I posted about some work of Rodrigo Derteano’s last week (here) but this third work I omitted as it didn’t quite seem suitable to include with the other two works.

recomputing space (image above) is a sound installation which employes field recordings as a psychogeographic study of urban sound.

Following the commands and rhythm imposed by an algorithm, two persons walk around in chosen locations in the city, recording a mix of noise, language, music and the sound of their own steps. The chosen locations are public places, such as public squares, parks, tram stations etc.

The algorithm they follow is composed of a number of simple commands (left, right, forward, back, stop) and a metronome. It is rendered into sound and received on headphones. It tells the two microphone operators how to walk and provides the walking rhythm which structures their recordings . Both recorded soundtracks are later played back at the soundscape-installation, which consists of 30 loudspeakers ordered in a 5×6 matrix, placed on the floor approximately 2 meters from each other. The sounds “move” from speaker to speaker, reconstructing the paths of the microphone operators at the time of the recording.