Soundwalks, teaching, etc.
18 July - is the soundwalk on?
9.30 am: well, the weather isn't very nice this morning, and the forecast isn't great. however, the Met Office are suggesting there will be a dry bit in between two wet bits, and that the dry bit might be at the right time for the walk, so I say let's go for it. I will be there at two and I hope you will too ... but I think we should wear waterproofs!
Soundwalks
a soundwalk can take a number of forms depending on who is leading it, but the common thread is that one or more people move around a space or a site concentrating on its sonic, rather than its visual, qualities. my approach is to walk at a much slower pace than usual and to encourage people to listen to the sounds around them instead of constantly commenting on them. I introduce one or two listening games and exercises along the way. I have led soundwalks for both adults and children (but I don't have a CRB check).
Kendal soundwalk for World Listening Day - Sunday 18 July 2010
I will be leading a soundwalk in Kendal, Cumbria on Sunday 18 July 2010. we will meet at the Maude Street gate of Noble's Rest park (here is a link to a MultiMap page) at 2pm and spend an hour or so exploring some of Kendal's many sounds on a walk that will cover about a mile of easy walking. I will be asking £3 from people, with children coming along for nothing. if the weather looks iffy on the morning of the walk, check back to the home page of this web site for news of whether the walk will still be on, or text me on 07891 908025.
the soundwalk is going to be on the 18th of July as this is the date of the first World Listening Day, which is an initiative of the World Listening Project, an organisation based in Chicago which is publicising acoustic ecology and similar fields. the 18th of July is the birthday of R. Murray Schafer, who developed the concept of acoustic ecology and wrote 'Soundscape: The Tuning of the World' in the 1970s, which is still a key text for all this stuff. people all over the world, it is hoped, will be making an effort to listen to the world around them a bit harder on World Listening Day.
Teaching
I occasionally share some of the skills and approaches I have developed in a workshop setting, most recently for the Society for Storytelling's conference in March 2007. I like to focus on listening, relaxation and learning to let sounds come, whether produced by one's own body, scrap materials or musical instruments. I use games, spontaneous composition and a lot of qi gong. the performances I have devised for Andi Chapple and Musicians over the past two years have functioned as creative workshops for those involved, as well; I think musicians have valued the new perspectives gained on their practice and those defining themselves as non-musicians have been interested, excited and motivated to dare a little more with sound and with themselves.
