Concept
The memory I intended to capture was the experience of scuba-diving in Indonesia. As I dived into the water, where gravity seems to lose its grip and time slows down, the entire marine realm unfolded before me, revealing crystal-clear aqua blue water and shimmering schools of fish.The silence of this submerged world was punctuated by the sooth sound of my breath, until it started drizzling above the ocean surface.
As I reluctantly resurface, the downpour began and the thunder rumbled. Thus, I hurried back to the cottage near the beach. The chilling wind howled outside and pounded on the window, so I decided to light a match and soon warmth emanated from the fireplace. Then, I boiled water to cook dinner. The comforting sound of flame and bubbling water diffused the cozy room and remained etched in my mind.
Process
Having the scene to depict in mind, I recorded the following sounds, bearing in mind of the diversity of duration and frequency spectrum.
- wind chimes, seagulls, waves
- dripping water, rain, thunder, breathing
- opening and closing the door
- lighting a match, fire burning
- poring and boiling water, clinking glasses
I aimed to create a serene atmosphere and a peaceful feeling before the rain starts to fall, forming a significant contrast. Then, I applied reverb and echoing effects to the underwater sound to make it more authentic. To sonically demonstrate the shifting scale of rain, I used the sound of dripping water to mimic the slow pace of rain falling and applied the fade in effect to create a smooth transition. Then the volume got bigger as the rain proceeded with a feeling of urgency. Finally, the cracking sound of the thunder and heavy rain lightened as I closed the door. Additionally, to ensure a more involved and immersed audio experience, I made slight adjustments on the stereo balance to make certain sounds come either from the left or right channel.
There were several technical hinders that I encountered throughout the process. For instance, I had no idea of how to record sounds that could replicate what I had heard underwater. After making several attempts, I found out that putting my phone inside a waterproof zipper and placing it in a sink filled with water could create an analogous effect.
Another challenge I encountered was dealing with the chaotic background noise, especially when I intended to keep the relatively obscure track among multiple tracks (eg. the chirps of birds). Fortunately, this issue was readily solved by learning how to apply the noise reduction tool.
Conclusion
The intention of this project was mainly to transfer this once in a life time experience into something that can be documented concretely, and the composition I created basically fulfilled the function of recreating my piece of memory. But because of my limited knowledge in audio recording and editing, there are still areas of improvement. For example, due to the 1 minute time restriction, the series of actions in the latter part seemed to be in a rush. Also, the transition between underwater and resurfacing was a little abrupt, which could be further experimented on.
After my presentation, I received great pieces of advice, which inspired me to deliberately consider how I could transfer the breathtaking marine scene into sounds.
Image of Audition
