Ground Interference - The Listen(n) Project

Leah Barclay

Music Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression

• Year: 2016
• Location: Brisbane, Australia

Abstract:

Program notes: Ground Interference draws on short recordings from each location I visited in spring 2014 with a particular focus on Joshua Tree National Park, Jornada Biosphere Reserve, Mojave Desert, and Death Valley National Park. These fragile desert environments are inhabited by thousands of species all part of a delicate ecosystem that is in a state of flux induced by changing climates. The transfixing acoustic ecologies of the southwest deserts demand a stillness that encourages a deeper environmental awareness and engagement. In many instances during our field trip we struggled to find locations without human interference. The distant hum of highway traffic and relentless airplanes under the flight path from LAX were expected, yet we also encountered unexpected sounds interfering with the acoustic ecologies of the land. These range from an obscure reverberating vending machine in Death Valley National Park to rattling power lines in the Jornada Biosphere Reserve that were so loud I could feel the vibrations through my feet.

Citation:

BibTeX Entry:

  @inproceedings{nime2016-music-Barclay2016,
 abstract = {Program notes: Ground Interference draws on short recordings from each location I visited in spring 2014 with a particular focus on Joshua Tree National Park, Jornada Biosphere Reserve, Mojave Desert, and Death Valley National Park. These fragile desert environments are inhabited by thousands of species all part of a delicate ecosystem that is in a state of flux induced by changing climates. The transfixing acoustic ecologies of the southwest deserts demand a stillness that encourages a deeper environmental awareness and engagement. In many instances during our field trip we struggled to find locations without human interference. The distant hum of highway traffic and relentless airplanes under the flight path from LAX were expected, yet we also encountered unexpected sounds interfering with the acoustic ecologies of the land. These range from an obscure reverberating vending machine in Death Valley National Park to rattling power lines in the Jornada Biosphere Reserve that were so loud I could feel the vibrations through my feet.},
 address = {Brisbane, Australia},
 author = {Leah Barclay},
 booktitle = {Music Proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression},
 editor = {Andrew Brown and Toby Gifford},
 month = {June},
 publisher = {Griffith University},
 title = {Ground Interference - The Listen(n) Project},
 year = {2016}
}