City of Water

1994
Jose Iges, Concha Jerez
A sonic visit to the Alhambra—palace of the Moorish kings in Granada, Spain and one of the most magnificent creations of Islamic architecture (thirteenth and fourteenth centuries). Traveling the monument's halls and courtyards, as well as the adjacent gardens with its fountains and streams, the artist/producers record the sonorities of the water, the voices of tour guides and visitors, and some of the Arabic texts and epigraphic poetry that can be found along the garden paths. Yet this serene and beautiful work is not simply another version of "acoustic tourism." Rather, it attempts a sonic rebuilding of the monument, reminiscent of its patterned mosaics.