Select: one sound artwork from the many presented to you in Week 3 (if you did not attend the class, select one work for yourself).
Why I chose this one:
I initially chose this piece because of the name, “I am sitting in a room.” it’s simple and basic but I still had a lot of thoughts of how it could go. my expectation was that it was going to be primarily white noise.
My thoughts and feelings:
His speaking voice somehow made me uncomfortable, it felt like I had been kidnapped and was about to be mentally tormented. it was like he was trying to make me go insane with each “I am sitting in a room, different from the one you are in now.” it was very interesting how with each recording it sounded like he got further away and more echoed. when the video gets to around minute 11, it barely even sounds like a human anymore. It sounds like an extraterrestrial creature trying to communicate with us through warbles. 20:37-22:01 sounds like someone has edited together a bird and a car horn, there is no hint of human speech anymore. I ended up skipping to 43 minutes (from 34) because I was so curious to hear what the room sounded like.
to me, it sounds like an opening song for a space movie. you know those movies where it’s set in 2090 and the world has exploded or something. few people remain. it was kind of unbelievable to me that this is what the room sounds like, it sort of felt like Alvin was just sitting there with a singing bowl and contact mic. I kind of didn’t believe this recording. I mean if it’s real and that’s genuinely what it sounds like then I am in awe, I just feel in some part of me that it isn’t real. Sorry Alvin