Islands

Barry Truax - Islands

Some information about the tracks from the liner notes:

Pacific Fanfare (1996)

It is comprised of ten soundmarks recorded by the WSP (World Soundscape Project at Simon Fraser University) in the Vancouver area either from the early 1970s or more recently, and thus reflects the changing soundscape of the city. The various sound signals are heard both in their original state, and digitally resonated and time-stretched in order to let them "resonate" in our own memories.

Pendlerdrøm (1997) (or "Commuterdream")

...a soundscape composition that recreates a commuter's trip home from the Central Train Station in Copenhagen. At two points, one in the station and the other on the train, the commuter lapses into a daydream in which the sounds that were only half heard in the station return to reveal their musical qualities.

La Sera di Benevento (1999) (or "Afternoon in Benevento")

...a soundscape composition based on environmental sounds from the town of Benevento, Italy, situated near Napoli. In particular, I imagined a hot, drowsy afternoon where the sounds of cicadas, a fountain and the local churchbell lull the listener into a reverie where these sounds mingle with a half-remembered lyric poem by the 14th century poet Giovanni Boccaccio.

Dominion (1991) (accompanied by the Olympia Chamber Orchestra)

...may be called a meditation on the Canadian nation in that it involves the listener in an east-to-west journey across the country. In each region it is 12 noon, starting with the noon gun in St. John's harbour, Newfoundland, followed by various foghorns and other whistles. In the long second section depicting the vast expanse of central Canada and its founding Anglophone and Francophone cultures, the noon chimes and hour bell of the Peace Tower in Ottawa are played out in counterpoint against the bells of the Basilica in Quebec City. The ubiquitous E-flat minor triad of the CPR (Canadian Pacific Railway) train horn connects the various sections, just as the transcontinental railway was instrumental in unifying the country.

Island (2000)

...is a 16 track soundscape composition that blends acoustic environmental sounds with processed versions of the same sounds. The result is a visit to an imaginary island embued with magical realism, beginning at the shoreline, proceeding up a rapidly flowing stream, visiting a resonant cistern, climbing to the windy peak of a mountain lake, descending again through a nightime forest of crickets, and ending at a different shoreline.

Tracklisting:

1. Pacific Fanfare {3:05}

2. Pendlerdrøm {12:07}

3. La Sera di Benevento {10:08}

4. Dominion {18:46}

5. Island {19:01}

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Digital Soundscapes

Barry Truax - Digital Soundscapes

The Blind Man (1979), for two-channel tape based on a poem and reading by Norbert Ruebsaat

Aerial (1979), music for solo amplified horn and four computer-synthesized soundtracks; Steven Field - horn

Wave Edge (1983), for four computer-synthesized soundtracks

Solar Ellipse (1984-85), for four computer-synthesized soundtracks

Riverrun (1986), for four computer-synthesized soundtracks

From the liner notes:

All of the works on this recording have been composed with reference to environmental sound, whether as actual source material, as in "The Blind Man", or as metaphor, as in the computer-synthesized pieces. I find it significant that as computers are increasingly involved in music that I and other composers should look to the richness of environmental sound and its spatial characteristics for acoustic models and sound symbolism. This development occurs ironically at a time when noise as a byproduct of the same technology continues to be a major environmental problem. It is my hope that the musical vision of these works may encourage in the listener a greater soundscape awareness and sensitivity. (Barry Truax)

Tracklisting:

1. The Blind Man {16:00}

2. Aerial {9:32}

3. Wave Edge {9:38}

4. Solar Ellipse {11:14}

5. Riverrun {19:44}

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For anyone interested in the book, Handbook for Acoustic Ecology, look in the comments.

Vancouver Soundscape

* originally posted on February 7, 2007

How about a visit to Vancouver. One of my dreams in life is to someday visit this city in person. It looks like a lovely place, at least on television and in books.

World Soundscape Project - The Vancouver Soundscape 1973

Combining the gentlest of the urban projects, a 1973 survey of Vancouver's soundscape, with the most stylistically varied, a 1996 reprise of the project, this two disc set is a great place to begin tuning your ears toward human soundscapes. The first disc, recorded and released during acoustic ecology's birth in British Columbia, is a loving portrait of city soundmarks. Each track focuses on a certain element of the city's voice: the harbor ambience, the music of horns and whistles, park sounds, etc.; there is no chaos or sense of overwhelm here, but rather a celebration of the sonic beauties and comforts found in daily city sounds. Perhaps this disc is a relic of bygone days, when even cities were a bit more hospitable to our ears and souls. (Earth Ear)


Tracklisting:

1. Ocean Sounds {6:16}

2. Squamish Narrative {5:56}

3. Entrance to the Harbour {7:19}

4. Harbour Ambience {6:38}

5. The Music of Horns and Whistles {3:20}

6. Vancouver Soundmarks {3:58}

7. Homo Ludens - Vancouverites at Play {5:15}

8. The Music of Various City Quarters {8:20}

9. New Year's Eve in Vancouver Harbour {8:32}

10. On Acoustic Design {20:26}

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There was a problem with the file of the track "Squamish Narrative" when this was last available. The file is now fixed as the proper full-length track is now available. This is for those who already downloaded the album and had the defective file.




various artists compilation - Soundscape Vancouver 1996

The second disc includes works by five varied soundscape composers, and reflects both the changes in the actual soundscape of the city, and the expansion of artistic and technological approaches to interpreting the soundscape. The pieces are far more impressionistic, and represent matured interpretations, rather than documentaries, of the city and its ambience. Pieces include a shortened version of an audio documentary on blindness by Darren Copeland, a poetic search for 'the hidden tune' by Sabine Breitsameter, a dreamscape of reflection and concern from Hans Ulrich Werner, a brief immersion into the soundings of horns, bells, and whistles from Barry Truax, and a heavily edited, subtly arranged sequence of city voices by Claude Schryer. Both discs are complemented by lectures that introduce key ideas and reflections about acoustic ecology; the first, a talk by movement leader R. Murray Schafer, the second a comparison of the soundscapes of these two eras by Hildegard Westerkamp and Barry Truax. This set is an ideal place to begin your explorations of the artistic, humanistic, and activist roots of acoustic ecology. (Earth Ear)

Tracklisting:

1. [no artist credited] - Harbour Ambience {4:11}

2. Darren Copeland - Recharting the Senses {8:03}

3. Sabine Breitsameter - The Hidden Tune {14:27}

4. Hans Ulrich Werner - Vanscape Motion {17:17}

5. Barry Truax - Pacific Fanfare {3:07}

6. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Eagle {1:49}

7. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Fire {3:57}

8. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: DroneSong {1:26}

9. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Noise {1:30}

10. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Walk {0:41}

11. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Industry {2:10}

12. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Horn {2:08}

13. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Beans {2:43}

14. Claude Schryer - Vancouver Soundscape Revisited: Blowin' {1:35}

15. Barry Truax and Hildegard Westerkamp - The Changing Soundscape {11:55}

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