Conclusion

The rhythmic clanging, melodic fragments, and static hums of machines have fascinated and challenged my musical ear since I can recall. Singing along with these everyday sounds and mimicking curiosities like flamingo calls earned me the college nickname SoundFx (sound effects). I mentioned in the introduction that I did not expect was that this way of listening to my surroundings would provide material for instrumental composition. And by now it is clear that many others have found a creative impetus to make music outdoors or with field recordings. I am very curious to see what other approaches and structures beyond Train and Escalator that I can create with future pieces that blend field recordings with their transcriptions, and hope that those who listen to these works will be prompted to consider their daily surroundings in a more open and creative way.

In Western music there has been a long tradition of transcribing pieces for new instrument combinations or reworking materials into different structures. These transcriptions, such as Liszt's transcriptions of symphonies for piano preserve the notes and some of the effect but the resultant sound changes dramatically. Some transcriptions become great pieces for the new instrument(s), and some remain indebted to the original; Stravinsky's Rite of Spring for two pianos hardly compares to the sound and impact of the original for orchestra. Similarly, transcription of a live speaker at a poetry slam looses much information (age, intonation, place of origin, etc.), all which can be determined by the sound of the voice. A written transcript or dubbing of a movie in a new language also sacrifices rich sonic details. The translation I am currently attempting is to recreate sounds recorded in the environment, especially that of machines, with acoustic instruments that have been designed for very specific timbres. As Schafer asserts, a visual translation of a sound is never sufficient, but when combined with the original tape, musicians can come even closer to mimicking the intended sound. For me, it was useful to use standard notation because I am familiar with it, and so are the players. That way we could tackle a new concept without learning a completely new notation or method.

There are also powerful computational tools, various softwares, that can aid in analysis of sounds and their reworking into a transcription. James O'Callaghan wrote a paper on this topic called “Mediated Mimesis: Transcription as Processing,”1 which is useful to consult. Although these softwares can be useful I contend that transcription using one's own ears lends a resultant personal view since everyone's ears and focus are different. What I aim to achieve is to show others what I hear through sound. This is tricky because one cannot slow down a field recording or stretch it without changing the sound, so repeated listenings are required, and the noisiness or clarity of the tape is also a factor. Another method is to isolate sections using filters for the musicians to imitate, or even creating models of specific frequencies using programs such as SPEAR.2 These selected sounds could be played over headphones, for instance, in a live context like (Hartford) Memory Space, or as study material for the musicians.

There are many ways to 'catch' sounds of field recordings, to record, transcribe, notate, tame?, and analyze them (spectral or otherwise), and there are numerous ways to release them. As demonstrated in the aforementioned works, the main elements can be effective live, pre-recorded, and mixed in any combination. There are many sources, compositions, writings, and methods I have yet to discover, and more pieces to write! Even upon completion of this paper, it seems my investigation into this topic has merely begun.

It is my hope that with this introduction to this genre of soundscape with instruments, others will take these tools and improve them, be inspired to listen and compose, and record sounds and share them. As demonstrated by the variety of work detailed in this research, soundscapes are a rich source for instrumental composition. Music does not always have to be invented on isolated blank paper but can be discovered in the abundance of sound in the world. Capture and absorb as much as possible, and release your music back into the world.

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1 O’Callaghan, James. “Mediated Mimesis: Transcription as Processing.” http://www.ems-network.org/IMG/pdf_EMS12_ocallaghan.pdf