gorgogliatore

Here is a track that uses a bunch of field recordings. The recordings were made with a Zoom H2 recorder. It is a bit like having a point and shoot camera, only for audio. If you use one of these things enough, you start to think about the sounds around you a lot more. That can be a blessing and a curse.

The most obvious recording in the piece is the bubbling sounds. Inspired by John Keston's post on the Audio Cookbook, a straw and glass of water were pressed into service. John recommends pitching the sample down and using loads of reverb which is good advice.

In the background there is a recording I made of a thunder storm. Part of it is posted on freesound.org here. The Zoom recorder is stereo which is great for capturing the rolling effect of thunder. If you like thunderstorm recordings, there is a R.Humphries on freesound.org who posts some amazing recordings.

The heart beat sound was made by wobbling a piece of stiff plastic Rolf Harris style. There are some bits and pieces from the kitchen rattling around too. Playing around with the playback speed of the samples gives them a totally different feel. There are some good tips for getting neat sounds out of everyday objects in this SOS article and on the Audio Cookbook site.

Often the mistakes in your recordings are the bits you end up using; the thumps and rattles as you setup the mics or the sound of your own breathing. A bit like what Kim Cascone is talking about in his paper The Aesthetics of Failure.