Neil Leonard's Matanzas Sound Map Brings Immersive Sonic Cartography to Tate Modern's East Tank Blending field recordings, video projections, and glass sculptures, the installation immerses visitors in the sonic landscapes of Matanzas, Cuba.
By
Daniel Pesquera
March 21, 2025
Matanzas Sound Map on display at Tate Modern in 2025.
Tate / Reece Straw
The Tate Modern is featuring Matanzas Sound Map, a large-scale multimedia installation by Neil Leonard, artistic director of the Berklee Interdisciplinary Arts Institute, and renowned visual artist Mar a Magdalena Campos-Pons. Running from March through October, the piece is part of the Tate collection and is installed in the East Tank, a former oil tank now repurposed as a gallery for live art, performance, film, and video.
Inspired by the vibrant sounds of Cuba's Matanzas province, Matanzas Sound Map blends multichannel audio, video projections, and glass sculptures to immerse visitors in the region's rich sonic and cultural environment. Leonard has spent over 30 years recording the area's natural and human ecosystems, capturing everything from folkloric music to the ambient sounds of markets, rivers, and estuaries. He and Campos-Pons launched the project in 2015, incorporating hundreds of new recordings, including interviews with community members, into a deeply layered listening experience.
I am deeply honored and excited to have the Matanzas Sound Map project exhibited at the Tate Modern, said Leonard. This was an extremely collaborative endeavor that involved speaking to and listening with dozens of people in the community, including pedestrians, artists, and musicians. We listened to things together and recorded sounds that they heard and made in their daily life. Visitors to the exhibit will share in a collective listening experience as well, as they are immersed in the sonic landscape of Matanzas, and I think the layers of collective listening experiences permeating this work are very powerful.
Leonard refers to this deep engagement with place and sound as sonic cartography. The resulting composition plays through nine speakers encircling visitors, cycling through loops of environmental sounds, song, speech, and ethereal electronic textures. More than 350 audio clips have been edited, mixed, and mastered, with many reconfigured or resurrected from archived recordings specifically for the Tate installation, designed to accentuate the cavernous acoustics of the East Tank.
This new showing reflects Neils profound understanding of the unique acoustic and architectural elements of the building and beautifully responds to the visual and auditory dynamics of the space, said Michael Wellen, senior curator of international art at Tate Modern. The result is a dramatic blend of sculpture, video, and sonic art that brings to life the rich cultures and histories of Matanzas, Cuba, while also immersing visitors in the atmospheric drama of the building in ways never done before.
Originally commissioned for the Documenta 14 contemporary art exhibition, Matanzas Sound Map debuted in Athens, Greece, in 2017. In addition to its sonic elements, the installation showcases striking visual works by Campos-Pons, including cast and blown glass sculptures, as well as environmental art composed of handmade paper and materials sourced from coconuts. The project also features contributions from legendary rumba and folkloric artist Raphael Navarro, Latin Grammy-nominated singer Ana P rez, and members of the renowned Cuban rumba ensemble Los Mu equitos de Matanzas. For the first iteration of the work, Leonard collaborated with Berklee alumni Joe Branciforte BM '07, Nassos Vynios BM '94, and Nikhil Singh BM '17, who assisted with mixing and mastering.
For me, what makes the piece moving is that it is all organically generated original recordings, said Leonard. I talk with my students about how critical it is to carefully listen to the people you are collaborating with, and how we need to create a space where different voices can have input as to what we listen to and how we listen to it. From my perspective as an outsider, building this cross-cultural bridge was critical for the success of the project.
Leonard's work has been featured in major museums worldwide. In 2019, the Williams College Museum of Art exhibited his piece Sonance for the Precession, coinciding with his tenure as an artist-in-residence, during which he taught two courses in electronic music.
Related Categories
News
Most Popular
Toto in the recording studio from Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary.
