3.13.18 Listening Lounge Notes! (courtesy of Lizzie)

In attendance: Tony, Rene, Lizzie, Bond, Ann

At Bond's suggestion, we began by sharing extreme weather stories related to the high winds we've had lately. 

Rene: As an insurance appraiser, he's dealt with three cars hit by falling trees.
Bond: On his way to visit him, his mother had to take a five-hour detour into DC because a bridge closed in MD due to tractor trailers blown over by the wind. 
Tony: He got last Friday off work! 
Ann: On his way to visit her from Boston, Ann's brother's flight had to make two attempts to land due to the high winds. Luckily, he was not on the "barf flight" that landed at Dulles. 
Lizzie: Not directly related, but last week contractors discovered a buried well in her backyard. We don't know how deep it is, or when it was built, but it's creepy as hell and anything could crawl out  of it:

Sounds we shared: 

Rene shared some SoundScene footage from last year, which he intends to make into promotional material for this year's event. We heard Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Rain" performed on a violin made from a baseball bat, and suggested structuring the piece around the violin music itself -- letting commentators lead us into the scene through description before telling us what we're hearing and end with the stellar line "if you haven't been here, shame on you." 

Bond shared a song from Dessa's new album, Chime, called "Fire Drills" and it rocked. "You can't be too broke to break." Check it out! 

Tony, who will be giving a workshop at the NSS (Natural Sound Society) on birdsong recording, shared a binaural recording he made from a canoe. Above him a colony of frigate birds nested together in mangrove bushes, and we could hear the young birds calling to their parents for food. 

We also talked about binaural recordings for VR, and the microphones now being made in the shape of a human head, including some with pig skin for the "skin" and human-shaped ears (which have a significant effect on the recordings). We wondered if they could make a microphone with cat-shaped ears and head that would allow us to hear what cats hear...?

Ann shared a compilation of short but fully immersive recordings from her trip to China, which included street sounds, singing, and the bells the men ring to advertise ear cleanings. YES, EAR CLEANINGS. They use a "tiny bamboo scoop," a series of brushes, and a long fine wire which they insert into your ear and then touch to a tuning fork to let your whole head ring with an otherworldly vibration. 

We wondered whether some of these street sounds (geo-linked recordings) could make a good contribution to this year's Sound Scene, "Mapping Memory." Tony added that we now know our ears are so finely tuned to our surroundings, however unconsciously, that even as adults we could identify our childhood bedroom from a bunch of recordings of empty rooms. 

Rene shared audio from a podcast called "Tweet of the Day," featuring a different bird call and short accompanying explanation each day. 

The conversation turned to the darker themes (virtual kidnapping and forest fires) so Bond pulled us back to the light with a song ("Everybody's Coming to My House") from David Byrne's new album, American Utopia. 

We all ate copious amounts of peanut m&ms. A good time was had by all! 
Looking forward to next month!

Three reminders:

1. The next DCLL meeting Tuesday March 13th at Lizzie's house!
When: Tues March 13

7:30pm-10pm

Where: Lizzie's Place
Arlington, VA 22202
Nearest metro: Crystal City or Pentagon City (blue/yellow)
She says:

"I'll make popcorn! And will probably have lots of peanut m&ms left over from my birthday so come help eat those."
Please also bring audio to share (limit clips to under 6 mins duration). Food, drinks and friends are very welcome too!


2. Reminder, if you'd like to submit an idea for a Sound Scene aka project/installation/proposal/workshop please do so here

By March 24th.


3. Separately, we'll have a planning meeting for Sound Scene (general planning for outreach, workshops, diversification of proposals etc) on Sat March 17th from 1-3pm. *You do not need to attend the planning meeting to submit a proposal!


*have a lovely week!

The next Listening Lounge will be
Tuesday Feb 13th (Save the Date)
where: ?? TBD Would you like to host?

Interested in hosting a DC Listening "Lounge" but unsure what it takes?
We are looking for a living room that can accommodate 10-20 (ish) people. Useful if you have  speakers (that can accommodate streaming audio from phones, computers and/or other devices- but we can loan you some for the night if that is a hurdle). Especially interested in places that are metro accessible.

FEB. AUDIO CHALLENGE:

By the next listening lounge: Record something to do with scale.  Brandon said during the lounge that, “audio is vast, yet it’s intimate.” Shoot for around 3 minutes. Create a recording that contains something tiny and/or intimate something large or expansive.



---
----
We're hunting for an INTERN for DCLL and Sound Scene 2018.

Know someone who you think would do a great job?


We are especially excited for DC/MD/VA people (of any age) who are very organized audio lovers, interested in learning more about curating and non-profit management (estimated 2-4 hours a week). Un-paid (but a small stipend may become available depending on grants in the 2018 year). Interested folks please send a resume/cover letter (1 page MAX) to dclisteninglounge@gmail.com
Applications due Feb 15


----
January Lounge highlights (courtesy of George. Thank you George!!)

JANUARY 16th, 2018
 

Thanks to Rene and Kate for hosting.
 
The evening started with a prompt to introduce oneself, then discuss a line of an awkward story you heard over the holiday break, a sound that reminded you of the holidays, or alternatively, an audio gift you received (or wished you received). “Mutiny, family or gift.”


Attendees: Rene, Lynn, Stella, Teague, Bond, Brandon, Tony, Ben, Amy, Adam (AI Righteous), George, Liz, Kate, Clyde (the dog).
   Rene: A gadget (i-XLR?) that allows you to plug an external XLR microphone into an iPhone (he uses an iPhone SE). Uses a quarter-inch input that plugs into the headphone jack, which he tried used with a Røde NTG. Allows you to monitor with the setup but unsure of the quality, and the gain levels. Also, he mentioned the SurePlus MOTIVE app.



Ben: Binaural microphones that look like earbuds. They give you a very spatial quality in stereo recordings. Best to listen to them using earphones. Suggestion: to put on a hat dummy. Still won’t be as vivid if replicating the folds of the ears. There are professional grade products that replicate this.


Teague: Made DIY binaurals using a lavalier mic that has two channels. He split the wire and ran over tops of his ears to record. He also found a 1968 vintage reel-to-reel recorder from his father with tapes of things, like music, he and his friends recorded. He’s hoping to get it working again.


Tony: Found a track he recorded when he was doing biology fieldwork where he recorded audio with his friend eating apples in the back of a truck. He put the mic next to them, it sounded like pigs eating. He demoed the audio to his friends and they didn’t recognize the sounds. He recently came back to the area but went to Listening Lounge meetings in 2006 in Mount Pleasant.

Bond: He received an Amazon Alexa. He tried listening to SirusXM channels on the Alexa.

Brandon: Spoke about doing an alternative music internet radio show. >From Pittsburgh, PA area.

Adam: A producer sent him a beat, and he wrote a verse to it. He’s looking to record at the studio. Twitter link: AI Righteous

Amy: Her brother sent her a link to two YouTube videos where someone is demoing binaural beats. She hasn’t listened to it yet.

Lynn: Recorded her mother-in-law telling the story about finding recordings of her father from 75 years, including recordings from a Voice-O-Graph done in Daytona Beach in 1953. It’s like a photo booth for sound. Her family also gave money to Arlington Independent Media for station WERA LP FM 96.7.

Stella: opened a box and found bells. There are sheet bells that her parents would ring during Christmas evening and rediscovered this technology.

Kate: She got an external monitor that you can plug in with an HDMI cable so you can have two screens if you’re on travel.

George: He got a vinyl copy of The Golden Record, the recording sent into space during the Voyager missions into space. The records have various sounds and music from the planet and are the farthest man-made objects from the Earth known (riding along the Voyager 1 & 2 probes launched in the 1970s).

Clyde: Woof, woof. 

Liz: Used to have a Bose record player from the 1980s in brushed aluminum and smoked plexiglass, which she thought of as a family heirloom. It was one of the only things she wanted to keep after a move to Buffalo, NY, yet it was one of the few things she acquired from her family that was destroyed in a fire. She’s looking for suggestions on a new record player.  
 
***

The prompt from the previous lounge was to collect /record one interview over the holiday season. Ask a question about the person's past and use the prompt: “Tell me about your first best friend...” Extra credit: If you've never used one before, try out an audio editing program on your computer.

