Artist Ellen Reid’s ’SOUNDWALK’ reimagines what a UCLA tour could be

Circle the east side of the psychology building onto Charles E. Young Drive, where crunchy pine needles often blanket the winding path toward the road, and you'll hear the hum of traffic coming from Hilgard Avenue. But beginning this quarter you can hear something else. A celestial-sounding synthesizer melody. Head south on the bustling iconic drive and the synth music builds, as if pulling you toward the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden. Continuing further south past the Terasaki Life Sciences building, you can suddenly hear vocals and chimes, almost eerie sounding particularly if a helicopter going to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center flies overhead joining the chorus. All these different sonic elements mesh seamlessly into a soundtrack that layers and changes based on where you're walking through campus. Though it's a novel and contemplative way to experience UCLA's beautiful Westwood campus, it's decidedly not meant to make campus feel like a new and alien environment.