Far, far away in Lisbon
Banzeiro, C. Cornell Evers, 2024

The Ponte 25 de Abril has already been mentioned, the red suspension bridge that connects the municipality of Almada and the district of Belém over the River Tejo in Lisbon. This 2.5-kilometer-long steel bridge was designed by the same architect as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. It is an icon of the Portuguese capital. Visible from dozens of kilometers away, it acts as a visual and acoustic landmark. The closer you get, the louder it gets, until it becomes dazzling, like the light of a lighthouse (farol) as you approach the coast. Farol (‘Lighthouse’) is also the title of a sound portrait of this monumental architectural work by French artist Thibault Jehanne. For 45 minutes, electronic and computer-processed field recordings lead the listener into a world of rising and falling ambient noise. Recorded in 2017 around the iconic structure, Jehanne honors the bridge and its history by telling the story of a hidden world within its columns, cables, and infrastructure. Originally named after the Portuguese dictator Salazar before being renamed in response to the Carnation Revolution (Revolução dos Cravos) of April 25, 1974, the bridge contains the memories of Lisbon and Portugal's history. Screams and industrial rhythms mix with the sounds of traffic and airplanes. Together with the creaking of cables, the blowing of the wind, and the sighing and gurgling of the water, a fascinating, continuous, evolving soundscape emerges that explores and encapsulates the depths of history, memory, and change that the bridge embodies; a sonic adventure that takes you to the other side.