The listening began with:
Rene: Sat down with his mom to record when he was visiting family in California. They talked for about 40 minutes. He had someone listen to this edit once and got some notes on it but he hasn’t changed it since then. Her mom spoke about a girl named Roxanne. A car hit her when she was two years old, and then hit Roxanne’s house. Her friend later moved away. The accident happened in May 1966. She was playing on a rocking horse and a car rolled down the hill and hit her.
 
Lynn: Her mother-in-law Sandra was visiting. She got her into the studio to tell the story of the last year of learning about her father. Her parents were divorced when she was seven and the last time she saw her father was around 75 years ago, and doesn’t know what became of him. She only captured only about 10 minutes of actual conversation out of an hour. Lynn later recorded more audio with her husband and a sister-in-law. No one was allowed to know her mother had been divorced. “I lived a lie but was taught to never tell anything but the truth,” said her. A family friend, Jennifer, has genealogy experience and likes “solving the puzzles of the past” from clues and research. She left us with this quote about curiosity: S. Leonard Rubinstein: “Curiosity is a willing, a proud, an eager confession of ignorance.”

Stella: Winter solstice in the High Line in NYC. For five years now they’ve had an event that is a soundscape event, with a collective of artists creating a sound experience. You walk the highline and have an experience. The High Line is a public park and green space built on a historic freight rail line elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side. It runs from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District to West 34th Street, between 10th and 12th Avenues. You were given an app. The movement of your body would change the soundscape from what’s on your phone.
 
Amy: Played a podcast episode that she listened to recently. She listened to it at work. Then listened to it again outside of work. She shared a few segments from The Organist, by Clive Desmond who tells a personal history of advertising in radio. It was rebroadcast on 99% Invisible. Desmond, a voice over artist, talks about an ad that had impact on him as a child that seemed to have an authenticity that most radio did not, even though the little girl on the radio clip was an actor. There was also a radio jingle from Grace Slick from Jefferson Airplane singing an ad for white Levis and an ad Frank Zappa created for a Remington Electric Razor.

Teague: Recorded his dad via videotape on Skype asking about when his father got drafted in 1970. His father talks about how the recruiters were selling him on signing up for Airborne. They started with an officer asking if he wanted to be in Artillery. Teague’s dad said “no thanks.” Then after that there was someone from a different office and more. He wondered “When are they going to ask about my background?” He went to a room with two low-ranking enlisted guys who had typewriters. He gave them two years of his life to do a good job and mentioned his background was as a mechanical engineer. One of the enlisted men asked “Isn’t there a form for people with science backgrounds?” and instead of going to Vietnam, Teague’s dad went to Alabama instead for two years.

Ben: Had an interview with his mother about her first best friend, where she is playing piano in the background. Ben asked: “What do you think about when you play?” “Nothing. I do it with feeling.” His mother’s neighbors had an orphan child named Olga living with a nanny with whom she is friend. She learned a lot from the nanny in the house because they had a different life. There was a garden with a weeping willow. The nanny would put the girls in nightgowns and they would play as actresses or Opera singers, not with dolls. The girl’s mother died during birth. The father never remarried; he would always travel. The father had killed himself because of a rumor of him squandering everything away, like a gambler. Her friend was taken in a truck off to Poland. None of these people she knew during the time came back from a concentration camp. Side note: Ben didn’t know anything about audio recording at the time he recorded. It was his first attempt at producing something. This was recorded awhile ago. His mom is 92 now.

Brandon: Lynn spoke about how being around people with disabilities makes one gain empathy and curious about how you can see the lack of accessibility for people to get around.  A guest, Charlotte talks about the challenge of being a disabilities teacher. “In school, you don’t get to do the fun stuff. Because you are doing extra homework, or doing it slowly.” She thought a lot of kids would take-off if they found something they love or are excited about something.
 -- -- --
Some other audio resources and items of note from George (who produced the summary above):
• “The New Analog, Listening and Reconnect in an Digital World,” book
& Ways of Hearing, podcast.
If you're out west soon check out:  The Audium: A Sound-Sculptured Space in San Francisco that’s been running performances since the 1960s.

Can't remember anything good about 2017? How about the highlights from the December DC Listening Lounge!? Thanks again to Rene for hosting.

The night began with a go-round of everyone's favorite movie- /sound track/ film's sound design

Rene: Matrix for first one (and undercut by the next two) sound design was also pretty great.
Carla: Lord of the Rings movies solid for sound and visual
Bob: Elf (fav Christmas film but not sound track)
Ben: 1973 Felini's Amarcord,“not one of the freakier Felini's”
Karen: Favorite movie was Ghandi. Baby Driver for the sound track. And the Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon sound track was great too.
Teague: Fav movie Election by Alexander Payne (later made Sideways)
Jocelyn: Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist (Fav sound track to have created a public radio review for. Also the only film sound track she's reviewed and it wasn't published...sore spot )
Ann: North by Northwest (poster featured on her wall) High Fidelity great sound track
Sonya: The Social Network great soundtrack, The Ghost in the Darkness (campy favorite film)
Byrd: Fav movie and soundtrack Harold and Maude, Ferris Bueller's Day Off a close section.
Ginger: Florida Project great movie, Ferris Beuller's Day Off- great holiday rerun this past Thanksgiving season.
Bond: Fav movie was Thank You For Smoking, fav film soundtrack, Pulp Fiction
Brandon: Fav movie Ghost in the Show (thinking about AI), fav sound design was for Wonder Woman (action sequences, build up electric guitar to full distortion).

The listening began with
Bond showcasing a track from his Dad's performance with The The (he also performed with Billy Ocean, Alison Moyet,) the work Bond's most proud of is the band, The The, His dad toured with them when Johnny Marr was in the band. The The has a comeback tour in the works for next year, and his dad may come back on keyboards. Bond played, Uncertain Smile, with his dad on the keys. Discussion about the mysteries of music's popularity overseas and German support for the arts.


Rene shared audio from his accidental detour from the Red line to the Armitage Platform, on the Elevated Brown Line on Chicago. With cameo's from the diesel trains, and dump truck moves from above to below. Recorded on an H4n. An hour of tape later edited. High quality sounds of close and far and rumbles and high pitches.


Byrd shared audio from the KCRWRadio Race (24 hours to make a piece). She, Gretta, Martine and Ted made something – all audio has to be new that day- including the music (and the mix/edit etc).“Down for Whatever” theme. Discovered a Saturday afternoon Hyattsville jam. The creative and non-linear design was appreciated.
Next year form a DCLL team?? KCRW race is usually around August 18th ish.


Jocelyn shared a sneak peak of a pilot she's working on. Talking about sound design. What wins out in comprehension and memory, when there is a joke, a sound design, and facts? What do people keep a hold of?


Brandon offered up a recording approaching the Canadian Embassy's special dome- a clapping session which highlighted the incredibly memorable and surprising acoustics of the space.
Rene mentioned the University of Maryland also has a memorable clap zone where a person can clap and the sound seems to squeak back at you.


Ben shared a recording from his annual urban tree hike from a hiker group singing in front of the Christmas Tree in front of the Canadian Embassy under the dome of crazy acoustics.
Discussion of the former White House Yule Log which no longer burns out front.
Deep cut reference to Lil' Bub sitting by the fire...that no one could remember except one person (sniff).


Bond: made a shift from the Sirius XM gig with the Symphony Hall channel to Sirius's Hair Nation channel. Cat's Craddle was burned in to all our heads before leaving. It's probably still stuck in 90% of our heads (Thanks a lot Bond).


Audio Challenge from Ben- By the next listening lounge, collect /record one interview over the holiday season. Ask a question about the person's past. If you need a prompt, here is one to try: “Tell me about your first best friend...” Other parameters: aim to share 3 minutes total (edited or unedited), extra credit: If you've never used one before, try out an audio editing program on your computer.

Another shout out for : DC audio producers interested in work opportunities to email dclisteninglounge@gmail.com to be added to a gig list.

