Photo series: Sounds of Places at LGW24 by Tess Janssen

Sounds of Places Photo

Sounds of Places, a residency-based sound gathering that focuses on the sonic aesthetics of place, celebrated its world premiere at Le Guess Who? 2024 with the presentation of Christmas in Mourning and Faster than light, always.

The first edition of the residency, initiated by Radio Alhara and commissioned by Wonder Cabinet, took place in June 2024 in the Cremisan Valley, one of the last green spaces around the city of Bethlehem, Palestine.

A photo of people sitting on church benches. They are all looking into the same direction, listening to the performance on stage.

The artists involved presented their works at Le Guess Who? 2024. Our resident photographer, Tess Janssen, was present to capture the program in the beautiful Pieterskerk.

Christmas in Mourning

Christmas in Mourning is a mourning sound piece using religious recitals in an electronic composition - first produced remotely between Beirut and Bethlehem in December 2023.

The project was commissioned in the midst of the genocide in Gaza. In view of the era defining ethnic cleansing happening in Gaza, Bethlehem's iconic Greek Orthodox Church on the Nativity decided to cancel all festive aspects of Christmas, replacing them with a broadcasting event of Christmas hymns performed by the head of the choir of the church of the Nativity, Laurence Sammour, with music co-composed by Beirut’s electronic musicians Sary Moussa and Abed Kobeissy.

Two photos. The first photo is a portrait of two men playing instruments. The second photo was taken in a church from the stage. You can see the back of three men performing together. In the background, the audience sits on church benches.

The piece was presented live for the first time at Le Guess Who? and it was also the first time the three artists met in person and performed together in a physical space.

"When Laurence started singing in the church, everything gelled together. That’s where the project was born, in the church, where Laurence feels most at home." - Abed Kobeissy

In the centre of the photo is a man with his eyes closed behind a microphone. Next to him are two men playing instruments.

Yousef Anastas, co-founder of Radio Alhara and Wonder Cabinet, explains that the project is about "breaking out of isolation. It's about challenging the limitations placed on us by occupation and showing the world a different side of Palestinian and Arab music."

Faster than light, always

Faster than light, always is a collaboration between Ramallah, Palestine-based interdisciplinary artist Julmud and British/Palestinian movement creative Sasha Shadid. The piece speaks about the aesthetics of the Cremisan Valley and the way the occupation forces have been using the last green space around Bethlehem to further suffocate its community.

Two photos. The first photo was taken in a church. In the middle you can see a dancer in motion. In the background is an artist with a laptop. In the second photo is a portrait of the same dancer. In the photo, the movement is clearly visible. Both photos have a red glow due to the lights in the church.

The performance uses the body as a medium for claiming the land, celebrating its ample and smooth curves, its terraces and the bearing trees it cradles.

View the full photo series

Lebanese multi-instrumentalist Yara Asmar was also part of Sounds of Places, but unfortunately had to cancel her performance at the festival as she didn’t receive her visa in time.

Photography by Tess Janssen