Littoral Transmissions #43 - Tributary Flow (With Blanc Sceol & Helen Frosi)

Littoral Transmissions meander through the sonic landscape of the River Lea from Stonebridge Lock to Leamouth. Recordings from the field converge with layers of sound to create an aural impression of the navigation.

In this episode: a short boat ride at high tide brought us to a small man-made island, long since forgotten in the middle of the Channelsea river. Sheltered from London's hurried clock by the ancient flow of water, we became permeated by a slower sense of time, witnessing the inexorable, gradual processes of buildings returning to earth, trees sprouting in their midst, their leaves flickering in the winter sunlight.

Listening, we attuned ourselves to the sounds the currents brought us, our answers carried gently downstream. A great tit's call and heron's cry signalled a shift in the tide, and we returned back to the city as the river began to recede.

Heartfelt thanks to Blanc Sceol (artists Stephen Shiell and Hannah White) for their generous invitation to visit Channelsea Island and safe crossings, and for sharing & performing the Ear to the River score with us, and to Helen Frosi for attentive ears and recording.

Photo shows a composite image of Blanc Sceol's Ear to the River score (also read out at the start of the recording) and street art by Stephen Shiell. More details on Blanc Sceol's An Ear to the River collaborative project with Surge Coop can be found at https://soundcloud.com/channelsea and https://www.blancsceol.co.uk/An-Ear-to-the-River.