Project: SoundStage

SoundStage (1:27) NYU Interactive Telecommunications Program major Brett Murphy demonstrates an interactive sound mixer prototype for his thesis project. He notes, "SoundStage is a tabletop surround sound mixer with a tangible interface that allows children to explore immersive audio through interactive storytelling, and most importantly play.

The idea was to create an ambisonic surround sound mixer easy enough for a three year old to use. By moving “sound objects” around the table, users are able to pan audio around the room and immerse themselves within a soundscape of their own creation. For example, take a classic like Old MacDonald’s Farm. Depending on where children place a cow on the table, they can make a “moo-moo here, a moo-moo there, here a moo, there a moo, everywhere a moo-moo!”. Source: Vimeo

Project: Sound/Pressure Walk

Sound/Pressure Walk (2:13) Tish School of the Arts (New York City) student Brett Murphy explains to participants his soundwalk project at a 2010 exhibit of student work. Click on the next clip to view his video.

Pressure Walk (5:03) A soundwalk across the Brooklyn Bridge starting at the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. Recorded with cameras attached to his shoes and pressure sensors in his insoles to control the opacity of the image. The audio is Binaural and headphones are best used to hear this project.

Phonography: Field Recording for Film Scoring

Field Recordings for Looper Film Score (5:08) Composer Nathan Johnson discusses the field recordings he and his team used to create a musical rhythmic and atmospheric fabric for director Rian Johnson's film Looper. Source: Vimeo

Interview: R. Murray Schafer

Murray Schafer (11:51) Composer Rafel de Oliveria interviews  R. Murray Schafer, a founding member of the acoustic-ecology movement. The interview took place at the 2011 World Forum for Acoustic Ecology Conference held in Corfu, Greece.  In the  interview Schafer discusses his perception of soundscape research today; his thoughts about the artistic side of studying the soundscape; how his own music composition has been changed through his study of the soundscape; and he concludes by suggesting how new researchers might begin their study of today's soundscape. Production: Rafael de Oliveria, Patricia Lima, and Alexsander Duarte. Source: Vimeo.

Soundwalk: Brooklyn Bridge

Brooklyn Bridge (3:41) A short sound-slide by Doubledomiant video of a soundwalk across the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City. This is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States that was completed in 1883. Best to listen to this with headphones. Click2hear a higher quality sound recording. Source: YouTube

Soundwalk: Times Square New York

Soundwalk in Times Square (3:08) This is a "holophonic"  sound walk in Times Square, the center of Manhattan recorded on ​​March 2, 2010, at 13:10). It is best to use headphones when listening to this image-sound presentation. Click2Hear a higher quality online recording. Source: YouTube

Click2See other Soundscape Explorations Times Square during the seasons videos.

Soundscape: Pachinko Parlor

Pachinko (:52) This short video by Tim Prebble illustrates the soundscape within and outside a Pachinko parlor. Pachinko is a mechanical game machine that is used for recreation and frequently for gambling in Japan. The soundscape within the parlor created by an array of of these machines is quite loud as is evident as the door of this venue opens and closes. Source: Vimeo.

According to Wikipedia, "A pachinko machine resembles a vertical pinball machine, but has no flippers and uses a large number of small balls. The player fires balls into the machine, which then cascade down through a dense forest of pins. If the balls go into certain locations, they may be captured and sequences of events may be triggered that result in more balls being released."

Soudscape: Shinkansen

Shinkansen (3:20) Experience the speed and sound of the Shinkansen in this short soundscape piece by Tim Prebble. The Shinkansen is also know as the "Bullet Train".

Phonography: Tim Prebble

Field Recording 2011 (2:52) Tim Prebble documents his field recording along the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. Source: Vimeo

Research: Voices of Yellowstone

Voices of Yellowstone (11:06) In this short documentary produced by the US National Park Service a bioacousticologist explains the acoustic monitoring of Yellowstone, US National park, which is not only rich in landscape features, but also a fascinating soundscape as well. This video provides some insight into the value of natural sounds in wild places and how the park is monitoring those sounds as well as the sounds created by humans. Source: YouTube

Soundscape Composition: Beach

Beach Soundscape (1:28) This video was part of a student assignment in which the question posed was what would a person sleeping on the beach hear within the first 30 seconds of waking up? To fulfill the task the students first had to learn to listen to the soundscape and discover the nuances of the acoustic scene and then compose a soundscape environment that would best answer the question. Source: YouTube

Sound Walk: Capturing industrial sounds

Voestalpine Soundwalk (6:07) This Sound Walk provides a unique opportunity to experience the soundscape, not with the eyes, but through listening. In this short document participants capture on-site sounds and then work with the recordings in a sound lab. For more info: http://www.aec.at/klangwolke/termine/  

Source: YouTube. (Language: German)

Soundscape Composition: Human Voice and Nature Sounds

Three short videos explore the human voice replicating nature sounds or interacting with other species. 

Rain Sound (1:49) This video segment  of a choir creating a rain storm soundscape.

Cordillera Soundscape (4:18) The Calasia Children's Chorus sings the "Cordillera Soundscape" composition by K. Benitez.

Nature Sound Ensemble (2:23) An "NBC Overnight" news program looks at the work of composer Kirk Nurock and his Natural Sound Ensemble at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo.

Source: YouTube

Soundscape: Colombo's Tuk Tuk

The Tuk Tuk is a three wheel  auto rickshaw that provides inexpensive transportation around the streets of Colombo, Sri Lanka. These open air vehicles offer a passenger the full acoustic experience of the complex mix of traffic on the streets of this capitol city. Source: YouTube. Click2Read more about this unique form of open air transportation

Tuk Tuks (0:54) Small noisy, and polluting personal cabs provide an interesting acoustical experience in Colombo.

Tuk Tuk Ride (2:49) The soundscape experience of riding inside a Tuk Tuk through the streets of Colombo.

Noise Pollution: California Dreaming

This report includes four short news videos about noise issues in the state of California where mechanized sound has become a soundscape issue:

Anti-Noise Day ( 2:06) In an effort to raise awareness about the damage loud sounds can cause to our ears, the state of California observed "International Noise Awareness Day. This short piece was aired on April 29, 2010. Source: CBS News.

Helicopter Noise: Los Angeles (2:36) The noise pollution created by low-flying helicopters that frequent the skies of Los Angeles is infuriating residents. CBS reporter Hattie Kaufman reports that Angelinos may get help from Congress.

Motorcycles in San Francisco (1:54) A short story about San Francisco enforcement of loud motorcycles. Listed are the health effects that cycle noise have on riders and others. Source: You Tube

Police Curb Loud Mufflers (2:37) A related video about 2009 efforts in San Francisco to address motorcycle muffler sound pollution. Source: Current.com