Assignment 1: Audio Self-Portrait
Have you ever stopped and listened to the sounds around you? Some sounds are more ubiquitous than others. Some remain with you throughout your entire day, resinating in your ears as you move from home to school, or from school to work. This assignment encapsulates the sounds currently found in my life.
Artist Statement
For this assignment, I wanted to captured the sounds that are consistent in my life for the Fall 2016 semester to create an Audio Self-Portrait. As opposed to seeking sounds that "define" me, I made it a point to find unique audio experiences that I may not have given much attention to prior to this assignment and that are intertwined throughout my day. The slow progression of audio clips from my average day build on each other, ultimately creating an auditory explosion of confusion and chaos by late-evening.
As my day unwinds, as will the sounds I experienced -- eventually resulting back into silence. Through looping, my day repeats, and the sounds return. If I'm lucky, my favorite sounds remain, while the more stressful sounds are replaced with newer, more joyful sounds.
Process
All sounds for this project were captured in and around Reno, Nevada on a smartphone. The goal was to use a device that I readily had on me at all times. This enabled me to record those fleeting sounds that may only exist momentarily. On the smartphone, I used a free iOS app called Musaico. This app is capable of recording up to 6 audio loops, which can all be played back simultaneously.
In class, I constructed a sound amplification apparatus that does not require a powered amp or electricity to help boost the volume of the audio played through it. I customized this paper, eco-friendly speaker to fit onto the end of the iPhone 6S, cupping the phone and routing the sound through it. The result could then be played back to the class louder than it would have been if it were played just through the phone alone.
Overall, this was a very fun project that encouraged me to explore the soundscape around me, and to play with these sounds through looping and layering to create a whole new sound experience.