Ian Potter Cultural Trust 2014

Plans for 2014 are well on their way. I have been fortunate enough to be a recipient of the Ian Potter Cultural Trust's grant, which will enable me to achieve three projects for the year. 

The first will be as visiting scholar to the University of Birmingham, where I will focus on their BEAST and electroacoustic studies departments. I am looking forward to meeting Professor Jonty Harrison (on the cusp of his retirement from his position at the University) and aim to spend this (unfortunately) brief time further researching work methods in acousmatic and electroacoustic composition.

The following two sections will involve joint residencies and attendance at two events in rural Italy. The first will be within Pollinaria in Civitella Casanova, Abruzzo, to be followed by the Interferenze new arts festival - curated, directed and founded by Leandro Pisano. It is expected that these two projects will entail a considerable amount of research, skill sharing (amongst participating artists) and engagement with local communities and environment. A natural osmosis between the two will be encouraged. I will provide more detail as plans progress but already - am becoming aware of the intrinsic bond between community and land. As a township built on inland mountains, agriculture is the base of their economy - with organic methods that support local 'genetic patrimony', being majority. I am inspired by the thought that these methods of working with the land, as established in the past, are still very much alive, respected and valued as part of daily life for both present and future generations.

Many thanks to the Ian Potter Foundation for providing such an opportunity for emerging artists. Support such as this makes possible the achievements that propel us into the (inter)national community and our mid career.....

North East England: Sonic Postcard NEE04

:: NEE04 - Blowhole, Howick area 12th November 2013. Water - and fragile booming ::

Recording Technical Specifications:
Recording device: Sound Devices 788T
Microphones: DPA 4060 (stereo pair)

North East England: Sonic Postcard NEE03

:: NEE03 - Caris Clocks, Alnwick Town 15th Nov, 2013. General clock-ticking ambience and gentle chimes ::

Recording Technical Specifications:

Recording device: Sound Devices 788T

Microphones: DPA 4060 (stereo pair) and DPA4017

Multichannel recording and mixdown

Recording taken within Caris Clocks, Alnwick. Time keeper is 4th generation clock repairer, Gordon Caris. His son is 5th generation. Lovely sounds of ticking, a few gentle chimes. Clocks are irregular with their times (they are in for repairs...) so chiming is a bit erratic.

Many-thanks to Gordon for accommodating that which was so unfamiliar......

Hydrophone Test #1

:: Hydrophone Test #1 ::

For almost three weeks now I've had a pair of the much coveted Teledyne Reson TC 4033 hydrophones sitting on my studio floor and waiting to be tested. Today was the day where I woke to find basic getting-by essentials had been caught up with for the time being, (food; check, money; check, cleanliness-factor; check-ish-will-do-for-now-hey-it's-the-weekend-I-don't-need-to-shower/change-for-anyone-today-anyway), so I was finally allowed to get back to my real work.......

I think it's safe to say that at a certain point in a field recordists practice they get their hands on a hydrophone and the less-known world of auditory sensation begins to reveal itself. If you are like me, this experience never leaves you only providing more fuel to the fire of your sonic-gathering obsession. 

And so begins the hunt for your very own hydrophone.

My hunt began in 2009 when on attendance at a 'Chris Watson' masterclass at the Wired lab I experienced the DPA 8011 and my world was changed forever. These hydrophones were ceased from production in 2011 (? there abouts) - which despite the fact this was not really relevant to me (there was no way I could afford such high quality equipment anyway) - still saddened me in that there seemed to be a gap in (almost) affordable, high quality hydrophone technology, that needed to be filled.  

**A word of advice: The final 'kit' that I have been fortunate enough to be able to access for testing took quite a bit of research and phonecalls to far-away lands. If you have technical questions about such specialised gear then calling the company direct is the way to go. While Australian distributors may do their best to help it's not safe to assume they know ALL the answers. After some confusion I made the direct call to discover that the hydrophones I was originally envisioning purchasing would require an additional two hardware modules (small boxes but...) and connecting cables in order to function. The Australian sales person I spoke was not aware that this was the case.

Item #1 & #2 - hydrophones: The TC 4033. 

:: TC4033 ::

While it is still a long-term, once-in-a-lifetime investment that means you won't be eating for a few years (let's not forget you typically want TWO of them for stereo...). Their price is less than that the DPA 8011 was and the sound quality (while not as crisp) is still miles above the other truly affordable, domestic/high quality models that I have had the pleasure of experimenting with. Unlike Teledyne Reson's pricier-but-impressive TC 4032 model, the TC 4033 does not have an inbuilt preamp that requires 9V power. TR do sell preamps that can be used with the TC 4033 BUT, these also require 9v power (an external battery box) and more money to purchase them with....

Item #3 & #4 - preamps: Avisoft's Charge amplifier and high pass filter #42003

:: Avisoft's preamp #42003 ::

As a solution to the loss of recording level I decided to try Raimund Specht's (Avisoft) pre amps. The #42003 model runs off the phantom power of your recording unit and connects in via BNC and out via XLR. Unfortunately there is not a stereo module so I used two of them (as per the image). On looking at the modules in person there were two aspects I was not too sold on. The first is the fact that there is no setting to completely bypass the high-pass filter - you have to use it no matter what (and I typically do not like to use any filters on original field recordings). Second, the high-pass settings on the rotary knob were marked by an attached sticker that was very much like a slightly heavier-than-usual piece of paper. As these preamps work with hydrophones it's safe to assume there will be water around. It would only take one wet hand touching the label for it to start to deteriorate and the general wear and tear of moving your portable recording kit around would only assist this process.  I'd much prefer the industry standard of engraving the numbers into the module itself. 

Item #5 - recording device: Sound Devices 788T

:: Sound Devices 788T with Avisoft's 42003 preamps ::

-With fresh firmware update and recording at 24bit/96K, my favourite recording tool..............................

