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Michael McDermott SOUNDWALK STANDING WITH UKRAINE
It’s the small interventions which can change your route and mood in that moment. Ellen Reid’s Soundwalk is a GPS-enabled work of public art that uses music to illuminate the natural environment. It changes strings and arrangements as you change course. Dublin joins Tokyo, London, LA, New York, Athens, San Francisco and Knoxville as current locations where you can experience, specifically in Stephen’s Green here thanks for a collaboration between the National Concert Hall and IPUT, both of whom flank it. Reid is a composer and sound artist whose opera Prism won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2019. “Reid ennobles the humdrum and the happenstance. She grants us an illusion we all need right now: that we have the power to change the plot merely by walking in a different direction,” said New York magazine about her creation. ellenreidsoundwalk.com The war in Ukraine grinds on, slipping down the news agenda as a stalemate of sorts seems to be played out. Against this miserable backdrop, people attempt to go about their lives and the displaced remain displaced. We Stand With Ukraine is an anthology of poetry, prose and protest by a group of protesters who continue to assemble outside the Russian embassy on Orwell Road. Pacifists, retired public servants, local residents, visual artists, parents and many more continue to gather, to remind us it is not over and our solidarity and aware-raising is needed now as much as ever before. One such contributor Brendan writes, “ More than twelve months on and I still stand outside the Russian embassy. In my case, I stand in silence. I stand with a simple blue and yellow flag. I stand in witness for the atrocities committed by the Russians against the women and children, old, disabled, sick people and also animals. There is little else I can do. I donate but I believe protest is necessary. My way of protesting is silent. I am not a by-stander. I am a witness.” We Stand with Ukraine: An anthology of Poetry, Prose and Protest is edited by John Farrelly, Helen Dwyer and Julian Vignoles and published by Mercier Press, €14.99. All royalties will be donated to Ukranian Action. mercierpress.ie/irish-books/we-stand-with-ukraine GET THE GOO Music news, reviews, recommendations, interviews, monthly event listings and a whole lot more besides. Plus it’s Free! MAY-JUNE ISSUE IS OUT NOW Pick it up in selected music venues, bars, cafes, record stores and more.