On World Listening Day 2024, Wicken Fen National Trust Nature Reserve launch a new project Listen to the Voices of the Fen by artist Kathy Hinde in Partnership with Wicken Fen and Babylon Arts to celebrate the 125th Anniversary of Wicken Fen.
Listen to the Voices of the Fen invites you to actively listen to the voices of many different species at Wicken Fen. Activities and installations will reveal hidden soundworlds we may not usually notice, from underwater, underground and inside trees. Listen from a new perspective by joining us for a listening walk, or wander at your own pace to explore sounds installations, all focussed on the intriguing and captivating soundworlds at Wicken Fen.
Sound Pools installation
At the boardwalk close to the Roger Clarke Hide. Wander along the boardwalk and find yourself being bathed in hidden sounds from the Fen. Sounds from underwater and underground are elevated into a series of overhead speakers, inviting you to step in and out of different soundworlds as you approach the Roger Clarke Hide pond. Become immersed in the chirping sounds of underwater invertebrates and crackling sounds of fish from the ponds and lodes. Become curious about sounds hidden deep inside the peat where carbon and time are held.
Recordings have been made from the beginning of 2024 to explore the underwater and underground soundworlds through the seasons. The installation will be showing every day until 29 September during Wicken Fen’s usual visitor opening hours.
Live Hydrophone Stream
In the visitor centre, there will be an opportunity to listen live to an underwater microphone submerged in a watery location close by. This underwater soundscape will also be live-streamed as part of ‘locus-sonus’ soundmap, streaming soundscapes from all over the world to explore the ever-evolving relationship between sound and place.
This project is supported using public funding by The National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Image © Mike Selby / National Trust