Two stories on the NYT website this morning about public art ambient sound installations in New York:

Sound Tunnel: Avant-Garde Park Portrait

John Morton recorded sounds around Central Park to be played through speakers in a tunnel near the Central Park Zoo. They start after the chimes every half hour, with modulated versions of the chimes themselves, and then a variety of other sounds and noises, of animals, musicians, children, etc. You can hear some samples here.

A Calming Presence Amid the Groans and Screeches

A proposal is currently in the works to play nature sounds in the subway station at 96th Street and Broadway, supposedly to remind commuters of the pastoral history of the area. The NYT points out that as the work is accompanied by a sculptural installation of cartoony steel flowers, the effect is more likely to be cheekily artistic than soothingly pastoral (not that I have a problem with the cheekily artistic!).

It’s nice to see two new public sound works that introduce sounds into the environment.

The John Morton work in the park is a great way to revitalize the sonic experience of walking under a tunnel, hearing park sounds, but altered so that you take notice. I imagine the effect of hearing the usual bells echoed by a warbled and distorted version under a nearby tunnel would be quite nice.

The subway work, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to take as much account of its surroundings. Yes, 96th street used to be pastoral, but so did the rest of Manhattan, so what makes this a special comment about its specific location? It’s possible that the NYT hasn’t picked up on whatever the actual artists’ point is, so we’ll have to wait and see when/if it becomes a reality.