Sonidos de Valparaiso

A project I undertook while living in Valparaiso, Chile for 5 months in the Southern Hemispheric Summer & Spring of 2007. Listen to the soundscape of my favorite city:

Sonidos de Valparaiso segment on “Macroscopial Ambiental,” April 28, 2007, Radio Placeres, 87.7 FM, Valparaiso, Chile

Sonidos de Valparaiso was a weekly segment on Radio Placeres, one of the community radio stations in Valparaiso. Here you can listen to me speaking español and airing the week’s recordings.
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Promotional clip for Sonidos De Valparaiso radio segment:

The 30 second Valpo medley.

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Feria de Flores:

The dreamy atmosphere at the Flower market in Playa Ancha neighborhood of Valparaiso. Sounds heard: clipping shears, paper wrapping flowers, vendors calling, music from the radio, conversation.

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Helado (ice cream) Vendor:

Interview with ice cream vendor outside of the Bellavista station in Valparaiso. He makes his presence known by blowing an old horn, a traditional Mapuche instrument in Chile (some might call it a Shofar). Sounds heard: Chilean intonation, animal horn being blown, pedestrian traffic, Spanish tinged with an American accent, a guy tooting his own horn in the most poetic way.

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Gas vendor:

Every morning in Valparaiso people are awakened to the sound of the gas vendors, who peddle or drive through the streets and hills anouncing their presence by banging on the canisters. Some have rhythm. Sounds heard: Gas vendor, street noise.

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Feria de Verdures (vegetable market):

A recording of a walk through the vegetable market on Avenida Argentina–twice weekly organized chaos. People hawking fresh vegetables, telling you they’re tasty, cheap, and the best. A strong community, people bring each other tea. Sounds heard: A medley of voices selling various goods, gossip, carts, horns, music.
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Ascensor (funicular):

Valparaiso is so hilly that funiculars have been built to take people up the hills. Wooden, creaky and old, they are an institution. This recording is the sound of a trip up the Ascensor Reina Victoria.
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El mar (the sea):

Valpariso is a port city on the Southern pacific, you see the see from vistas in the hills or up close on the rocks. Every day people fish and sell seafood in the markets. Sounds heard: The sea, air, rocks.

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Graffiti Art:

Almost every surface is painted in Valparaiso, with colored housepaint, art, stencils, murals, political graffiti, soccer fan graffiti, standard graffiti…it’s got texture. Sounds heard: A tag being painted by Atimob, seagulls.

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Gabiotas (seagulls):

A city on the sea would be incomplete without its seagulls. This recording is from the Muelle Baron. Sounds heard: Seagulls, rustlings.

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La Roma:

La Roma is a popular bar among university students, and also has its longstanding community of ancient regulars. This recording was made around 5 PM on a Tuesday night. Sounds heard: ambient bar noise, lousy american music, young bohemian drunks shouting “¡eso!”

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Cantante en Plaza O’Higgins (street singer):

Ahh, no picture of this lovely lady. One of the many street performers in Valparaiso. Sound heard: woman singing along to bolero music.

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Organiero (man who plays a manual organ with a parrot on his shoulder around town):

This guy would appear every few weeks on Cerro Alegre and grind his antique organ with his parrot on his shoulder and sell little toys. He told me that the organ had been in his family for a long time and he was a third generation organ player. Sound heard: Antique organ grinder songs.
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Perros (dogs):

Stray dogs are everywhere in Chile, and rule the streets of Valparaiso. Completely friendly towards humans, they will often walk with you for 10 minutes or so of companionship. They do converse with each other quite loudly however, endless barking is a typical soundtrack of the city. Sound heard: Dogs barking.
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Adverisement in the Puerto:

I recorded this advertisement for a restaurant in the port district. It was blaring from the Porto Viejo restaurant, serving traditional puerto fare. Sound heard: loudspeaker publicity.

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Santiago Wanderers de Valparaiso Fans (soccer team):

The Santiago Wanderers de Valparaiso are the local team, and futbol is a lifestyle in Chile. Sounds heard: “Aguas, minerales, jugos!”, chants, drums, a goal is scored, screams and claps, fervor, loyalty and passion.

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Flipper (pinball arcade):

Pinball arcades remain hugely popular in Valparaiso, they are crowded all day with a wide assortement of characters, men, women, business suits, students, kids. Sound heard: pinball noises and background latin music.

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Loros (parrots):

Couldn’t score a good picture of the damn birds, but I got their noise. Sound heard: Parrot plague.
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Newspaper Vendor:

Every morning in Cerro Alegre I heard this man selling newspapers. He calls out their names. Sounds heard: “…el tercera…el mercurio.”
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Trolley:

The old trolleys are an emblem of the city. Bumpy yet gentle transportation of another era. (My dad claims they are the very same trolleys of his childhood in Washington, D.C.–possible imported to South America after the end of service in D.C.). Sounds heard: squeaks, creaky doors, bell ringing, shuffling along, street noises, conversation of driver and passenger about lunch.

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Microbuses:

The micro, aka bus. 90% of the time accompained by music chosen by the driver, 75% of the time Bolero music. Sounds heard: In section a) of this recording you ride the curvy belt of the micro “O,” along Avenida Cintura/Alemana listening to bolero and almost falling off your seat. In section b) you hear the a man selling something small and random while asking for money. In section c) you are caught in a traffic jam on Erazzuriz, and the driver continually asks people to step to the back, por favor.
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Metro:

As Valparaiso builds up its tourist trade, it bucks up to modernity: the metro. Sound heard: A metro ride from Estacion Francia to Estacion Bellavista.

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Rattle:

This woman was selling little handmade flowers on Calle Prat. She shook a rattle to call attention. Sound heard: Rattle.

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Teletrak:

Teletrak is OTB. (Never empty.) I bet on my first horserace (didn’t win). Sound heard: televised horse race, (note that one of the horses is named “Take me Out.”)
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Burro (Donkey):

Up in the hills of Valparaiso the roads are dirt and some people own donkeys. They travel down to sell milk and other goods, and sometimes they carry things in old sinks…or at least one time. Sound heard: clip clop on the cobblestones.
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Colegio (elementary school):

Children run wild in their playgrounds of yard and street and vegetation left between the convergence of two hills in Valparaiso. Sounds heard: Children’s play, recorded outside of a school on Subida Cumming.

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Tomas:

Valparaiso is a city constantly being expanded and repaired. One of the visuals that stands out in this city is the sight of thousands of tiny multicolored houses on stilts up in the hills. There is somewhat of a “wild wild west” attitude in Chile when it comes to staking out a piece of public land and building a house on it. These houses are called “tomas,” from the verb “tomar” (to take). The tradition is DIY, and as well as cramming new houses in, there is a plethora of “fixer-uppers” to be found in this old town. Sounds heard: Construction noises.
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Plaza O’Higgins:

Every afternoon in Plaza O’Higgins old men play Briscas with Spanish card decks until sunset. They drink nescafe and tea and talk about cards and life. Sound heard: “I’m still waiting for the coffee,” chit chat, cards being thrown.

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