Presented in partnership with Vancouver Public Library

‍Installation located in front of Grand Staircase on Level 8

Central Library Hours:
Thursday, October 16  9:30am-8:30pm
Friday, October 17  9:30am-6:00pm
Saturday, October 18  10:00am-6:00pm

Presented as part of the VNM Festival, Murmurs of Memory is an immersive sound installation that transforms whispered recollections, intimate conversations, and personal reflections into a fluid, evolving auditory landscape.

Through an open call, community members, sound artists, and storytellers are invited to contribute to the piece to create a collective memory that dissolves boundaries and embraces shared experience. Contributors share fragments of spoken memory: hushed confessions, moments of transformation, echoes of places left behind or rediscovered. These voices, layered and intertwined, form an ever-shifting tapestry of sound, where no single story is isolated, but instead merges into the whole, resonating in unexpected harmonies.

The audio will be diffused through an 8-channel system using custom made wood resonators built from reclaimed wood boards from a mill operation on the Sunshine Coast. The wooden resonators will be placed in front of the Central Library’s Grand Staircase, where visitors can experience a continuous, looping composition. Through this evolving soundscape, Murmurs of Memory offers a meditation on connection, transformation, and the delicate threads that tie us to one another across time and space.

VPL event page

SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW CLOSED

WHAT WE ARE SEEKING

‍We are looking for contributors living in Canada from all walks of life to share audio recordings that evoke memory, place, or those quiet moments that have shaped who you are:

• Spoken Fragments: Fragments of memories, personal reflections, or whispered exchanges. These recordings can be in any language, capturing the intimacy of voice and the depth of shared human experience
• Stories of Place and Self: Narratives that traverse cultural, geographical, or personal borders, highlighting connection and transformation
• Soundscapes: Contributions from individuals, communities or collectives that emphasize interwoven experiences and mutual understanding

WHAT TO SHARE

• Your story can be in any language you feel most comfortable speaking
• Consider moments that feel both deeply personal and somehow universal
• Think about experiences that might resonate across different lives and cultures
• Remember: your whisper holds as much power as your voice