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[00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.000]   Part Four: Sound.
[00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:07.000]   For this part of the guide, I worked with artist and friend, Ann Chen.
[00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:12.000]   So far, we focused on gathering, editing, and reconstructing these spaces
[00:00:12.000 --> 00:00:17.000]   using visual imagery from archives, personal sources, or the internet.
[00:00:17.000 --> 00:00:22.000]   Adding sound to your reconstruction can be a powerful method to augment
[00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:27.000]   a visitor's experience of your space and also reconnect with memories and histories.
[00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:32.000]   At a basic level, the ambient sounds of a neighborhood help to create a sense of being there,
[00:00:32.000 --> 00:00:37.000]   from the noise of traffic to the blowing of the wind to the sounds of people talking,
[00:00:37.000 --> 00:00:40.000]   doing things, and spending time together.
[00:00:40.000 --> 00:00:44.000]   Searching for high-quality sound recordings from our past can often be more difficult
[00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:47.000]   than searching for historic images or films.
[00:00:47.000 --> 00:00:51.000]   Introducing sounds into your environment and composing a soundscape
[00:00:51.000 --> 00:00:55.000]   can be challenging when so little material exists.
[00:00:55.000 --> 00:01:00.000]   A solution we've come up with is to take a speculative approach to sound design.
[00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:05.000]   When the audio recordings you need do not exist, how do we rely on other sources,
[00:01:05.000 --> 00:01:10.000]   memory, texts, descriptions, visuals, oral histories,
[00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:13.000]   to recreate the soundscape of a place in the past?
[00:01:13.000 --> 00:01:17.000]   In this section, we will introduce some exercises, suggestions,
[00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:22.000]   and tips on how to listen, record, and stitch together sounds to add to your environment.
[00:01:22.000 --> 00:01:30.000]   If sounds from the neighborhood or place you are creating are not easily accessible or available,
[00:01:30.000 --> 00:01:34.000]   we can start with other historical sources and ephemera.
[00:01:34.000 --> 00:01:40.000]   For this example, we will use a photograph from the Library of Congress of a fish market in San Francisco's Chinatown.
[00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:43.000]   Take a few minutes to study this photograph.
[00:01:43.000 --> 00:01:47.000]   Write down every detail you can see in the image.
[00:01:47.000 --> 00:01:50.000]   Try to be as descriptive as possible.
[00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:54.000]   What are they doing? What are they wearing?
[00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:59.000]   Now try to imagine the types of sounds that are associated with these details.
[00:01:59.000 --> 00:02:05.000]   In this photograph, you can see a young man in a wide brimmed hat holding a basket
[00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:07.000]   looking down at a piece of fish on the table.
[00:02:07.000 --> 00:02:11.000]   The fishmonger standing next to him is looking at him in mid-chop.
[00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:16.000]   It looks like they're in the middle of a conversation.
[00:02:16.000 --> 00:02:20.000]   What sorts of sounds can you imagine hearing in a fish market?
[00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:24.000]   Are any of these sounds something you can recreate yourself?
[00:02:24.000 --> 00:02:30.000]   Could you try chopping a fish or rattling a metal bucket on a wooden floor?
[00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:35.000]   Are there keywords that you can use to find these sounds in public archives?
[00:02:35.000 --> 00:02:43.000]   You can find a lot of free-to-use sounds at the website freesound.org, like this recording of chickens.
[00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:46.000]   Let's focus on other clues in this photo.
[00:02:46.000 --> 00:02:48.000]   It's on a street.
[00:02:48.000 --> 00:02:51.000]   What does a busy street sound like in a shopping district?
[00:02:51.000 --> 00:02:54.000]   Do we know what languages are spoken in this neighborhood?
[00:02:54.000 --> 00:03:01.000]   Can we go out to record these specific sounds?
[00:03:01.000 --> 00:03:05.000]   Once you've gathered a list of sound descriptions, now comes the fun part.
[00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:10.000]   Let's go sound-gathering.
[00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:13.000]   If visiting the site you are reconstructing is possible,
[00:03:13.000 --> 00:03:18.000]   we recommend going there and listening to the present-day sounds, even if they've changed.
[00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:22.000]   Try visiting at different times of the day, different times of the week,
[00:03:22.000 --> 00:03:28.000]   and even if you can, different times of the year.
[00:03:28.000 --> 00:03:32.000]   For this example, I visited the site of Burrill Street Chinatown in Providence
[00:03:32.000 --> 00:03:35.000]   and recorded some environmental sounds.
