A sonic snapshot of two weeks I spent in Bolivia in spring (or fall, as it were) of 2025. Starting with a recording of a church procession in a remote town in the state of Potosi and ending with the sounds of a sleepless night at Huayna Potosi high camp, these voice memos are presented in order and unaltered, save for some efforts to maintain an even listening level throughout. I had no plans to do anything with these recordings at the time I was making them, I just wanted to remember. In that spirit, I left personal moments like the chatter of people outside my hostel room alongside the birdsongs, sirens, and marching bands (so many amazing marching bands) that I encountered out in the world. Which is all to say, this 25-minute field recording journal probably isn’t for everyone. But what is?  

I am so grateful that I was able to visit the beautiful country of Bolivia and to all the kind people I met there. 

00:00 - Procession outside of Iglesia Divina Misericordia, town south of Uyuni in state of Potosi (4/27/25)
01:08 - Bus from Uyuni to Potosi (4/28/25)
01:37 - Marching band rehearsing in a courtyard in Potosi (4/28/25)
02:04 - Trash collection truck in Potosi (4/28/25)
02:36 - Presenter speaking at talent show in Potosi’s main plaza (4/29/25)
02:53 - Student marching bands in Potosi featuring glockenspiel (4/29/25)
05:18 - Police siren in Potosi (4/29/2025)
05:42 - Outdoor concert for SEPSA (Servicios Electronics Potosi S.A.) in Potosi with motorcycle alarm going off intermittently (4/29/2025)
06:27 - Student marching bands in Potosi (4/30/2025)
08:30 - Marching band in Potosi on Labor Day (05/01/2025)
12:52 - Speech by representative of miners’ union in Potisi on Labor Day (05/01/2025)
13:17 - Marching band in Sucre on Labor Day (05/01/2025)
13:56 - Parakeets in the trees in Sucre’s main plaza (05/01/2025)
14:46 - Music in Sucre (05/01/2025)
15:08 - Band going down street in Sucre (05/01/2025)
15:29 - Band practicing in park in Sucre (05/02/2025)
16:23 - Hostel in Sucre featuring the young British man who I seemed fated to always be in earshot of (see bus from Uyuni to Potosi) (05/02/2025)
17:27 - Bus from Sucre to Yotala (05/03/2025)
17:53 - Birds in Yotala (05/03/2025)
19:02 - Audio promotion playing outside of a restaurant in La Paz (05/05/2025)
19:42 - Hike up Pico Austria (05/06/2025)
21:15 - Huayna Potosi Base Camp (05/08/2025)
23:31 - Huayna Potosi High Camp (05/08/2025)

Stephen Strupp

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