Thought I might give this session a miss. The morning was damp and dismal threatening rain and cold. Why venture out? And, anyway, I do not DO singing – well not in front of others. I blame being constantly told , as a child, that I was singing “flat”. My voice sounded all right to me. And why did my Parents insist that I was “tone deaf”? I still do not know the meaning of that expression. But that title, “Hauntology” intrigued me. Rafal brought the musician Harriet Pittard to lead the session.
Harriet – also known as Zoe – quickly put us at our ease as we introduced ourselves and talked about a song that was important to us. Two other members of the group had also been told as children that they couldn’t sing. J managed to regain her confidence and actually joined a choir.
So then we came to the definition of “hauntology”.
The French philosopher Jacques Derrida coined the term in 1993 in his book “Spectres of Marx”.Can people be haunted by the ghosts of lost futures? Wikipedia says, “Hauntology (a portmanteau of haunting and ontology) is a range of ideas referring to the return or persistence of elements from the social or cultural past, as in the manner of a ghost.” When grasping concepts like this it easier to ‘do” than to “define”. Harriet had prepared a worksheet to guide us.
Hauntogy Sound Collage Workshop
Collective memories – Lost futures
Can you write down any of the following
A memorable cultural event
A memorable political event
A memorable technological event

Mmm. The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth ll in 1953.
The assassination of President Kennedy in 1963.
The introduction of computers into primary schools in 1984
Can you describe where you were?
How did you feel?
What did dreams of the future look like at that time?
Did your expectations of a future promised by this event come to be realised?
Well, back in 1953 I had no particular expectations beyond being delighted that the boring old man in his grey suits was being replaced by an attractive young woman. And, yes, Queen Elizabeth ll took her responsibilities very seriously and certainly lived up to expectations.
The announcement of Kennedy’s assassination came on the BBC News as my husband and I were just about to sit down to supper with our toddlers. We were stunned. What had just happened? Kennedy was young and represented our hopes for the World’s future. His premature death seemed to squash all those hopeful expectations.
Computer technology has advanced in leaps and bounds, offering possibilities unimagined back in 1984 but I do not think it qualifies to be an example of Hauntology .
I need to think again. What ghosts of “lost futures” linger today?
Record your written memories as spoken word.
Hauntology Sound Collage Workshop
Haunted Past – Music/ Sonic Sample
Can you think of an old TV jingle from the past?
Download and record this.
As it happened we never got round to TV jingles but had fun instead assembling a collage of sounds from Harriet’s synthesiser.
While Harriet was working with sounds, Rafal was chatting with a small group about the performance piece. He had brought a giant concrete egg which would be a prop on the day. Only it was not actually concrete and was very lightweight. The subject of outfits for the performance came up and Rafal expounded on his idea of using denim. I suppose that denim is universal but I have never actually owned a pair of jeans. I do have a denim dress.
Back to Hauntology and sound collage. The most terrifying memory for me comes from the early 1980’s when there was a serious possibility of nuclear war. In fact, that possibly lurks and lingers today in these troubled, unsettled times. There is so much conflict around the World and too many volatile, unpredictable Leaders. Does this qualify as a Hauntological memory? Possibly, except that it hasn’t haunted me until the memory surfaced at the Workshop. And I’d prefer to let this memory rest. I need to find a positive memory with happier associations.. Ahah! “The Fall of the Berlin Wall” on 9th November 1989. A joyous occasion full of possibilities for a peaceful World which persist today, tantalisingly unfulfilled. Hauntology as I understand it.

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