Soundscape: Music In Unexpected Places

Human sound making is an activity that can temporarily alter the acoustic character of an architectural space and the expected sounds associated with it. Here are to examples promoting the Copenhagen Philharmonic (Sjællands Symfoniorkester) in which they performed in the manor of a "Flash mob" aboard a metro train and within a train station. Both events were well planed, highly organized, and documented. The performances were unexpected by those passing through the space and, as often seen in flash mob videos, individuals seem puzzled, amused, annoyed and appreciative of the musical events. 

Peer Gynt  (2:17) In April 2012 the Copenhagen Philharmonic surprised the passengers in the Metro by playing Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt. The event was created in collaboration with Radio Klassisk. All music is said to have been performed and recorded in the metro, although some question this given the clarity of the recording. An individual, claiming to be the director, wrote that he could "…guarantee…that the music was recorded in the train car!" He goes on to say, "I must admit though, that the take we used, which was the best (sound recording), was where the train was standing almost still and people where practically holding there breaths." This suggests, and given the train is moving in the video, that the sound from one session and images from other sessions were edited together in post production. Produced by MAKROPOL. 

Bolero (4:53) As one of the first professional symphony orchestras ever, the Copenhagen Phil (Sjællands Symfoniorkester) did a "flash mob" like event at  the Copenhagen Central Station on May 2nd 2011 playing Ravel's Bolero. In this video the ambient conditions of the station's soundscape are much more pronounced, than in the metro video above, but the clarity of the stereo field recording is quite solid. The conductor is Jesper Nordin. 

Observational video of Bolero Performance (13:37) Here is a comparative video of the same event photographed some distance back from the performance itself. The orchestra can be seen within the context of the larger architectural space.  The acoustics of the station are much more defined with station announcements and the ambiance of the building audible.

Source: YouTube

Project: Sonic Playground

Sonic Playground (5:00)  First in a series of events that was organized by the Chicago Park District's Inferno Mobile Recording Studio (IMRS), Sonic Playgrounds was a new performance experience that had artists literally "playing" the playgrounds and creating music in the moment. These evening events were both artistic performance and public interaction. IMRS intended that artists involved use various techniques of sound amplification and control to make the Playgrounds a living sound installation in which the community came together to create a unique musical experience. This video was shot and edited by Great Scott Media and Presented by Eric Leonardson.

Soundscape Installation: OASIS

OASIS (3:32) The Ovoidal Acoustic Shielding Interactive System (OASIS) is an urban sonic installation which provides the listener with a retreat from the sound polluted city. There is an extensive description with the video although it is a bit difficult to follow given it was apparently automatically translated. Source: YouTube.

Interview: Jacob Kirkegarrd - Acoustic Spaces and Unheard Sounds

Acoustic Spaces and Unheard Sounds (23:44) "Jacob Kirkegaard’s installations, compositions and performances focus on the scientific and aesthetic aspects of resonance, time, sound and hearing. His installations, compositions and performances deal with acoustic spaces and phenomena that usually remain imperceptible. Using unorthodox recording tools, including accelerometers, hydrophones and home-built electromagnetic receivers, Kirkegaard captures and contextualizes hitherto unheard sounds from within a variety of environments: a geyser, a sand dune, a nuclear power plant, an empty room, and even sounds from the human inner ear itself. Kirkegaard will talk about his works." Source: Vimeo

Soundscape Composition: Sonic Wasteland

Sonic Wasteland (1:48) By Justin Ascott. "A non-narrative exploration of an urban wasteland - an interstitial no-mansland , fenced off and bounded by commercial buildings. The film presents this ignored non-place, as a surreal, still, alien world, populated by detritus and resonating sound waves. Through each scene an animated line delineates the topography, drawing attention to spacial boundaries and shapes. 

The visual sequences are foregrounded by a musique concrete composition, comprised of recordings of natural sounds transformed using modulation filters into a montage of abstract sonic vibrations. 

Supported by Tecnologico de Monterrey, MexicoScreenings: Selected for screening at the Lightworks 2012 festival of film, sound and new media held in Grimsby Minster (UK) on the evening of 16th March." Source: YouTube

Soundscape: PIGscape

PIGscape (4:51) This video provides an introduction to the field of soundscape ecology and how the elements of biophony, anthrophony, and geophony are interrelated. It then discusses PIGscape, a project that monitors the temporal sounds of female pigs prior, during and after farrowing while having  access to open pasturing at a Michigan State University student organic farm. The pig vocalizations are documented and compared with pigs that are confined, such as is typical of today's pig farms. It is hoped that by making a comparative study of the sounds these animals make, that an understanding about the comfort level and well being of these animals can be better understood. Source: YouTube.

Soundscape Composition: Conductor

Conductor (5:00 ) By Aleaxander Chen. Conductor turns the New York subway system into an interactive string instrument. Using the MTA’s actual subway schedule, the piece begins in realtime by spawning trains which departed in the last minute, then continues accelerating through a 24 hour loop. The visuals are based on Massimo Vignelli’s 1972 diagram. Click2Read more 

Education: Auditory Perception

Auditory Perception 2.0 (1:38) This is a prototype of an educational software product that has the aim of engaging children with issues of attentive hearing/listening.  The main focus is to raise children's awareness of their own aural environment. The video illustrates a soundscape that is amplified by adding sonic elements to a city scene and how the soundscape changes with each additional element. Source: YouTube