Photograph by Jim Hagopian/HBO
The Best Music Documentaries on Every Streaming Platform Explore groundbreaking music documentaries streaming across Netflix, HBO Max, Disney+, and more. From intimate artist portraits to legendary concert films, discover the stories behind your favorite artists and iconic moments.
Latest
Matanzas Sound Map on display at Tate Modern in 2025.
Tate / Reece Straw
Neil Leonard's Matanzas Sound Map Brings Immersive Sonic Cartography to Tate Modern's East Tank Blending field recordings, video projections, and glass sculptures, the installation immerses visitors in the sonic landscapes of Matanzas, Cuba.
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Presents the Tony Award-Winning Musical Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 The musical, adapted from Tolstoy's War and Peace, will be performed at the Calderwood Pavilion.
Berklees Music Inclusion Ensemble elevates the unique artistry of musicians with disabilities.
Elizabeth Friar
Berklee's Trailblazing Music Inclusion Ensemble Debuts at Berklee Performance Center Led by Adrian Anantawan and Gaelynn Lea, this free concert highlights the talents of disabled musicians from across the Berklee community.
Read All
Subscribe The latest sounds, stories,
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
02/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
02/07/2026
A new era in unmixing and spectral editing
The latest version of Steinberg's spectral audio-editing software has just arrived, building on the strength...
02/07/2026
Aims to simplify additive synthesis
Sine Machine is the debut launch from Melatonin, a Vienna-based developer who have spent the past six years creating wha...
02/07/2026
Products to remain fully active & supported
Following the news of Native Instruments joining the inMusic brand line-up, Academy and Emmy Award-winning visua...
02/07/2026
What you missed!
Last weekend, Saturday 27 June 2026, saw the debut of Sound On Sounds new GearExpo UK event, the largest dedicated pro-audio event to take ...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Following the successful launch of its inaugural APAC Mentoring Programme last month, the Rise AV APAC Regional Council will bring the conversation around mento...
02/07/2026
Blackmagic PYXIS 6K Used to Shoot Director Takahisa Zeze's Cry Out
Brie Clayton July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Highly mobile camera supports tense and de...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions acquires BFE, expanding its lead in European broadcast, medi...
02/07/2026
Berklee Alum and Faculty Perform at Boston Public Library's 250th Anniversar...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions GmbH, a leading systems integrator and provider of innovative solutions for the broadcast media industry, is acquiring BFE Studio und Medien...
02/07/2026
Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has extended the ingest facility at leading Brazilian sports company LiveMode, work...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Standalone processors acknowledged for the innovation and value they bring to Pro AV
Cobalt Digital, a leading designer and manufacturer of signal processing ...
02/07/2026
Synamedia announced today the appointment of Dr Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transitio...
02/07/2026
Screen Australia backs audience-led filmmaking with new insight-driven initiativ...
02/07/2026
Screen Australia refines guidelines for Narrative Content Development and Docume...
02/07/2026
Maxon Autograph: Introduction to working with Tables
Simon Ubsdell July 1, 2026
0 Comments
An overview of Autograph's ridiculously powerful tables...
02/07/2026
Boston Conservatory's Soir e Breaks Records to Fund Student Scholarships The event achieved 127 percent of its fundraising goal in an evening celebrating ...
02/07/2026
How Adam Rosenwach Pivoted from Music to Med Tech Without Missing a Beat What do the rehearsal room and the boardroom have in common? More than you might thin...
02/07/2026
Thursday 2 July 2026
Tea with Judi Dench returns to Sky Arts with legendary guest, Sir Ian McKellen
Sky today confirms Tea with Judi Dench will return this su...
02/07/2026
Summer is heating up - and GeForce NOW is taking players along for the ride.
Start the month with Monopoly: Star Wars Heroes vs. Villains, bringing a galaxy fa...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Neil Leonard's Matanzas Sound Map Brings Immersive Sonic Cartography to Tate Modern's East Tank Blending field recordings, video projections, and glass sculptures, the installation immerses visitors in the sonic landscapes of Matanzas, Cuba.
