Pictures for the ears #2 (Εικόνες Για Το Αυτί)

Part of the Sacred Spaces project - find out more at http://www.citiesandmemory.com/sacredspaces

Reimagined by Peter Annear.

"I am intrigued by Maria Ponce's recording in the church of Agios Ioannis on Corfu. The main focus is clearly the Pappas and his acolytes singing the liturgy. However because of the "slight distance" there are some intimate little sounds very close to the microphone that suggest a narrative beyond the obvious.

There is one worshipper very close to the microphone with a deep bass voice who contributes to the deliciously deep harmonies. These worshipping voices are interspersed with human interaction, secular voices, coughs, chairs/ benches scraping on the floor, footsteps and other sounds almost indistinct. Who is there? If we are at a distance how engaged are we in the mass, each other or in tiny details? What catches our eye? Our ear?

I have prefaced the recording with sounds collected in other Greek sacred spaces to set it in one suggested narrative with similar intimate sounds demanding momentary attention. Two passing sounds at the very beginning are then explored in an altered state to echo and enhance the pappas and the acolytes song of worship. Finally a small fragment of the original mass is altered to finish the piece."