Police (car) siren

About the sound

The tone sequence siren (German: Martinshorn) from around the year 2000 is a component from an unmarked police car of the city of Essen police department. In combination with the flashing blue lights it represents the police’s right of way and tells the other traffic participants to clear the road instantly.
An electronic switch in the siren produces the tone sequence, which is amplified and emitted through loudspeakers.
In order to distinguish themselves from the signals of other vehicles such as the trams, the fire department and the police have used sirens since the 1930s to signal their right of way. Sirens were manufactured solely by the company Deutsche Signal-Instrumenten-Fabrik Max B. Martin, which is why they are named Martinshorn in German.


Sound recordist: Konrad Gutkowski / Jonathan Nicolai/Anna Pietzuch
Photographer: Konrad Gutkowski / Jonathan Nicolai/ Anna Pietzuch
Video recordist: Konrad Gutkowski / Jonathan Nicolai / Anna Pietzuch