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World Forum for Acoustic Ecology

World Listening Day 2021

2/14/2021

 
The World Listening Project's signature initiative, World Listening Day, was established in 2010 as an international day of awareness for the burgeoning and diversifying interests in our changing acoustic environment through local and online activities. The date, July 18, honors the renowned Canadian composer, music educator, and author, R. Murray Schafer on his birthday. Each year a respected practitioner creates a theme to inspire projects for World Listening Day.

2020's theme was ‘The Collective Field’, created by internationally acclaimed Wild Sanctuary's Katherine Krause. 

Many organisations and individuals participated in this year's WLD. Activities include a live stream of the Tokyo Phonographers Union, CRISAP's Acts Of Air exhibition series, a video feature by the ACA Soundscape Field Station at Canaveral National Seashore, the second edition of Leah Barclay's Listening In The Wild live stream series, and projects celebrating WLD in the Disquiet Junto group.
​

The theme for 2021 “The Unquiet Earth” is an invitation to reflect on and engage with the constant murmur of the Earth, sounds beyond the threshold of human hearing, to remind ourselves that we share this mysterious and awesome planet. Small, hidden, subterranean, aerial, underwater, infra and ultrasonic sounds, inaudible to the naked ear, can bring a new, potentially hopeful, perspective on the future of the planet and humanity. Listening as activism encourages us to question our attitudes as listeners as we aim to construct a more inclusive and empathetic new world. Join the unquiet revolution!

Help the WLP share and grow participation in this global community event by adding your information to this short online survey. We welcome everyone to share news, ideas, and questions about participation in comments on the World Listening Day 2021 page, in their Facebook Page and their Facebook Group.

Soundscapes in the time of COVID-19: Observations around the globe

2/14/2021

 
Following COVID-19 lockdowns around the globe, there have been numerous observations made on the impact of reduced human activity in acoustic environments:
  • In the May 2020 issue of The Monthly (AUS), Nicola Redhouse's article, 'Quiet Life', discussed the work of various acoustic ecologists during the pandemic.
  • The interactive New York Times article, 'The Coronavirus Quieted City Noise. Listen to What’s Left' by Bui and Badger compares urban soundscapes pre- and post-lockdown.
  • Tom Banse's article, 'The Pandemic Gives PNW Whales A Break From The Din Of Underwater Noise' for OPB investigates the impact of reduced ocean traffic during lockdown.
  • Douglas Quan's 'Listen up: In these disquieting COVID-19 times, hushed cities are making a loud impression on our ears' for The Star (CAN), discusses pandemic soundscapes with input from acoustic ecology pioneers Barry Truax and Hildegard Westerkamp, amongst others.
  • Ian Sample's 'Wave of silence' spread around world during coronavirus pandemic' in The Guardian considers the seismological impacts of decreased traffic and machinery use.

Many podcasts, recordings and multimedia projects have also been released, including:
  • Interiorities: Sonic Experiment and Documents from Lockdown, by Kate Carr
  • Soundscapes Under Fear of COVID-19, a series of recordings made by Koji Nagahata in Japan's Tohoku region during the lockdown
  • 'The Last Sound' on NPR's Invisibilia, hosted by Hanna Rosin and Alex Spiegil
  • 'Human Life Is Literally Quieter Due To Coronavirus Lockdown', a short feature by NPR
  • Cities and Memories' #stayhomesounds project, inviting people from around the globe to submit sound recordings from where they live during COVID-19.
  • Window-Swap features 10-minute audiovisual snapshots from people's homes in isolation.
  • Contributions of sounds in isolation on Radio Aporee

If you are aware of any further projects or pieces investigating our acoustic environments in the time of COVID-19, please email WFAE Secretary Jesse Budel at secretary@wfae.net to add to this resource.

