Sonic Research Practices

FSA 2 Peer Review Due date: 25 September

Peer reviews must be completed before 23:59!

For the Field Study Assignment, assess the two soundscapes and the interview according to these criteria:

  • Quality of field recordings — Recorded “clean” sound with no handing noise or other “parasites” and appropriate recording levels.
  • Appropriate usage — Recorded a variety of sounds, including discrete sound events and more ambient “atmospheres”; made full use of dynamic and spectral range; and recorded sufficient voice / speech.
  • Complexity of composition — Creative use of isolated sounds and ambient sound (you may layer if you wish, but it is not required) to create complex soundscapes (the post-interview soundscape should demonstrate, aurally, how your attention to the environment has changed); “musicality” of the soundscapes, implying attention to rhythm, texture, pitch, and structure.

CRIT1 Presentation Due date: 28 September

Upload CRIT1 to P2P before 22:00!

This is the first of a series of crit sessions in which the entire class convenes to view each other’s work and give feedback.

Graphic + Sonic Combo

For CRIT1, you should combine elements from FSA1 and FSA2 to make a graphic-sonic pairing. You are free to decided how to execute this combination, but your piece should be composed as a time-based media projection (max 3 min).

For compression settings in Adobe Premiere, see our Reference section.

Upload the assignment to P2P the night before the Crit Session no later than 10pm. On the day of the presentations, 3-4 assignments will be combined in a block and played in sequence. Instructors will lead this discussion making comments about both specific assignments and general observations. Whether physically present or only online, students should join the Kaltura Live Room to add additional comment in the chat.

Listening Seminar Andrew 22 September 9-12h

This Seminar focuses on two questions. Firstly, what are the potentials, and limitations, of doing anthropology in sound: of ethnographies that are not written texts, but tape cassettes, CDs, or audio installations? Secondly, what can sound contribute to cinema (particularly of the ethnographic variety) beyond music’s emotional manipulation? To considering the former, we will listen, in class, to several “sonic ethnographies” and discuss them in dialogue with the assigned literature (written by their creators). The second question, illustrated by the Audio-Vision online module, will be discussed through reference to Paul Henley’s essay and the first chapter of Michel Chion’s Audio-Vision.

10:30 – 12:00 — Field Recordings 3: An exploration of contemporary anthropological cinema and landscape film

During the second half of the seminar, we will explore Field Recordings – an annual program in Rotterdam on visual anthropology, sound art and landscape film. Founded in 2018 by Sander Hölsgens and Tim Leyendekker, Field Recordings is a platform for screening, discussing and practicing critical forms of fieldwork – from sensory ethnographies and experimental documentaries to intersectional methodologies, live sound performances and situated praxes of listening.

Sander and Tim will join us to present their vision for the program, show some pieces that inspire their thinking, and elaborate on details of our collaboration.

Class Exercise + Assignment

For this year’s program, the Visual Ethnography master’s program and Field Recordings join forces to reflect on and challenge the current state of visual ethnography. Specifically, you’ll work in groups of two or three to engage with one of the ten sections of this year’s program. Each group is encouraged to respond to this specific section – in a form, shape or manner that resonates with you. For instance, you can write a critical piece on a feature-length film, use the line-up of works as a starting point for an artistic intervention, design a counter-program, form a reading/film group in the lead-up to the event, or work towards drawings on how spectators engage with an installation piece.

The underlying question for all responses is: “How can visual ethnography contribute to addressing contemporary social issues?”

On the 22nd, we’ll watch and listen to a couple of works from Field Recordings. As a class exercise, you’ll then be assigned to your group and will collectively come up with a potential response to these audiovisual pieces.

In the first week of October, Tim and Sander will share the finalised program for this year’s event, including an opportunity to indicate your group’s preference for a specific section of the event. Based on these preferences, you’ll be assigned a section of the program – which you’ll be expected to attend during Field Recordings. Responses can be made before, during and after Field Recordings – and the outcome should be submitted through Brightspace no later than 4 December. There are no other formal requirements. In other words: This is an opportunity for you to experiment with different modalities and methodologies – and use your voice to try to affect the public debate on visual ethnography.

Field Recordings 3 starts on Friday 6 November with screenings by Lynne Sachs, Tran T. Kim-Trang, and Daniel Asadi Faezi, and will end on Sunday 8 November with the Dutch premiere of Joshua Bonnetta’s The Two Sights. Throughout the weekend, there will be screenings, workshops, Q&As, installations, and seminars. Field Recordings takes place at WORM, Rotterdam.

