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FLOW

Flow is a creative exploration of the river Lech, telling the story of a river through sound

 

Past, present, and future flow together as artists transform field recordings, research and satellite images into a recomposed interpretation of the life of a river. The river’s story, reimagined in sound.

 

The project is a collaboration between the University of Padova and the University of Würzburg, with support from Cities and Memory.

 

Explore the recomposed sounds of the river Lech from its source to its end, as imagined by artists from all over the world – follow the course of the river on the sound map below. In each case, you can hear a field recording from that section of the river, and an artist’s (or multiple artists’) composition from the same section.

EXPLORE
FLOW

ABOUT
FLOW

The river stands at the centre of contrasting visions. For some, it is a resource to be harnessed; for others, a living landscape to restore and protect.

 

Yet the river shapes all of our lives. It lies at the forefront of the climate struggle, capable of both safeguarding our communities or challenging them. So what should our relationship with rivers look, feel and sound like?

 

In Flow, artists reflect on climate change, the environment and what rivers mean in their lives, using sound as the medium.

 

The project was presented at the EGU general assembly in Vienna in May 2026, the most important geoscience conference in Europe. Flow is now also a podcast, Flowcast.

An example of the timelapse video data provided to artists for each section of the river Lech.

How the project works

How the project works

Flow combines science, sound, and imagery to bring to life the story of the river Lech, which flows through Austria and Germany, as an example representing all rivers, all over the world.

 

Researchers at the University of Padua and the University of Würzburg collected satellite images, research, photography and field recordings from the entire length of the river, and asked artists to reimagine the life of the river through sound.

 

The Lech was divided into 25 individual segments, each based on uniform characteristics of the river and represented by a time-lapse created from satellite images, along with a field recording captured on that stretch of water. Artists were asked to create a brand new composition based on their own responses, memories and feelings to that information, and to the role rivers play in their own lives.

About the river Lech

More about the river Lech

This project invites us to explore the river Lech, from its source in the Austrian Alps to its meeting with the Danube in Germany. The Lech was chosen because its story reflects that of many rivers: it has long been central to the growth of cities, agriculture, and industry.

 

Over time, the river was shaped and confined to serve human needs. Today, as climate change urges us to rethink how we manage water and landscapes, the Lech is becoming central once again. Restoration efforts are helping it thrive as a natural ecosystem and a place where communities reconnect with nature.

 

Through this meeting of art and science, the Lech becomes more than a line on the map. It becomes a flowing story — one that we can listen to, reflect on, and imagine in new ways.

Why rivers?

Why rivers?

What is a river? A resource we shape to fit our needs, or a wild force of nature to be restored and protected?

 

Have we gone too far in controlling its course — and how far can we go in giving it back its freedom?

 

Our civilization was born along rivers: they carried our boats, irrigated our fields, and nourished our cities. They are living systems, always shifting, carving new paths, and changing both in space and in time.

 

Over the centuries, we have shaped rivers to suit our needs — straightening their courses, building levees and dams, narrowing their space. These efforts protected us in many ways, but they also limited the rivers’ natural rhythms.

 

Today, as climate extremes intensify, we are learning how important it is to restore some of that freedom, so rivers can once again move, adapt, and support both people and nature.

 

This project uses sound to examine some of these fundamental questions.

PROJECT CREDITS

Flow is a project by Dr Martina Cecchetto, with the scientific contribution of Dr Florian Betz and the artistic curation of Riccardo Fumagalli, in collaboration with Cities and Memory, the University of Padua (Italy), and the University of Würzburg (Germany)