Affiliate Update: Australian Forum for Acoustic Ecology

2/2/2021

 
Over the past year, many AFAE members have been involved in creative and research activities, Visit our blog post on the AFAE website to read about:

 - Ros Bandt, who received the Distinguished Services to Australian Music Award at the Art Music Awards
 - Vicki Hallett on her project Habitat, and collaboration with Ros Bandt on the Barwon Listening project
 - Tristan Louth Robins on his album Waves, the Fleurieu Sound Map, a new installation called Sternere in Angaston (SA), and new blog exploring ecoacoustic analyses.
 - Jesse Budel on his recent activities as WFAE Secretary and his new album, Cathedrals
 - A member profile on Clare Hall
 - An essay by Prithvi Varatharajan on his experience soundwalking through Melbourne with Anthony Magen.

In spite of the challenges of the pandemic, the AFAE was also involved in a variety of projects in 2020, including: 

  • The Reveil 2020 broadcast on International Dawn Chorus Day (2 May Saturday 2020)
  • Voices of Nature 2020, a national arts celebration in collaboration with the Australian Earth Arts Alliance and Arts Front.
  • Share news of soundscapes observations around the globe during COVID-19 lockdowns
More recently, a new ecological sound art exhibition, Site and Sound, has launched at the McClelland Gallery in Victoria, featuring works by AFAE members Ros Bandt, Leah Barclay and Nigel Frayne, as well as sound artists Jana Winderen and Chris Watson and acoustic ecology pioneer Barry Truax.

Visit our recent post for more information on each project. 

Affiliate Update: Finnish Society for Acoustic Ecology (FSAE)

2/2/2021

 
The Finnish Society for Acoustic Ecology held its annual general meeting in late February 2021.  Upon the retirement of long serving WFAE board member Simo Alitalo, Ari Koivumäki was elected as the FSAE's new board representative.

The WFAE expresses its 
deep appreciation and thanks for the many years of service that it has enjoyed from Simo, and welcomes Ari to the Board.

Affiliate Update: UK and Ireland Soundscape Community (UKISC)

2/2/2021

 
Rob Mackay - Flight of the Monarch

Rob has co-produced and presented a 30 minute radio programme for BBC Radio 3's Between the Ears called Flight of the Monarch. It was Pick of the Day in the Radio Times and is available to listen to online here:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qyhz

​It partly documents Following the Flight of the Monarchs, an acoustic ecology project in which streamboxes are being installed across monarch butterfly migration routes for ecosystem monitoring and the creation of artworks and telematic performances. https://followingtheflightofthemonarchs.com 

Nikki Sheth

Nikki Sheth presents:
  • 'Binaural Soundscapes of South Africa' as part of the We're All Bats Listening Arts Channel (weekly, Wednesdays throughout February 2021). 
  • Debut album 'Sounds of Mmabolela', released on Rummage Records.
  • Nikki was commissioned for Land Lines Project to create a soundscape work based on nocturnal wildlife in the UK. Listen to Nocturnal Insights here 
  • In 2020, SOUNDkitchen released two new soundwalks: the B37 Soundwalk and the Stirchley Soundwalk. The B37 Soundwalk by Annie Mahtani and Iain Armstrong explores the green spaces of the B37 postcode area in Solihull. It was created in association with B37 Project and was commissioned by Eastside Projects in 2020 as part of their Link & Shift Artist Walks series. The Stirchley Soundwalk was created by Nikki Sheth and commissioned by Ten Acres of Sound, encouraging a deeper connection with the natural environment and a new awareness of the hidden sounds around us – both natural and man-made. Listen on the SOUNDwalker app, more info here: https://soundkitchenuk.org/ 

Alex De Little - Sonic Acts of Noticing

Engaging with practices of field recording in Sheffield, Sonic Acts of Noticing proposes careful listening as a way to (re)think and (re)make the spaces of the high street in ways that draw attention to forms of collectivity, and support productive and agonistic relations, intensities and concerns. 

​This project will be shown as an installation at the British Pavillion at this year’s Venice Architecture Biennale, and through an audtio-textual web listening environment (https://sonicactsofnoticing.org/).

