Reverberating through history history Reverberating through through history Reverberating through through history Reverberating Reverberating through history Reverberating Reverberating Reverberating through history Reverberating history Reverberating through history history Reverberating through SoundScapeIssue 0227silence, in a piece composed with Eliane Radique. These were just some of the inspirational installations exhibited and explored in the city. Other performances, fringe events and a three-day conference, took place in unusual venues, including rocky beaches, a triple-domed seaplane hangar, a former prison, a derelict power station, and an abandoned school in a Soviet era utopian project with possibly the longest housing block in Europe. Tuned City brought together a cross-section of international artists, performers, scientists and other thinkers to offer ideas about sound and space, and the public participated directly through dialogues and other experiences. Tallinn was a particularly apt choice for Tuned City, given the richness of Estonia's own sonic history. During the 19th century, rediscovery of folk songs rejuvenated indigenous cultures weakened by centuries of foreign domination. Written records of some 133,000 songs were compiled, representing one of the largest collections in the world, despite a national population of only 1,333,000. Runic chants originating from as far as 1,000 BC may still be heard on a Baltic island, influencing the contemporary music of Veljo Tormis, while the minimalist compositions of Arvo Pärt have been influenced by Estonia's ancient choral vernacular music. Sounding TallinnDuring the Soviet era, song festivals were the only expression of national solidarity tolerated. In 1988, labour unions and the Estonian Heritage Society organised a massive festival, attended by perhaps 300,000 people, at the Song Festival Grounds in Tallinn. It became the focus of mass demonstrations against the Soviet occupation, in a movement that became known as the 'Singing Revolution'. This described an independence movement across the three Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; an historic demonstration of solidarity that occurred on 23 August 1989, when two million people joined hands from Tallinn to Vilnius (Lithuania).The full legacy of Tuned City Tallinn has yet to be heard, but, as one grateful participant, I know that it will long resonate with me.Max Dixon reports from Estonia's Tuned City Tallinn - a celebration of sound, exploring its artistic, entertaining and experimental merits. He explains the concept and interprets the bigger picture

SoundScapeIssue 0228People might say that architecture does not produce sound, it cannot be heard. But neither does it radiate light yet it can be seen. We see the light it reflects and thereby gain an impression of form and material. In the same way we hear the sounds it reflects and they, too, give us an impression of form and materialSteen Eiler Rasmussen - Experiencing Architecture (1959) Cromatico by Lukas Kühne, Tallinn Song Festival Grounds