Soundscape Composition: Linking Inner and Outer Worlds
Type
Publication
Authors
Category
Article
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Publication Year
1999
URL
[ private ]
Abstract
written for Soundscape before 2000, Amsterdam, November 19-26, 1999
"The following thoughts were sparked by the large spectrum of pieces submitted to the Soundscapes voor 2000 competition of soundscape compositions. I listened to them all as a member of the selection jury. "Soundscape as a musical style" was the only theme or guiding idea that was given to participating composers and jury members alike. The absence of more detailed selection criteria and definitions made me thoughtful about the fact that, to date, there have been few attempts to define soundscape composition (1) as a genre; to articulate its significance and position in relation to contemporary music, electro-acoustic composition and experimental radio production; to highlight its potential in enhancing listening awareness; and to understand its role in inspiring ideas about balanced soundscapes and acoustic ecology. The few written pieces that do exist, such as Katherine Norman's(2) and Barry Truax's(3) articles as well as Andra McCartney's dissertation(4), address many of the above ideas and create an understanding for the deeper issues underlying the creation of soundscape compositions. They raise awareness about the type of listening these compositions encourage in an overloaded sound world that challenges us to take a stance both as listener and composer. I have taken inspiration from their writings and will be quoting from some of them here, as their different ways of speaking about soundscape compositions create a broader base for discussing this relatively new genre of contemporary composition.
Since audio technology enables everyone who has access to it, to make good quality recordings of any sound in the world, the sound environment has become a huge and rich 'resource' for anyone interested in working with environmental sounds. All sounds can become part of a soundscape composition. But can a piece be called a soundscape composition just because it uses environmental sounds as its source material?..."
"The following thoughts were sparked by the large spectrum of pieces submitted to the Soundscapes voor 2000 competition of soundscape compositions. I listened to them all as a member of the selection jury. "Soundscape as a musical style" was the only theme or guiding idea that was given to participating composers and jury members alike. The absence of more detailed selection criteria and definitions made me thoughtful about the fact that, to date, there have been few attempts to define soundscape composition (1) as a genre; to articulate its significance and position in relation to contemporary music, electro-acoustic composition and experimental radio production; to highlight its potential in enhancing listening awareness; and to understand its role in inspiring ideas about balanced soundscapes and acoustic ecology. The few written pieces that do exist, such as Katherine Norman's(2) and Barry Truax's(3) articles as well as Andra McCartney's dissertation(4), address many of the above ideas and create an understanding for the deeper issues underlying the creation of soundscape compositions. They raise awareness about the type of listening these compositions encourage in an overloaded sound world that challenges us to take a stance both as listener and composer. I have taken inspiration from their writings and will be quoting from some of them here, as their different ways of speaking about soundscape compositions create a broader base for discussing this relatively new genre of contemporary composition.
Since audio technology enables everyone who has access to it, to make good quality recordings of any sound in the world, the sound environment has become a huge and rich 'resource' for anyone interested in working with environmental sounds. All sounds can become part of a soundscape composition. But can a piece be called a soundscape composition just because it uses environmental sounds as its source material?..."
Description
https://www.hildegardwesterkamp.ca/writings/writingsby/?post_id=19&title=%E2%80%8Bsoundscape-composition:-linking-inner-and-outer-worlds-
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