Sunday marked the first day of Eid al-Fitr here in Malaysia, and – as with every Malaysian celebration – its arrival was marked by countless fireworks, firecrackers and sparklers by nightfall. Instead of my usual routine of shutting the doors and complaining about the noise, I decided to try something a little different.

Just as the explosions were going off outside, I left my iPad by the window and recorded at least half an hour of the various noises.

Somehow, the cacophony of pyrotechnics large and small becomes quite peaceful once you sit down and listen. If you close your eyes, all the noises seem so eerily distant, just  echoes in the night.

I trimmed the clearest sections of the audio and layered them over each other to create a loop of sparklers and fireworks. The next part kinda came naturally: finding the right tune to fit the background noise. I wanted to go for a slightly music-box-sounding piano melody; though more peaceful than sad.

Over the next few days (in-between attending open houses and stuffing myself with festive food), I edited a sample of some sparklers to act as the main “beat” of the song.

I’m not sure how successful I was in trying to capture the feeling of a peaceful night beneath fireworks, but this song has got to be one of my favourites. Enjoy!