Kyoto, in Sound – Details, episodes & analysis

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Kyoto, in Sound

SJF

Society & Culture

Frequency: 1 episode/32d. Total Eps: 7

Kyoto, in Sound is an immersive journey into the everyday soundscapes of Japan’s ancient capital. Each episode begins as a conversation with a local where I ask them to share their favourite sound from Kyoto. I then weave their memories and reflections with field recordings captured on location. From moss-covered shrines to covered shopping streets at dawn, you’ll hear Kyoto as if you were walking beside me. You're invited to notice the small details that make this city unforgettable.

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Apple Podcasts

🇬🇧 Great Britain - placesAndTravel
22/05/2026
#83
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
25/03/2026
#89
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
24/03/2026
#66
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
23/03/2026
#44
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
31/12/2025
#90
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
29/12/2025
#83
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
28/12/2025
#52
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
27/12/2025
#25
🇬🇧 Great Britain - placesAndTravel
13/12/2025
#76
🇫🇷 France - placesAndTravel
16/09/2025
#68

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Score global : 63%

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E01 • Suzaku Garden

Season 1 · Episode 1

Tuesday, August 12, 2025 • Duration 09:23

It's only a short walk from Kyoto Station, but Suzaku garden feels like a world away from the bustle of the city's busiest train station.

For this first episode of Kyoto, in Sound, I spoke to Rumi, who grew up in Tokyo and now lives in Kyoto, about her favourite sound in Kyoto and she takes me back to her childhood summers spent in Suzaku garden with her grandmother.

Through field recordings and storytelling, we explore how a single place can hold memories that span decades.

Find more information at kyotoinsound.com

And for a behind the scenes look at this episode follow over on Substack.

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E02 • The Sounds of Autumn

Season 1 · Episode 2

Thursday, September 11, 2025 • Duration 09:41

The Takase River winds quietly through central Kyoto, where the city’s noise meets the voices of insects and flowing water.

In this episode, I walk with Chie, a Kyoto-based illustrator, who tells me why the sounds of autumn are her favourite. For her, the shift from cicadas to crickets reminds her of a Japanese phrase 静と動, stillness and movement, and the balance between energy and reflection.

As the river carries us through stone-lined streets, we pause to hear how these insects mark the shift of the season.

Find more about my sound walks at kyotoinsound.com, with behind-the-scenes moments shared over on Substack.

Please check out Chie's illustration work on Instagram.

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E04 • Nature's Prayer

Season 1 · Episode 4

Thursday, November 13, 2025 • Duration 07:52

On a drizzly October morning at Shinnyo-do temple in North-East Kyoto, I meet Kacchan—a respected Buddha sculptor who has worked with some of the city's most important temples. But today, she's brought me to her local temple, a place she's known since childhood.

We arrive on the one day each year when the Amitabha Sutra Association performs the secret Inzei Amida Sutra. As the monks' voices rise and fall in meditation, something remarkable happens: the crows and birds in the temple grounds begin calling out in response, weaving their own prayer into the chanting.

Unlike Kiyomizu-dera or Fushimi Inari, Shinnyo-do doesn't appear in guidebooks. It's a local temple—quiet, intimate, and without crowds. A place where you can simply be, and listen.

Thank you to Kacchan for sharing her story and guiding me through this beautiful place.

Find more about my sound walks at kyotoinsound.com, with behind-the-scenes moments shared over on Substack.

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E03 • Life-Affirming Sounds

Season 1 · Episode 3

Thursday, October 16, 2025 • Duration 07:46

In downtown Kawaramachi, surrounded by high-rise buildings and constant traffic, most people seek escape from the noise. But Liz chose to live here deliberately.

In this episode, I speak with Liz, originally from England, who lived in Mexico and California before making Kyoto her home. She tells me about "life-affirming sounds"—the difference between human sound and machine noise, and why the bustle of Kawaramachi reminds her of what she loved most about Mexico City.

From the clatter of shop shutters opening in the morning to the traditional fire prevention night-watch echoing through modern streets, Liz shows us how sound shapes our sense of home in unexpected ways.

Thank you to Liz for sharing her story and providing a few of her own field recordings of Kawaramachi for this episode.

Find more about my sound walks at ⁠kyotoinsound.com⁠, with behind-the-scenes moments shared over on ⁠Substack⁠.

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Finding calm in the noise of Kyoto | Kyoto, in Sound • Episode 05

Season 1 · Episode 5

Sunday, December 14, 2025 • Duration 07:24

A few weeks ago I went to Osawa Pond—the oldest garden pond in Japan—looking for silence and tranquility.

Instead, I found a gardener with a wood chipper and a construction crew with wooden mallets.

In this episode of Kyoto, in Sound, I explore what happens when the sanctuary you're seeking turns out to be a construction site. It's a sonic letter to a busy friend.

Find more about my sound walks at kyotoinsound.com, with behind-the-scenes moments shared over on Substack.

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The Voice of the Commuter Trains: A morning spent at Umekōji Park | Kyoto, in Sound • Episode 07

Season 1 · Episode 7

Friday, February 20, 2026 • Duration 09:24

In this episode, I return to Umekōji Park, stepping just outside the walls of Suzaku Garden (from episode one of the podcast) to explore the busier, living side of the park.

I’m joined by my friend Charles and his dog Lily, as we sit by the tracks to listen to a sound most people usually try to block out: the local commuter trains.

We talk about the rhythmic “clack-clack” of the old community lines and how it contrasts with the clinical, high-tech “whoosh” of the Shinkansen passing right next to them.

The conversation leads us to the idea of “third spaces”—from the park itself to the rooftop garden at Kyoto Station—and how people find little gaps in the city's architecture to simply be.

Find more about my sound walks over at kyotoinsound.com: http://kyotoinsound.com.

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Shaking the dust off: New Year at a Kyoto temple | Kyoto, in Sound • Episode 06

Season 1 · Episode 6

Sunday, January 11, 2026 • Duration 07:43

For the first episode of the New Year, I turn the microphone around to share one of my own favourite sounds: the Joya no Kane bell.

Recorded at Tanjoji temple in Fushimi-ku, this episode explores the ritual of ringing the temple bell 108 times to banish our worldly desires (bonnō).

I also take a winter walk from the stark beauty of Jojakko-ji to the sacred halls of Shoren-in, exploring how the silence of winter prepares us for the resonance of the New Year.

A slow, meditative listen for anyone recovering from the busy-ness of the holiday season.

Find more about my sound walks at kyotoinsound.com.

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Kyoto, in Sound – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Kyoto, in Sound – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other6

Instagram1

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other6

Instagram1

Apple Podcasts

Spotify