This year, as part of our growth and learning, a sound department was established in Midburn. We set out with a plan and a dream with a team of 6. The goal was clear: to address the subject of the sound experience in the city of Midburn, an experience that has been discussed and debated a lot in recent years in different circles among us, within the community and beyond it.
When the licensing requirements arrived (which limit noise in the city between 2:00 PM. and 4:00 PM. and between 11:00 PM. and 7:00 AM) we were already well within our work process and realized that beyond what we expected, reality asks us to take significant decisions, to get out of the box and find creative solutions which will affect this city and also the future of Midburn. As simple as that.
In practice, it was an invitation to a radical experiment, to examine ourselves and perhaps our limits, our values, our needs and flexibility and much more.
The sound department together with over 100 sound leaders have held a marathon of face-to-face, virtual and telephone meetings in recent weeks.
Magical and creative things really happened in this partnership (we will tell you more about the process we all go through in the following episodes...) and it is important to note that, in parallel with the licensing requirements, we realized another significant thing - we accepted ourselves. The partnership in the dream, the opportunity to be creative and the responsibility of all of us towards all of us.
The bottom line, sound - what we already know and how is it going to happen
On the day the city gates open, we will keep the city quiet.
What does a quiet city mean?
We will arrive, build our tent, settle in the camp and get to know the city. We will get to know our neighbors, settle down, and breathe.
We will come together for the first sunrise over the city of Midburn.
Later in the week we will be able to dance and also enjoy large parties during the day and evening, large but still within reasonable noise limits.
As you know, this year we are required to respect the noise law (Hazard Prevention Law, 1961), which means that we will lower the noise in the city between 14:00 - 16:00 and later at night 23:00 - 07:00.
This doesn't mean complete silence, but it means we don't disturb our neighbors, inside and outside the city.
That is, no subwoofers, only small speakers (an entertainment unit or a small portable speaker) that are not a nuisance to the neighboring camps either.
It should be emphasized that equipment that requires licensing, i.e. anything larger than a small portable speaker or an entertainment unit, without a license sticker, will be taken into custody by the production team until the dissolution of the city.
In order to support our shared mission:
A time frame and volume level will be defined for each dance floor in the city (any speaker above an entertainment system or a small portable speaker)
The Sound Patrol Team will go around the city and make sure that dance floors do not exceed what was defined for them
Each dance floor will have a person in charge.
Every DJ will be briefed and become aware of the licensing procedures, and his hand should not be light on the volume.
A WhatsApp group for sound leaders will continue to exist throughout the event.
Daily briefings of the sound department
And there will be us, all the residents and participants of Midburn, let's assume this task and responsibility together. Every dance floor will have a decibel meter and a sticker that will indicate its maximal limit. If you see a violation, please contact the dance floor manager or the DJ. If you can't have a conversation, check, maybe the sound is too loud. If the dance floor is empty and the speakers are screaming, ask to turn it down.
Important! Please read the extended sound protocols. We all share this responsibility.
This is our 7th Midburn together, "Midburn Transitions", who knows how we will be on the other side.
We are excited by the unknown and curious to renew.
Every Midburn experience is different,
What will happen, how will it happen, what will we discover? Where will we change, what will we take with us and evolve?
What is certain is that we found that all of us, all the participants in the city, come to the experiment with an open heart and a common dream to go through it together.
Thank you and for you,
From us, the Sound Team 2022