Listening through the structure.
Archive for the ‘Sound’ Category
ear to pipe
Saturday, April 4th, 2009birds, rain and a plane
Saturday, May 3rd, 2008
steel drum
Friday, May 2nd, 2008
In the rain, drips collect on the lip of the horn and the leaves above, falling onto the steel cover and adding a metallic percussive accompaniment to the sounds rising from below, from inside the hole.
before you visit . . .
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007
. . . . please be aware that there is a slight blockage in the plumbing system. Due to a build up of clay and earth in the pipe between the pond and the hole, this is causing a loss in water pressure which in turn means that water is not getting into the drip pipes. This results in a loss in drips and therefore volume and density of notes. i.e. the music is very quiet and sparse.
While waiting to implement a permanent fix for this, one solution for an intrepid visitor can be found in the post, b.y.o.b. below.
b.y.o.b.
Thursday, May 3rd, 2007
In times of drought – or plumbing problems – it is still possible to hear music, you just have to bring your own water.
If you look carefully through the slits in the cover in some places you can see a wire mesh. Below the mesh are trays of gravel that break up the flow and cause drips to form in an unpredictable manner.
If you sprinkle water from a bottle onto these areas you’ll hear an initial flurry of sound followed by a period of more measured and melodic music.
the drains don’t work
Wednesday, December 6th, 2006
The water in the hole continued rising to the point where all the instruments became submerged, the music being reduced to its minimal state, water dripping into water, a giant suikinkutsu. Now pumped out, they are all playing again.
first of november
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006
A sunny, cold and windy day, the leaves starting to fall and carpet the forest floor.
music !
Friday, September 22nd, 2006
Recorded on the 15th September 2006, a dry day, the hole being fed by water from the pond :
hybrid water instrument
Monday, June 26th, 2006
Inspired by reading Jacques Dudon’s book, “La Musique de L’eau”, this is a more sophisticated possibility for the basis of the instrumentation, combining an “organ” with the marimba and chime bar instrument described below.
In the book an instrument is described in which a tube with a whistle hole cut into it stands in water. Water poured into an adjacent tube causes air to be pushed into the whistle pipe and make a sound, pitched according to its length.
Here such an instrument is placed underneath, and in the path of, water falling from the pivoting of a shishi odoshi (“deer scarer”) principle instrument, thus combining four sounds; falling and dripping water, a marimba, chime bars and an organ tone.
Such an arrangement would be duplicated a number of times, using differently tuned marimba bars, chime bars and “organ ” pipes.
seven meter drum
Monday, May 15th, 2006Jumping up and down on the steel lid covering the hole.