Reading Response #1

The article I read was David Toop’s The Art of Noise. I chose this article because I wanted to expand my opinions and views on sound. This last year, I had such a bad ear infection, that I almost lost my hearing in my right ear. For more than a week, all I could hear were muted sounds from all around me, not being able to identify anything. When my hearing started to return, it was like I was reborn. Every new noise was like a miracle, and a new venue to explore.

In the essay, Toop talks about sound being “a spoken language...defin[ing] orientation within a place, register[ing] the feeling that we describe as atmosphere.” That said, Toop presents John Cage’s interpretation of the differences between sound and music. Cage states that music is the “organization of sound.” Although Cage fights saying that since music can have different meanings and interpretations based on where it is played, the true difference between what is classified as music and when it becomes noise is “at best, a puzzle with no satisfactory solution.”

In addition, Toop goes into the differences between sound art and music, saying that, “the difference lies in the ultimate aim.” What Toop goes into saying is that, “music rarely has a great deal to ‘say,’” whereas sound art has a deeper meaning, often revealing a hidden sympathy, with the use/aid of audio recording techniques and an “appreciation of reverberation in records.”

Looking at my practices as a media artist, I must say that this article has made me think deeper into the differences between art, music, and noise. Many times I look or hear a project, and wonder how is that acceptable. But with the ideas/views presented in the article, my span of acceptance has increased, as well as an increased eye and ear for the subtleties and the various uses/meanings of sound.

Soundwalk 9/10 Response

• Were you able to find places and spaces where you could really listen?
Yes. We went outside of the Mitchell building and sat on the grass at the corner of Downer and Kenwood Blvd. Then we walked around the campus walking through the Union, the parking garage, and Lubar Hall.

• Was it possible to move without making a sound?
No matter what, there was always noise that I was making whether it was my shoes going down the stairs, the wind blowing my clothes, or me writing in my notebook.

• What happened when you plugged your ears, and then unplugged them?
When my ears were plugged, I heard my heartbeat and my lungs when I was breathing, and heard some low noises/vibrations. When I slowly unplugged them, I heard a neutral hum as if everything was meshed together, but as I opened them further, the sounds became more distinct.

• In your sound log exercise, what types of sounds were you able to hear? List them.
Leaves rustling in the wind in the trees, tires on pavement, a buses air brakes, the bus starting at a stop, a woman coughing, girls chatting, shuffling feet, scooter buzzing, warning beeper/bus backing up, airplane flying over head, paper rustling, leaves scratching the sidewalk being blown in the wind, feet walking on the wood chips, exhaust fan with a medium level hum, keys jingling, Britney Spears music, crash of metal in the kitchen, skateboard wheels going over the cracks in the pavement, little girl laughing, the card dispenser in the parking garage sounding like the card was being punched, grill sizzling, birds chirping, a deep fryer, cash register drawer opening, coin hitting the floor, dumpster lid slamming, glass breaking falling in the dumpster, flip flops flopping, rap music, the bass in a passing car, local dispute with a lot of $&*@ you and #&$& head!!

• Were you able to differentiate between sounds that had a recognizable source and those sounds you could not place? Human sounds? Mechanical sounds? Natural sounds?
When we were sitting outside in the circle by Mitchell, I knew the sound of the hissing of the bus when it was stopping, the sound of shoes on the pavement, the sound of the cicadas, the buzzing of a moped, and . Also, I heard the sound of a bell. I didn't know where it was at first, but I looked around and saw it was an ice cream cart being pushed around.

• Were you able to detect subtleties in the everpresent drone? Extremely close sounds? Sounds coming from very far away?
I would now and again hear a dead, dry leave being slowly blown across the pavement. This gave me goosebumps because it sounded like a teacher was scratching a chalkboard with her nails. I also heard a siren from a police car from very far away. At first it sounded a high pitch whistle, but after listening to it closer, I discovered that it was a siren.

• 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)?
I heard the wind blowing dead leaves across the sidewalk like someone scratching a chalk board, the wind blowing the leaves in the trees, a whistling howl when I opened the door to go back outside, and the rustling of pages as the wind blew the pages of the homework and books students were reading outside.

• 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.?
On the hand railing on the handicap entrance, I hit it with my metal ring and heard a very distinct echo and hollow metal ring when I put my ear directly next to it. I also hit a metal sign and heard it shake and vibrate quickly and then slowly fade away and stop.

• Do you feel you have a new understanding or appreciation of the sounds of our contemporary landscape/cityscape?
After slowing down and taking time to hear what was around me, I remember how amazed I was with the wonders constantly around me. It got me thinking about how priceless sound and hearing really is. Since that day, there is always a little voice in the back of my head telling me to slow down and take time to hear the world around me, even in the bustling city, which some claim is only filled with traffic.

• How do you think your soundwalk experience will affect your practice as a media artist, if at all?
I think that the soundwalk experience will make me even more aware of the ongoing world around me. I also hope that it will have me zoning in on even more subtleties/objects and its ability in making a one of a kind noise/sound that many people wouldn’t even give a second chance to. I also hope that after the walks, as a growing media artist, I will slowly gain experience and a tuned ear. My goal for the semester is to become better acquainted with the 24/7 music constantly on play and not putting in on mute and tuning it out.