Sounding Art Trail is a site-specific soundscape project rooted in the creative practice of walking. The project unfolds along two long-distance routes, the North Downs Way in the UK and the Lycian Way in Turkey, inviting walkers to listen, move, and create with the landscapes they pass through. By placing walking at the centre of artistic production, the project transforms the act of moving through land into a method of inquiry, collaboration, and shared reflection.

On Friday 20 March, we invite you to join us for a free sound walk walkshop starting at Otford railway station (TN14 5QY) at 11.00am, just metres from the UK’s North Downs Way. You will be joined by artists and fellow participants to explore walking as a creative tool using guided listening, collective movement, and reflective exercises to engage with the soundscape of the trail. Rather than producing sound about place, the workshop emphasises producing sound with place, through embodied and shared experience.

This is a free event made possible by the British Council funding of the Sounding Art Trail linking Britain and Turkey – a sound art trail initiative created by the Cultural Routes Society in Turkey with sound artists Dystopic Symptoms.

The walkshop will be led by Andrew Stuck of walk · listen · create and you will learn how to make immersive sound walks and record soundscape, recording audio using your smartphone, as well as aspects of editing and geo-locating sound along the North Downs Way.

Bring a smartphone or digital sound / voice recorder and headphones, and dress appropriately for the weather. We have endeavoured to find an accessible walkshop route, however there are slight inclines that you will encounter, and in places the surfaced path is narrow, however, all of the route is hard surfaced underfoot. The chalk landscape can be unforgiving especially after rain, where it can be slippery underfoot. A sketch of the route we will take is here.

A key destination will be St Bartholomew’s Church, and we are very grateful to have a recording made by the Rev Kelly Parsons, the vicar there:

Hear from two North Downs Way team members with their recommendations on what to listen out for:

Pete Morris is the North Downs Way National Trail Manager:

Sarah Moon is Project manager of the Putting Down Routes initiative:

Booking is essential – you will be issued with a British Council Consent form to sign. We need committed participants, collecting sounds that may be used in the Sound Art Trail developed by Dystopic Symptoms.