Forest is
Rest, peace and silence, but also sawing, creaking and crying; an elegant spruce and a beech with dense rustling leaves; harsh winters and a deer roaring in the moonlight.
In the conflicting juxtaposition of safety and danger, there is a different way of living that demands our deep respect and total presence. The residents of Lož Valley take listeners deep into the forest: not an urban one, but a real one. A place full of wonders, a carrier of memories, a source of calm and life. A forest as a part of self.
This meditative montage explores the rich forestry heritage and the influence of technology on traditional values, as well as the undefeatable restorative power of nature. Featuring voices of a generation that lived through these changes, it invites the listener to get curious about a more direct life in and with nature. In this fast-paced productivity-oriented world where we continuously crave for more slowness and inner peace, can losing in a forest help us find ourselves?
First broadcast: 20th December 2023, ARS, Radio Slovenia
Featuring: Milena Kraševec, Sonja Lipovac, Anton Mestnik, Milena Ožbolt, Andreja Ravšelj, Miha Razdrih, Boža Troha, Fani Truden, Ida Turk, Tone Udovič, Janja Urbiha, Leonida Zalar
Creator, sound design: Marta Medvešek
Sound engineer: Urban Gruden
Project team on location: Ana Čorić, Urban Gruden, Katarina Juvančić, Marta Medvešek, Ana Obreza, Saška Rakef Perko
Students taking part in interviewing and field recording: Aljaž Dujo, Lea Lenarčič, Urh Anton Mlakar, Tadej Mihelčič, Patrik Ožbolt, Urška Ožbolt, Živa Palčič, Vili Strle, Marina Trivunčević, Martina Trivunčević
Additional sounds: recordings by Félix Blume made available on freesound.org
Production: ARS Radio Slovenia 2023, within the framework of the project B-AIR - Sound art for babies, toddlers and vulnerable groups