NB. A side event of Field Recordings will take place on Wednesday 14 October. We’ll share more details with you at the end of the month.

RPA 2 Peer Review Due date: 21 September

Read all your supervisory group member’s assignments prior to the next Supervisory Groups session. Access your peer’s assignments in your respective Soup Group folders.

Use the ‘Suggesting mode’ and ‘Add a comment’ options. Reviewers may also “reply” to particular comments by other students where appropriate. The instructor will add comments by the end of the same day.

When reading your peers’ assignments, prepare feedback on each one. Feedback should consider what are the most interesting points as well as the most confusing. You should also ask any clarification questions that are not obvious from the assignment. What additional points should the student take into account to ensure the feasibility of the project?

Prior to the Supervisory Group meeting, students should review the feedback on their own assignment and consider the best ways to respond to the suggestions.

Field Study Assignment 2 Due date: 21 September

FSAs should be submitted to Pitch2Peer (P2P) before 18:00!

Sonic ethnography: These assignments have two goals: to give you experience recording and editing both wild sound and the human voice in isolation from images; and, by doing so, to encourage mindfulness of sound during your later audiovisual practice. You will edit your soundscapes and interview using Adobe Premiere CC (those of you looking for more functionality might also experiment with Adobe Audition CC). The assignment has three parts, two of which involve “wild sound” and one the human voice.

  1. Deep listening – In your chosen field site, spend an hour or so listening, first through your ears and then through the microphone without actually recording. Next, record for no more than one hour, using the list of parameters discussed in the tutorial and Pisaro’s Framing Considerations to guide you formally. You may make recordings in a single space, or across two different spaces within the site. From this material, edit a soundscape of no more than 3-4 minutes conveying something about how you experienced the site. For those using recordings from two spaces, you may clearly distinguish or mix the two for specific effect. You must include both loud and quiet, “soft focus” ambiances and discrete sonic events, wide and close “shots”, etc. For this part of the exercise, use only the hand-held stereo recorder.
  2. Interview – Make a 10-20-minute interview in situ with one or more informants about the sounds of your field site, and then edit this into a 2-4-minute piece. What do your informant(s) pay attention to, and what do they ignore? How does sound affect their experience of the place, positively, negatively, or functionally? What sounds, for them, define the place itself? For this interview, use only the external mono mic. Don’t forget to record some “room tone” (or, if outside, static ambiance) to aid you in the editing process.
  3. Directed Listening – After recording the interview, re-explore your field site, using the hand-held stereo microphone to record specific sounds/ambiances mentioned by your subjects. As with the first exercise, use the list of parameters and Pisaro’s Framing Considerations to structure your approach, recording both loud and quiet, close and wide-angle, sharp and soft focus “shots”. From no more than 1 hour of total material, edit a 3-4-minute soundscape representing the space as experienced by your subjects. Once you have completed the three exercises, export them as a single file with the following order: exercise 1, exercise 3, exercise 2. This is to ensure that your peer reviewers hear both soundscapes before they listen to the interview.

Meta-commentary: All assignments must be accompanied by a brief written reflection (200-300 words max) that provides a ‘meta-commentary’ about the student’s intentions with the assignment’s selection.

Sound Tutorial Andrew 15 September 9-12h

This tutorial will introduce you to the art of recording and listening to sound. We will work with a simple audio set up to make field recordings, and discuss how such material might then be developed into fully-fledged soundscapes for this unit’s FSA

Prepare your equipment

Prior to the tutorial session, you are expected to familiarize yourself with the TASCAM DR-40 audio recorder and external mono microphone that are included in the camera kit. The following guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive; rather, they will direct you to the areas of the manual most relevant for our purposes (and provide a few additional pointers). For complete instructions, please reference the manual available from Tascam’s website . You can also consult YouTube tutorials such as this one . And remember, the best way to learn anything is to experiment!

1. Setting Up

Headphones: As microphone capsules create sound very differently from your ears, when recording be sure to always use headphones.

Tascam A-B

Microphone position: When re­cord­ing wide-shots, spread the micro­phones to the left and right (“A-B position”):

For more directed recordings that still produce a stereo image, consider changing to the closed (“X-Y”) position. For details on this, see Manual pp.33-34. In general, for field recordings you are recommended to stay in the A-B position in order to create a defined stereo image.

Recording mode: Set to stereo (see Manual pp.43-44).

