Times Square–42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal
January 29, 2024
A sound poem / audio postcard from the depths of the vast space under 42nd Street in New York City. Recorded almost entirely during a Friday evening rush hour in January 2024 at both Times Square & Port Authority subway stations.
These stations form part of four that are interconnected along 42nd street — from west to east they are Port Authority Bus Terminal, Times Square, Bryant Park, and — by shuttle from Times Square — Grand Central Terminal. The work presents the NYC subway at what I perceived to be the busiest and quietest times, Friday evening rush hour, and Sunday morning at 9am. I used mostly recordings from the rush hour to give the listener the feeling of moving quickly through the long walkways underneath the famous NYC street experiencing the space as the rich sonic environment that it is.
Recorded using an RE50 omnidirectional microphone and a Zoom H6. This piece was produced for a non-narrated & archival audio class at NYU.
Photo: Harrison Leong.
For Sam Coley.
