Vanessa’s Arts Award portfolio

ARTS CHALLENGE Unit 1.1

Why I Chose My Challenge

I chose to make a sound postcard, which involves recording sounds from the environment and making it into a small piece of music to represent whatever you wish. I chose to do this as my challenge as I have never made one before and when I had first tried I failed disgustingly. I thought I had recorded sound and spent so long around London Bridge making a fool of myself and I had not recorded any sound at all. How I felt like an idiot. So my challenge is to make a sound card that actually has sound. To not only record the sound but edit it myself. What I would like to learn is how to make a good sound postcard as I have never really edited music before and this would be a really good adventure.

Action Plan

• I want to record sound around the south bank between Tower Bridge and London Bridge.

• The sound has to represent London the diversity of sounds of people, transport and daily life. How in London one minute you can feel like you never really know where you are going until you get there, but it doesn’t matter because it’s the journey you take that you care about more.

• The feel of this is the same as before, it has to feel busy at some points, but quiet and tranquil at others and shows that even in a small area how many different sounds and places there are.

• I am going to do it over the time I have at the architecture foundation to record the sounds and then to edit. In total the hours would really come up to one day of both recording and editing.

• This will include posting it up on my blog for the architecture foundation and what will happen is that people will be able to listen to it as well.

•  Equipment needed : mini disc, microphone, computer, editing equipment

A record of you achieving your challenge

Listen to Vanessa's sound postcard here

A Friends Review Of Your Challenge

 Vanessa's sound postcard is an audio record of her journey from Tower Bridge to London Bridge, and as such voices and noises are interwoven to complete a detailed audio picture of her journey.  The postcard is almost introduced by Vanessa at the beginning, hinting at the aim of her walk - to explore the area and its architecture.  Her voice then fades as the noise of rain rises to a crescendo and other voices are heard.  Each change of sound implies that Vanessa has walked past the source of one noise, and is now in new surroundings.  The sounds of rain, people, construction and cars conjure up images in the listeners mind and give Vanessa's journey a rhythm or pace.  The woman talking gives the listener an idea of the work that goes on behind the scenes in the area.
 
Vanessa's sound postcard is successful as she has captured many of the familiar sounds one associates with that area, and therefore she encourages the listener to go out and experience her journey for themselves.  The interplay of these sounds gives the listener a sense of movement and travel, as it is clear that Vanessa has moved through various different areas.  The rising volume and corresponding fading of each sound into another gives the piece rhythm and form.  Thus Vanessa's recordings have been made into a sound postcard in the real sense of the word - the listener experiences an acurate but personal snapshot of the area.

By Alex Butterworth

My Review

My challenge was not easy. It is not easy to try and find places to record sound when people decide to be silent. So I had to run around to try and record sounds wherever I could. Then there came the editing which was definitely not easy as when you are trying to cut sound it has to be cut at certain places otherwise it sounds fake and not real and like it has been edited. Which it has but you don’t want people to really know that you want it to seem like that’s how it’s made. If I had more time I would have spent more time collecting sounds and maybe testing out the special effects I could have done because I really just jumped in into editing and was not entirely sure how to use the programme so I was just fiddling around. How I think the piece in my opinion sounds like a musical piece, well I hope so anyway. It goes through times that it is really quiet as it starts with someone speaking and what seems like a rainfall. It's peaceful: the normal start of the morning. Afterwards there starts to be car sounds and trains. This shows how London gets busier, with even breaks in the day. Where in London you can be going around so fast but then there is a time that you just break. This sound I would not be imagine played a lot of places as most people would even understand what sound postcards are so I do not have an idea where it would be played. However for my first try of making a soundcard that actually worked I think was quite good maybe it could have been edited a bit better or even added a few more sounds but it was my first try so this was the best of my ability.