The Barkhor was and is an important religious and economic centre in the old city of Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. On a round tour, not only the manifold impressions, but also the wounds can be felt, that the Chinese Occupation Army inflicted on the place. All the houses have been pulled down and sacrificed for shopping centres, Tibetan salesmen are driven away by Chinese traders, and there are police patrols and controls everywhere. At the end of the eighties the Barkhor was also the centre of rioting against the Chinese power.

The pilgrims go clockwise around the “Tsuglagkhang” of the Barkhor, the “cathedral” of Tibetan Buddhism. The market stalls with clothes, crockery, books, religious objects and many other things, throng on both sides of the ritual path. Many pilgrims use the opportunity to shop at the market, and this creates a mixture of different impressions, from the murmuring of the prayers to the loud noise from the video- cinemas.

“Barkhor round” submerges into this every day atmosphere. The unique audio-experience is intensified through the use of a special recording technique. With the help of a stereo head-phone device one can hear a special 3 dimensional-sound.

Amongst other things, the following sound mixture can be heard on the Barkhor round: The clattering of nailed shoes, music from the monks’ horns, the conversations of the salesmen, praying pilgrims, the loud noise of the video cinemas, the scraping noises of those throwing themselves on the ground, barking dogs, music from the cassette players of the salesmen, the ringing of boys playing with bells.

The recordings were made in the months of January, February and March 1994.