Located in the underground pedestrian tunnel, Muru Giligu which means, ‘path of light’, Sonic Luminescence by Tina Havelock Stevens is an ever-evolving sound and light composition. Pedestrians can sit or walk, manipulating the sound according to where they choose to be.
Drawn from site-specific field recordings made in Martin Place, on the Metro train platforms and amongst functioning steam trains elsewhere, the composition allows different scenes to unfold across different times and days. You will hear human-made sounds but also the land’s cultural heritage such as nature’s pre-colonial symphony of magpies, butcher birds, lyre birds and owls.
First Nations musicians improvise on violin and vocalise the land and sky country above, cementing their relationship to the area. Violinist Eric Avery (a Ngiyampaa, Yuin, Bandjalang and Gumbangirr artist) imagined trains moving through the landscape when he played his violin, and Yuwaalaraay performer Nardi Simpson was vocalising land and sky country.
Woven into the soundscape are the sounds of transport from the past, drumming from the artist, soothing harp music to induce a more relaxed transit through the space, and archival audio relating to Martin Place. An undulating journey is created from one end of the pedestrian tunnel to the other, offering an atmosphere of possibility and wonder.
