Petra Anamnetic presents a stratophonic acoustic mapping of the Petra world heritage archaeological site, located in southern Jordan. This locale has traditionally belonged to the Bedouin B’doul tribe, a clan that continues to play an eminent role within the tourist industry, which is of central importance to the area’s economy. The piece has been recorded ambisonically and rendered binaurally – it is intended to be disseminated via headphones, replicating the immersive and interactive experience of audition in a ‘real’ space.

Petra Anamnetic juxtaposes two main elements: (1) a conversation between two B’doul shepherd children tending their goats in one of the many caves that are characteristic of the area and (2) the sound of the evening call to prayer recorded from a hotel rooftop patio in nearby Wadi Musa, the main access point for most of the many tourists visiting Petra. Via the juxtaposition and creative manipulation of these two recordings, Petra Anamnetic aims to foreground the complex strata embedded within a geographically contiguous yet socially, politically and historically heterogeneous territory, sonically delineating sublimated tensions manifested between those who are native to the area and the transient foreigners who come to marvel at their legacy.

UNESCO listing: Petra

Recorded by Michael Trommer.

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This sound is part of the Sonic Heritage project, exploring the sounds of the world’s most famous sights.

Find out more and explore the whole project: https://www.citiesandmemory.com/heritage

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