Soundwalk Response

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

Yes, all along the walk. In particular, enclosed spaces with slight echoes were interesting to listen to.

- Was it possible to move without making a sound?

No, because even footsteps create noise. It was, however, possible to minimalize the noticeability of self-created sounds by either standing still or moving through areas that were themselves noisy.

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

A sort of wind tunnel effect wherein the sound waves were compressed and expanded, affecting tone.

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

pens, clicking, all directions (fellow soundwalkers)

drone, Peck ventilation system, left, then right, then fading behind

muffled voices, off to right

feet on grate, underneath

people's conversations, all around

shuffling plastic bags, right

radio, left, fading

squeaking door hinges

electrical hum

wind in trees

wind in ears

shuffling leaves, underfoot, to the right

heavy footsteps, behind

children playing, left

shuffling rubber soles

muffled talking

slightly echoing footsteps, all around

person knocking on wall, right and in front

echoing claps, all around

instructor ceaseless chatter

car door slamming, behind, echoing

car engine starting, behind, echoing

car stereo, immediate right, fading behind

van drives past, right, fading

car tires squeal, right

knocking on railing, immediate right, fading behind

instructor ceaseless chatter, in front, faint

bank check processor, right, fading behind

phone ringing, faint, behind

coffee machine, left, fading

music, left, fading

cart wheels on tiles, left, fading behind

multiple conversations, all around

chair squeaking, left-to-right

chair squeaking, left-to-right

radio, right, fading behind

"...it was before 5:30...", left, fading

"...some old, some new...", right, fading

dumpster slamming, right

loud drone from ventilation system, left, fading behind

instructor ceaseless chatter, unintelligible under ventilation system

high-heeled footfalls, left, fading

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

I could place the vast majority of sounds.

- Human sounds? Mechanical sounds? Natural sounds?

A combination of all three.

- Were you able to detect subtleties in the everpresent drone?

Yes, particularly as I entered and exited enclosed spaces and buildings.

- Extremely close sounds? Sounds coming from very far away?

Both, but mainly close sounds.

- 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)?

In particular, during a large gust of wind, I noticed the sound the wind made as it passed directly by my ears.

- 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.?

Not personally, but others in the group certainly did -- knocking on walls and railings.

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

Sounds have always interested me as a filmmaker (or at least how I envision myself as an eventual filmmaker), and I've always appreciated them.

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

In terms of thinking of sound as a three-dimensional object.