"Listening to Silent Spring"

“Listening to Silent Spring” audio

“Listening to Silent Spring” is a piece of sound art, based on a listening walk around east Exeter on the 50th anniversary of publication of “Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson. The sounds I noted became the script for the piece. The work is mostly silence, which allows the listener to become aware of their own ambient soundtrack.

Blackbird singing. Photo credit: Alexander Wallnöfer via Free Images.

Silent Spring

Today is the 50th anniversary of the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring. In its honour, I am spending a couple of hours walking around my neighbourhood listening for bird song. In the meantime, here are three short posts I wrote a year and a half ago, reflecting on the book.

"Listening to Silent Spring"

“Listening to Silent Spring” (2018-19)

“Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson is among the most influential books that have been published. On its 50th anniversary in 2012, I honoured the work and its impact by taking an awareness walk around my neighbourhood, and listening. In response I made a piece of sound art.