Giving Space: Soundworks x
Spatial Sound Institute (2022)

“It’s an incredible experience to meditate on these pieces”, says Quentin Notte, founder of Soundworks.
“You’re listening from the app on regular headphones, but you feel completely immersed in the space”.

"We wanted to provide a spatial experience that has an aesthetic take but is also functional for meditation", says Paul Oomen, director of SSI and founder of 4DSOUND.

The mindful listening app Soundworks partners with the Spatial Sound Institute (SSI) in a collaboration that explores the role of spatial audio in meditation, health, and wellbeing. It launches with the release of works created by two artists on the 4DSOUND system at the Spatial Sound Institute and adapted to be playable in spatialized stereo in the app.

The partnership is set to explore ways to elevate the role of listening in society and revitalize our wellbeing by changing the way we hear the world. Soundworks and SSI will focus on tech research, conversations, and the creation of mindful sonic experiences.

The partnership begins with the release of works by two artists from the SSI’s catalogue in the Soundworks app. The pieces were initially composed and recorded in fully spatialized audio and performed on the 4DSOUND system at the Spatial Sound Institute. Soundworks and the SSI have developed a format that can be played in stereo while maintaining the spatial resolution of the original experiences.

The first two works in this series, composed by sound artists Daniela Gentile and Edo Van Breemen, previous artists-in-residence at SSI, were selected for their spatial depth, sustained and slowly evolving tones, as well as their minimalism. The series and recordings are curated by Paul Oomen, director of SSI and founder of 4DSOUND.