ReferYah: is a networking site of a friend of Bond's
https://referyah.com/


Had a good conversation about the value (and fun!) of mentorship- interested in  matching DCLL'ers with other DCLL'ers/local mentors to learn new audio skills. YES TO 2018 GOALS LIKE THIS!example: Tape Sync mentorship: people have recording gear and interest in doing tape syncs but would feel better to have a chance to shadow someone first to learn the ins and outs. Let's partner up!
Other skills sharing? Let's get a chat started on the DCLL Facebook Group page.
-Adult job shadows are awesome- try them out.


...and a conversation about stethoscopes.
Check out the 99 Percent Invisible Episode
Judy Dench Stethoscope article
Radiolab episode about the Lady with the loud heart “The Tell Tale Heart”


other great 2017/2018 ideas
Sonya: Let's have an audio scavenger hunt leading up to Sound Scene (Canadian Embassy, Einstein memorial etc etc.)


--
DC Listening Lounge began in the fall of 2004 by like-minded audio enthusiasts as an informal place to listen, experiment and learn more about the art and craft of sound. We continue to meet once a month in DC living rooms to share and listen to one another's latest audio finds- and to continue an ongoing conversation about sound and creative storytelling.We always welcome curious visitors, eager listeners, and sound enthusiasts of all stripes and types. To join our mailing list or learn more about our monthly meetings, email us at dclisteninglounge@gmail.com

Next DC Listening Lounge will be Tuesday Dec 12!
Please bring audio to share (though it's definitely not required- we love listeners and thoughtful company generally). Please limit audio clips to 6 minutes or shorter. Friends, snacks and drinks are all also welcome.
RECAP:
Next DCLL: Dec 12th, 
When: 7:30pm-10pm
Where: Ann's place, (email dclisteninglounge at gmail dot com for details)
Public transit tips: the 96, 30S, 30N, 31, and 33 buses all stop right out front at either Macomb St. or Newark St.  The H4 stops a few blocks north at Idaho St.  Nearest metro stops are Cleveland Park and Tenleytown, which are each about a 12 min walk away.  For drivers, it's usually pretty easy to find street parking in the neighborhood.  
Questions: contact DCLL
(SAVE THE DATE: Jan 16th will be the first DCLL of 2018)
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NOVEMBER HIGHLIGHTS:
The night kicked off with a go-round of intros: who you are, what brought you to DC, what is your favorite "DC" sound? 
Andrea - new to DC for work, anthropologist / favorite DC sound: protests


Alex, grew up in DC. Came back to work at NPR, now drawing radio cartoons (100 in total) / end of summer cicadas singing and the howler monkeys at the zoo. 


Lizzie, grew up in Alexandria and then moved back to DC six years ago, was a teacher, now a podcaster "your story here" / dosing the decaf coffee and the decaf beans are super dry, hollow and larger, and make a clackling sound


Teague, came to DC for a job, enjoy sound as a hobby / overhearing conversations in coffee/tea shops, especially at Teaism (among the best: state dept officials and a TV show pitch)


Ellen, came back to DC for a new Vox gig, loves voices of subway (makes her think of the Ludicris song every time step back step back you don't know me like that/It's time for an archival project of human voices on public transit – siiri/alexa/etc will over take it all soon)


Heather, voice of WAMU underwriter, does voicing and also freelances, including roots at Metro Connection, wants to start a podcast about the contributions of African American women /iconic DC sound of the escalator at Cleveland Park


Bond, came to DC for work in radio at SiriusXM / memorable sound of a guy behind me freaking out because he had left his wallet on a subway car


Ann, moved to DC eight years ago, started a podcast about mental health care, "the medical mind" / sound of the bell on the El train in Chicago. 


Jocelyn, came to Dc to as an intern with NPR's/Nat Geo's Radio Expeditionsseries, that focused on threatened cultures and environments. And then stayed for awhile / sound of person singing in Spanish on the street, she refers to him as "the town crier" shout-singing often in Mount Pleasant. She played a recording of him. 


Audio shared:


Bond shares a piece that was inspired by "interdimensional cable" post on Reddit --> Enunci8 video / we talked about the push and pull between performative or trained voice and conversational voice. Ann talked about going to a session at the Third Coast Audio Conference about "how not to sound like a robot." 


Jocelyn noted a Third Coast Fest conversation about S-town as a new audio genre: "novelistic." We listened to the first two minutes of the first episode of S-Town. 


Teague shared a piece of recorded sound from a platform of SF BART train platform and how it imagined it as a soundscape of a dystopian sci fi film. 


Ellen shared a clip of CASYM steel pan orchestra, rehearsing for Panorama, the largest steel pan drum competition in North America. 
Lizzie shared an interview with a silversmith, who told her casually that he wasn't expecting to live that long. So she asked him to tell him the story of why. She plans to release as episode of her Your Story Here podcast. 


Andrea recommends "Integratron" sound bath experience based in Joshua Tree, CA, a 30 minute "brain balancing" session of 14 quartz crystal singing bowls. She went two weeks ago and shared some of the CD so we could all listen. 


Jocelyn shared a mystery animal sound. We listened without knowing and guessed: a chicken, a turkey, a pig pretending to be a bird. It turns out it was two ravens, perhaps imitating a turkey. Ravens can mimic other birds. 
Recommendations beyond DCLL:
Alex recommends "Lumia." The Light exhibition presents "symphonies of silence" "Credenzas of Color" and is kind of like sitting back and listening to silent LPs. Curious? Now at the National Portrait Gallery until January. 

Thanks to Slammer for a great Lounge at her place. Highlights below (courtesy of Teague). 
The next lounge will be: Tuesday Nov. 14th (just after Third Coast Festival).

Thanks to WHUT's Artico for coming to film at the Oct. DC Listening Lounge for their upcoming episode in November about the vibrant DC arts scene. Looking forward to watching the coverage soon.

Upcoming events of audio interest:

DC Association of Old-Time Radio Club the upcoming meeting of The Metropolitan Washington Old Time Radio Club will be on Friday October 13th at 7:30 pm at the Trinity Episcopal Church 2217 Columbia Pike Arlington, Virginia 22204 (at the corner of Columbia Pike and South Wayne Street).
Admission is free. 
The evening will open with the playing of a 15-minute old radio program. The main program will be a newly written half-hour radio play about a classic character "Candy Matson" (a female private eye) being performed by members of the Club and will feature live sound effects. This will give everyone a good idea of how shows were created and broadcast during the Golden Age of Radio.
---
The Smithsonian's Freer and Sackler Galleries re-open Saturday Oct 14th 5pm-12am with great audio content available! (also live music, food, other performances and the incredible collections: info here.

---
An upcoming $10 podcasting conference @ Georgetown. DC Talks
http://www.dctalks.net/program.html
"stakeholders from across the US—musicians, documentary filmmakers, comedians, podcasters, researchers and government officials—to discuss what role the public sector is playing in the expanding digital culture landscape. The goal is to explore what the various arts communities and media might learn from each other, and to discover how like-minded creators can benefit from integrating strategies and networks."

Oct Highlights 
Introductions:


Slammer started by welcoming folks to her home and talking about the immigrants who share the building with her. We then went around and introduced ourselves and each recalled a sound that we have connected with (in a good or bad way) in the last couple months:


Teague - The sound of music of various styles spilling out of the doors of the clubs on Frenchman Street in New Orleans.


Jocelyn - The (thankfully now absent) sounds of street paving outside her house.


Rene - The clinking, clacking, and knocking sounds of a pinball machine with the sound turned off.


Bond - A mysterious descending tone sound his phone sometimes makes during a call. (Which we were then able to crowd source among those in attendance as meaning that his phone was down to 20% power.)


Dan - His 95-year-old grandmother's loving shout out to her family in the middle of a family gathering at a restaurant.


Jax - The crickets of Turkey Run when driving a rental car with the windows down at night.


Christopher - Video of various birds that have learned to imitate cellphone sounds.


Karen - Blade Runner (the original) sounds of dystopia, reviewed in anticipation of the new movie.


Slammer - The sounds of helicopters, ambulances, and police -- some reassuring, others less so -- on her corner near the hospital.


Ben - His old vibraphone-ette, recently and miraculously repaired with hair elastics.


Mary - Sounds of children and babies laughing.


Edgar - Live sound effects of a monster destroying a city in a radio production that he recently acted in.


Anne - Her aunt launching into her own version of the happy birthday song as soon as she picks up the phone each year on her birthday.


