AA1 Semester 2 Project: Another Quiet Night in Suburbia

AQNiSLocation.mp3

The intention of 'Another Quiet Night in Suburbia' is to investigate the sounds that continue through the night as the world sleeps. But life goes on as can be heard from the continual flow of traffic on the three major arterial roads nearby. Sounds of nature mingle with this as the wind stirs the leaves in sudden gusts. In the distance, a dog protests a phantom of the night.

The features emerge from general traffic hum. At first seeminly a drone, but on closer listening as detailed as any symphony or syncopated jazz. At one moment, the low rumble of a semi-trailer slowly taking off from the lights, perspective changing slowly; the next, the strident tones of a motorbike whizzing through the early hours, sound moving rapidly right to left. Somewhere around the 4 o'clock direction, the distant beeping of a security alarm.

I want to create a hyper-real sonic canvas, drawing features and subtle detail from the rumbling, seething, ever changing and pervasive buzz of the early morning. Individual cars and trucks emerge for a moment then submerge; unique brake drum squeals, gearbox grumbles. Many sonic realities exsisting in the distance and the night.

Over the course of recording this, my ears became tuned as I listened more deeply in the darkness. I began to hear extreme detail until I could pick each individual vehicle and chassis, general body creaks, springs and potholes in the road. These are not audible on the recording, but they are in my mind and must surely influence the final outcome.

References:

Haines, Christian. "Sound Design." Audio Arts 1 Tutorials. Semester 2, 2007. University of Adelaide, South Australia.

Sonnenshein, David. Sound Design. Studio City, CA 91604: Michael Wiese Productions, 2001.

Schafer, R. Murray. A range of sound event maps from, The tuning of the world,1st edn, Knopf, New York, 1977.