In 1916, Marcel Duchamp created ‘Un bruit sécret’ – a ball of twine trapped between two plates concealing an unknown sound. In 1963, Marcel Duchamp visited Las Vegas for the first time.

In Las Vegas, there are hidden noises everywhere. Hidden voices whisper, shout and sing from all corners. Walking through Downtown and The Strip is a chance encounter with these voices, distributed across the city in an aleatoric mix. But Las Vegas is more than just music and sound effects, it is also a rare example of an attempt to build space with sound. The idea of the ‘distributed sound system’ is taken to extremes in this city, creating a varied and often mysterious sonic landscape.

As part of an ongoing exploration of the sonic environment of Las Vegas, this work distributes multiple ‘sonic objects’ in different locations in downtown Las Vegas. Left alone, they begin to releases their own secret sounds back into the city.

 “This photograph was taken in the showroom of the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas in 1963. From left to right are Teeny Duchamp, Richard Hamilton, Betty Factor, Bill Copley, myself clenching a cigar, Walter Hopps, Betty Asher, and Marcel Duchamp.” (Source)

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