A new audio tour in Sydney's central business district encourages listeners to discover Irish culture hiding in plain sight - a reminder that not everything about British Australia is British.
Peter Moore, the creator of this new self-guided walk and seasoned expert in Irish history and culture, has worked as an Irish history tutor in Sydney and Melbourne for several years. He is also a publisher of Irish-Australian books and a leader of study tours of Ireland for 30 years. He worked with Harry Hughes from Sydney-based audio production company HoboHut Media Group to produce the tour. You can experience the full tour here via Gesso's creator platform.
The walk takes about 2 hours to fully experience, and the walking route includes fascinating stops at the Shakespeare Memorial, Hyde Park, St Mary's Cathedral, and much more. The tour is self-guided and can be experienced at your own pace.
In our conversation with Peter and Harry, they dive into the stories behind their latest audio tour, Walk an Irish Mile.
What inspired you to turn these stories in Sydney into an audio tour?
Peter: While taking small study groups to Ireland for 30 years, I realized that Sydney's central business district held a dozen or more major sites and sights of enormous Irish interest - cultural artworks, political statements, and points of reference, large and small. I wanted to share that sense of surprise.
Harry: The creation of this tour was quite unique. A lot of walking tours I've heard over the years felt quite disconnected, particularly during COVID. They sounded as though they were recorded in a studio rather than on location. To combat this, I took the walk with Peter and recorded it entirely on a binaural microphone, so when paired with a pair of headphones, it transported the listener onto the walk with Peter, even if they were listening from home. Listeners will hear the traffic and people going past them in real-time. I then mixed in additional sound effects and music to elevate the recordings further.
How did you approach researching stories and producing the tour with Gesso's platform?
Peter: I had a pretty good tour script, polished over dozens of deliveries in person over 20 years. My research called for a range of sources in libraries and archives here and in Dublin. Different sorts of history were involved - Art History, Local History, Urban History, Political History - and different media - iconography, architecture, cityscape. The sheer variety sent me off in all sorts of directions.
Harry: Overall, Gesso was quite easy to navigate during the production phase, and the creation of the tour was quite smooth.
What do you hope listeners will take away from this cultural walk through Sydney?
Peter: A richer, deeper sense of delight in our shared city! An idea that not everything about British Australia is British! A sneaking suspicion that behind every national story is another one, stranger, clearer, funnier.
What advice would you give other creators who are interested in using audio tours to share their unique stories?
Peter: Think about the audio-only nature of the walk. Try not to take for granted that a listener is standing in front of something they have never seen before and understand it at first glance. Tell them about the site, but also explain why they are there - my best advice is to get Harry and Adam!
The Walk an Irish Mile audio tour is available to experience here. This walk focuses on Irish presence and culture in Sydney, while also respecting the traditional indigenous owners of this land past, present, and future, and encourages listeners to walk in the same spirit.
Gesso is an audio storytelling platform for creators of all backgrounds. Create an account for free and publish your own audio walking tours in any city. With Gesso, you can share audio stories and photos via an interactive map - without ever having to worry about the tech.