light

Every spring the morning sunlight returns to my little bookshelf. Even though this winter was mild, it's a welcome sight, and a reminder that in little things we best glimpse the true nature of life.

the fallen

After watching The Hunger Games with my daughter, I made this music to try to release the intense emotion the movie brought up in me. I can't say it helped.

brink of the falls

This recording was made at the brink of the Upper Falls in Yellowstone National Park on July 9th, 2011.
 

spiked

These railroad spikes are from a windchime I made a while back. It needed repair so I decided to remove the spikes and sample them before fixing it and hanging it back up. I've made several pieces with them so far. This is the latest.

new mics

I recently picked up some very nice piezo mics made by Jes riley French. On the right is a C-series contact mic and left is a hydrophone. I've been using these a couple weeks now and am very pleased with the results. Below are a couple clips. The first is a hydrophone recording of a stream and the second is a contact recording of a flag pole banging in the wind. You can check out Jez's mics, recordings and label by following the link in my links section.

stream
flag pole

split-release on rural decay

I have a new split-cassette out with sound artist Brian Green on his Rural Decay label. http://ruraldecay.org/post/17850804778/our-first-release-is-a-split-casette-between-two My side consists of a long kalimba loop processed with effects pedals, while Brian's side is processed Rhodes. I admire Brian's work and am happy to share this release with him. Here's a clip of my piece for nil

spring sounds

blue sky

wind whistling down

the kite string

This haiku placed in a contest I entered about a decade ago. I think it does what a good haiku is supposed to do: share an exact moment in time that you can relate to and that holds some significance, even if you can't put your finger on it. I've been wanting to record that sound for years, but it's difficult and I was never satisfied with the results. Today I was flying a kite of my daughter's and decided to try again. Still not great, but like one of the judges wrote of the haiku, I hope it "puts that kite string right in your hands." Happy Spring!

new release

soundcasting features recordings of experiments I perform using fishing string and natural forces to create sound. In addition to the sounds, the download includes pictures and notes from the various experiments used to create them.

corn

Going through some recordings from last year I found a series I made in the corn field behind our house. It was November and the horse corn was ready for harvest. I sat for several hours on two occassions as close to the middle as I could judge and made long recordings of the corn blowing in the wind. The nearest road is about a half mile away but small planes and jets frequently pass over our part of South Jersey. They are as much a part of life here as the fields. For the most part though, I caught the sound of corn leaves whispering and sometimes shouting in the wind. This recording is a small slice of where I'm from.

little kalimba

I got this little kalimba a week or so ago on EBay from a guy named Txai. It's the second of his axes I own and they both just sing. He named this one the Tears of the Blue Godess-alimba. I like that. I haven't figured out the tuning yet but it sounds funky where it is so I probably won't touch it. This accidental loop was created by just looping with the volume off. It's the oldest and simplest way of creating accidental music I've discovered and it still works like a charm for me.