The project is based in and supported by the School of Architecture at Sheffield Hallam, and a collaboration with Julia Udall and Jon Orlek.  ​
Aki Pasoulas
A new research project started in September 2020 at the University of Kent, which investigates the role of sound in influencing our experience of spaces and places. It focuses on heritage sites and it aims to recreate soundscapes of bygone ages based on historical documentation. The project will run until the end of 2022 and is led by Dr Aki Pasoulas, a board member of UKISC. Further details: https://research.kent.ac.uk/sonic-palimpsest

David de la Haye - Land Lines Project: Nature Revealed


David has created an 'ASMR Edition' EP, which was released alongside his Land Lines commission:

In times when personal connections often take place online, the concept of digital intimacy gains value. This EP, released to complement my 'Land Lines Project: Nature Revealed' commission, explores the sound of freshwater soundscapes in the context of Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR). The close-up recording, repetitive patterns and binaural production techniques align with the genre's aesthetics, bringing ecological listening to our home environments. 

More on the project can be found at: https://landlinesproject.wordpress.com/hidden-sounds-nature-revealed-by-david-de-la-haye/

Affiliate Update: Midwestern Society for Acoustic Ecology

2/2/2021

 
The Midwest Society for Acoustic Ecology (MSAE) out of the United States is excited to join the World Forum for Acoustic Ecology as official affiliate. In early 2020, MSAE board members worked with the Chicago-based arts group NON:op Open Opera Works to organize Hear Below: Listening to the Chicago Underground. This underground pedestrian walkway sound walk and active listening artistic intervention was curated as part of the annual College Art Association conference. Read and hear more about this listening experience online at: https://mwsae.org/hear-below-listening-to-chicago-underground-3/
Midwest Society for Acoustic Ecology · Hear Below 2020
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the MSAE needed to adjust it’s scheduled summer programming but was able to successfully do so and offer the annual Night Out in the Parks programming as a series of virtual soundwalks presented as an online screening of video and sound works that emphasized the relationship between natural and non-human worlds in Chicago parks. The virtual event featured nine teaching artists who created five videos to address diverse themes and interests including nature, queering in the parks, disability, and citizen science.

​In addition to the five videos screened at a virtual event hosted by the MSAE, two of the videos premiered in the Chicago Park District’s new 
Your Night Out At Home program in October 2020. Learn more about this program on the MSAE website: https://mwsae.org/virtual-soundwalks-2020/
Please check out the MSAE website for more info and follow them on Instagram and Twitter.

Affiliate Update: Japanese Association for Sound Ecology (JASE)

2/2/2021

 
The Soundscape Association of Japan (parent organization of JASE) has re-organized as a general incorporated association since April, 2020 and met the following events in 2020: The 2020 General Meeting and Symposium was held on the 20th of June (Zoom meeting); The 2020 Spring and Autumn Research Seminars were held online on the 20th of June and the 29th of November respectively; The following regular meeting series, titled “Talking About My Work,” were given online by Keiko Torigoe (August 22), Shin-ichiro Iwamiya (October 9) and Naoko Tanaka (December 11).  The SAJ is presently working to set up the Prizes of SAJ.

Questions or follow up may be directed to Tadahiko Imada (timada@hirosaki-u.ac.jp).​

Affiliate Update: Hellenic Society for Acoustic Ecology (HSAE)

2/2/2021

 
The Hellenic Society for Acoustic Ecology has recently had its General Assembly and elections through an internet conference platform. The newly elected Board includes Katerina Tzedaki (president), Kostas Paparrigopoulos (vice-president), Ioanna Etmektsoglou (secretary), Kimon Papadimitriou (treasurer) and Panos Amelidis (member). Andreas Mniestris remains the representative of HSAE in the WFAE.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the scheduled National Conference in Thessaloniki, Greece which was planned for the Fall of 2020, was postponed. The Society's activities during the past year included the online publication of the Proceedings of the 5
th Hellenic Conference for Acoustic Ecology “ Sound, Embodiment; Education” which had taken place in Kalamata, Peloponese, Greece, in September 2018. The Proceedings were edited by Andreas Mniestris, Kostas Paparrigopoulos and Dimitris Sarris. Katerina Tzedaki organized the mailing list of members and friends of the HSAE, and the communication with and between members has been facilitated considerably.

