Sonic Portraits
Unveiling the Unseen Symphonies of Space
This piece explores the noise that shapes our lives, inviting listeners to rethink their relationship with sound—from passive hearing to active listening. In a world where noise pollution has become the second-largest health threat in urban areas, this 30-minute soundscape shows how constant noise wears on our minds and bodies, contributing to stress, anxiety, and learned helplessness.
Yet, amidst the chaos, there is room for calm. By blending overwhelming noise with pockets of stillness, the work encourages a return to the present moment — a chance to hear what’s often ignored. It challenges us to slow down and listen with intention.
At its core lies a simple idea: “There is no such thing as a neutral space.” Every environment influences us, just as we shape our surroundings. So why not take better care of our spaces, and in doing so, care for each other?
Experience it yourself
Experience duration: 30 minutes – for best impact, listen as a whole, close your eyes and enjoy the trance.
Courtesy of Mikaela Saade
Sonic Portraits - Background
Sonic Portraits is an introspective story, produced from spatial recordings captured across four countries. These recordings, like footsteps echoing between parallel walls in Assisi, Italy, organically create effects to immerse the listener. Each sound has been carefully crafted to invite a deeper relationship with time, noise, and presence.
The first theme delves into the manipulation of Time; using shortened and "glitched" effects to evoke the repetitive cycles of city life, where time fragments and distorts. This deliberate editing reflects the relentless pace of all urban environments, underscoring how it affects our perception of reality.
The second theme traces the subtle transition from Noise to music, reflecting how noise seeps into our lives, often unnoticed.
It lingers like a ghost, long after we’ve left the source, it can take over six hours for our bodies to fully decompress, for stress hormones, blood pressure, heart rate and cognitive functions to normalise. Rarely do we experience pure tranquility—just as we rarely allow ourselves to fully engage with the present moment.
To quiet this mental chatter, pockets of silence are interwoven; each designed to pull listeners back into the Present, heightening awareness of their surroundings. This interplay between sound and silence promotes mindfulness, grounding the listener and challenging any tendency toward escapism.
While this is a clear commentary on noise pollution, the experience encourages broader reflection. It asks listeners to truly listen and confront the noise around them—and within them. It is an invitation to uncover the ignored and invisible, making room for intension.
The overarching message: "There is no such thing as a neutral space." Every environment we inhabit influences us, so why not care for these spaces—and in turn, for each other—in the best way we can?”
Principal Designer
Ralf Saade
Collaborating Artists
Timothy Bruce
Lev Zinger
Voice
Mikaela Saade
Samples
Instantané - Paradis (duo)
Special Thanks
Tom Bett & The Roundhouse
