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SOUND STEPS

Shaping a European framework for geolocated sound creation

A three-years project supported by the Creative Europe – Medium Scale programme of the European Union

SOUND STEPS

A three-years project supported by the Creative Europe – Medium Scale programme of the European Union

©Laëtitia Piccarreta

Parcours sonore "Les archives du vent" lors du Partner Meeting organisé par Les Ensembles 2.2, Studio strasbourgeois de création sonore.

©Laëtitia Piccarreta

Parcours sonore "Les archives du vent" lors du Partner Meeting organisé par Les Ensembles 2.2, Studio strasbourgeois de création sonore.

Shaping a European framework for geolocated sound creation

©Laëtitia Piccarreta

ABOUT THE PROJECT

Five organisations putting situated sound creation on the European map

From practice to structure

ABOUT THE PROJECT

Five organisations putting situated sound creation on the European map

From practice to structure

Five organisations putting situated sound creation on the European map

From practice to structure

©Laëtitia Piccarreta

Sound Steps is a European cooperative initiative dedicated to structuring a shared framework for geolocated sound creation — bringing together artistic organisations, territories and tools around ethical standards and sustainable models.

Supported by the Creative Europe programme, five partner organisations across four countries experiment within their own territories while contributing to a collective model designed to grow beyond the initial consortium.

Sound Steps is a European cooperative initiative dedicated to structuring a shared framework for geolocated sound creation — bringing together artistic organisations, territories and tools around ethical standards and sustainable models.

Supported by the Creative Europe programme, five partner organisations across four countries experiment within their own territories while contributing to a collective model designed to grow beyond the initial consortium.

ART LEADS
Sound Steps is built around the conviction that creative practice is not a means to an end, but the foundation everything else is built on.
ETHICS STRUCTURES
How we work matters as much as what we produce. Inclusive practices, shared standards, and care for people and places shape every decision in the project.
ECONOMY SUSTAINS
Sound Steps works on developing economic models adapted to the realities of geolocated sound creation, without ever losing sight of what the work is for.
ART LEADS
Sound Steps is built around the conviction that creative practice is not a means to an end, but the foundation everything else is built on.
ETHICS STRUCTURES
How we work matters as much as what we produce. Inclusive practices, shared standards, and care for people and places shape every decision in the project.
ECONOMY SUSTAINS
Sound Steps works on developing economic models adapted to the realities of geolocated sound creation, without ever losing sight of what the work is for.

A SHARED AMBITION

Sound Steps seeks to combine strong artistic exploration, viable and adaptable economic approaches, and responsible, inclusive practices. Rather than imposing a fixed model, the project operates as a collaborative laboratory — connecting artistic experimentation with collective structuring to build a resilient European field for situated sound creation.

Towards a European federation

Beyond the initial consortium, Sound Steps is designed to open pathways for new partners, territories and cultural actors. If the project succeeds, it aims to progressively consolidate a shared technological framework, common ethical and professional standards, and sustainable economic approaches adapted to diverse European contexts.

A SHARED AMBITION

Sound Steps seeks to combine strong artistic exploration, viable and adaptable economic approaches, and responsible, inclusive practices. Rather than imposing a fixed model, the project operates as a collaborative laboratory — connecting artistic experimentation with collective structuring to build a resilient European field for situated sound creation.

Towards a European federation

Beyond the initial consortium, Sound Steps is designed to open pathways for new partners, territories and cultural actors. If the project succeeds, it aims to progressively consolidate a shared technological framework, common ethical and professional standards, and sustainable economic approaches adapted to diverse European contexts.

template screenshot store GOH-2 Simple by design Each sound walk has a place Made by artists Your path is your story
Technical framework for Geolocated Soundwalks

GOH – The technical infrastructure at the heart of Sound Steps

template screenshot store GOH-2 Simple by design Each sound walk has a place Made by artists Your path is your story
Technical framework

GOH – The technical infrastructure at the heart of Sound Steps

Sound Steps is built around a shared technical tool: GOH, a mobile application developed by Les Ensembles 2.2 for the creation, management, and distribution of geolocated sound works in public space.

GOH is what makes the Sound Steps model concrete and replicable. Each Sound Steps partner uses GOH to create and publish their own geolocated sound walks in their territory — giving local audiences access to immersive audio experiences directly in the places where they were conceived.

The application is available for free on iOS and Android, works offline, and is designed to be accessible to both creators and audiences.

If you are a cultural organisation interested in creating geolocated sound works, GOH is the tool that makes it possible.

Sound Steps is built around a shared technical tool: GOH, a mobile application developed by Les Ensembles 2.2 for the creation, management, and distribution of geolocated sound walks in public space.

GOH is what makes the Sound Steps model concrete and replicable. Each Sound Steps partner uses GOH to create and publish their own geolocated sound walks in their territory — giving local audiences access to immersive audio experiences directly in the places where they were conceived.

The application is available for free on iOS and Android, works offline, and is designed to be accessible to both creators and audiences.