[00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:53.000]   This is a clip of what it sounds like today. [Ambient recording begins; birds, humming, traffic noises]
[00:03:53.000 --> 00:03:56.000]   So, Jeff, how was it for you visiting the site as it is today?
[00:03:56.000 --> 00:04:00.000]   What kind of thoughts were running through your head?
[00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:08.000]   I think one thing I noticed because I live in the neighborhood is the constant hum.
[00:04:08.000 --> 00:04:14.000]   I guess it must come from all the different heaters and air conditioners and things.
[00:04:14.000 --> 00:04:25.000]   And on top of that, Empire Street, it's a pretty big street now.
[00:04:25.000 --> 00:04:30.000]   So, almost no matter when you go, there will be some traffic,
[00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:33.000]   and it's not moving very slowly.
[00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:42.000]   But I did notice there were some birds, there were some small trees.
[00:04:42.000 --> 00:04:50.000]   Surprising, even in the middle of March, it's pretty cold.
[00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:57.000]   I can hear myself breathing in this cold air.
[00:04:57.000 --> 00:05:07.000]   And there's some kind of motor going over by the big building over there.
[00:05:07.000 --> 00:05:16.000]   So then I was thinking, "Well, the road, it's much bigger, it's an asphalt road."
[00:05:16.000 --> 00:05:25.000]   And then I thought, "Would there be a road nearby that's closer to what it would have been like?"
[00:05:25.000 --> 00:05:33.000]   So, next I went over just a couple blocks towards the Jewelry District.
[00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:38.000]   And I stopped when I heard a lot more birds.
[00:05:38.000 --> 00:05:42.000]   I mean, there's some bushes, small trees, vines.
[00:05:42.000 --> 00:05:46.000]   And they were really making a lot of fuss.
[00:05:46.000 --> 00:05:49.000]   And there was a dog bark.
[00:05:49.000 --> 00:06:02.000]   There was just signs… of more like… residential life.
[00:06:02.000 --> 00:06:07.000]   From this kind of deep, careful listening, both at the site as it is today
[00:06:07.000 --> 00:06:11.000]   and through close attention to images from the period we're interested in,
[00:06:11.000 --> 00:06:21.000]   we can collect a range of different sounds, which together can create an immersive soundscape for a reconstructed space.
[00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:24.000]   Spatialized sound in Mozilla Hubs
[00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:28.000]   After you collect sounds, you can place them within a reconstructed scene.
[00:06:28.000 --> 00:06:32.000]   Much of the reconstruction work so far in Seeing Lost Enclaves
[00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:35.000]   has been in the virtual online platform called Mozilla Hubs.
[00:06:35.000 --> 00:06:40.000]   Mozilla Hubs is able to host not only 3D models and visual media,
[00:06:40.000 --> 00:06:44.000]   but embedded sounds located within the virtual environment.
[00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:50.000]   These sound files are spatialized, meaning that they are louder the closer you are to them.
[00:06:50.000 --> 00:06:54.000]   If you wear stereo headphones, you can hear a sound to your left side or right.
[00:06:54.000 --> 00:06:59.000]   This allows us to localize sounds in creative ways.
[00:06:59.000 --> 00:07:03.000]   For example, in the reconstruction of Providence's Chinatown in 1914,
[00:07:03.000 --> 00:07:07.000]   I heard different sounds around the scene, such as the sound of rain hitting the street.
[00:07:07.000 --> 00:07:11.000]   I placed these sounds outdoors or behind walls,
[00:07:11.000 --> 00:07:14.000]   and when you went inside, they seemed to get quieter.
[00:07:14.000 --> 00:07:17.000]   In reality, they were displaced away from buildings,
[00:07:17.000 --> 00:07:23.000]   but the effect was such that visitors felt sheltered from the rain once they stepped indoors.
[00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:27.000]   Whether we're composing a single sound file as the soundtrack of a video
[00:07:27.000 --> 00:07:34.000]   or placing different recordings around a 3D scene, all the sounds combine to create a sense of place.
[00:07:34.000 --> 00:07:38.000]   Now let's put it all together and see how it sounds.
[00:07:53.000 --> 00:07:58.000]   For more on these techniques, see the written guide at the address shown.
[00:07:58.000 --> 00:08:02.000]   That's the end of the guide to relational reconstruction.
[00:08:02.000 --> 00:08:09.000]   Thank you, and please sign up here to be notified about workshops and events related to seeing lost enclaves.
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