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Lamma Island
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Sonic boon

Lamma Island
Yeung Yang

MOST PEOPLE REGARD the relentless noise of Hong Kong as a nuisance. Not Cedric Maridet. For him, the constant clattering of city life is a source of, and medium for, his art - sounds we hear but never listen or pay any attention to.

In I/O Flow, an audio installation at the Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre last year, he combined natural and recorded humming produced by an air-conditioning system to manipulate people's perception of the exhibition space.

In his digital video Huangpu, the Frenchman explores the relationship between the eye and the ear based on the concept of synaesthesia, a neurological condition in which two or more bodily senses are coupled. The piece won him a prize for excellence at the Hong Kong Biennale 2005.

Hongkongers aren't particularly sensitive to sounds, the 34-year-old says. 'The culture here is led by the visual. For instance, in film and video, people tend to work on the images first and leave sound to be dealt with later. Sound and image end up not being well integrated.'

Yet Maridet says sounds can sometimes help us understand our environment far better than visuals.

'If we listen by removing the image of the sound source, the sound becomes acousmatic [meaning that it can't be attributed to a source],' he says. 'We're then beginning to listen to the mass, the energy, the texture or the grain of the sound.'

Maridet says everyone can do it with practice, which is why he has organised a series of soundscape workshops at the Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre. 'Listening activities can help you listen better and listen to things like the qualities of sounds,' he says.

The workshops focus on field recordings, offering participants the chance to record the sounds they find interesting. The sessions are based on the World Soundscape Project founded by Canadian Murray Schafer in Vancouver in 1973, which has given rise to similar projects worldwide to document and examine the changing sonic environments of cities.

Maridet's interest in sound emerged after he came to Hong Kong seven years ago to teach French at the University of Hong Kong. He's now one of the most prolific sound artists in the city and devotes most of his time to exploring sound and studying for a doctorate in media art at City University's School of Creative Media.

He says his multimedia work is less about making art than trying new things. In addition to his artworks, he has released two audio CDs.

His interest in sound began when he heard the crackling of bamboo in the wind. 'I was living in Aberdeen when I first came to Hong Kong and often went to Lamma Island. I remember the sound.'

Sound has become the way in which he maps the city, as opposed to photography and video in the past.

'Built environments are soundscapes,' he says. 'For instance, without the chimes from the old Star Ferry clock, our sound map changes.'

Maridet says his workshops, which eschew heavily processed sounds in favour of naturalistic noise, will help people who are interested in exploring sound to deepen their understanding of the soundscape.

'I listen to everything and I have no objection to [pop music], but this way of consuming music as a product affects the way we listen,' he says.

There's much more to sensory experiences and the relationships between them than simply consuming 'sonic objects'.

'Is it possible, for instance, to talk about hearing a colour, or tasting a sound? I'm interested in how one sense interprets the other and not how one can be wallpaper for the other.'

Hong Kong Soundscape Workshop, Mar 18, 25, Apr 1, 2pm-5pm, 4/F Multi-purpose Room, Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre, HK$150-HK$300

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