafer, R. M. (1977). The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World. Destiny Books.