These are very thoughtful and interesting comments. I wonder if it is
fair to say that part of the attraction to soundscapes, whether rural
or "wild" or even urban, is a high degree of silence, or
spaciousness, in which the particular sounds, whatever they may be,
can be heard clearly and sonourously. The more space around the
sound, the more the full shape and texture of the sound can be heard,
and the more fully the sense of the space we are in is communicated,
which probably appeals to a very old part of our brains.
I think about being on the coast of New Brunswick with no sound but
the fog horn - not a natural sound by any means - and when the near
deafening sound of the horn stops, every reflection of that sound off
of every bit of coastline can be clearly heard for many seconds and
many miles, until the horn sounds again. The shape of the space is
communicated vividly. Without the "silence," (the space in which to
hear the shape and texture of the sound) it would just be noise with
no sense of place communicated.
Does that make any sense? That this spaciousness is being filled with
noise of every kind is a terrible loss to our sense of who and where
we are, I believe. Very disorienting and probably driving us crazy
whether we know it or not.
John
John Crockett
Westminster, VT
Let us live in harmony with Earth
And all creatures
That our lives may be a blessing
On Oct 19, 2013, at 3:46 AM, Tony Whitehead wrote:
>
>
> Thank you Bernie, much appreciated. I read with interest your
> interview with the Dark Mountain Project (http://dark-mountain.net/
> repairing-the-silent-spring-a-conversation-with-bernie-krause/)
> this week. In particular your thoughts on what you describe as an
> atavistic attraction to natural soundscapes. Here in the UK, a
> small crowded island, we have very little wilderness.
>
> Everything has been touched in some way by our hand. We have few
> pristine old growth forests for instance. Our moorlands and heaths
> are the products of grazing. Our farmed landscape a patchwork of
> fields and hedgerows that although ancient are as man made as tower
> block. And it's been like this since not long after the ice
> retreated. I wonder if this results in differences about the
> soundscapes we are attracted to?
>
> I wonder if here in Olde England, for some of us, our preferred
> soundscapes would be more "rural" than wild. A conditioned wild
> that alongside bird song and the crackle of leaves in the breeze,
> would also contain peel of medieval church bells and the clip
> clopping of horse hooves (that's a crass example, but you get what
> I mean). In other words, that in a land long devoid of wild, I
> personally show a cultural bias to soundscapes that reflect some
> romantic dream of a rural idyll.
>
> But, here's the rub, - the bad news for those of us who's "natural"
> is defined by Samuel Palmer and John Clare - that rural idyll
> doesn't exist. Everywhere in the English countryside is noise. Last
> weekend I was trying to record the interior of what I hoped would
> be a quiet, remote rural church. You know the story, we all do.
> What I recorded was motorcross, strimmers, tractors, cars and
> planes. I've been recording long enough to know this would be the
> case ... but it still gets to me!
>
> So, yes, I have an atavistic attraction to natural soundscapes ...
> but my notion of "natural" is possibly very different to yours?
> But, ironically, it amounts to the same, because neither exists,
> neither conforms to our dreams. This is the tension of living in a
> noisy world.
>
> Hope that makes some sort of sense?
>
> Tony
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Fri, Oct 18, 2013 at 11:32 PM, Bernie Krause
> <> wrote:
>
> Thanks, Tony. Yes. I do know about your label and love what you're
> doing and how the subject is being approached. Keep up the fine work.
>
>
> Cheers,
> Bernie
>
>
> On Oct 18, 2013, at 3:21 PM, Tony Whitehead
> <> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Hi Bernie and all
>>
>> Last year I started a label called Very Quiet Records to offer
>> field recordists and sound artists the opportunity to share what
>> they considered quiet places or quiet situations. The definition I
>> left open.
>>
>> The responses have been wonderful and you can if you wish hear and
>> read about them here http://veryquietrecords.blogspot.co.uk/
>>
>> I also offered some thoughts on quiet for this blog on the British
>> Library website http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/sound-and-
>> vision/2013/10/recording-the-sounds-of-nature-six-questions-with-
>> tony-whitehead.html
>>
>> all the best
>>
>> Tony
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Oct 18, 2013 at 6:33 PM, Bernie Krause
>> <> wrote:
>>
>> This came thru today from Barry Truax, at Simon Fraser Univ. and
>> the World Forum for Acoustic Ecology. http://i.sfu.ca/CDzFCm
>>
>>
>> Bernie
>>
>>
>>
>> Wild Sanctuary
>> POB 536
>> Glen Ellen, CA 95442
>> 707-996-6677
>> http://www.wildsanctuary.com
>>
>> SKYPE: biophony
>> FaceBook:
>> http://www.facebook.com/TheGreatAnimalOrchestra
>> http://www.facebook.com/BernieKrauseAuthor
>> Twitter:
>> http://www.twitter.com/berniekrause
>> TED Global talk (12Jun13): http://www.ted.com/talks/
>> bernie_krause_the_voice_of_the_natural_world.html
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> http://veryquietrecords.blogspot.co.uk/
>> http://veryquietrecords.bandcamp.com/
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> Wild Sanctuary
> POB 536
> Glen Ellen, CA 95442
> 707-996-6677
> http://www.wildsanctuary.com
>
> SKYPE: biophony
> FaceBook:
> http://www.facebook.com/TheGreatAnimalOrchestra
> http://www.facebook.com/BernieKrauseAuthor
> Twitter:
> http://www.twitter.com/berniekrause
> TED Global talk (12Jun13): http://www.ted.com/talks/
> bernie_krause_the_voice_of_the_natural_world.html
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> http://veryquietrecords.blogspot.co.uk/
> http://veryquietrecords.bandcamp.com/
>
>
>
>
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