cosmopoling (2025)

is a new sonic bike ride made for Augsburg, Bavaria with residents and sounds of the city. Made by Kaffe Matthews and the Bicrophonic Research Institute it was commissioned by the Stadt Augsburg for Risking Peace, 375 year Peace Festival/Friedensfest,  artistic director Eric Nikodym,  June 2025

Through winter recording trips in 2024 and then a two month residency during ’25 at Grandhotel Cosmopolis, Kaffe gradually explored the city through meeting and getting to know many different people from all over the world. Sharing stories, playing music at jams in the Grandhotel or at Neruda bar, through chats and interviews, the GHC choir rehearsals, vegan cooking, listening in the Dom, developing barista skills in the Café, through late night walking in the watery silence of the old town following the audio trails that revealed themselves, listening and recording throughout. She also discovered a massive variety in the city’s sound worlds, from the almost silence and detailed acoustics of its pedestrian areas, to peaks of noise from people, trams, heels, traffic, cobbles and the many many languages.  Not forgetting of course the old vinyl she found in the made in Augsburg box and the generosity of the bands and musicians who either wrote for or gave their music to the project.

This vast range of material she then cut, transformed and mapped in layered chunks all over Augsburg, working with its atmospheres and architectures. And so cosmopoling was born. A composition that is brought to life by the cyclist who, also becoming the performer, rides a sonic bike through the city.  FOLLOW THE MAKING PROCESS HERE

With thanks to musicians Chelle, her Mum and Dejah for their songs and voices,
the Jammers and Choir at Grandhotel Cosmopolis,
Vroni her flute and Manu her saw,
Akbar his voice and songs and stunning Dambura playing,

to Ayla, Maryam, Fatima and Shakila and the night of clapping and singing in our kitchen.
the musicians at Neruda, especially the Lonesome Artisans and the rapper poets Johna Lux and Torris.

Hannes, Sedat and Dennis for their tracks, and the not met but found Fred Rai and Neverland on vinyl made in Augsburg.

To Chris for our sick city bike tour in the wet and the city’s construction project talks.
To Hannes and all at stayfm Radio for their fabulous studio with Dom view. And later to Mariam for hers.
To Aude-Lise, Salomé, Khalid, Vroni, Sanusi, Klaus, Shakila, Chelle, Zhia, Dejah and Manu for sharing their stories.
To Günther and Bike Kitchen for the 5 Augsburg bikes, and to Annegret and the Kunstmuseum, Magdeburg, for the loan of the 5 black sonic bikes.

To Sukandar Kartadinata BRI for Sonic Bike Box v3.0 engineering
PoHao Chi and Honki, Taipei for the Taiwanese version.

Wolfgang at Grandhotel for generous analogue fixing support.

The team and volunteers at Grandhotel Cosmopolis for their welcome, support and trust. Most especially: Raquel, Raphaelle, Salomé, Aude-Lise, Ziha, Ralph, Sonja and Fabiano.

And finally to the Friedensfest team, most especially the non stop Kathrin Schubert and artistic director Eric Nikodym.