Amplified

This soundscape weaves together four types of sounds heard on speakers in public spaces in Israel: the Adhan (the Muslim call to prayer), the “Saturday siren” (a Jewish Orthodox custom announcing Saturday eve – in this case playing the songs “Shalom-Aleichem” and “Lecha Dodi”), memorial day sirens and sirens warning of an incoming rocket. In this piece I consider the power of the soundscapes in which we live, investigating the diverse aspects that affect the formation of collective consciousness and worldview. At times the sounds in the piece coexist, even harmoniously. Sometimes the sounds create points of friction or competition by overpowering each other. The piece begins and ends with the silencing sound of bereavement and commemoration. All these sounds have a concrete “announcing” function while they carry with it a political undertone and agenda in the social-religious-politically charged existence in Israel.