As I walk a gravel pathway or across a wooden bridge the crunchy sound of stones and the boots on the wooden planks vibrate up through my body. It makes me wonder if you are feeling and touching sound or are you in too much of a hurry?

Feeling and touching sound is my domain. Because of my profound deafness my other senses are heightened. Very often I see sounds being drowned out for others by a cacophony of noise. I see headphones, mobile phones, ear muffs barring the traditional channels but I also see a great deal of  haste around me today. I see people rushing, pushing and pacing quickly to arrive on time, early or just to get there!

I have deliberately extracted myself from the hubbub of city life; I have taken a step back to enjoy the sounds of the countryside where I live. However even in the city there are places to stop, withdraw and just take in the environment. Where and when did you last stop and really listen?

March winds seem to be upon us now and I remember from my childhood how they sounded. The memory of the wind lashing against my face is my way of feeling that sound now. When I recently arrived back to the UK, to a deluge of snow, I stood at the open door to feel the snowflakes gently resting on my skin. As I did so, I was reminded of being asked to create the sound of snow on the snare drum by my music teacher at school.

My school gave every child the chance to be part of the school orchestra. My music teacher, Ron Forbes, encouraged me to explore every avenue of sound creation. He would say to me ‘Evelyn create the sound of the sun radiating on your face’ and I wondered – how was I to do that?

What he was really asking me to do was to express the feeling of sound. He was asking me to ‘address’ the environment and in doing so he was encouraging me to develop a healthy curiosity towards our own surroundings.

As spring arrives why not have a go. Stop what you are doing for one minute. Look up and down, look around and breathe in the air. Listen carefully to each sound and then take it one step further – touch that sound.

What on earth do I mean? Let me explain, if I see a bird flying way above me I use my memory of what a bird in flight sounded like and I imagine what sound it might be making now. As I grew up I felt sounds on different parts of my body. As a bird soared above me or swooped for it’s prey it might have disturbed the air as it flew by and that sounded like a whoosh. Birds are also quite noisy as the gather on wires or in trees, they whistle and sing, squawk and chatter. I soon learned to recognise those sounds as they would be felt on my high cheek bones where the high sounds might still sit today.

A tractor passing by created a low sound which could be felt in the tummy. Sitting on an aeroplane I can feel the vibration of the engines through the floor and up through the seat. The rumble of the wheels on tarmac vibrates up through a bottle of water close to me. If I hold that bottle I can feel the movement.

Before you take your breath of fresh air have a listen to this piece A Little Prayer. I performed this piece with the Guitarist Fred Frith. People tell me it opens the body to prepare for slowing down and relaxing. It is performed in an old sugar factory which was dusty and dirty but the feeling of peace and being close to the sound was immense. Enjoy!

Image: James Wilson (© Evelyn Glennie)