The following are three sample recordings for you. All were recorded one following the other, in the exact same conditions (see top image) with the only variable being the gain on the 788T. Other than converting files to MP3 @ 320kbps for the audio players I have left them completely untouched.

FIRST RECORDING

Gain: 34.7

Preamp high pass cut-off: 10Hz

SECOND RECORDING

Gain: 38

Preamp high pass cut-off: 10Hz

THIRD RECORDING

Gain: 42

Preamp high pass cut-off: 10Hz

SUMMARY: I'm very happy with the frequency response of the hydrophones. The few affordable models I have tested often lack responses below 100Hz so I am glad to hear there is nice depth to these recordings and a sharp crispness to the high's. The preamps were very handy in that they solved two problems that arose from these hydrophones. First is the problem of recording level - the boost was wonderful and the second, was the conversion from BNC to XLR. They achieved both of these things whilst also being powered by phantom power - whereas other preamps required an external power box to drive them. As handy as this was - I am a bit concerned about the humm that comes through. This becomes more apparent as the gain increases on the 788T. I normally record general ambience at a gain of about 50 so that fact that the humm was well and truly present at 42 was noted. Having said that though - the next step will be for me to try the hydrophones with an impedance transformer (no preamp at all) and see how they perform. I'm hoping that as I have the quality preamps in the 788T that I may be able to get as much level as with Avisoft's preamps but without the humm.

TBC............ 

The Field Reporter: 2013 in retrospective

   :: Images courtesy of 'The Field Reporter ::

The online journal, "The Field Reporter" (David Valez), is publishing a series of articles as a 2013 retrospect. First three have been released on their website and include

Part I: 'Recording excursion snapshot: Sound gathering on England’s North East coastline'. Tessa Elieff.

Part II: 'In praise of movement'. Patrick Farmer.

Part III: 'Two thousand and thirteen, the Grande Syntagmatique. Or an attempt to provide an exhaustive classification of the segmentation of a yearly narrative'. Budhaditya Chattopadhyay.

Well worth a read and a listen!

L'Espace du son 2013

:: Annette Vande Gorne at the Acousmonium's master desk. L'Espace du son 2013 ::

From Thursday 21st November to Sunday the 24th I attended the 20th acousmatic festival, L'Espace du son. Founded by composer Annette Vande Gorne, this event was my last stop on the work and travel funded by the Australian Council's Artstart grant. Having spent the previous three weeks focussing on field recording (including a week intensive with Chris Watson), I was incredibly eager to switch focus from the art of recording, to expressing the sounds via acousmatic diffusion. These two passions are the primary skills that I utilise in my work. They follow on - one from the other - with the designated leader in a constant state of switch. 

As an english (only) speaking, unknown artist from (far-away) Australia, I was a little anxious as to how my presence would be received at such an event. Attendees, performers and organises of this occasion include the founders of the acousmonium themselves. The calibre of work within this community is the highest to be found on the international stage and on first night of performance, I must confess it was hard to shake the feeling that I was crashing a private party. I took comfort in the fact that a quick glance around the room revealed a number of solitary individuals sitting alone, tasting their red wine, reading their program and generally observing the community with the same wide eyed look as my own. 

Despite my lack of language skills, the striking of a large gong provided me with an internationally recognised sign that now was the time to enter the theatre. Artists who presented work at this years festival included John Young, Flo Menezes, Åke Parmerud and Yves Daoust. Over a course of four evenings, attendees were privy to the world of the acousmonium and the sonic delights that reside there. My social nerves were quickly allayed by the communities friendly nature and obvious interests in connecting with artists world wide to share the mutual passion - the acousmonium.

:: Francois Bayle and Tessa Elieff, 2013 ::

The festival itself was excellent. This community of the acousmonium was one of the most accomplished, intimate and welcoming that I have experienced to date and it is hard to write about this without feeling a little sad for the absence of their company. One particular individual is Jean-François Denis. As I sit in all my awkward social glory on the first day of the conference, I am joined by a long limbed fellow whose mischievous demeanour manages to overwhelm even my most coolest reception. We sit side by side - packed into the rows of wooden chairs - unable to escape from each others company and both seeming unwanting to do so.

Me: Do you compose?
Jean-François: I did but not for some years now
Me: Do you miss it?
Jean-François: No - well - I run a label you see - that focuses on acousmatic works so I am still very much, working with my passion
Me: Do you mind if I ask what the label is?
Jean-François: No, I do not mind........ (grin)

pause

Me: ..... Would you tell me what it is?
Jean-François: Yes - I would tell you....... (grin)

pause

Me: Well then - what is it's name?
Jean-François: The label is empreintes DIGITALes

Cue - Tessa (does not) chokes on her pen

Me: I can see why you do not miss composing!

My years of undergraduate studies in sound was spent trawling through compositions as to be discovered on this wonderfully curated and as-yet unknown label, empreintes DIGITALes. As a source of inspiration and a guidance point for developing my own work - I have often looked to the material of artists released on this label - wondering just who the higher beings were that collected such fantastical sounds..... Now I know - it is/was this intriguing and friendly character sitting next to me - enquiring after my own work. 

On return to Australia I am still digesting the experiences and piecing together my next developments. Whilst I would love to dive straight into the sounds I collected during my time away - for a new release in 2014 - I find myself holding back and pondering a longer term plan.... 

To be continued......

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body. 

North East England: Sonic Postcard NEE02

:: NEE02 - Barter Books, the old Alnwick train station 4th November 2013. General shop ambience and Moozak with the train set running above and over the book shelves ::

                     

Recording Technical Specifications:
Recording device: Sound Devices 788T

Microphone: DPA 4060 (stereo pair)