In addition to the latest 
Proceedings, the library of HSAE received a new e-book in two versions (English and Greek), entitled: “A Sound-Based Education: for Listening, Appreciating and Co-creating the Soundscapes we Live in” (I. Etmektsoglou, Z. Dionyssiou, A. Mniestris), which was developed as part of the Erasmus+ Project: “The Soundscape we live in”.  Download the e-book from the site of the project or the library page of HSAE.

Report by I. Etmektsoglou.

Affiliate Update: Canadian Association for Sound Ecology (CASE)

2/2/2021

 
Canadian Association for Sound Ecology (CASE) AGM
CASE had its Annual General Meeting on Jan 6, 2021 and said farewell to Eric Powell and Tyler Kinnear, thanking them for their outstanding contributions to CASE. CASE welcomes Milena Dromeva and Wendalyn Bartley as new board members and looks forward to growth in the new year.

“Listening in the Time of COVID”
The CASE project, “Listening in the Time of COVID”, congratulates the three winning contest submissions: First Place - PrOphecy Sun, Spiraled Mothering; Second Place - Shumalia Hemani, Perils of Heavy Rainfall; and, Third Place - Diego Bermudez Chamberland, Ma Fenêtre à Moi.

This was a Canada-wide call for original soundworks related to the current pandemic; the three selected soundscape compositions can be listened to at
 Listening in the Time of COVID.


New Adventures in Sound Art
New Adventures in Sound Art (NAISA) are planning two online participatory events in 2021 that involve public engagement across Canada and internationally in soundscape recording and discussion. The first will have online meetup workshops culminating in livestreams of daybreak soundscapes for the Reveil broadcast on May 1 organized by Sound Camp and the Acoustic Commons groups in the UK. The second will also have meetup workshops leading to a soundscape broadcast on World Listening Day (July 18). More details to follow at https://www.naisa.ca/
Darren Copeland (NAISA) artisticdirector@naisa.ca

​Follow NAISA at:
  • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/NAISASoundArt
  • Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/NAISASoundArt
  • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/naisanorth/
  • You Tube - https://www.youtube.com/user/NAISAtube
  • Soundcloud - https://www.soundcloud/NAISA
  • NAISA Radio - https://www.naisa.ca/naisa-radio/

The World Soundscape Project and Barry Truax
Recent WSP Database additions (guest password from truax@sfu.ca):
  • online Tutorial for sound terminology, theory and practice, across multiple disciplines with 20 modules cross-referenced to the Handbook for Acoustic Ecology
  • 40 recordings from Vancouver in 2020 plus Stockholm recordings from 1997
  • 1978 radio documentary about Murray Schafer by Norma Beecroft
  • Recent Soundscape composition: Barry Truax, Rainforest Raven (2020), in stereo and 8-channels, featuring West Coast recordings, available on sonus.ca and www.sfu.ca/~truax​

BEAST FEaST 2021: Call For Works

2/2/2021

 
Picture
BEAST FEaST 2021: Recalibration
CALL FOR WORKS


Thursday 22 April – Saturday 24 April 2021
University of Birmingham (UK) / Online

In partnership with the UK and Ireland Soundscape Community (UKISC) & World Forum for Acoustic Ecology (WFAE).

BEAST invites you to three days of music, sound, meeting and ideas. As part of this festival we are inviting submissions in the form of music and video works, sonic dispatches, online works, talks and workshops. For further information on the theme and call for works visit http://www.beast.bham.ac.uk/beast-feast-2021/call-for-works/

This call aims for diversity of music, background, and ethnicity and we are committed to a 50:50 balance in gender representation.

Submissions open: 1 February 2021 @ 12:00 UTC+1
Deadline for submissions: 1 March 2021 @ 23:59 UTC+1

For further information visit the BEAST website:
http://www.beast.bham.ac.uk/beast-feast-2021/
#beastfeast2021

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