The sounds of the Lofoten Islands
Glacial streams, the wind and the cry of ravens are familiar sounds of the Lofoten islands in Norway.
Wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson accompanies Sami Joiker, And茅 Sombe, on a journey up a mountain on the Lofoten islands in Norway to explore the relationship between the sounds of the mountain, the people and the wildlife.
As Chris discovers, for many Norwegians the soundscape is part of the fascination and attraction of the mountains. The mountains offer an escape from urban and man-made noise to Nature鈥檚 symphony which is composed amongst other things of the sounds of running water produced by the glacial streams, the whisper and roar of the wind, the chorus of song birds and the cry of soaring ravens high overhead.
Looking around Chris is reminded that this is an Arctic landscape but in recent years the glacial ice has been melting in some of Norway鈥檚 highest mountains and we learn how a team of archaeologists have been recovering thousands of artefacts, some of which date back 6,000 years.
But it is also the quality of the sounds here that intrigues Chris, and during the climb gradually he begins to understand something of the deeper more spiritual connection with the earth which is so intrinsic to the Sami culture.
For And茅 the mountain soundscape and his relationship to the wolves which were once so prevalent here, inspires a joik, a Sami chant, which he performs at the peak of their climb.
(Photo: Mountain lake and crater Lofotens Islands, Norway. Credit: Chris Watson)
Last on
Broadcasts
- Wed 8 Aug 2018 02:32GMT成人快手 World Service Online, Americas and the Caribbean, UK DAB/Freeview, West and Central Africa & Europe and the Middle East only
- Wed 8 Aug 2018 03:32GMT成人快手 World Service South Asia & East Asia only
- Wed 8 Aug 2018 04:32GMT成人快手 World Service Australasia
- Wed 8 Aug 2018 12:32GMT成人快手 World Service except News Internet
- Wed 8 Aug 2018 21:06GMT成人快手 World Service except News Internet
- Sun 12 Aug 2018 09:32GMT成人快手 World Service except News Internet
- Wed 17 Jul 2019 02:32GMT成人快手 World Service Online, Europe and the Middle East & West and Central Africa only
- Wed 17 Jul 2019 03:32GMT成人快手 World Service UK DAB/Freeview
- Wed 17 Jul 2019 04:32GMT成人快手 World Service Australasia, Americas and the Caribbean, South Asia & East Asia only
- Wed 17 Jul 2019 12:32GMT成人快手 World Service except News Internet
- Wed 17 Jul 2019 17:06GMT成人快手 World Service Australasia
- Wed 17 Jul 2019 21:06GMT成人快手 World Service
- Sat 20 Jul 2019 16:32GMT成人快手 World Service News Internet
- Sun 21 Jul 2019 09:06GMT成人快手 World Service except Europe and the Middle East
Podcast
-
The Compass
With ideas too big for a single episode, The Compass presents mini-series about society