A new beginning from Xiamen

Jul 14, 01:34 PM

"The field recording with the importance of preserving the city's valuable cultural heritage, even amidst the changes, inspire me a story with sound images that help you rediscover the beauty of Xiamen.

"At the beginning, the sound of cut bamboo and a fascinating pentatonic melody, created and played by me on the flute ,brings to mind a magic and ancestral atmosphere.

"I created 4 tracks: 2 flute and 2 bamboo. Leaving the field recording with the voices intact, I improvised with my flute, imagining a young person interacting with the a group of elderly locals from Xiamen engaging in conversation and historical narratives. This young person gives freshness and energy with new ideas, which is represented by the crescendo of bamboos and the dialogue of two flutes, with many challenges and contrasts in the choice to leave the city.

"I wanted to create a very interesting weave of voices because for me it represents an intercultural and intergenerational dialogue that can mean a very interesting growth and development.

"The end is a return to the past but a new beginning, a rebirth with the awareness of the beauty and valorization of Xiamen and the cultural tradition traveling towards new horizons,an openness to new connections."

Cristina Italiani: flute,bamboo, composition
Francesco Toninelli: mixing and mastering engineer 

Xiamen soundscape reimagined by Cristina Italiani.

Part of the Migration Sounds project, the world’s first collection of the sounds of human migration. 

For more information and to explore the project, see https://www.citiesandmemory.com/migration