Kitchen timer (reimagined)

Jul 17, 08:33 PM

"What immediately drew me to this recording was the profound gentleness, tenderness and warmth that could be felt in it. I wasn't able to transcribe the entire conversation, so I only have a rough idea of what the mother and daughter were talking about. That's why I decided to leave the entire recording in its full length. I only removed some parts with background noise, processed the recording, and used some elements (the sound of the timer and the camera) as audio components.

"I wanted to give the whole composition a nostalgic feel. Therefore, I used analog synthesizer sounds like the Mellotron and processed analog sounds, as well as tape delay wherever necessary.

"Personally, I don't have experience as a migrant, but the theme of parting and memories of happy moments spent together is close to everyone who has been separated from their loved ones for any reason. Perhaps we are truly physically distant? Perhaps our loved ones are deceased? Or maybe we are physically close but so emotionally distant that we can no longer have a close relationship? Who knows.

I decided to keep the original title of the recording (Kitchen Timer). The kitchen timer is, as the author says, a "melodious and excited kitchen appliance" but also a symbol of the passage of time we have together. Or perhaps the time until we meet again."

New Zealand kitchen timer recording reimagined by Grigor Ćorić.

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