Chantelle - A recent sound healing session, where the tones of crystal bowls reverberate through your body.


A.C. - The sound of the optical theremin app that he recently bought for $3. (He also demonstrated.)


* * *


Listening:


Bond played the song "Agnes," a mournful track about loss by the Glass Animals, who recently played the9:30 Club.


Jocelyn shared a recording of a friend performing a song and dance from that friend's time being home-schooled as a kid. Sounds begin with a call home to confirm the words with her mother, "Here we go zodiac..."


Dan played a recording of trees high on Mount Hood that were caked in ice and snow, yet melting and creaking in the summer sun and breeze.


Christopher played a hip-hop track by Surreal and the Sound Providers called "Life and Rhymes." (Edgar also recounted his accidental appearance on the Arsenio Hall show alongside some hip-hop stars of that time.)


Teague shared a recording of the automated voices saying track numbers at Chicago Union Station, which meld together into a Steve Reich-esque soundscape. (more on this below. Thanks TJ for sending the follow-up)


Chantelle played a dreamy, layered track by Kadhja Bonet, a love song to San Francisco called "Francisco."


Ben played a recording he made of kids joyously encountering bioluminescent jellyfish at night the the Chesapeake Bay. ("This is so fun!!")


A.C. offered an abridged version of a performance of Pauline Oliveros's piece, "Single Stroke Meditation," which involves a group called Umbilicus performing synchronized, continuous hits of four snare drums for 7 minutes, creating all sorts of unexpected auditory effects.


TJ played his original work, a chill downtempo composition, "A Good Once-Over."


Mary played Roger Williams' composition "Autumn Leaves," which, weather notwithstanding, suggests with feeling of fall.


Edgar played a excerpt from a radio drama production he acted in. We listened from a safe distance as "the flesh" began to consume a city, breaking buildings with its terrorizing presence.


Other meaningful moments, reflections on a sonically overwhelmed loving grandmother.

Hello DCLL'ers, 
  Thanks to Elisa and Kyle for hosting last month. 


No Sept lounge. We'll be back in action October 10th at Slammer's house. 
For your audio fix this month check out this great listening event on Wednesday!
Fall Listening Events at the Goethe-Institut


Wednesday, September 13, 7 – 8:30 pm
 “Every Time A Ear Di Soun”
WPFW in the spotlight at documenta 14
With Katea Stitt, Interim Program Director
In August, Washington’s Pacifica station WPFW-FM (a neighbor and partner of the Goethe-Institut) provided hours of daily and archival programming for a special project of the international art show, documenta 14, which took place this year in Kassel, Germany and Athens, Greece. Other stations featured at this year’s documenta included broadcasters from Indonesia, Germany, Brazil, Cameroon, and Lebanon. In this evening’s “Hear Now” presentation, Katea Stitt talks about her experience with documenta and presents audio contributed to this international project.




August Lounge Highlights (courtesy of Elisa):
Lots of new folks came after learning about DCLL at Sound Scene. Yay!


Icebreaker question: what's the weirdest/funniest phone call you've ever gotten? (got a little freeform)


Deb: making prank calls as a teen
Anne: was a victim of prank calls
Bird: accidentally received many calls for Supercuts, scheduled appointments anyway
Ted: no funny calls
Martin: practiced Spanish
David: 3 out of 3 NASA astronauts prefer mint chocolate chip ice cream
Dave: wrong-number texts from Colombian family, watched them grow up
Elisa: received call from Howard Stern, hung up
Andrea: thought the cruise offered to her on the phone was a scam, actually went to Bahamas
Jocelyn: WhatsApp calls at 5 am
TJ: crank calling Japanese record shops
Elise: tricked her boss into thinking FBI was onto him re: tennis racket homicide via voicemail
Stella: serial voicemail saver
Kyle: home phone one digit off from Blockbuster
Sara: tribulations with evil Mrs. Claus while working as an elf
Bond: Billy Joel fanatic 
Karen: real (Kyle lost his train of thought)
Rene: MLB umpire dreams dashed


Bond shared a song by A R I Z O N A, who he first heard at Lollapalooza.


Deb played her audio postcard created with recordings from Sound Scene X, featuring sounds of bongos, accordion, many voices, guitar + more. She also brought party favors: credit card-sized devices to record and play back ~30 seconds of audio.


Elisa played an audio collage from a citizenship ceremony that took place at the Folklife Festival, "The Star-Spangled Banner (Folklife Remix)." Dave helped master it.


TJ played an original piece entitled "Trace's Emerald Alley", and expressed his joy for looping short musical phrases for an extended period of time. You'll have to be around him to hear the piece, as he does not put his music online!


Rene asked, "What does a tree sound like?" to his arborist neighbor. We all got to find out through the audio piece he put together of the interview. From solid wood to decaying wood, the interview offered a glimpse into the world of "sounding" a tree.


David played his dream-inspired original funk song about sports journalist Howard Cosell (work in progress, still needs drums). We talked about the possibilities of lucid dreaming.


Kyle, upon hearing David's recording, remembered that we saw him play violin at the Phillips Collection, improvising songs about paintings on the wall, and that he had recorded it on his phone. We listened, but David couldn't remember which paintings they were inspired by.

Come one, come all -- to the Next DC Listening Lounge


when: MONDAY May 8
where: Lizzie's place, (email for details)
how:  house is equidistant from Pentagon City / Crystal City metro stops (an 8-10 minute walk), so get off wherever you feel the spirit moves you to. 
questions: call Lizzie: (email for details)


WHAT? please join us for an evening of listening together to audio, art, music, game sound, found sound, collage, stories and more (or less depending...)
All are welcome, Please consider bringing food or drinks to share, and a friend. If you'd like to share audio please limit clips to 6 minutes or shorter.


Looking forward to listening with you,
-DCLL


APRIL HIGHLIGHTS
The April DCLL was at Ginger and Teague's place. Thanks for hosting.
We started the night going around mentioning the memorable food combinations that probably shouldn't exist (or that other people thought shouldn't exist) which we have dabbled in.


Lilian- Multi-media artist: Her grandfather used to eat sardines with berry jam. Her piece
Kaleidoscope featured @ art-o-matic. Check it out (apologies for late notes...).
Nathan- haas been hanging at Rhizome and:, Twizzlers and guacamole- it was a dare
Steve M- Passover delicious food with dry dusty flavorless cake
Jenny- Kyrgyzstan dried (chalky) cheese balls and chocolate
Claudia- Columbian hot chocolate and mozzarella cheese (immersed), morning breakfast, dip the bread into it.
Rene- portland ice cream shop with olive oil ice cream. - insurance appraiser.
Jocelyn- broccoli dipped in water
Lizzie- freshman in college roommate took anthropology of cooking, feeding crickets and so she booked crickets into cookies. Cricket Cookies (faux Cambodian)
Teague: mom got on a health kick, brewer's yeast with orange juice.
Ann- Salty licorice


Discussion swirled around the upcoming audio field trip (now completed).
Advice about external microphones:
iQ-6 plug in
transom.org/tools
history of transom as a name- to get someone to hear your work you had to throw it through the transom...org founded PRX.


Audio of the night:
Nathan- Tim Hecker is an ambient artist (as described by Nathan) came through NTS radio – a 1-hr radio show of original work and remixes, ambient artist- mixed it with an interview with Fugazi and added ambient feature. Music of the Air is one piece that is recognizable within it.
Featuring saw-tooth synth
What does it mean to be an artist, composer , musician? Definitions of these are complex and interpreted differently by different people. Music creation can be similar to painting a scene or when a feeling becomes recognizable as a genre or established after a time.
Harmony and Ultraviolet album is a great one.


Jenny (sp?) – shared her first ever audio piece featuring musician Sam Guilford. She recorded on her phone, what would you do to make it better?

• mic yourself
• hold mic at the chin to cut down on p-pops. 
• Music is sounding great, great nice and quiet room
• enjoyed the laughter together- warm and friendly.
• Good clarification between mandolin and violin composition explainer.
• Love the easter egg moment
• “I just finished writing and recording a pair of lobsters” could be a terrific opening line

discussion of how to boost one-voice if the level is low
How important is that kind of adjustment?
Also talked through tools for plowing through tape- time cues and/or talking about the best tape and creating a list of “must-haves” to shape the story.




