Freesound Forums

I want to talk about the approach to recording soundscapes.
In response to this https://freesound.org/forum/freesound-project/45105/?page=1#post105320
And Mohammad aka u/sounds_from_palestine 's Freesound (20th anniversary) day talk/presentation.

Similar threads :
Strategic recording times for soundscape archiving https://freesound.org/forum/production-techniques-music-gear-tips-and-tricks/44623/
Mic setup for research https://freesound.org/forum/production-techniques-music-gear-tips-and-tricks/44901/?page=1#post104083

Isn't it marvellous, that despite the same activity of recording and preserving soundscapes, we approach it with a different manner?

During Mohammad's u/sounds_from_palestine superbe talk, he mentioned his thoughtful and intentional recordings. Offering the best "picture" of a subject, an intentional presentations of sounds his livelihood. In a way, realistic snippets and documentation of being a person in palestine.
(I hope to summarise and present you well, please correct me if I'm wrong.)
I notice Mohammad's recordings are about 2min30 on average.

While Klankbeeld mentions "every location is always new to me and others, even if we have been there before. [...] I set up my equipment in a more or less random spot. [...] any place at every time is good for recording sound"
I find this to be a sort of opposite approach to field-recording.
I notice Klankbeelds recording are anywhere from 1-5min or 1h long

I shall share my approach; which is similar to Klankbeeld's.
I record more or less at random too. My goal is to be transparent and unbiased to the soundscape removing myself and my choices where I can. Really, my ideal would be if people could go back anywhere, anytime and hear the place for themselves. I try to enable them that by recording a wide net of places and times with long form recordings (hours long drop recordings, or 10-20min by foot recordings). Of course, having limited time, I cannot do that ideal and so I do choose and focus on places of interest (crowds, roundabouts, roads, squares, touristic attractions, markets, forests, fountains etc...) stuff I think people will want to search and hear.
Again, I do need to be selective and so put on an artistic approach : Stereo setup/mics used, mic placement for the best balancing of sounds or quality of the elements. Etc… I cannot avoid bias and be transparent.
What I try to do though, is by the length and amount of locations is to not filter what happens there and then.
Even if it’s silent / boring, to not only show what was there, but also what wasn't, as it's also informational.
(Then long form recordings take up space so I compress in OGG. And I do cut Lossless snippets of interesting stuff)
In a way I do not wish to offer photographs of the past, but portals there if that distinction makes any sense.

I wish I had the same patience or methodology as Klankbeeld and Mohammad’s to provide the same quality of documentation, with notes of events, photographs, etc…
I do provide GPS, accurate date/time, and subject / recording hardware, tagging. I wish I did better for weather, photographs, and event notes.

All this is not to say one way is better than the other! I think they’re all equally important and diversity is what provides the bigger picture!. One may want the 8h recording, another may want the 2minutes of how a person saw the place and memorable events.

What’s your approach ?

Hey friends !

My approach ?
Well… Go with the flow !
I mean, sometimes, I’ll stay somewhere, and decide to records what happens, even if its not so exciting, just to document the place, or because I like the atmosphere. And if a surprise occurs (hopefully it happens sometimes), this is just a bonus !
Other times, I decide to record intentionally, because I have a goal in mind, for example to get a predictable event (bells ringing, thunderstorm coming, etc…). But sometimes, it may also turn differently as what I’ve expected, and this is the magic of life and field recording !

Wishing you all the best, and very curious to read your experience !

Kevin

Hi Sadiquecat,

Thank you for summarizing my talk so carefully. You captured the intent well. Yes, my recordings are generally around 2–3 minutes on average. A lot of them come from a sense of nostalgia, a way to remember the places I’ve been. I think that’s also why my recordings tend to be shorter compared to Klankbeeld’s. My focus is on capturing intentional, thoughtful snapshots of a place, almost like presenting a “portrait” of a moment in Palestine.

I really appreciate your reflection on Klankbeeld’s and your own approach. It’s fascinating how diverse our methods can be while working toward the same goal of preserving soundscapes. Your approach with longer recordings, wider coverage, aiming for transparency and letting the place speak for itself is just as or maybe more valid and important. Capturing silences and ordinary moments gives listeners a different kind of context, almost like opening a portal into the place rather than taking a snapshot.

I agree completely: diversity in approaches is what builds the bigger picture. Some may want brief, curated moments, others long, immersive experiences and both contribute to the richness of soundscape archiving.

Thanks again for your thoughtful reflections and for sharing your process.

Warm regards,
Mohammad

Yes Mohammad, agree with you ! In my opinion, this wonderful diversity is probably the richness of Freesound : sounds and field recordings aren’t formatted, allowing the listener to hear soundscapes from as many perspectives and approaches as there are sound artists.

Wishing you all the best !

