After SFX

About

After SFX is a live audio essay by Lawrence Abu Hamdan that investigates how sonic memory can function as legal evidence. Calling himself a “private ear,” Abu Hamdan stages a forensic listening session that explores cases where hearing takes precedence over seeing. On stage, he activates the Earwitness Inventory—everyday objects like trays, plastic containers, gravel, and metal rods—to reconstruct sounds described by witnesses. These practical demonstrations reveal how metaphor and memory shape acoustic testimony: a gunshot might become a cascade of trays; a collapsing building might be likened to popcorn. Collaborating with sound designer Adam Laschinger and percussionist Iain Stewart, the performance blends lecture, sound art, and theatre. Over sixty minutes, it asks audiences to consider the politics of listening, the reliability of sonic recollection, and the thin line between revelation and illusion.