The mechanical lagoon, Torcello, Venice

Following on from our recent post about why Venice is the best city for field recording, here’s our latest sound from the city.

We ventured out to its furthest island, Torcello, to explore a more rural and peaceful side to Venice – upon our return, we recorded the sound of the clanging vaporetto dock as we waited to be taken back to the main island.

You can hear the metallic creak of the dock, punctuated by the occasional speedboat roaring past and out into the lagoon in the field recording, which was recorded on a mobile phone (after all, the best recorder is the one you happen to have with you).

For the reimagined piece, the sound of a passing speedboat is the undercurrent, slowed, reverbed and manipulated to form a pulsing bed of sound.

This is overlaid with treated creaks from the dock, along with an assortment of other sounds built from metals and mechanical devices, to build a sense that the whole supporting structure of the Venetian lagoon is in fact a great mechanical feat of engineering.

City version:

Memory version: