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Heathrow Debuts First Airport Soundscape by Jordan Rakei

Created from more than 50 field recordings, the ambient composition weaves jet engines, baggage sirens and pop-culture Easter eggs into a four-minute loop.

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A general view of Terminal 1 and 2 at Heathrow Airport near London, Britain October 11, 2016. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
Most of the track uses airport sounds recorded by Rakei.
Musician Jordan Rakei partnered with Heathrow to create the world’s first piece of music made entirely from the sounds of an airport, captured everywhere from the airfield to baggage handling.

Overview

  • Jordan Rakei was granted unprecedented access to record over 50 distinct sounds across Heathrow’s terminals, runways and baggage systems for the project.
  • Rakei transformed everyday noises like escalator hums, passports stamping and jet takeoffs into percussion, synths and ambient textures as a tribute to Brian Eno’s Music for Airports.
  • The four-minute loop debuted on July 8 and is now playing continuously through all terminals until the end of August and streaming on SoundCloud.
  • Every Friday in July, live performances by artists including The Cash Cows and the Urban Cellist complement the ambient loop to soothe preflight nerves.
  • Hidden Easter eggs reference Heathrow’s pop-culture cameos by sampling tapping feet from Bend It Like Beckham and scanner beeps from Love Actually.