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: By the Thames at Crossness
Grid square: Abbey Wood, Thamesmead, Belvedere
Duration: 1:20
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 20 March 2011
Time of day: 5pm
Location: By the Thames at the Crossness Nature Reserve.
Description: Cries of wading birds in a small bay where the nature reserve abuts the Thames. Constant rushing noise from the Crossness sewage works and incinerator immediately to the west.
Technical guff: X-Y stereo. Audio Technica BP4025 mic and Fostex FR-2LE recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: Thames at Dagenham
Grid square: Abbey Wood, Thamesmead, Belvedere
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 4 November 2009
Time of day: 1.45pm
Location: On a path by the Thames just west of Dagenham.
Description: Waves lapping the shoreline, distant hum and clatter of machinery at Barking Riverside to the west.
Technical guff: Stereo. Audio Technica BP4025 mic and Fostex FR-2LE digital recorder.
Additional notes: None.
File name: TQ 4815 8067
Grid square: Abbey Wood, Thamesmead, Belvedere
Duration: 1:00
Recorded by: IM Rawes
Recording date: 20 April 2009
Time of day: 11.20am
Location: Belvedere Road, near the entrance to Crossness waterworks.
Description: Birdsong from hedgerows on each side of Belvedere Road. Traffic noise from the Eastern Way elevated section to the south, and a faint humming sound from Crossness waterworks to the north.
Technical guff: Head-worn stereo. 2 x Shure WL-183 mics. Edirol R09-HR 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.