ICAT Playdate — Reconfiguring the outdoor sound landscape: revealing music in the noise

Sound penetrates our outdoor spaces. Much of it we ignore, its qualities too quiet, fleeting or mundane to pay heed to amidst our thoughts and activities, or we may experience the sounds as an annoyance or disturbance. Manoeuvring our listening to be excited by outdoor sound, especially urban or city soundscapes, is not so easy. Yet amongst the noise can be found qualities of interest. In this presentation I show how I use 3D sound recording, analysis and electroacoustic composition to reveal the music under the noise, with examples from some recent outdoor sound installations.