Jocelyn- shared a pilot for a new series she's working on.
Big questions to explore:
how much to let the central figure tell the story
will there always be a few questions that you ask everyone in each episode?
What about having every fourth show live- to have audience reaction
How do we tackle Bigger issues- like power dynamics within smaller stories
what are the responsibilities of the producer/host to protect a guest from revisiting difficult moments?


Lizzie noted:
-framing maters- from an intro or the central figure themselves Sets a context
Animate the story with video! idea....from Nathan.
Youtube series could be great with that.


Lizzie – shared a personal interview with an unidentified person. And asked us to listen for where is it boring? Where does it draw you in?
Helpful questions to be sure the tape answers:
Who is this character? Is he redeemable?
What's at stake?
And we need clues to keep us interested?
Where is the turn in the story? And where are we headed to?


Lilian- shared her work which was/is featured at art-o-matic
art-o-matic 7th floor , video installations and light-based work, projection of kaleidoscopes on rotating table on the floor. Kaleidoscope of humanities past. This was her first sound art piece (after attending a workshop presented by DCLL members at Washington Project for the Arts years ago- so cool!).
Questions discussed:
How much do you need to distort someone’s work to use it as your own?
Does the answer change for an Installation? For work that lives online? for work that is for sale?  




-- 
DC Listening Lounge began in the fall of 2004 by like-minded audio enthusiasts as an informal place to listen, experiment and learn more about the art and craft of sound. We continue to meet once a month in DC living rooms to share and listen to one another's latest audio finds- and to continue an ongoing conversation about sound and creative storytelling.
We always welcome curious visitors, eager listeners, and sound enthusiasts of all stripes and types. To join our mailing list or learn more about our monthly meetings, email us at dclisteninglounge@gmail.com

The next DC Listening Lounge will be Tuesday April 4th. Mark your calendars.
Until then, here are some highlights from the lounge- last night:
MARCH DCLL HIGHLIGHTS 
Thanks to AC for hosting.  He kicked off the night welcoming everyone and we went around to make introductions and mention of our favorite weird food.
AC- pork rinds
Efim- mothers Russian Pelmeni- dough with meat inside like piroges, boiled and dipped in sour cream, mustard and followed by beer.
Jenny- pickled herring
Jocelyn- buddha's hand
brandon- steamed blue crabs, well-picked
Alex VO- century eggs, on saltine crackers. Buried in earth. Chinatown NYC.
James- drink egg whites from the carton
Ian-Gefilte fish, pulverized poisoned fish- yes he likes it.
Deb- bitter melon, pickled, caramelized, like caramelized garlic
Steve- Menudo, hangover cure, beef tripe, potatoes, corn, carrot. A ritual of toppings with cilantro, lemon to taste.
Liz- The popular in Brazil food containing, manioc flour toasted, sweet or savory etc
Bond- pickled broccoli stems
Ann- keeping us in suspense...

The night's audio :
began with Alex Van Oss, featuring work from Finish sound scape artist Simo Alitalo . The video was shown from a live performance in the round (with instrumentalists positioned around and across a small cove ). Conversations about how to performance and create audio outside the confines of a tightly controlled studio- just be sure to include the waving of large flags from the tops of buildings and a giant crank powered alarm.
Reflections of the fine line between dry humor and tuning a band to a crank-powered alarm or maybe performing the sound scape of a World War..

Bond moved us along with a guessing game of “who's this artist” with the song “Screen Door.”
Radiohead or Yo-Yo Ma meets Steve Reich. Solution, EDM DJ DeadMau5, "stuff I used to do compilation" from 1997-2007. Cool contrasts in this one from the regular work and the old magic from this compilation. Notes made about the contrasts between simplicity of early rap programmed into an 808, and the computerized voice and the sensitive metaphors and then mixing in with poor metaphors.
Like asking Siiri to compose a piece.

Efim jumped in with a song that he wrote and converted into a Dada poem, cutting out the words and pasting them back in into a random order, using music memos app which generated a backbeat and bass line for the poem. This is the result “Sketches in Sound, I Am I”
crowd response: “That could have been a bad lip-reading parody.”
Steve followed with audio to celebrate a successful first edit he had today on a story He shared a youthful sing-a-long with clapping accompaniment and accented by kid squeals. Sounds from the church of Kansas City mostly made of members from Democratic Republic of Congo and refugee camps they left behind. Sounds from the first Baptisms of the new church. For the podcast The Spiritual Edge, funded by the Templeton Foundation.

Jocelyn played the rough mix intro to a new episode of a podcast she's working on. Complete with homemade audio effects and per-liscened music beds. Discussions of the ways that music can manipulate our emotions in good and bad ways and the recent Smithsonian Hirshhorn Ragnar Kjartansson exhibit.
Brandon played audio from the  Folger Shakespeare Library lab audio that was pulled from a radio play and re visioned for a new sound scape. Wanted it to be cinematic.
Greenwood Tree: show just closed.
Jenny shared audio from her friend Sam Guilford's collection “Sonic Sketches” a composition collection that uses different keys and time signatures and follows the shape of a drawing of an animal or image that is drawn in silhouette. Mandolin and fiddle featured with this octopus tonight.
Efim mentioned the composing off stars, over-laying a staff and drawing in notes any place a star appears.
James played the ending of a story of Todd. He debuted the opening at last month's meeting. This month he finished the story of Todd's relationship (or non-relationship) with his dad and his grounding in personal identity. Conversations abounded about how to play with sound to manipulate,distort or otherwise change a recording- how much is too much and in what ways can fx influence our listening to a scene and understanding of it's characters?
Announcements:
-Sound Scene update: July 8th, 2017 @ Smithsonian Hirshhorn
 Decisions on what pieces will be accepted for this year's event are coming soon (apologies for the slow process- many cooks in the kitchen). DCLL is actively seeking partners to share financial support for evening programming- please do be in touch with any suggestions/leads!
-DC Department of Energy and Environment FROG WATCH coming up. Follow this link to learn how to be a citizen frog call scientist and help manage and monitor frogs in the DC area. seriously.
March 16th the program is coming back by popular demand- Frog ear-training and identification.

Just a reminder the next DCLL meeting will be Tuesday March 7th at 7:30pm. More info on that soon. 

Also- thanks again to all the artists that put forward incredibly creative proposals for consideration of inclusion in Sound Scene 2017. 
The Sound Scene planning team has been discussing proposals and moving towards decisions but we have not finalized our program yet. We are looking forward to being in touch with all artists as soon as we can. Thank you for your patience. We haven't forgotten you!

