The main problem I have faced in the few last years is to realise that the way I perceived myself – and what I understood as my identity – was different and disconnected from the ‘images’ of myself that I perceived through the eyes of others. I believe, that through the use of our knowledge, we are able to shift perspectives on how we see ourselves and how we are seen by others. At the same time, I would also like to open a dialogue concerning the sense of self and female discourses. I will explain later how and why I used low-quality recordings in a high-end technology system, as well as talk about my experience with composition and mixing in the WFS. The installation was exhibited on 7th February 2017 at the Wave Field Synthesis Studio, at the UDK. The research project was initiated in December 2015 and lasted until February 2017. I would like to talk a bit about this process, both technically and conceptually.

This work culminated with the creation of an immersive installation, which I called ‘This Alienness and Me’. Through this method, I researched my own sense of self, while feeling “I don’t belong” – either to a place, to a group of people, or to both at the same time. This whole experience led me to develop a method for artistic research in the Masters in Sound Studies, at the University of the Arts (Universität der Künste) in Berlin. This turned out to function as a fun (and reflective) practice, that I had developed spontaneously to deal with my issues of feeling disconnected. In other words, I decided to talk to myself through the phone, and listen back to what I just said. I started to experiment with that, but without sending my recorded messages to anyone. I could listen to what I just said from a new perspective, and this was helping me reorganise my thoughts. I was re-appropriating that place and contributing to its soundscape, by bringing my private discourse into the public space.ĭuring this process, I noticed that I enjoyed playing back my recordings. The streets were mine, as I walked through them. I was somehow functioning in that society. Speaking on the cellphone in my mother-tongue, while wandering through the streets of Berlin, helped me feel I was no longer an outsider. I started to exchange voice messages with a close friend that was also living abroad. In facing my feelings of disconnection, I found comfort in technology. I hope I can bring a bit of encouragement, as well as proposing another point of view on using our knowledge as a weapon to overcome challenges. I believe that many of us have gone or are going, through similar experiences.

I would like to share here some of my experiences with you, and explain how I used audio as a tool for empowerment while dealing with my own feelings of alienation. During my first year in this new city, I started to feel alone and disconnected, like I was watching life passing by through a window: I was there, but I was outside. I am a Brazilian SoundGirl from Rio de Janeiro that moved to Berlin, Germany, in 2013 to study and work. Voice Recording and Spatial Audio as Tools for Empowerment

Soundobject records