Recordings of background atmospheres and incidental noises from all over London. Many form part of a sound grid series recorded at evenly-spaced points across the city, each marking the centre of a square on the map below.
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Above: graphic based on a daytime satellite image courtesy of the Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center. Each red grid square is 2.5 miles or 4 kilometers across.
File name: Regents Canal Victoria Park
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 9 July 2011
Time of day: 11am
Location: By the Regent's Canal at Victoria Park, Hackney, east London.
Description: Loud birdsong from nearby trees and buddleia bushes, traffic in background, a bicycle passes making a noise on loose concrete paving slabs.
Technical guff: Headworn stereo. 2 x DPA 2006C mics, Sound Devices MixPre-D preamp, Sony PCM M10 recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Regents Canal Cambridge Heath Road
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 9 July 2011
Time of day: 11.20am
Location: Under the Cambridge Heath Road bridge crossing the Regent's Canal, Hackney, east London.
Description: Passing footsteps, traffic from Cambridge Heath Road, calls from a coot, voices and sounds from a nearby building site, joggers run past.
Technical guff: Headworn stereo. 2 x DPA 2006C mics, Sound Devices MixPre-D preamp, Sony PCM M10 recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Regents Canal Wennington Green
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 9 July 2011
Time of day: 10.20am
Location: By the Regent's Canal at Wennington Green, east London.
Description: Noises and voices from a building site, a man jogs past with a dog on a chain, distant traffic.
Technical guff: Headworn stereo. 2 x DPA2006C mics, Sound Devices MixPre-D preamp, Sony PCM M10 recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Yarn shop spinning wheel
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 0:14
Recorded by: Felicity Ford
Recording date: 26 August 2010
Time of day: Not known
Location: Prick Your Finger yarn shop, Globe Road, Bethnal Green.
Description: Squeaking and rattling of a spinning wheel in use.
Technical guff: Stereo. Edirol R09-HR digital recorder, internal mics.
Additional notes: Many thanks to Felicity Ford for sharing this. Visit The Domestic Soundscape blog for more of her sound recordings and writings on sound art, field recording, and wool-related matters.
File name: Yarn shop ballwinder
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 0:14
Recorded by: Felicity Ford
Recording date: 26 August 2010
Time of day: Not known
Location: Prick Your Finger yarn shop, Globe Road, Bethnal Green.
Description: Creaking sound of a ballwinder, a device for turning a loose ring or 'hank' of yarn into a tight ball.
Technical guff: Stereo. Edirol R09-HR digital recorder, internal mics.
Additional notes: Many thanks to Felicity Ford for sharing this. Visit The Domestic Soundscape blog for more of her sound recordings and writings on sound art, field recording, and wool-related matters.
File name: Bethnal Green Library
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 2:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 5 June 2010
Time of day: 1pm
Location: Bethnal Green Library, Cambridge Heath Road, east London.
Description: Sounds of library staff going about their work, a child laughs, air conditioning hum, visitors typing at computer keyboards.
Technical guff: Head-worn stereo. 2 x MM-HLSO/Sennheiser MKE-2 mics and Edirol R09-HR digital recorder.
Additional notes: Many thanks to Richard Bolt and the staff at the Bethnal Green Library
File name: Idea Store Bow
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 2:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 29 May 2010
Time of day: 11am
Location: Idea Store Bow public library, Roman Road, east London.
Description: Faint voices of library staff and readers, footsteps, an alert tone sounds briefly, a staple gun clicks once.
Technical guff: Head-worn stereo. 2 x MM-HLSO/Sennheiser MKE-2 mics and Edirol R09-HR digital recorder.
Additional notes: Many thanks to Richard Bolt and the rest of the library staff at the Idea Store Bow.
File name: Hackney Central Library
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 2:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 10 April 2010
Time of day: 12.30pm
Location: Inside Hackney Central Library, Mare Street.
Description: Ambience inside Hackney Central Library. Occasional bangs and coughs, voices, electronic beeps; to the left a man scribbles with enthusiasm onto a pad of paper.
Technical guff: Head-worn stereo. 2 x MM-HLSO/Sennheiser MKE-2 mics and Edirol R09-HR digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Roman Road market
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 2:10
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 20 February 2010
Time of day: 2.45pm
Location: Roman Road market, Hackney, east London
Description: Voices of shoppers and stallholders recorded while walking westwards along Roman Road street market.
Technical guff: Head-worn stereo. 2 x Shure WL-183 mics and Edirol R09-HR digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Olympic construction site
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 1:30
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 2 November 2009
Time of day: 1.15pm
Location: On the Greenway elevated path, near Pudding Mill Lane.
Description: Great din of earth movers, dumper trucks and machinery from all around at the 2012 Olympics construction site.
Technical guff: Stereo. Audio Technica BP4025 mic and Fostex FR-2LE digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Hertford Union canal
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 2 November 2009
Time of day: 2pm
Location: On the towpath of the Hertford Union canal, beneath the Cadogan Terrace bridge.
Description: Loud traffic noise from the A12 bridge over the canal, rushing of water from nearby lock gates.
Technical guff: Stereo. Audio Technica BP4025 mic and Fostex FR-2LE digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Pellici cafe Bethnal Green
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 2:23
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 2 October 2009
Time of day: 12:30pm
Location: Inside Pellici's cafe, Bethnal Green Road, east London.
Description: Lively, noisy atmosphere inside this popular traditional cafe. Hollow-sounding drone of the coffee machine, voices of customers and cafe staff, clattering of plates and cups, a member of staff asks an old man what he wants for lunch.
Technical guff: Stereo. Sonic Studios DSM-6S/EH mics and PA-3SX preamp, Edirol R09-HR digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: TQ 3627 8447
Grid square: Hackney, Stratford, Bow
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 17 February 2009
Time of day: 3.20pm
Location: OS reference 3627 8447. East end of Victoria Park Road.
Description: A moped and other larger vehicles pass close by, faint birdsong from Victoria Park.
Technical guff: Head-worn stereo. 2 x Shure WL-183 mics. Olympus LS-10 digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
Sound map recordings fall into two kinds, shown by the filenames they're given.
A sound grid recording has a filename beginning with the letters 'TQ', followed by eight digits. These are the Ordnance Survey co-ordinates for where the recording ought to be made. Each is part of a regularly-spaced series of recordings covering London. More about them, including graphics showing the resulting city-wide patterns of sounds, can be found on this page.
Other recordings have more descriptive filenames and these are simply of curious or distinctive sounds heard in different places.