Kevin

I usually set out to capture something specific, but usually come away with a result that's completely unexpected and very different from my original intentions.

Often agitated and upset at the time by the unanticipated, only to realise later that these are actually the elements that made for a success.

I think very few of my objectives come out as originally intended.

But that's not a bad thing.

Colin.

Hey Colin and friends,
I think this is the initial trajectory of most of us, including myself !!
When you start with field recording, you often go out with a goal in mind, press record, and are repeatedly disappointed when the result isn’t the one you expected.
In that case, a good approach is to keep the recording, and listen to it later, with a fresh mind. Very often, you’ll realise that, even if it might be very different from your initial expectations, the recording is great anyway !
From my own experience, an other way to avoid disappointment is to always get a recorder with you, ready to catch any unexpected moment, therefore your mind is always open to what might happen. In that case, you’ll have more occasions to get pleasantly surprised by the unexpected recordings that you would encounter, and it would also help you to go out without any expectations, just ready to record and appreciate what the magic of life will bring to you !

Cheers !

Kevin

Indeed.

There are two very different methods of approach mentioned here:

Demonstrated to its extremes with Mohammad and Marcel.

One with a clear vision of objective, and the other an opportunist.

Both are subject to disappointment, and for different reasons.

But also necessary for a sense of achievement;

I pursue specific sounds that I love. However, it's good to keep an open outlook.

As you say; either way one can be pleasantly surprised.

Colin.

Indeed, both approaches are interesting and very instructive !
Wishing you all the best !
Kevin

What ever the vision is, this is my motto:

To hear, you first have to listen.

But the most important is:

To hear, you first have to be there 😜

And that is what we all do.

Benson_Arizona wrote:
Indeed.

There are two very different methods of approach mentioned here:

Demonstrated to its extremes with Mohammad and Marcel.

One with a clear vision of objective, and the other an opportunist.

Both are subject to disappointment, and for different reasons.

But also necessary for a sense of achievement;

I pursue specific sounds that I love. However, it's good to keep an open outlook.

As you say; either way one can be pleasantly surprised.

Colin.

The near-infinite variety of what is available to record is one of the key factors to why I consider the entire practice actual Magic. It almost doesn't matter WHAT is being recorded for us freaks-of-nature, but general audiences often have more specific desires.
What sets field recordists apart, similar to a photographer, is to choose a place and time to document. This might be the result of a specific need for said sound, or to simply capture what is going on nearby for some kind of posterity.

Having said those things, I haven't developed one operating method that will satisfy every situation. Below are some examples of why I must and why I enjoy recording.

As a Youtuber, my intentions are often associated with additional audio options to ensure the video projects will be better served than any camera audio could. My Youtube channel is a hodge-podge, but in the areas of Nature and Live Concerts, audio to me is much more important than how clean the video is. Because the need is so specific in these instances, my techniques are more akin to what I would do in the studio. And, indeed sometimes I need the studio to re-mix the raw board audio to make the final product. In video form, I do not hold myself to a high standard for how accurate the audio on it's own is, but how well does it support what is happening on screen. (I will, when required sweeten the soundscape if that will improve the overall goal. Something I am not known for when I am in actual field-recording mode.)

Then there are the times when I know an event is about to happen, and I plan how to capture that event in detail. Example: We get very few Thunderstorms on this coast, so when one is forecast, I am usually recording hours before to ensure I don't miss it. This might also be an event like a 1/4mile Drag Race somewhere close-by. I grew up around hotrods and such, so the soundscape of such a race is nostalgic to me. In past years, I planned my travel back home to correspond with known race season. Both to race and record the results.

If I get invited to an event I might not otherwise experience, I use that as an excuse to wear a small Zoom and see if anything interesting happens I might not have been able to predict.

I haven't had the opportunity to travel since 2019, but when I do the entire trip is recorded on at least a wearable zoom, sometimes zoom and selectively GoPro. The flights, the airports, checking in at the hotel. Every time I leave the hotel, I record everything. Being in a different place offers all the opportunities to experience something new, and an audio recording of it often has uses later. I hated Las Vegas with all my being, but I got a few doozies there. And employer was on the hook for expenses, so it was win.

The final urge comes from just randomly wanting to capture what happens in my yard overnight or during a rain storm.

I NEVER regretted having recorded something, even though there have been times other might have disagreed with me. (More than one death-bed for instance)
But I have MANY times regretted NOT recording something, even when given lots of opportunity to do so. I was talked out of recording one of our own live music sets 25 years ago, and have never forgiven myself for agreeing to such nonsense. Truth be told, I haven't forgiven the person who talked me out of it either.

I think few will disagree in this forum, but the default should be to record every time. Exceptions must only be made in severe circumstance and under duress. Simple illegality has typically not been enough without dangerous consequences also present.