"Soundwalk"

What I hear – Prospect Park

I decided to do my “Soundwalk” in Prospect Park. More specifically, I spent an hour at the southern end of the park, at the newly built LeFrak Center which includes an ice skating rink and a set of new benches by the lake. I spent an hour wandering around the rink and the lake, sitting in multiple locations surrounding the area.

The first thing I heard in the foreground was the music playing at the ice skating rink. It was a Foster and The People song but I do not know which one. This music, of course is for the enjoyment of the skaters but also draws attention from walkers and bikers nearby. One sound that was was almost as loud as the music, was the talking, laughter and screams from the skaters themselves. They attracted attention as well. If you listened close enough you could hear the skates on the ice as well. The background noises consisted of very nature-esque noises such as birds, the wind in the trees and the geese. There were many geese on the still half frozen lake that in sections took off whilst talking in their language. Other background noises included the steps of people passing by, the conversations of people surrounding me and the noise of a scooter and a child laughing while racing alongside the lake. One specific soundmark was a group of older men playing some game, I think it was checkers. They were talking and yelling loudly with each round of the game. This area of the park is predominantly Caribbean and their accents revealed that. Somewhere in the distance you could hear another soundmark for the area which was drums.