Relaxed walks with the goal of consciously listening to your immediately sonic environment — no prior experience required.
About
AELab's Weekly Soundwalks are open, community-based events that invite participants — regardless of musical or scientific background — to slow down and attend to the sounds of their immediate environment.
Rooted in the acoustic ecology tradition established by R. Murray Schafer and Pauline Oliveros's deep listening practices, soundwalks offer a simple but transformative experience: by giving deliberate attention to what we normally filter out, we begin to hear our environment anew.
Soundwalks take place in parks, urban spaces, and natural areas across the Tempe/Phoenix metropolitan area. They are led by AELab faculty and trained graduate students, and are designed to be accessible and welcoming to all.
What to Expect
The group gathers at a designated meeting point. The walk leader introduces the session and offers a brief listening exercise to tune attention before setting out.
Participants walk a designated route slowly and in silence, attending to the sounds around them — from distant aircraft to nearby insects, wind, and water.
At designated points, the group pauses for extended listening sessions — sometimes using notation, drawing, or reflection cards to capture what they hear.
After the walk, participants gather to share observations, discuss what they noticed, and connect their experience to broader questions of ecology and environment.