UNITE
PROF - DANIEL ROEHR
A8 - 2 - SONICOLLAGE
06/10/23
49.26048742019998, -123.25082245950983
A1 - Time to Align
A2 - Adding Dimension
A3 - Mapping
A4 - Above, At & Below Ground
A5 - Using Our Hands
A6 - 1 - Tactile Body Space
A6 - 2 - Flow of Experience
A7 - 1 - Forest vs Engine
A8 - 1 - Tuning In & Windplay
A8 - 2 - Sonicollage
A9 - Smell Notes
A10 - 1 - Taste Rave
A10 - 2 - Drinking Object
A11 - 1 - Seeing > Visual Thinking
A11 - 2 - Pattern—Re—Pattern
A12 - Summary
This week we delve into the fascinating world of sound. I'm exploring how everyday noises can resemble completely different sounds. This journey started with a simple but torturous question:
How do you represent a sound visually, especially for someone who might not hear it traditionally?
Process
“It is lovely to have the gift of hearing. It is said that deafness is worse than blindness because you are isolated in an inner world of terrible silence.” Anam Cara - John O'Donohue
As I worked on this, I began to see connections to Douglas Hofstadter's idea that analogy is central to human cognition. Hofstadter, known for his exploration of patterns and perceptions, believes that making analogies is how we understand the world. I’m unintentionally mirroring this concept. I record sounds like the sizzle of onions or the rhythm of a washing machine and pair them with sounds they surprisingly mimic, like applause or a moving train, that I found online.
By juxtaposing these sounds I’m essentially inviting the audience to engage in a form of auditory illusion. It's akin to a sonic Rorschach test. Each listener might perceive these sounds differently, influenced by their experiences, imagination, or even the lack thereof.
For someone who has limited or no hearing, this could be a unique exploration of sound. It might prompt them to visualize or feel these sounds in a new way, perhaps through vibrations or the descriptive power of visuals. It's a reminder that our experience of the world is deeply subjective and wonderfully diverse.
At the end I decided to remove sound completely to keep it even more simple.