Sound Map

We believe that, historically, collective memory (and culture as a means of preserving and communicating it) has been passed down orally from generation to generation. However, we should not forget that hearing also played a crucial, indeed indispensable, role during this oral transmission. We cannot communicate without first learning how to listen. Therefore, there is a place in this ambiguous space we call collective memory that is made up by voices, noises, music and other sounds that contain a wealth of valuable, if encoded, information.

This project aims to explore this memory preserved in the walls of Tabakalera, in order to make us think about the sounds that form part of our own memories. At the end of the day, the aim is to paint a portrait of the building and its environment through sound. It is an invitation to discover the building through our sense of hearing.

The project is the result of a year’s hard work by the sound artists Xabier Erkizia and Iñigo Telletxea, who have collected a number of different sounds characteristic of both the building itself and the city of Donostia – San Sebastián, captured always from the perspective of Tabakalera.

The designers Xavier Balderas and Enrike Hurtado have designed and built a physical and virtual structure in which to exhibit this work, using an interactive system which invites all visitors to immerse themselves in sound.

Presentation of the Tabakalera Sound Map: 30 October.

Direction: Xabier Erkizia
Phonology: Iñigo Telletxea, Xabier Erkizia
Photos: Asier Gogortza
Design: Xavier Balderas
Assembly: Xavier Balderas, Iñigo Telletxea
Programming: Enrike Hurtado, Xavier Balderas