New release: Matilde Meireles’s “Sunnyside”

In a time where human contact is restricted for safety reasons, contact in this work takes place by — literally — listening closely to the sounds of objects which are very much part of my domestic daily life. During April 2020, I collected a series of sounds around my house on Sunnyside Street (Belfast, NI) including a wide variety of textures captured with different types of contact microphones, and multiple layers of electromagnetic interference caused by the growing use of electronic devices and the internet. These recordings form the basis of an exploration of the micro and extra-human sounds produced by the physical and virtual objects such as the radiator, the kettle, the shower, or the internet. Sunnyside intertwines these elements to reinforce repetition, discovery, detail and loss of perception of time that characterises the experience of many during our current life in confinement.

Matilde Meireles is a recordist, sound artist, and researcher who makes use of field recordings to compose site-oriented projects focused on sound. Her projects often have a multi-sensorial approach to ‘site’ which draws from her studies and experience in areas such as field-recording, site-specific visual arts and design.

She completed a PhD in Sonic Arts at the Sonic Arts Research Centre, Queen’s University Belfast. She was also appointed as a Research Fellow on several projects at Queen’s examining the role that immersive technologies can play in the development of new digital narratives.

Her work often highlights collaboration and participation as catalysts for a shared understanding of place, developing project-based or long-term collaborations. Matilde is also part of OSSO Colectivo, an interdisciplinary collective based in Portugal.