July 24 is your last chance to experience The Future Belongs Here, a sound installation from Eugene musician and audio artist David Graves at Monroe Park in the Whit. Graves is a Monroe neighbor who, along with others who live nearby, helps clean up the park each morning. Graves says the park had a sketchy reputation in the past but has lately improved. Using ambient sounds recorded at the park for about a year, Graves says he took the audio files into the studio, stretched, tuned and clipped them. Then, with the city’s permission, he feeds them back into the park through a sound system for The Future Belongs Here. Sounds include children sledding during an ice storm in the winter months, conga players busking, and even the sound of a metal merry-go-round, the last of its kind in the city. Graves says the sound of the merry-go-round, normally “sing-songy” as is, once digitally stretched “500 percent, has a full-blown melody that’s in key.” Graves says to expect a visual art installation rather than a typical concert. Take in the sound at your own pace, and then enjoy the park on your own. “There is no performance, no artists to watch, no stage. This is something to wander into and just enjoy because of the sounds.” According to Graves, he borrowed the name of his project from Eleanor Roosevelt’s quote, “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams,” which is written on a sign at the park entrance. He hopes that Eugeneans with visual impairment will especially appreciate the aural exploration of space. “In the last two years, the neighbors and also the city have come together and remade Monroe Park,” Graves tells Eugene Weekly. “My goal was to celebrate that Monroe Park is a gorgeous place.” 

The Future Belongs Here is sponsored by Smeed Communication Services and partially funded by Art in the Parks grants from the city of Eugene. It is 6 pm to 8 pm Thursday, July 24, at Monroe Park, 10th Avenue and Monroe Street. Free.