Soundwalks: Music & Landscape

As a keen walker, composer and music researcher, Ed Hughes, Professor of Composition in Music is fascinated by the ways in which artists have responded to the beautiful and fragile environment of the South Downs National Park.

In 2020, during lockdown, he worked with the South Downs National Park Authority and Echoes Interactive to create the geolocated ‘Cuckmere Soundwalk’ bringing original orchestral music to Cuckmere Haven. As users explore the paths with a smartphone they experience specially composed music associated with each area and its changing colours and seasons.

In 2021, Hughes was invited to make a new soundwalk for the Brighton Festival and the Ditchling Museum of Art+Craft. With this, walkers starting at the museum follow a trail up to Ditchling Beacon, experiencing specially composed music and images of artworks from the museum by artists reflecting the local landscape and the work of people who live in the area. The original music was also featured in a new film for the South Downs National Park Authority’s 10th anniversary.

Partners:

• Echoes Interactive
• South Downs National Park Authority
• Brighton Festival
• Ditchling Museum of Art+Craft
• Orchestra of Sound and Light