Sincerely,
DCLL

The next DC Listening Lounge is March 7th at AC's in Petworth. Mark you calendars. We'll send additional details as the date approaches.
Next Sound Scene planning meeting Feb 13 (email for details)
Highlights from DCLL Feb 6, 2017 Listening Lounge
We kicked off the night with a go-round about the most memorable/best food you've eaten (not the most "sonic" opener but we definitely got a sense of storytelling styles in the room).
Bond- sushi Shady Maple (?) in Silver Spring “amazing how many things go well with avocado.”
James- “The best thing I ever ate, was probably the placenta of my little brother...just kidding” Christmas in Patagonia, thick Argentinian beef, red wine. Etc.
Teague- donut connoisseur, donut quest. NY donut tour with a rating system. Doughnut Plant (before it was on TV, he claims he was a fan), basic is less sweet, complex dough, puts up a little resistance without being too chewy, and seasonal glaze, fresh blueberries.
Jocelyn- I haven't been but I hope to one day, maybe check out Kobo's- vegan tasting menu – it was just reviewed in the Washington Post Magazine and looked beautiful aesthetically and flavorful
Slammer- just returned from chapatis in Kenya. Thick similar to tortillas, bready with delicious home cooked stew
Steve- jalebi, looks like a day-glo orange pretzel, Jalebi wala- Jalebi “Man” has been there almost 250 yrs. Deep fried in butter and dipped in sugar syrup. (don't try this in the US)
Melissa- wanted to learn Italian better, an olive farm in Tuscany during harvest time, and organic farm, a little more labor intensive, and at the end of the first day, took 700 kilo to pressing plant, ancient place, and next day pick up florescent green fresh pressed olive oil. And the woman of the house made steamed vegetables and toasted bread , scratch with raw garlic clove and dump olive oil all over it. Cloudy olive oil is better flavored. Local recommendation. California Olive Ranch- picture of guy on tractor holding a huge olive or something. Its pretty darn good.
Amy- Italian favorite meal based on where I was as much as the food. Trastevere neighborhood in Rome, courtyard, playing violin next to us, gnocchi, in a broth 4-6 kinds of fresh mushrooms,
Tyler- goat herder volunteer in Israel, goats milk not properly pasteurized made him sick, hadn't eaten anything but white rice for 2.5 weeks, and had falafel that was the best I ever had, and then threw up a few hours later but it was totally worth it.
Jimmy- first job after grad school was installing security gates, Monday walking to car in Seattle away from shop, friend went fishing this weekend, reach into truck and grabbed salmon caught yesterday and, smoked that day- mouth lit up, not even salmon to me- its a whole other thing.
Brandon-Roatan island off Honduras, visiting godfather at his house there, neighbor took him out fishing- starts at 5am, catch the bait first casting a net, held partially in teeth, only caught 2, but the first fish he caught was a yellow finn tuna, breakfast at 10am of the tuna, incredibly fresh and special.
Shawna- in the Dominican Republic. In LasTerrenas, small town known for kite sailing, we were the only people there, just expats running a little bnb. Crabs walking by our feet.
Audio part of the night:
Melissa- kicked off the night with something, not serious, she said, the opposite. Balmy, comforting.
As she was waiting to set up – the donut advice continued. Priorities...creme brule at Astros, canoli filled at DistrictDonut  (this link leads to a DCLL-worthy audio piece!) and in Baltimore some solid choices as well.
Back to the audio: A local publication in Baltimore, J-More, newly launched, monthly mag with daily web updates. A written profile of 5 couples how they met and how they keep their marriage together, what is the glue? Melissa also produced short audio portraits/slide shows. One couple married for 60 yrs, played tonight.
Barry and Sandy Lever-
Reminded some of the group of the Storycorpslove story of the couple who were together for ages, and recorded through the husbands death (not sure if we got that link right).
The music Melissa used was gathered with help from the AIRlistserv
Take-away advice from another couple Melissa interviewed: “marriage is a game where no one knows the rules and they keep changing.”
Bond- wanted to play a song that he noted was titled “Pure Comedy” by Father John Misty, sarcastic, out-there. Bond says “if I ever had kids, which I don't plan, I'd share this music as a bit of insight into my life,” and musical tastes.
Sounds like some homage to Billy Joel and Rufus Wainright.
Father John was a drummer with Fleet Foxes before.
Jimmy- working with Rebecca, and also a visual artist and a programmer shared a brand new (one day old) application that they are creating that allows a visual artist's work to be interpreted and experienced sonically. (We all swooned and had lots of thoughts and feedback by request...and some not by request). This “translation tool” used sounds gathered from 7 different sound collections,
and it uses “edge detection” triggering different sounds
We loved the ideas of collaborative performance art, live drawing and multiple layers of experience.
Discussions of the sonicification of visual art- the color organ and vibration as a possible additional element.
Amy- shared audio from “The gnocchi experience” an audio representation of a very special meal. Dinner on the street corner in Italy.
And the AirBnB – recorder held out the window featuring street side accordion

James- stories of himself and friends, collected over time will be collected and organized as a “Life in three chapters” beginning, middle end. We listened together to the
chapter transition from middle to last act...and discussions about frequency ranges, clarity, music balances, sound effects, and general design followed.
Jocelyn shared an excerpt from an interview with Evelyn Glennie describing how to listen with more than your ears and digest sound like “a pea or carrot.” discussions about laughter, host engagement, striking the balance. 
-- 
DC Listening Lounge began in the fall of 2004 by like-minded audio enthusiasts as an informal place to listen, experiment and learn more about the art and craft of sound. We continue to meet once a month in DC living rooms to share and listen to one another's latest audio finds- and to continue an ongoing conversation about sound and creative storytelling.
We always welcome curious visitors, eager listeners, and sound enthusiasts of all stripes and types. To join our mailing list or learn more about our monthly meetings, email us at dclisteninglounge@gmail.com

Come on out for a night of listening
DCLL's February Listening Lounge
When: Feb 6th, 7:30pm
Where: Amy's Place
(email for details)
How: Petworth metro is closest
What do I bring? : Yourself. Also feel free to bring food, drinks or friends to share. If you'd like to bring audio - we'd love it. Please limit clips/excerpts to 6 minutes or shorter. 
---
January Lounge Highlights Need extra motivation to attend February's lounge? Check out the notes from last month's lounge courtesy of James.
Attendees introduced themselves and described one sound that they found particularly loathsome.

• Rene – first timer at DCLL. Whining sounds of a car that always goes up hill outside his house. AND when a smoke alarm is about to die 
• Simon – first timer at DCLL. Whole food’s outdoor noise from a broken speaker
• Kate – first timer. Fire alarm in her apartment building
• Ian –  Locks on the door to his house.
• Steve – was in Chicago right across from Trump Tower on election night. In celebration, they sent two helicopters up in the air that hovered there all night.
• Anna – first timer. Kelly Anne Conway
• Liz – first timer. Broken doors to a CVS in Toronto. She even has it on her phone, which she played for us later. (It was truly horrible)
• Teague – birds nesting in the eve of his house outside his window w SIX starlings
• Anne – 2nd timer. Beeping sound at work from an unknown source that never seems to stop.
• Suzanne – glass scratching across earthen ware or ceramics
• Deb – her 2 year old son’s sound when he is denied somethin .
• Colleen – sirens in DC, echoing off all the buildings
• Mickey – Donald Trump’s voice which he actually has to pull sometimes into his podcast
• James – the words “President Trump”.

Listening:

• Liz: works in sculpture and incorporating sound into her work. She played …
  • Sound from a mountain top in Spain. Herd of large cows w bells around their neck. 
  • Day of the Dead
    • An LED storefront in Mexico w bits of USA pop music overlaid w store music
    • Street band celebrating dead people
  • And then… The infamous Toronto CVS Doors: truly a horrible sound. Like dolphins being slaughtered* (*author's note).
• Mickey: His nephew talking on tape but being drowned out by his uncle. Punctuations of chewy toys. This sparked much talk of secret recordings of family members. Including Deb being tricked into saying Banana B--ch over and over to her older sister. As well as Rene accidentally recording himself by pocket dialing a friend for 4 minutes
• Coleen: an EDM song’s loop w multi layers. “She Just Likes to Fight” by Four Tet. Emotional piece with different loops trying to overcome each other. Steve notes: but it’s more like a love song. And this to him did not sound like real EDM because you could hear the instruments. Ian: Fore Tet is a founder of Detroit House and so the fact that it sounds so harmonious is a nice aspect. 
• Ian: Was happy that this time we’re playing sounds so that he can play sounds, (versus earlier lounges where more stories were shared). These are seals from Antarctica and called Weddell Seals, which are 6 feet long and “broadcast across the bay”. This actually stuns their prey when hunting. It was very haunting and other-worldy.
• Deb: At U St market, where her friend sells pies! A sound scape of the transactions w happy customers. As well as sidewalk bands providing ambience. Deb says it was good practice even for interviewing people on the street as well as narrating. Mickey noted: enjoyed how it zoomed out and exposed more of the world around the pies. 
• This sparked an interesting debate about how allowed or proper it is to surreptitiously record people. 
• James: played a short called “$%#^'ing Matt Dillon”, a drunken story from a friend at a party who recounted how she had… yes, made sweet sweet love with Matt Dillon once.
• Simon: played a traveling orchestral harpist. Deb: “What type of party was that?” It was one where there were comedians and musicians but a definite mix of genres. Consensus was this was a very unusual type of sensual versus tactile type of harp playing. Many shouts out to the harpist at the Willard.

