subway – The Payphone Project

Street Mule — And The Howler — Heard Through a Times Square Payphone

the payphone project — Wed, 16 Aug 2017 17:54:01 +0000

Listen in as a payphone call goes horribly wrong, blasting The Howler into a call which should have been free of such noise.

Action Shot: Payphone Customer at the Queens 74th St./Broadway Station

the payphone project — Mon, 12 Jun 2017 17:15:35 +0000

I spotted this woman dropping 50¢ into an NYC subway payphone yesterday. It's true: People still use payphones!

Zong Li Lu: Single String Lute Music Heard Through a Payphone

the payphone project — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 20:09:18 +0000

The somewhat harsh timbre of the single string lute seems to suit the scratchy, monochrome texture of the landline telephone.

Penn Station Musician Heard Through a Nearby Payphone

the payphone project — Sun, 21 Aug 2016 01:56:04 +0000

Any endeavor which depends on the reliability of the public telephone is imperiled from the start. I was glad to catch at least this one segment today, from a musician who is unnamed because no identifying information was to be seen at his performance space.

Grand Central Subway Station – No Working Payphones

the payphone project — Sat, 20 Aug 2016 19:53:22 +0000

There are only two payphones left on the upper level of the Grand Central subway station. Neither one works.

Grupo Wayne. Music of the Andes. NYC Subway Buskers Heard Through a Nearby Payphone.

the payphone project — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 22:44:16 +0000

This one starts out a little rough but ends up being among the best quality recordings I've gotten of musicians recorded through NYC's subway payphones.

Christmas Through a Payphone: “O Holy Night”

the payphone project — Mon, 14 Dec 2015 20:26:58 +0000

Whenever I hear a subway busker or street musician performing I look for the nearest payphone. If one is nearby, and if it works, I call a number to leave a recording of the sound. It is a very hit-or-miss pursuit with a lot of wasted quarters.

Electric Guitarist at Times Square, Heard Through a Payphone. December, 2014.

the payphone project — Wed, 10 Dec 2014 13:54:12 +0000

Listen to an electric guitarist at the Times Square subway station, recorded using a nearby payphone.

A Subway Payphone, 9½ Years Later

the payphone project — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:22:21 +0000

This before-and-after sequence spans 9½ years, and shows a payphone at the 36th Avenue/Washington Avenue subway station in Astoria. The first picture is from June, 2000. The second picture from January, 2010, shows a remarkably similar scene. The payphone itself seems to be the same. The slanted surface under the phone set (intended for note-taking,…