Sounding Zameen

Abstract

In the last decade there has been a strong emergence of creative practitioners exploring the role of creativity and technology in environmental awareness and engagement. I have witnessed the dramatic effects of climate change in my lifetime, and as a composer I strongly believe there is a critical need to listen to the environment. I believe electroacoustic music using natural sounds, which may expose the state of the environment, could be a valuable device in exploring and understanding the ramifications of climate change. My recent research began as an exploration of electroacoustic music in ecological crisis and evolved into a complex web of projects harnessing sound to raise cultural, social and environmental awareness. The resulting compositions were rewarding outcomes, yet it became the process itself that was most valuable. The process was not just about composing, but engaging communities in the environmental intentions of the project and inspiring others to participate in practices of listening, field recording, composition and collaborations. This resulted in a distinctive shift in my creative practice, essentially from an internal and often isolated process to an expanded awareness and social consciousness, where artistic outcomes have become milestones in broader creative visions that have engrained social purpose and cultural intent within a community and environment. This has shifted my perception of what it means to be a composer and inspired a spectrum of collaborations exploring the role of creativity in community empowerment, social activism and cultural change.