File Format, Bit Depth, & Sampling Frequency: In digital audio using pulse-code modulation (PCM), the number of bits of information in each sample is called the “bit depth.” Bit depth affects everything from signal-to-noise ratio to dynamic range (the ratio between largest and smallest values); you can think of it as analogous to image resolution. For maximum quality, you should select WAV 24-bit (see Manual pp.36-37).

Sampling frequency refers to the number of audio samples taken every second; similarly, you might think of it as a kind of audio equivalent of frame rate. As 48kHz is the standard sampling frequency for use with video, you are recommended to choose this (also see Manual pp. 36-37).

Where to save files: See p.67 onwards for details on file/folder structure. Coming up with a proper storage system will help you edit more efficiently.

2. Recording

Turning on: See Manual p. 45. Important: DO NOT FORGET TO PRESS THE RECORD BUTTON TWICE! It is also a good idea to turn on “Pre-Record” (see Manual p. 59).

Adjusting input levels: For details on how to adjust levels, see Manual pp. 39-40. Setting input levels—the strength of your incoming audio signal—is one of the most important things you will do during recording. Too low and you will get a really quiet end product; while volume can be boosted in post, doing so will also dramatically increase the amount of noise. Set your levels too high, by contrast, and you risk “clipping,” where the signal is attenuated and sound distorted. As a rule of thumb, try to keep things around the -12db level. Do NOT, under any circumstances, use “auto levels.”

While in a dynamic sound environment you will want to adjust your levels on the fly, avoid “riding the levels” during a sonic event you wish to record (this cannot be easily fixed in post). If working in high dynamic range environments (for example, a building site with lots of sudden, loud events), consider using a limiter to prevent clipping (see Manual pp. 43).

Handling Noise: To avoid handling noise, you should use the screw-in grenade grip included in your pack. As the level controls are buttons, changing the levels will also produce handling noise; be conscious of this during recording. Remember, garbage in, garbage out!

3. Using External Mics

Your pack includes a Sennheiser K6 powering module and a ME 64 cardioid microphone. These are particularly useful for recording interviews on the run.

In-Class Exercises

After setting up your audio recorder, we will spend the next 10-15 minutes troubleshooting any issues that came up; next, we will discuss parameters that can structure your approach to recording. After this we will head to the station where, in groups of 2, we will spend approximately 45 minutes on the following exercises:

  1. Listen, strictly without talking, for at least 5-10 minutes.
  2. Record 2-3 static ambiances from different positions in the space, max 2 minutes each. Use the Tascam in X-Y pattern.
  3. Record 2-3 “sound walks” through the space, of no more than 2 minutes each. Use the ME64 Cardioid.
  4. Seek out and record 2-3 discrete sonic events or process, max 2 minutes each. Use the ME64 Cardioid.

Be sure to record each block of 2-3 recordings as a single file (doing otherwise will make selecting tracks to play back difficult). While recording, you should focus in particular on 1) setting appropriate levels (but not “riding the levels” excessively), and 2) avoiding handling noise.

Next, we will return to the classroom to listen back to and discuss some of what we recorded (and how we felt doing it). What do we hear, in terms of both objects and recording parameters? How well recorded is it, and how can this be improved? How might we construct larger “soundscapes” from such materials? This will also provide an opportunity to revisit any issues you have with recording. Please note that due to time constraints, it may not be possible to listen to recordings by everyone; be sure to listen back to your own recordings later.

Research Proposal Assignment 2 Due date: 18 September

Submit RPA2 to the appropriate “Soup Group” googledoc folder before 23:59!

Open the linked folder. Access requires that you sign in to Google Drive.

Koen’s Soup Group

Mark’s Soup Group

Metje’s Soup Group

Sander’s Soup Group

Copy the template document (right-click for the option to ‘Make a copy’). Please do not overwrite the template file.

Research Questions, Annotated Reading & Viewing List

(800-1000 words)

  • Write 3-5 research questions all related to your chosen topic. With each question try to become more specific. (100 words)
  • Create an annotated bibliography / media-ography of key resources on these topics and themes (books, articles, films, exhibitions, etc.). Pay attention to recurring themes in the literature (recurring citations/references, recurring terminology, or recurring examples). How did the author establish authority through research/fieldwork? What formal techniques do the films use to investigate their subject matter? This should include 6-8 pieces of literature (articles, chapters, books, etc.) and the equivalent number of films or other kinds of media-based work. Your search should show breadth while focusing in on key sources for your project around region, theme, and method. A strong thesis will have around 50 bibliographic / filmographic references. If you continue to seek 1-2 new sources each week, you’ll be able to develop a robust understanding of your research, practices, and concepts. (Each entry should be about 50 words)