Sunday, February 15, 2009
Soundwalk Response
1. Were you able to find places and spaces where you could really listen?
Yes, defiantly. We are constantly surrounded by noise but we usually try our hardest to drown it out. When I really stopped and focused on what is going on around me I was really surprised at all of the sounds I heard. When I focused on sound, it was really easy to listen to my surrounding environment where ever I was.
2. Was it possible to move without making a sound?
I can't move without making at least some kind of sound. It may be my clothes rubbing together, shoes making contact with the ground, jaw cracking, inhale or exhale, heart beat or pretty much anything.
3. What happened when you plugged your ears, and then unplugged them?
When I plugged my ears, I noticed the loudest sounds became muffled and sort became a single drowned out noise. When I unplugged my ears all of the sounds came back to me one by one as my ears adjusted.
4. What types of sounds were you able to hear?
They are written on my sound log.
5. Were you able to differentiate between sounds that had a recognizable source and those sounds you could not place?
Yes I was able to differentiate the sounds I didn't know from the ones that I did. The new sounds that I haven't heard before going on the sound walk were very mysterious to me. The thought of finding out where they were coming from was almost distracting at times.
6. Were you able to differentiate human, mechanical, and natural sounds?
Differentiating these sounds was very easy. We all know human sounds because we have been encountering them everyday for our whole lives. Taking this walk in winter is a little upsetting because we didn't get to encounter too many natural sounds, pretty much just the wind, trees and occasional bird. Mechanical sounds are usually harsher than natural and human sounds. They seem to usually be metal on metal or a clanging type sound.
7. Were you able to detect subtleties, changes, or variations in the everpresent drone? Extremely close sounds? Sounds coming from very far away?
Yes I was able to notice where a sound was but I usually had to think about it because there are so many sounds. Sounds that were far away were much more subtle than the sounds that were directly surrounding me. As these sounds got closer, they came more and more into focus so to speak.
8. Were you able to intervene in the urban landscape and create your own sounds by knocking on a resonant piece of metal, activating wind chimes, etc.?
Yes, of course. Even if your sound isn't loud enough to have people take notice to you, it still becomes part of the landscape.
9. Do you feel you have a new understanding or appreciation of the sounds of our contemporary landscape/cityscape?
Yes a little bit. People, myself included, often walk around listening to music on the head phones. We don't even realize that the noises surrounding us makes it's own soundtrack that is unique to that particular place and will never be reproduced exactly. Going on this walk has helped me appreciate these individual sounds and how they combine to create something special.
10. How do you think your soundwalk experience will affect your practice as a media artist, if at all?
The videos that I have made in the past have been too reliant on music. After going on these soundwalks, I am inspired to use more natural sounds.
Yes, defiantly. We are constantly surrounded by noise but we usually try our hardest to drown it out. When I really stopped and focused on what is going on around me I was really surprised at all of the sounds I heard. When I focused on sound, it was really easy to listen to my surrounding environment where ever I was.
2. Was it possible to move without making a sound?
I can't move without making at least some kind of sound. It may be my clothes rubbing together, shoes making contact with the ground, jaw cracking, inhale or exhale, heart beat or pretty much anything.
3. What happened when you plugged your ears, and then unplugged them?
When I plugged my ears, I noticed the loudest sounds became muffled and sort became a single drowned out noise. When I unplugged my ears all of the sounds came back to me one by one as my ears adjusted.
4. What types of sounds were you able to hear?
They are written on my sound log.
5. Were you able to differentiate between sounds that had a recognizable source and those sounds you could not place?
Yes I was able to differentiate the sounds I didn't know from the ones that I did. The new sounds that I haven't heard before going on the sound walk were very mysterious to me. The thought of finding out where they were coming from was almost distracting at times.
6. Were you able to differentiate human, mechanical, and natural sounds?
Differentiating these sounds was very easy. We all know human sounds because we have been encountering them everyday for our whole lives. Taking this walk in winter is a little upsetting because we didn't get to encounter too many natural sounds, pretty much just the wind, trees and occasional bird. Mechanical sounds are usually harsher than natural and human sounds. They seem to usually be metal on metal or a clanging type sound.
7. Were you able to detect subtleties, changes, or variations in the everpresent drone? Extremely close sounds? Sounds coming from very far away?
Yes I was able to notice where a sound was but I usually had to think about it because there are so many sounds. Sounds that were far away were much more subtle than the sounds that were directly surrounding me. As these sounds got closer, they came more and more into focus so to speak.
8. Were you able to intervene in the urban landscape and create your own sounds by knocking on a resonant piece of metal, activating wind chimes, etc.?
Yes, of course. Even if your sound isn't loud enough to have people take notice to you, it still becomes part of the landscape.
9. Do you feel you have a new understanding or appreciation of the sounds of our contemporary landscape/cityscape?
Yes a little bit. People, myself included, often walk around listening to music on the head phones. We don't even realize that the noises surrounding us makes it's own soundtrack that is unique to that particular place and will never be reproduced exactly. Going on this walk has helped me appreciate these individual sounds and how they combine to create something special.
10. How do you think your soundwalk experience will affect your practice as a media artist, if at all?
The videos that I have made in the past have been too reliant on music. After going on these soundwalks, I am inspired to use more natural sounds.
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