Other discussion points:

• Musician Jeremy Messersmith – “Paper Moon” was made so that anyone can use it in their pieces!!!
  • Ian points out that many Sound Cloud users/composers (his friends!!) WANT to score podcasts. So reach out and ask.
  • Girl Talk albums – can use their music for free
• Question about interviewing people from Deb as she has to do interviews w vets for an upcoming project. Schwartzing was discussed – the technique where you lie down w eyes closed in the dark. What ways do we know about to get good interviews?
  • Steve: start off w easy stuff – e.g., what did you do today?
  • James: using improve techniques (channeling Lizzie’s advice)
  • Rene: standing shoulder to shoulder versus face-to-face, a la what umpires do in baseball!
  • Mickey: Transom’s website has lots of practical advice!
  • Suzanne: purposely incorrectly summarizing the other person so that they then correct you but very succinctly
  • Steve: asking simple questions that break down things into how they sounded, smelled, etc.
• Question from Rene about interviewing. How do you transition from the everyday informal interview to an official interview?
  • Mickey: some people start recording as soon as they walk in and tell the person later. This way there’s no transition.(e.g. Reply All and RadioLab)
    • Studs Terkel would pretend to not know how to work the recorder. Would that work today?

Howdy Loungers, 
  The next DC Listening Lounge will be on Tuesday Jan 24th at the home of James. 
  
Please bring any combination of food, drinks, friends and audio to share (please limit audio to 6 minutes or less). 

Looking forward to listening with you. 

When: Tuesday Jan 24
7:30pm-10:30pm
Where: (email for details)
How: Several bus options - 64 will drop u on New Hampshire and Taylor. H8 drops u on Rock Church Road near Taylor. There are others not far as well, that The Google can reveal.
Questions? call James: (email for details)

---
Sound Scene update: Thanks to everyone who voted for a theme for this year's sound scene. The theme will be decided in the coming days. Then we'll put a call out for proposals. Hope you have some ideas you might want to share.

---

December Lounge Highlights:December Lounge Dec 15, 2016
Minahil and Karen hosted
Minahil began the night by noting that we gathered in part to honor of Cat who, earlier this year, was in a bike accident and was told due to her injuries that her sense of smell may not return. To mark what looked to be that moment of official loss with a re-framing, to celebrate under appreciated senses that were still in full function- Minahil asked to host the night. (DCLL is so flattered to be able to help usher in the moment with the positive).
It turned out that a few days before the December Lounge, Cat's sense of smell actually returned! The night continued to be a celebration of the senses and of all a year can hold.

The night began with a go-around about the coolest thing we did in the last year:
Macy- (first timer) was visiting DC from MN/WI and was grateful for the opportunity to have studied abroad in Dakar Senegal during 2016.
Steve- (first timer) Spent the last year in Kansas City working with public TV and learned about, and to appreciate, the bbq wonder known as “burnt ends.” This led to the meditation question of the night: “Where is the end of tofu?” Think on that for a while dear Listening Loungers...
Ian- (first timer) made a goal to attend a concert every week during 2016 and he achieved it! His favorite performance of the year was an incredible Chris Thile show with friends of the artist jamming on stage.
Zach- has been studying Spanish for two years and this year he earned a certificate for his fluency. His advice- soak up some Spanish-language Disney films.
Stella- had a year full of responsibilities and so at its close she attempted to reward herself by attending a special conference about green roofs. But, it turned out to be a terribly boring conference, so she swiftly decided to ditch the event and head to NYC instead. The universe rewarded her for her clear and definitive action by securing her the last ticket of the day to a terrific dance performance. She got to see Mark Morris and Baryshnikov who were chatting in the lobby. Lincoln Center delivered a tremendous classical Indian and modern dance evening.
Karen- (first timer) decided to hike a piece of the Appalachian Trail this year and her adventure included a scheduled stay in a tree house in Maryland. She loved it.
Ann- (First timer -heard about DCLL at Third Coast) attended a 1-week Transom.org workshop and her story focused on a talented drum maker in Georgia who constructed his drums whole from a single tree.
Lizzie- this year she sang and played cello at the same time (a first!) with a band and she told her first story as part of a Story District performance.
AC- was delighted to cash in on a Thai cooking lesson his wife got him as a gift and the experience of using a restaurant caliber wok, with enormous flames below, delivered a fried rice and green curry that will not soon be forgotten.
Cat: said the coolest and incredibly challenging experience (but also most profound) of the year was climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro because it was so trying mentally and physically. It reminded her that the best stories have a darker and heavier element but often end with something beautiful. And she was deeply grateful to have met her friend Minahil (our host for the night) who had arranged this event to help her expand her full sensory potential.
Suzanne: had a difficult year but wanted to do at least one thing for herself, and that turned out to be spending time with shepherds and pastoralists in the rural rolling hills of Germany. She set out to make a documentary film about them, appreciated that they were different than she expected (for example, many often use Whatsapp on their smartphones even in the very remote parts of the country). Some previously would travel widely and stay with families along the way. Now that is less common- in part because of climate change and because of other evolutions in the work. She found out there is actually a form online to volunteer to be a shepherd substitute. That was how she initially connected with the many she visited this year.
Kelsey- took a road trip around the country with Utah and Wyoming topping the list of favorite spots visited.
Colleen- said her **favorite thing in the whole world is DCLL and every meeting is the best experience she has each month.
**DCLL author may have taken liberties to interpret Colleen's silence and translate her non-verbal expressions...


Audio:
Suzanne – got things going and was a little sheepish about playing audio for the very firs time but it was terrific. A cameo from a “dignified sheep.” This was raw audio she recorded at Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 2016. Before playing her work she asked us to listen with an ear towards brainstorming what could be done with the piece, how it could be edited and shared more widely.
She spoke with some farmers presenting at the Festival, in town from Maryland, who had brought their sheep to be a featured star. Suzanne interviewed two of the presenters about said sheep, named Napoleon.
A sheep with a Napoleonic complex- Werner Hertzog
On tape questions like: How do you put a diaper on a sheep?
We discussed how sometimes questions that seem obvious are well received by listeners. It can help listeners when the interviewee asks something you wouldn't think of, or that we would be too shy to ask.
Notes: the story may not have a beginning, middle, end, - maybe it could serve as an audio postcard to bring someone somewhere through sound.
Steve followed up with an audio montage in response the Paris attacks. 1 yr ago this past November many were killed in the Paris violence. Steve had just moved to Kansas City. His audio reflects his movement between two religious settings- recorded with his phone - to give a sense of things to tweet out the feelings going around. We had a discussion about “professional” and “unprofessional” sounds and the different settings that can work well for each. Steve's project was based in religion and faith in Kansas City.

AC- has met up with some people like those at Apple who are creating new products. He asked for something like Google Microphones and that it would be great to be able to use bluetooth binaural headphone recorders to record on the go. Discussion about:
What are the priorities that we bring to a recording- motivations?
Emotional reactions? Curiosity? Did the story have resonance?
AC- Shared the story of his recent hardware store adventure. There he stumbled upon a massive marimba band of high school and middle school performers rehearsing. The org is called Sticks and Bars. We went on to discuss the lack of rehearsal spaces within the city for burgeoning artists.
Stella: in the spirit of the holidays...(audio holiday songs) shared a recording of reverberant singing...but its not recorded in a cathedral but a water tower in Colorado- a center for sound experience. Rangely Colorado. Fox 41 Denver.
Conversations followed about acoustically magical spaces such as the few in DC- Canadian Embassy, Einstein Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Mt Vernon Trail under the area where Route 1 hits its overhead bridge, The Portrait Gallery courtyard, Halls of Congress, reading room of Library of Congress. Roosevelt Island.
Zach- shared a few sample themes he composed for the Philadelphia podcast, Distillations (from the Chemical Heritage Foundation)- about chemistry and how it impacts our lives. Samples showcased varying degrees of science-y, wonder-y and innovation-ish concepts expressed through music. Music phrase length and tempo changes were experimented with– gutsy or jarring? Or perfect?

Macy: played audio and then after read accompanying text. Poetry/monologue that she composed. How does reading out loud live versus listening to a recording impact your experience of the piece,? she asked.“The breath of a new soul mingles with the sea breeze...slumber sweetly but the eyes above you have woken up.” Themes of baptisms and funerals and the flows of life, explored.

Colleen: Shared an audio portrait of a drummer. The female drummer told a story of sexism and empowerment through bad-ass performance.

Getting overwhelmed with holiday obligations? Looking for a way to avoid singing around the piano or donning that classic red sweater/bow/pair-of-socks?

