Video/Audio Hardware Response

I am usually a quick learner with technology, but I had some trouble getting the hang of the sound recorder. I took me quite a while to fully understand how to work all of its functions. It was hard to find an area where you couldn't hear a great amount of wind projecting into the microphones, even with the wind-blockers attached. My felt squares constantly fell off while I was walking. It was hard to keep them taped on. I also found out that the re-chargeable batteries died very quickly, especially in the digital camera. I'd record only about a minute of footage and I'd already have myself a dead camera. This kind of ruined my sound walk a couple different times. Otherwise I found everything pretty easy to work with. The camera and stuff was self-explanatory. I kind of wished that we could have gotten cameras with at least a little bit more quality to them. The sounds were very clear while the videos looked borderline webcam.

Reading Response #2: The Future of Music

In The Future of Music, John Cage establishes a difference between sound and noise. He explains that wherever we are in the world, what we are hearing is mostly noise. But it is when we capture these noises and turn them into effects they become sounds and/or musical instruments. This is a vivid perspective that he illustrates to the reader. It gave me a new outlook on sound. Cage is very descriptive with his writing in this passage. He mentions mainstream sounds and how the public has transfixed themselves to a certain style. Many people just listen to the radio and are too afraid to step out of the boundaries and find something different or unique. From the article it sounds like Cage really enjoys music, especially instrumental, as he talks about different performer's techniques with sound.

10 Questions

  1.) Is there a place where I can go that isn't so urban-looking or possibly travel out of the city to find different sounds?

  2.) What type of events are there going on soon that I might be able to get unique sounds from?

  3.) What is inside of the rusty factory behind my dorm?

  4.) Is it possible to create a sound that will leave the listener shocked?

  5.) Where can I record a beautiful sound and a beautiful image in the same place?

  6.) Are there any tools I can bring along on my sound walk that may be useful to me in creating different sounds?

  7.) Can I go out at a different time of day than before?

  8.) What businesses have I not been to in the area that could help me think of ideas?

  9.) What is a route I could travel that is completely different from the route I traveled the last time?

10.) Could I bring a friend along to help me hold my microphone(s) or other objects?

Drift 1 Assessment

1. Describe two situations that aggravated, bothered, shocked or otherwise stressed you during Drift 1. (Please note that the situation CANNOT be technology-related.)

One of the things that really bothered me while doing my sound walk was the fact that I couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. It seemed that everywhere I went I found sounds of vehicles and wind. In order to record a track that everyone wasn't going to have, it took a lot of thought and preparation. Before I would decide to record something, I always asked myself if there would be enough interest in the noisemaker for a full 45-seconds. The sounds I ended up recording were ones that had different noises throughout and not just one thing recurring over and over again. I think that making the sound clip entertaining is what matters most, as long as it sounds natural.

Another thing that really had me stressed was that being out in public we didn't really have the ability to control all the sounds that were being made. For many of my recordings I found myself getting frustrated when I'd have an amazing recording coming on and another noise would begin that was overbearing of the one I really wanted, such as people talking or a car noisily driving by. It was sometimes difficult to zero in on a certain sound when so many things are happening at once.

2. Describe, with details, two situations during Drift 1 in which you felt unusually peaceful, at ease, or contemplative.

I felt peaceful at many times while doing my sound walk. Walking around during this time of year is always peaceful by itself, but stopping and closing your eyes and listening to all of the sounds around you gives a whole new perspective. I found a tree whose leaves were falling rapidly during the walk and went to lay underneath it. Even though the recording didn't turn out like I'd hoped, it was such a calming experience and made me appreciate nature more.

For another recording, I walked through a supermarket, up and down the aisles recording the cashiers ringing up items while having conversations with customers. A beautiful song by a female artist can be heard playing over the intercom. I felt so at ease during this recording. It felt like I was listening to a movie playing. I pretended I was looking at the candy by the checkouts and the cashiers didn't even stop to look at me and wonder what I was doing. It was as if I wasn't even there. Everything sounded too natural.

