Tim Hunkin’s madcap creations at the Under the Pier show at Southwold have their own soundmarks, but this rhythmic squeak from the animated sign is the one that most reminds me of this attraction.
Tag: field recording
A Vee of Geese overflying Southwold Pier at dusk
I was recording the waves at Southwold pier as darkness started to fall. The air was still enough to give it a go without being taken down by the sea winds.
Suddenly, in the distance I hear the sound of geese, and a massive vee of geese pass overhead, possibly a hundred birds in all
Christchurch Park Mistle Thrush
In Christchurch Park in the centre of Ipswich near the Mansion, there was this mistle thrush giving off the football rattle sound, a welcome piece of wildlife in the town centre on a freezing day. Somehow the city sounds in the background give him some edge, even though it’s hardly a classic species recording.
The sudden boost at the end is the bird diving off to take up some issue with a bird in a yew in the graveyard
Snape Snippet
As the pied wagtails swoop over the concert hall that backs onto the reedbeds sighing in the wind, a middle-aged couple climb the steps, the guy sounding knowledgeable, to impress the lady maybe? Or perhaps a couple that have been together for years. The accents are just as you’d expect, middle-class, ever so slightly affected.
The hysterical horse is a bronze sculpture in the distance, looking out over the reeds
Swans taking off, Grundisburgh
It’s not that easy to catch the beginning of swans taking off, but these took off while I was recording near a reservoir at Grundisburgh, with the ungainly splashing and creaking of wings.
Fat Cat Pub ambience
The Fat Cat pub in Ipswich is a fine real ale pub, which serves many of its beers gravity-fed. Sound-wise, however, the pub is a nightmare – lots of glass which reflects the conversation, to the extend that on a full Friday or Saturday night you struggle to hear your mates over a small round table. Thankfully they don’t have muzak or a jukebox! This was only made worse by the addition fo a conservatory extension with a plastic pitched roof that focuses the sound onto the middle tables. However, the beer and the ambience makes up for the odd lost word.
This recording was made on a Wednesday so there were fewer customers, it was okay for conversation.
Nightjar on Blaxhall Heath
The mating call of the nightjar is a very strange churring sound, usually made around dusk, hence the ropey photo. The sound is eerie, as most other birds have stopped by the time this call is made. The claps are wingbeats.
Market Trader Selling Bananas
This guy had chutzpah. setting up with a few boxes of bananas and the aim of flogging them all in a day. He delivered his patter with gusto
Poundland Ipswich opening fun day
Poundland have taken over the old Woolworth’s store in Ipswich at the end of Spetember, and held a Family Fun Day today. I hven’t worked out what the family fun was meant to be apart from getting people to throng to buy poorly made tools, tat and thneeds but it certainly caused a massive queue so at least Mr Poundland was having a fun day.
A long queue snaked past the tills, the hubbub was really quite remarkable. I don’t recall seeing this many people in Woolies.
Poundland Fun day hubbub
Some more rich pickings from the 6th Oct, the Halloween displays are in full swing, and a minute of classy comments 🙂 A bunch of teenage girls are looking to spice up their costumes, one teenage boy charges his mate with looking like a woman in that, and a lady desperately trying to get someone of a mobile phone to erase her messages, all in the space of a minute.
Poundland comments
Southwold Pier
I’ve came across this post describing how to go about street recording. I had never really thought about the process before, so it was very hit and miss for me. Sometimes I would get good results, sometimes not so good. Des’s idea of creating a sound map of the area before recording is inspiring.
In some ways it is common sense – in tackling anything it is good to have an idea of what you are trying to do. Just as a photographer frames his picture, the orientation and location of a recording is part of framing the experience, it is not enough simply to point a mic in the general direction of the sound.
Sound does not have the frame of a photograph, and most field recording rigs take a wide-angle perspective if they were a camera. So getting in close matters. On a trip to Southwold Pier I figured I would try out the new technique.
Sound walk through the amusements arcade
This is a short walk past a lot of the noisy amusements. The attention-grabbing “Hey, let’s shoot hoops” from the first attraction is so American for what is a quintessentially English resort!
The second is a recording from one place, in the building with the Tim Hunkin artworks/attractions. I did try and get the sea churning to give it some perspective, and the start of the fly attraction “You are a Fly” gives it a discrete start.
Tim Hunkin attractions on Southwold Pier
This one doesn’t quite get the balance between sea and the attraction right, but I am getting a feel for what the sound map can do for me.