If you are a cultural organisation interested in creating geolocated sound works, GOH is the tool that makes it possible.

THE CONSORTIUM

France

LES ENSEMBLES 2.2 · Coordinator

A geolocated sound creation organisation and developer of the GOH platform and App, Les Ensembles 2.2 coordinates Sound Steps and shares its technical and artistic expertise across the consortium.

Les Ensembles 2.2 is a studio dedicated to the creation, production, and support of artistic projects in the field of sound and hybrid arts. Based in Strasbourg and active for over fifteen years, the studio conceives, produces, and distributes works designed for public spaces. Since their creation, they have produced nearly 400 works in collaboration with artists, authors, composers, and technicians. 

Geolocated sound fiction has become a strong and distinctive focus of their activity: immersive listening experiences available directly in public spaces, inviting audiences to rediscover a place through contemporary sound and literary creation. To support these projects, Les Ensembles 2.2 have been developing dedicated digital tools in-house since 2018, notably the GOH app. They sit on the Executive Committee of the National Network for Hybrid Arts and Digital Cultures (HACNUM), which brings together more than 400 members across France. 

Romania

SEMI SILENT

An organisation dedicated to immersive sound practices, Semi Silent develops geolocated sound creation in Romania and roots Sound Steps in the cultural landscape of Central and Eastern Europe.

 

Semi Silent is a Bucharest-based platform dedicated to experimental sound, critical listening, and sonic storytelling. Founded in 2016 around field recordings and urban sound ecology, it has progressively expanded into fiction, drama, and immersive audio forms, exploring how listening can become a medium for space, memory, and narrative. Semi Silent runs several dedicated programmes: HER VOICE, promoting sound art created by women; SONIC FUTURE RESIDENCIES for sound art and field recording; POLYPHONIC ECHOES; and SEMI SILENT AWARDS, recognising the best sound pieces produced or hosted by the platform each year. Its productions have received sustained international recognition, with pieces selected and awarded at Grand Prix Nova in Bucharest, Phonurgia Nova Awards in Paris, and the UK Radio Drama Awards. Semi Silent operates as an umbrella organisation bringing together its platform and all associated programmes.

 

Spain

L.E.V

A leading festival for digital arts and experimental music, LEV develops geolocated sound creation across Spanish territories and contributes to building a shared European model.

LEV (Laboratorio de Electrónica Visual) is a platform for production, promotion, and experimentation in electronic sound, audiovisual creation, and digital art. Working with national and international avant-garde artists, LEV uses the latest technological tools to explore contemporary creation across public spaces, performances, installations, and immersive experiences. Its two major annual events, LEV Festival in Gijón and LEV Matadero in Madrid, serve as major meeting points for an eclectic and evolving view of sound, audiovisual, and digital creation. Throughout the year, LEV continues its activity through artistic residencies, workshops on creative digital tools, and LEVents, a series of off-programme events fostering experimentation and research. Since 2023, LEV has held the artistic direction of Pozu Santa Bárbara in Mieres. 

Italy

APS INTERZONA

A cultural organisation rooted in the rural territories of southern Italy, Interzona develops geolocated sound creation through a community-based and ecologically grounded practice built over more than a decade.

Interzona is a cultural organisation founded in 2003 in San Martino Valle Caudina, a small rural village in Southern Italy. Born from Interferenze, an international festival of arts, technologies, and digital cultures, Interzona has spent over twenty years developing hybrid formats across Italian rural territories: residencies, laboratories, workshops, and field research. Its work is rooted in the concept of neo-rurality, treating peripheral areas not as places to be rescued or preserved, but as active sites of critical cultural inquiry, where technology, ecology, memory, and community intersect. Since 2014, Interzona has led Liminaria, a sound research and residency project that invites artists to inhabit territories, listen to their layered histories, and engage with local communities. Interzona is a founding member of STARE, the Italian network of artistic residencies, and a member of the European Network of Cultural Centres (ENCC).

Germany

THE CATALYSTS

A strategy and impact agency specialising in sustainability within the creative sectors, The Catalysts supports Sound Steps in building an ethical, inclusive and economically viable model at European scale.

THE CATALYSTS are a strategic agency for innovative players at the crossing of Digital Tech and Creative Content. They investigate new developments across emerging tech, scientific research and politics, with a focus on Digital Technologies and Film, Immersive Media, Design, Music and Sound, the Arts and Culture. The boutique consultancy advises on specific challenges of entering new markets, and mentors teams on strategic & marketing planning, business & audience development, while also conducting global trade missions to foster international partnerships. The multi-disciplinary agency turns events into sites of knowledge exchange and co-creation through the curation of programs informed by critical perspectives and a narrative approach, scouting speakers to bring diversity & new perspectives for an inspiring, thought-provoking experience.

ONE STEP CLOSER

If geolocated sound creation is part of your world — This is just the beginning.

Sound Steps is an open process and you can be part of it.

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