Three Words invites artists from all over the world to use the power of words to remix and reimagine the sounds of the world.

Click on any location on the map to hear two sounds – the first is an original field recording from that place, and the second is a reimagined interpretation. Hit “info” on the reimagined sound to read about the words that inspired the piece.

The three words referenced in each location come from the word-based global mapping platform what3words.

What is what3words?

what3words is a unique mapping and location system whereby every 3m square in the world is assigned a unique three-word address – which means any location on the planet can be found using a three-letter identifier.

This project invites artists to use these three word identifiers as artistic inspiration, using them as a set of “found instructions” to remix and reimagine a field recording from any given location – like location-based Oblique Strategies cards.

Three Words – the album

Download a collection of highlights from the project for free or on a pay-what-you-like basis – the album also includes the original field recordings on which each piece was based:

Credits

Three Words features field recordings by the following recordists:

Cities and Memory, Marcel Gnauk, Ivan Rivelli, Joanna Humphreys, Mark Wilden, Andrew Coombes, Tasos Tsigkas, Matt Rogalsky, Richard Watts, Mark Baker, Valerio Orlandini, Rich Bitting, Melike Ceylan and Colin Hunter.

The project features reimagined pieces by the following artists:

Jimmy Peggie, Stormy, Liz Helman, Leon Muraglia, Nour Sokhon, Alan Bleay, Michael Competielle, Adam Hulbert, Simon Woods, Narcosislabs, Nimmi Naidoo, Michael Lilley, Ollie Campbell, Richard Watts, Gregory Kramer, Andrew Tulloch, Chow Ow Wei and Ahmad Faudzi Musib, Sherman and Field, Glenn Sogge, AJ Born, Shaun Malone, Baying Ridges, Kid Kin, Simon Le Boggit, Philippe Neau, Keira Simmons, Richard Gadd, Matt Chapman Jones, Andy Billington, Chris Enisle, Alex Hehir, Tim Coomb, Graeme Rose, Lee Clift, Rob Knight, Karhide, Ian Haygreen, John Ov3rblast, Jason Lee, Anthony Miller, Stephanie Merchak, Thee Manual Labour, Andy Lyon, Scott Wilson, Jeff Dungfelder, Paul Collins, Simon Bradley, Dave Santorum, Nick St. George, Foto di Gruppo, Bernhard Living, Daryn Brown, hilpath, Emmy Tither, Ruth Knight, Millie Wissar and David Henckel.