Episode 1: Lake Merritt

Cultural Frequencies // Sonic Essays A series of sonic essays exploring diverse landscapes. Decibels reveals the vibrancy of common places through sound. Being aware, being quiet, and just being transforms cacophonous monotony into symphonic relationships. Debut Episode: Listen to the impact Lake Merritt has on the city and inhabitants of Oakland, CA. Lake Merritt is America’s first wildlife preserve located in Oakland, California. Named after a figure from the 1800s who bore the name Merritt, it is a place of natural beauty with merit for the soul. The Ohlone people were the original inhabitors of the area surrounding this beautiful body of water. They were brutally impacted by the arrival of new “settlers” who are still grappling with how to harmoniously live with their surroundings. What might all their aural perception of the lake have been? The rhythms, defined by the forces of an interwoven and connected field of natural environment, with the beats of tides; what does it sound like today, contextualized by a melodic metropolitan soundscape? Credits: This program is a collaboration between THE NEW ASTERISK & BLUEEGG MEDIA and is produced by Robin Gianattassio-Malle, Jeremy Joven, and Alexander Winter.