Field Recordings

“I placed a hydrophone at the bottom of a large well-used saucepan and part filled it. The recording was a little disappointing, then I started playing with the speed and frequency of drips from the tap and managed to approximate a driving, but rather bass-free beat with a hint of melody.”

“Every morning, specially in the fine weather we are currently enjoying, I come out to listen to the birds, which all seem to be specially loud, managing to almost drown all the city noises.”

“Galloping Ghost Arcade in Brookfield, Illinois, claims to be the largest video game arcade in the world. They have over 1,030 arcade games, dating back to the 1970s. When I went on a recent Thursday night around 7pm, for a friend’s birthday, almost nobody else was there.”

“Thousands of people gathered on Saturday, March 22nd at Macy’s in Philadelphia, PA to hear the last performances of the Wanamaker Organ –  possibly the world’s largest pipe organ  – as the department store marked its final weekend in business. This is an excerpt from the final recital by John Wanamaker Grand Court Organist Peter Richard Conte. My wife gave this piece...

“This recording is taken just off of the pier around midnight. The sea was so full of character I was completely enthralled and if you listen carefully you can hear the strong tide pulling the lava rock out to sea with it. I completely fell for its whispers and it was a real struggle to pull myself away to sleep.”

“I took myself to Derbyshire for a few days in early February. I walked up to Stanton Moor with my dog Rosie (not named by me!) looking for a Bronze Age stone circle called the Nine Ladies. Nearby were silver birches with their dead brown leaves rustling in the wind.”

“A morning recording outside Curious Fox Books, Berlin. Children and adults voices, passing bicycles. General ambience from people socialising, children playing. An S-Bahn train arrives to the nearby Gorlitzer Bahnhof.”

“It’s quiet time at the Fulton Fish Market — though the forklifts still move fast and beep loudly. A fish hook is an extension of oneself, used to sling tuna, black sea bass, and salmon, from crates to weighing stations. The market moved from the South Street Seaport to the Bronx in 2005. Now, it’s in an industrial part of the borough, next to the city’s floating priso...

“The wonderful steam train arrives at Haworth station. I love how the arrival is reasonably quiet but upon departure you hear the power of the steam engine echoing around the valley.”

“A group of organizers had distributed flyers in our neighborhood for a timely cathartic moment atop the large mountain park that overlooks the city of San Francisco and the bay. It was organized to coincide with the swearing-in of the newest conservative American regime on Inauguration day. But one’s rage can’t be limited to whoever is in the presidential office....

“This morning I was delighted to find that, after quite a few months,  this woodpecker has returned! Back to the very same tree. I love how the sound echoes around the garden.”

“Here is a little recording of our local spring. We hiked through 2ft of snow in the -10 temps to the head of our local creek. Due to the deep cold we are in, the ice formations around the spring are spectacular. The quiet babble of the creek makes this such a special place.”

“It was a lovely, bright morning. The birds were loud, trying to compete with the sound of passing planes heading to Heathrow airport.”

“Recorded using a contact microphone at Queen’s Park pond on the Southside of Glasgow, during a cold snap in January. The pond had frozen over (which doesn’t happen often), and people were walking and skating on it. One person asked if I was measuring the thickness of the ice. I handed my headphones round a group of kids, and it was fun to watch their reactions to the sci-fi nois...

“From a country town called Deniliquin. We stayed at a caravan park down by the river, and at about midnight, I snuck out with my mic and went down to the bank.”

“As soon you walked into the park it was like someone was playing the noise out over massive speakers… It was like a giant congregation point before they headed off for their final resting place of that evening, which is usually under the pier.” 

“The surf was about 2.5m with a strong on shore breeze. The beach we recorded on was protected from the wind and made wonderful recording conditions. The beach is in Ecola State Park next to Cannon Beach. I recorded this clip with a stereo pair of Clippy lapel mic’s and a zoom H5. This was recorded Jan 11 2025.”

“The drones are from the enormous petrochemical plant that dominates the skyline of the Immingham docks on the Humber.”