Greetings, Sonic Storytellers

"It is a pleasure to burn." - Ray Bradbury
Fahrenheit 451

In 464, digitalization is a means toward experimentation with sound. You'll have the tools to remix the past into the present - and vice versa.

Everybody has a story. And the idea is to dust off those thoughts, and turn up your sonic sensors and rethink every story that you have told or heard or written with a NEW sound perspective.

Go through your photo album, and reflect on the soundscapes that accompanied that moment. You'll begin to hear the sounds from the playground, laughter from your friends, crunching of the snow beneath your boots, splashes from the neighbors' pool, the sound of church bells, etc. Those sonic prints develop into soundscapes or soundtracks of your life. Your personal sonic archive, however, is fluid, and sonic bits merge through memory - and converge through technology. Then, you can burn them onto a CD or upload them online. You share - remix - your sounds with others. You can create a "sound" collective among sonic storytellers. That's some of what 464ers will do this semester. I want your sonic personality in the final mix.

You might visit my research blog (sonic walden) to understand the signficance of sound as individual and cultural expression.

Seeking Sound Evidence for the Unseen

I recently visited my mother's place of birth (Salem, MA) - which was once the house of my grandparents, and now owned by my uncle. I was 16 the last time I entered the house, ran across the once grassy fields, walked across the sands of the Willows, chatted with my grandpa at the Gallows, etc. Now the infamous trees are gone, and across from my uncle's house is a school (built on a graveyard too) that is called Witchcraft Heights Elementary School (a tourism ploy). I hear the distant sounds of children playing at the school, and it reminds me of my younger cousins years ago running and laughing down the sidewalk along Belleview Avenue. The sound begins so muffled, and becomes clearer as my ears absorb some familiar vibrations from my past. I begin to remember the sounds of the house - door creaks, the ticking of the clock in the dining room, the sound of rain on the porch, and suddenly all my senses come alive - like when your ears pop on the plane. I am 16 again. But this time I have a digital recorder and can capture my memories sonically.

So Welcome to Sonic Fahrenheit 464 where your aural adventure has just begun. Things move quickly in the Spring - and as the speed of sound increases when the temperature rises, so will my expectations for your work.

You might want to begin the tour with a quick lesson - a 5th grade science lesson on "sound" for the timid! Truly, we start our voyage at the beginning -

For the advanced learner, try this link