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Exercise 1 – Field Recordings / Sound WalkSound Walk Recording: Exploring Everyday Soundscapes

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Exercise 1 – Field Recordings / Sound WalkSound Walk Recording: Exploring Everyday Soundscapes

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This week I made a one-minute sound walk recording near Central Park. I wanted to capture the natural and everyday sounds around me.

In the recording, you can hear birds, flowing water, sounds under the water, dogs barking, traffic, footsteps, the wind, and also the sound of knocking on a railing. The mix of nature and city creates an interesting soundscape. Birds and water feel peaceful, while cars and footsteps remind me of daily life.

When I listened back, I noticed small details I usually ignore, such as changes in the water sound, sudden dog barks, and the metallic rhythm of the railing being struck. This exercise helped me realize how sound shapes our experience of place.

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Exercise 2 - Room Resonance (I am Sitting In A Room)

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Exercise 2 - Room Resonance (I am Sitting In A Room)

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In this recording, I captured my morning routine. You can hear the sounds of waking up, washing my face, and putting on skincare. There are also moments with my cat, and you can hear the cat responding. After that, I clean the litter box, wash the dishes, and finally put the dishes into the cupboard. It’s like a small sound diary that turns everyday actions into a little story.

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I’ve been working on my sound ecology project, and I’m excited to share a little preview.
During my trip to Tasmania, I recorded natural sounds — birds, wind, ocean waves, footsteps on sand and seaweed, even the low rumble of a boat engine. Back in Sydney, I captured the busy rhythms of the city: cars, voices, and street noise.

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For my sound project, I want to show the difference between nature and the city. Last week I went to Tasmania, and I recorded sounds like birds, wind, ocean waves, footsteps on the beach, and the sound of walking on seaweed. I also recorded a boat engine. In Sydney, I recorded city sounds like cars, people talking, and street noise.

My work is like a journey. At the start, you hear soft sounds of nature — birds, wind, and waves. Then footsteps appear, so it feels like walking in the landscape. The boat engine slowly takes us away. After that, we arrive in Sydney with all the busy city sounds. At the end, the city sounds fade out, and the waves come back. It shows that nature is still there.

My idea is to show how sound can help us feel a place, and how nature and city can mix together. It also gives the feeling of travel — moving from one world to another, then coming back again.

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I researched Hildegard Westerkamp, a sound artist known for her work on soundwalks. Her projects invite listeners to explore everyday environments with heightened attention to sound. This inspired me to treat my own recordings not just as raw audio, but as stories that connect people to place. Similarly, R. Murray Schafer’s concept of the soundscape helped me think about how nature and city sounds can be layered to create meaning in my work.

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https://www.hildegardwesterkamp.ca/

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While making these recordings, I realised how strongly sound shapes our sense of place. In the city, the constant traffic and voices can feel intense and stressful, whereas in natural spaces the quieter sounds create a feeling of peace. This difference makes me reflect on how urban growth changes the way we listen, and whether sound recordings can become a bridge that helps people slow down and reconnect with the natural world.

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1. What do I want to make?

I want to create a small sound installation that listens to a block of ice as it slowly melts.

2. Why ice?

Ice looks very quiet, but inside there are tiny cracks, bubbles and drips. I am interested in turning this “silent” object into a noisy sound environment.

3. How will it look and work?

One table + glass baking dish + ice cubes + hydrophone + Zoom H6 + speaker.

4. What is its relationship to the “sound & noise” theme?

This work explores the border between silence and noise, and how amplification can make small material changes become loud and physical.

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Experiment 1 – Ice, water and hydrophone

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Experiment 1 – Ice, water and hydrophone

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Peter Blamey works with simple electronics, feedback and everyday materials. His sound works often use small changes and systems that run by themselves.

Similar to Blamey’s use of simple systems, my ice work also uses a very basic setup (ice, water, metal, one microphone) and lets the material generate its own sound over time.

From this I learn that I do not need complex instruments. I can focus on one material process and listen to it carefully. This supports my decision to stay with melting ice and develop it in depth.

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For this experiment 2 used the final setup for Melting Time:

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For this experiment 2 used the final setup for Melting Time:

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– glass baking dish

– hot water

– one large ice block

– a small amount of salt

– one Jez Riley hydrophone + Zoom H6.

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My work is titled Melting Time. In this project, I used very basic materials: a glass baking dish, some hot water, salt, a large block of ice, and a Jez Riley hydrophone connected to a Zoom recorder. The hydrophone was placed in the water alongside the ice, picking up all the minute vibrations. The Zoom then sent these sounds to speakers, filling the entire room with the audio. These sounds aren't music. At first, we hear sharp “crackles” and “pops,”
later the sounds soften into more hissing air noises and drips. In this way, the ice becomes a kind of “clock.”
As the ice slowly transforms from solid to liquid, we can hear time passing through these noises. I also try to exert a little control over the process. Sometimes I gently tap the ice cube or tray, or sprinkle a pinch of salt on one side. This changes the speed of melting and the nature of the sounds quite suddenly, allowing me to interact with the material and not just watch it melt. For me, Melting Time is an experiment in sound and noise, and an attempt to pay attention to small, fragile things. I hope this work encourages us to listen more attentively to materials that often seem “silent.”

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Final Presentation – Melting Time

Today I presented my Assignment 2 work Melting Time in the Production Studio.

When the class started, the ice block was already melting, so the sound was very active at the beginning. Through the PA system we could hear many loud crackles and occasional pops. The small vibrations from the hydrophone became very physical and filled the whole space. After a few minutes, the sound slowly became softer and turned into a distant layer of hissing.

This presentation also showed me what I still need to improve. I realised that I should practise adjusting the gain more carefully so that the sound is strong but not too loud. I also felt nervous during my spoken introduction and sometimes rushed my words. Next time I would like to rehearse my speech more and feel more relaxed when I talk about my work.

Overall, this experience helped me understand my installation better and gave me confidence to keep developing sound works in the future.