Drift 1: Reaction

1. Describe two situations that aggravated, bothered, shocked or otherwise stressed you during Drift 1. (Please note that the situation CANNOT be technology-related.)

One thing I noticed when reviewing my sounds that people including myself seemed to make noises that "ruined" a recording with either talking or other distracting noises.

Also, trying to find sounds that were interesting instead of boring sounds that everyone and anyone could do and trying to be creative with this assignment

2. Describe, with details, two situations during Drift 1 in which you felt unusually peaceful, at ease, or contemplative.

I remember walking past Curtin Hall and the huge fountain although the sound of the fountain was extremely overpowering and just was uninteresting it was very calming like a white noise.

Also another time was when walking on Ravine Road and it's a very secluded road with few cars and was just a peaceful walk during the sound walk.

3. Describe three surprises or unexpected situations you encountered on your Drift and in the days that followed. The surprise could stem from your expectations that conflicted with "on the ground" realities, cultural or social issues of which you were previously unaware, feelings and reactions that you did not expect to have, appearances and soundings of things you did not expect, good or bad outcomes of "on the spot" decisions you had to make, or the discovery of "deeper" realities in the materials you brought home. (Again, skip anything technology-related!)

1)The quality of the sounds... I didn't think these microphones would produce this good of sound.
2)The amount of sounds that we just ignore otherwise in daily life was astonishing!
3)The relaxation I found in doing homework. It was a really nice part of the assignment.

4. Describe your favorite experience, situation, place, or recollection from your Drift. Be specific about what happened, how you felt, how you reacted, and why you think this particular experience affected you so much.

Just simply going for a walk was very calming and relaxing. I would never go on a walk otherwise and it was nice to be able to do that and have a reason but also feel totally free to go where ever my heart desires!

Questions

1)How can pointing the microphones in odd directions contribute to sound quality?
2)Are there more interesting routes I could take?
3)How might sound quality be improved?
4)How does changing the record level affect the type of sounds picked up?
5)If I were a microphone where would I want to record sounds?
6)Are there ways to the roof of buildings that could create a quality sound?
7)Could walking in the sewer system get cool recordings?
8)Are there any side streets that no one has discovered that I could?
9)How might I differentiate my sounds from someone else's?
10) How do I capture a sound no one before me has?

Sound Walk

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

Yes. It really helped when you weren’t around the traffic but that was hard to come by so just being around the houses away from the busy streets helped to truly listen to what is around.

* Was it possible to move without making a sound?

Is it possible… probably not you can be quiet enough that your ears can’t pic it up but when you are moving you always make noise. Whether it be your feet making noise on the pavement or the sound of your pants swiping past each other.

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

When you cover your ears you sort of always have this high pitch resonance sound that you can’t get away from. But it’s weird looking around and seeing all these things that normally make noise and not hearing anything you are used to. When you unplug your ears it’s an overwhelming amount of wound hitting your ears and creating a whole new world to explore that you don’t truly recognize without doing that.

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

Soft rumbling of trees blowing in the wind, Irritating click of a cricket or grasshopper, Unmuffled rumble of a motorcycle, Soft pleasant chirping of the birds, gentle humming of the birds, jingle of a dog’s collar.

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

Not with distinct clarity… no.

* Human sounds? Mechanical sounds? Natural sounds?

Oh yeah you can always tell what sort of thing is making a noise whether it be human machine or nature. There is always that distinctness in sound.

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

On occasion but you truly had to listen to what you were hearing otherwise you get lost in the drone of noise that is overwhelming.

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

I found that the sounds from far off were much more interesting because you had to figure out what they were. They weren’t right there in front of you for you to see what and where the noise is coming from.
* 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)?

The trees and leaves were definitely present when you were listening along with that gentle humming of the wind. But in some places it even seemed that the wind would hit something and it made a sort of whistling sound that was fun to hear.

* 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.?

I don’t think we did that…?