UTS campus Ultimo

The final component of my sound walk focuses on ordinary sounds that are a product of industrial anthrophonic soundscapes. Sounds such as lifts, escalators, ventilators, and air conditioners; “Keynote sounds [that] do not have to be listened to consciously; they are overheard” (Schafer, 1993). However, unlike previous elements of the sound walk, the listener no longer traverses a physical space, but rather they perceive the entirety of the soundscape from a multitude of locations at once. Initially, sound is performed as an intricate looped sequence: high frequencies are intelligible and automated. However, as the piece progresses sounds become overlapped and obscured, and rather than pertaining to individual characteristics, amalgamate in an arrangement of white noise: a “sound wall” (Schafer, 1993) . However, this sound wall is the noise of euphoria, of machine functionality and productivity. It represents the ambience of UTS, and this is expressed through pitch. Multiple components of the rhythmic piece band together to construct a major 7 chord, which on its own, sounds dreamy and idealistic.

The UTS soundscape involves the intricate trimming and slicing of audio, within the structure of a grid. Initially, samples are arranged at intervals of 1/16 as they are looped over a bar. Simple panning and equalisation allowed me to accentuate different elements of the rhythmic section and pitch inserts created harmony between multiple samples. Finally, a delay bus applied broadly in automation generates an atmosphere and ambience, banding multiple samples together, and creating a glissando of noise.

References Schafer, R. M. (1993). The Soundscape : Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World. Inner Traditions International, Limited.