Hello everyone, my name is Zach. Below are 7 “soundwalks”, or edited audio recordings of various East Bay creeks in the San Francisco Bay Area. These soundwalks are meant to sonically represent the spaces, places, histories and people associated with each creek and it’s journey. I invite you to listen and see what sonic landscapes come to mind...
strawberry creek
02.07.25 - berkeley, cawater rushing campus voices traffic radios construction signals buses neighborhoods playing birds park coffee shop
Strawberry Creek is the central creek that runs through the UC Berkeley Campus, from the Berkeley Hills to the bay. With this soundwalk I wanted to explore the relationship between the terranean and subeterranean existences of the creek. Through this I found how the terreanean world of nature invited stilless to caputre its soundscape, hearing wind and birds and the water flowing. The subterranean sections of the creek necessitated moment through the city, matching the energy of the cars, people and construction existing above the creek, creating a contradictory relationship between this and the creek’s above-ground stillness.
cordonices creek
02.14.25 - berkeley, cabirds mud waterfalls water construction windchimes traffic bridges bart grass leaves textures bees gates trains
At Cordonices Creek, which flows from the Berkeley Hills out the bay near Albany, I experimented moving “deeper” into the sonic landscape. Hearing the textures of leaves, grass, and squelching footsteps in relation to more distant sounds reminds me how oscillating between distances and dynamics can showcase deeper and variad relations of a single place. 
pinole creek
03.07.25 / pinole, ca
water trains music birds traffic roosters footsteps trucks highway roar shopping carts parking lots water treatment plant local history
Pinole, a small town on San Pablo Bay, is rich in history. I was inspired by this history and wanted to explore how the evolution from Indigenous lands to colonial settlement to the onset of modern industry and infrastructure could be represented sonically. Focusing on how people might have sonically perceived this place in various times, I created a story that begins with undisturbed natural sounds of the creek and nature, and slowly “encroach” the soudns of modern western development until t completely overtakes the former. I also added some quick cuts and juxtaposing sounds together to sumbolically communicate the harsh and violent changes intermins of this place underwent.
wildcat creek
03.21.25 / richmond, ca
underwater streams bass weed whackers highways dogs barking cars trucks bridges tejano music water air conditioning construction trains
Wildcat creek, located in Richmond, builds upon the juxtapositions I explored in Pinole by exploring the story of nature being overtaken by industrialization, this time focusing on jarring physical and cultural divisions. Highways, underpasses, music, and trains all mosaic together to construct a story of Richmond’s history and eclectic identity.
alameda creek
04.11.25 / niles, catraffic construction bart train horns planes radios dogs barking history wooden footsteps sirens streams geese rushing water
This soundwalk for Niles’ Alameda Creek explores the idea of layering to create entirely new sonic worlds. By layering distant traffic, train horns, neighborhood sounds and footsteps, a more “surreal” expression of place can be understood. 
coyote hills
04.18.25 / fremont, cachirping birds geese seagulls ducks turkeys water splashing distant playgrounds footsteps planes
Coyote Hills is a regional nature park located in Fremont. The hills are flanked by a large wetland and the shores of the bay; this unique geographic location attracts a plethora of birds and other wildlife. Here I wanted to explore the complexities of the different sounds of these various animals, experimenting with shotgun and parabolic microphones to focus in on the detailed sounds of the surrounding landscape.
lobos creek
04.25.25 / san francisco, ca
ocean waves water rippling rushing water underground birds distant construction buzzing bees beeping street traffic clanking conversations carts crows asian music markets pop music gates laudromats plastic rustling change packages aquariums indian music grinding surreal church dreaming of creeks
Our last trip explored the Clement Street neighborhood in San Francisco, and Lobos Creek park that leads out to the ocean through Baker Beach. Diverse, lively and always moving, Clement Street provided an eclectic backdrop to explore and record unique sounds and atmospheres. This recording attempts to create a montage through quick sonic snapshots of contrasting ambiences to communicate the various peoples and backgrounds that co-exist here daily. The ocean and nature sounds provide a slow, calming intro before devloping into the rapid movement of the city street.
