2025 was a great year for Echoes. We saw sound walks be a focus of the 50th International Computer Music Conference in Boston, with 18 pieces commissioned for Boston Common (all hosted on Echoes). It was a real privilege for me to speak at ICMC on a panel with Leah Barclay and Christina Campanella about the issues close to my heart: sound walks and the power they bring to art; how they’re a separate medium from other art forms being intimately connected to place and as distinct as installation art from traditional fine art. They can bring relevancy and specificity to otherwise location-agnostic sound art. They also foster a connection to the outdoors, taking people on a literal journey as well as a virtual one. Possibly most importantly, if we think laterally, sound walks are an ‘augmented reality’ experience that still connect with our real surroundings and are simpler to create, but also more immersive. Many of the walks in Boston Common took advantage of spatial audio through the ambisonic features of Echoes, bringing surround sound to anyone with a pair of headphones.

I've also been working continuously on a project originally commissioned by Factory International, the body behind Manchester International Festival, now with their own stonking venue in the centre of Manchester, Aviva Studios. City of Floating Sounds is a digital symphonic piece in two parts: firstly a digital walking audio piece where all participants play separate sections of the symphony out loud, and these synchronise to create an ensemble as people walk to the venue.
Last year was a busy year for the City of Floating Sounds project. It went to London’s Southbank in April, Yale in New Haven in June, and Beijing in October. The latter was exceptionally challenging as we had to rewrite the entire system to work with China's WeChat environment. Not an undertaking for the faint of heart, but we managed a flawless experience in the heart of Beijing, walking past historic landmarks and ending up at the iconic National Centre for Performing Arts, a stunning venue with a moat around it (!).

I’ve also been working on a new mystery project, which combines some aspects of sound walking in a more interactive game-like environment. There are some tantalising glimpses of being able to achieve a lot of things that I’ve dreamed about with Echoes, like being able to extend the experience into the real world and allowing the player (or listener) more agency in the experience. If you’re interested in playing with the boundaries of performance and gaming through the medium of storytelling and technology please get in touch.

It was an exciting year, and I’m looking forward to what the next period will bring. Whatever happens, it’s clear to me that there are a lot of groundbreaking developments that will come our way, sooner, rather than later. Not just for us at Echoes, but for everyone working in sound walks, whether creators, listeners, sponsors, or producers. That’s why we decided to extend our collaboration with WLC by sponsoring this year’s SWS Awards, doubling the prize money for both the winner and the honourable mention.
Exciting things might be happening, we all can use just that little extra push to get there.

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