THE ART OF THE MANIFESTATION
by Contributing Editor Des Coulam. Recording the street sounds of Paris attempting to capture that gratuitous, never-ending show for which no ticket is needed
I am
not by nature a protestor. But I am delighted to live in a country that not
only allows free demonstrations in the streets but has also turned protesting into an
art form. In
The
French do it all the time. They protest anything and everything.
On Saturday 2nd
October, the axis between Place de Bastille and Place de
Listen to the protests of Paris
And what are these people protesting?
Pension reform, of course. While some countries
in Europe are contemplating raising the retirement age to 70, the French
government is taking the modest step raising the retirement age in
More "Manifestations sur la retraite"
The manifestation was loud with people
determined to make their views known, although it was for the most part
good-natured.
Whatever was right or wrong about the politics,
I was only concerned with capturing the sound atmosphere of the
manifestation. And I was fascinated by
the tribal quality of the sounds—the chanting, the repetition of phrases—and
the leaders and the followers.
Listen to how one man, using rhythm and repetition, whips the crowd to a near frenzy.
Long may freedom of speech and the freedom to
protest continue.
Des Coulam writes and records the Soundlandscapes blog at: www.soundlandscapes.wordpress.com
