I have the good fortune to have a sabbatical from teaching this semester, so in mid-January I returned to Edmonton for a month of work, on my own and with colleagues. In between spending many hours writing and editing essays for my book-in-progress, I was thrilled to have some time working at the University of Alberta’s Sound Studies Institute, where I am external affiliated faculty. What came from that work is a new 8-channel sound piece, Walking, Lost and Found, which I also mixed as a stereo version available here. The piece is a story of my walk from last summer–a story of getting lost and found, the strange becoming familiar, and learning to walk in a new way.

On one of my last days in Edmonton, I was able to preview the new piece for friends at the SSI’s 8-channel gallery, in collaboration with a new German colleague, Antje Risius, who also had work to share. It’s a particular joy to share fresh work and hear responses in real time. And, since many people will only ever hear the stereo version, hearing it in the full surround feels like a gift as well.