My practice-led research project examines the relationship between environmental recordings and the transformation process, investigating what constitutes a soundscape composition and if there remain clear distinctions between field recording, soundscape composition and acousmatic works - ultimately, to identify where my work fits in to this.
Throughout my research, I have become increasingly aware and involved in the areas of sound studies and acoustic ecology and the use of field recording in the archival and study of sounds within the context of a soundscape composition.
Integral to my research is the composition of a portfolio of compositions concerned with the sonic identity of a place that aims to:
1) Present musical representations of physical spaces and locations;
2) Explore the transformation process of environmental sound objects and articulate these materials musically (either through the narration of natural sounds or more abstract transformation processes);
3) Explore multichannel field recording and compositional techniques that allow me to create immersive representations of the 360º environment.
Interviews have taken place with Prof. Jonty Harrison (Director of BEAST), Chris Watson (BBC Sound Recordist), Dr Leah Barclay (Australian sound artist, AFAE president), Francisco Lopez (sound artist) and others in attempt to gain insight of different artistic approaches to the use of field recordings and investigate the categorisation of works from the composers’ perspective. Interviews may inform my compositional methodology, inspire specific pieces or provide new ways of dealing with environmental sounds.
Current projects focus on recordings from a field trip to Orford Ness Nature Reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest with limited public access due to its history as an atomic weaponry testing site, field recordings from the ‘Sonic Mmabolela’ field recording residency, South Africa in 2017 and a commission by the Research and Cultural Collections at The University of Birmingham for the ‘Sound Sculptures’ project.