3. Describe three surprises or unexpected situations you encountered on your Drift and in the days that followed. The surprise could stem from your expectations that conflicted with "on the ground" realities, cultural or social issues of which you were previously unaware, feelings and reactions that you did not expect to have, appearances and soundings of things you did not expect, good or bad outcomes of "on the spot" decisions you had to make, or the discovery of "deeper" realities in the materials you brought home. (Again, skip anything technology-related!)

I was surprised by many of the recordings I had done. I hadn't expected them to be as crisp and clear and have the ability to capture so many sounds, even those that were far away. Especially since we had constructed the microphones ourselves. I thought the recordings would have a lot of feedback and wind/static. It's amazing how much those tiny microphones can accomplish.

While editing my recordings I had come across many various thoughts. After listening to each one over and over again I began to hear them differently. The recording I had done of the pay phone (which I had thought nothing of when I recorded it) began sounding creepy. I kept picturing it as some mysterious person in the middle of the night trying to make a phone call with no money or recollection of how to use a phone. The recordings of the laundry room and the dog barking began sounding lonely to me. You can't hear anything else but the dog and it sounds like he is looking for someone to play with. I picture the laundry room being empty with one person doing their laundry, bored.

An unexpected situation I got was all of the people staring at me on the streets. I probably should have figured it would happen, but I never really thought about it beforehand. I have this odd-looking contraption with tons of cords pointing to ball-shaped microphones at random things. As I looked around I noticed all of the people eye-balling me, wondering what I was doing. It kind of made me uneasy and distracted me from my sound recording. 

4. Describe your favorite experience, situation, place, or recollection from your Drift. Be specific about what happened, how you felt, how you reacted, and why you think this particular experience affected you so much.

I guess my favorite thing about Drift 1 was that it gave me an excuse to walk around without purpose. Whenever I go somewhere I take the shortest distance. I talk to people while walking and ignore all of the sights and sounds going on around me. I don't appreciate nature as much as I should. I really enjoyed walking alone during the sound walk and surrounding myself in everything that was going it. It's my favorite time of year and it was an incredible experience to be feel secluded for once and study sounds.

Reading Response #1: A New Way of Walking

A New Way of Walking introduced me to the term "psychogeography."  After reading what psychogeography is all about, it allowed me to open my mind and stray from my normal path of travel. I think it is an interesting thing because most people usually will not go out of their way to hear new things. It made me want to explore alleys and trails to find something unusual. The concept that the  Dutch artists' collective had is very interesting, I think. Walking in a straight line or in a pattern in which you must follow is a fun strategy. It probable that you will end up somewhere you wouldn't normally travel to.

Sound Walk #1

Were you able to find places and spaces where you could really listen?

Yes, it was a very busy day and there various sounds all over the place.

Was it possible to move without making a sound?

Not really, we were in a big group and people were kind of talking and loud footsteps.

What happened when you plugged your ears, and then unplugged them?

It was a big difference. I felt like I could mainly hear sounds coming from my body when I plugged my ears and the sounds were vibrant when I unplugged.

In your sound log exercise, what types of sounds were you able to hear? List them.

- Dog collars/leashes clanging together.
- Airplanes soaring above.
- People's feet as they ran on the pavement.
- Tires screeching on the road.
- Kids laughing and yelling on the playground.
- The wind rustling the leaves and branches.

Were you able to differentiate between sounds that had a recognizable source and those sounds you could not place?

Mostly.

Human sounds? Mechanical sounds? Natural sounds?

I heard all of them. There were a lot of people around. Bikes, cars. Wind.

Were you able to detect subtleties in the everpresent drone?

What?

Extremely close sounds? Sounds coming from very far away?

Heard mostly close sounds. Far away ones mostly consisted of transportation devices.

What kinds of wind effects were you able to detect (for example, the leaves of trees don't make sounds until they are activated by the wind)?

I heard wind making noises on the water and like the example, blowing leaves.

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.

Do you feel you have a new understanding or appreciation of the sounds of our contemporary landscape/cityscape?

Yes, when we closed our eyes and listened it allowed me to take in most of the sounds that I usually subconsciously ignore.

How do you think your soundwalk experience will affect your practice as a media artist, if at all?

It will allow me to think about sounds more and how they are important to the media.