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Lecture (in French): What Does the Sahara Sound Like from an Oasis? (Siwa, Libyan Desert, Egypt)
Original title: Comment sonne le Sahara depuis une oasis? (Siwa, désert Libyque, Égypte)
given as part of the “Natures sonores” lecture series and the 2025 Fête de la Nature, at the Jardin des Plantes, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle
Auditorium of the Grande Galerie de l’Évolution, Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, Paris (France)
May 24, 2025 – 3 p.m.-5 p.m.
– On the website of the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle: https://www.jardindesplantesdeparis...
– This sound piece is composed exclusively of field recording excerpts captured by Vincent Battesti on the field. The editing was carried out by Battesti himself, with final mastering handled by Bruno Scotti.
Listen here the sound piece (best experienced with headphones 🎧!):
– Abstract:
This presentation offers a sonic exploration of the Siwa Oasis, located in Egypt’s Libyan Desert, at the intersection of sensory anthropology and experimental sound practice. Drawing on long-term ethnographic fieldwork, Vincent Battesti investigates the lived and everyday soundscape of the oasis’s inhabitants. The auditory atmospheres, human voices, and both urban and agricultural activities within the palm groves provide insight into the sensitive relationships local communities maintain with their environment—often in stark contrast to the surrounding desert.
The presentation includes the playback of an original sound piece, situated between ethnographic document and creative work, composed from field recordings made in situ. 🎧
Vincent Battesti is an anthropologist in the Ethnoecology team of the Eco-anthropology research unit (CNRS | MNHN | Université Paris Cité).
With the presence of Jérôme Sueur, ecoacoustician (MNHN).