Come to the DECEMBER DC Listening Lounge instead:
When: Wednesday Dec 14th
7:30pm-10pm
Where: Minahil's house (email for details) Hobart St NW (Mt Pleasant)

What: Bring any combination of food, drinks, friends and/or audio to share (please limit audio excerpts to 6 minutes or less).

Do some covert or overt holiday recording of music or awkward small talk around the office eggnog pitcher...or just bring something completely unrelated- because there is more to life than pine and presents.

Questions? reply to this email.
Closest Metro: Green/Yellow Columbia Heights, or S2, S4, S9  buses running up and down 16th street, or the 42 from dupont/downtown towards Mt. Pleasant.

Other cool audio stuff:
 Tuesday Dec 13
Musical Instrument Dreams by visiting Maine artist Dianne Ballon

November DCLL HighlightsNovember's lounge started with some welcome tracks from the album Hanky Panky- a Hank Williams cover album from Bond (which featured his dad on keys).
Some (half)jokes were overheard- Q: Ameoba [records] is great.
A: You know, maybe paramecium should open a shop (harharhar)

We kicked off the night with a go-round answering the question:
What is the most unusual place you've heard live music?
Ben- The David Byrne installation at the Governors Island Terminal, with the organ installation, designed so that people visiting the installation were basically playing the building.
When Ben was a kid he lived in the area where the Gov' Island ferry docked and always wondered about the building. The installation allowed him to finally go look (and play) inside! http://creativetime.org/programs/archive/2008/byrne/project.html

Bond- followed with a story of some excellent live music moments- lowlands in Delaware, Firefly Music Festival- at the Woodlands and the trees around all the stages and guests' camping tents. https://fireflyfestival.com/

Mickey- Music in Israel during a high school trip was the most memorable for him. The “Bruce Springsteen of Israel”, David Broza, performed with Jackson Browne- a sunrise concert at Masada. http://www.allmusic.com/album/at-masada-the-sunrise-concert-with-jackson-browne-and-shawn-colvin-mw0002830102/credits

Vicente-Tokyo, 4 stories underground, through a zigzag stairwell, with blacklights or blue, and a submarine style wheel-spin type of door opened him onto a noise show, the band Ruins-Alone. Merzbow, Tatsuya Yoshida, drum and bass. http://www.timeout.com/tokyo/music/merzbow-melt-banana-ruins-alone

Jocelyn talked about the gong concert in the Dupont Underground performed by fellow DCLL'er Seth Horvitz (recorded by multiplied DCLL members) and also a small town Brazilian family porch jam.
​Audio
1) Bond: Sirius- Channel -The Loft: Show- mansion of fun station, NY Dolls,  Buster Poindexter- singing “hot hot hot”recorded. Glitter Punk season. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhZba-P7R18
politically minded songs ahead of the election with lyrics like, “such a boring feeling when you find yourself into a totalitarian state” you don't know what's left, it don't seem right, //funky feeling, you just don't feel so great. Discussions of the feeling of smiles on the outside, dissolving on the inside. The work was described as 'Production clear everywhere but the center is hollow'

2) Jocelyn shared the work of cellist and composer/poet Emily Hope Price
https://emilyhopeprice.wordpress.com/
and since EHP quotes The Oatmeal (illustration) and this article about happiness versus unhappiness: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/unhappy
and The Oatmeal quotes Augusten Burroughs
Augusten Burroughs: How to live unhappily ever after

3)Mickey- played some audio from the Third Coast shortdocs competition. All works 3 minutes or less http://www.thirdcoastfestival.org/overview/competition/_2016-shortdocs-challenge-radio-cinema
Manual cinema- transparencies to the max
Hatch: a man in orbit going round and round
I dream of rattlesnakes (crowd favorite- at the DCLL meeting) 
Take a listen! 
We talked about reverb in the episode of of 99% invisible, where the concepts of acoustically responsive rooms were discussed. Reverb made to feel like Disney Hall or the Kennedy Center etc.

4)Ben, played some tape from Lafayette Louisiana,Tanya Klutz- the bike lady and a story about re-entry and bike repair. We discussed the theories behind and impact of making people pay their own $10 urine test fee while on probation and debated/discussed the indentured servitude of poverty and a the places where the criminal justice system is falling short.

5) Vicente closed out the night with music from Boogie Breakdown, a South African boogie compilation from 1980- 1984, featuring horns, synths etc. http://www.juno.co.uk/products/boogie-breakdown-south-african-synth-disco/619444-01/
We talked about the “US sanctioned cultural boycott” and about the “Bubblegum” sound, then how more of the funky/local influence crept in which evolved into Kwaito of the 90's. (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128014019_
This track from Vicente made us all agree that use of the “awoooo” (wolf-howl) motif is a trend that was clearly retired too soon.
Vicente spins as part of the Modern Class DJ set -boogie funk night at Haydees, Songbyrd and is followable :Modern Class DC on instagram. For updates about future sets

Did you know that the Radio CPR- building was just bought and closing it down in February 2017 (most likely)?? Want to help? Hop on the DC Listening Lounge Facebook page and lets brainstorm.

The DC Listening Lounge was pleased to present a mini-Sound Scene installation during the recent Third Coast International Audio Festival in Chicago Illinois this November. Many thanks to the very hard-working Third Coast staff for helping to make this year's festival of independent audio makers/lovers/workers another great weekend.
   "Simon Sings" was on display for the duration of the conference and DCLL members presented a "pop-up sonic game night" on Saturday for eager audiophiles. Many rounds of "Sounds Against Humanity" were heard reverberation through the halls, syncopated by laughter and cheers. 

Howdy audio fans,
Our pals at Goethe's Hear Now series are hosting an audio event on Tues Nov 15th (details below) so...you should attend...AND we moved the next DC Listening Lounge so that you can. It's now on:
WEDNESDAY Nov 16th (*note the date is a Wednesday*)
Please bring any combination of audio (limit excerpts to 6min or less), food, drink and friends to share. 

When: WED NOV 16 , 7:30pm-10pm
Address: Bond's Apartment
Blair Mill Road (email for details)
Silver Spring, MD, 20910
Questions: Call Bond at (email for number)
---
Other cool audio stuff happening: Get outdoors and start crunching some leaves. 
And....
---
NOV 12
From Beth@ Vanalen: Hope you can join for one or both events this Saturday. The events are public programs organized by Van Alen Institute with site-specific artistic interventions including, mixtapes of local histories and multimedia explorations of demographic shifts. Both events are Crossing the Street initiative projects funded by Office of Planning and the Kresge Foundation. Please let me know if you have any questions and hope to see you on Saturday. 

Intersection Mixtape will take place on November 12, 12–3 p.m. at the lot at corner of Bates and North Capitol Streets NW. You will receive a free mixtape (CD!) - this is a sound portrait of the neighborhood! 

https://www.vanalen.org/events/intersection-mixtape/
Playback Your Story will take place on November 12, 4–7 p.m. at Olmsted Green at Gallaudet University at 800 Florida Avenue NE. Enter through the gate across from Union Market on 6 Street NE. https://www.vanalen.org/events/playback-your-story/
---
NOV 15
You Are Invited:  Tuesday, November 15, 7 – 8:30 pm
Goethe-Institut, 1990 K St. NW, 20th St. entrance

Takoma Radio Takes to the Air!
Launched on July 16, WOWD-LP (aka Takoma Radio) is sharing Driveway Moments for the first time. WOWD is DC’s latest low-power FM station, broadcasting at 94.3 FM and streaming at TakomaRadio.org. This evening will present news about the station’s progress and how to get involved.

DEC 13
 Guest Sound Artist Dianne Ballon presents Musical Instrument Dreams
 Hear Now, an informal group of local producers and radiophiles, presents cutting-edge listening experiences and discussions as well as a chance to hear what’s going on in public radio across the country and around the world.
No charge. RSVP at www.goetheinstitutwashington.eventbrite.com
Goethe-Institut Washington, 1990 K St. NW, Suite 03 (20th Street entrance) (Metro: Farragut North/West/Foggy Bottom)

OCTOBER LOUNGE HIGHLIGHTS: 
October Lounge
Started things off with introductions and mention of our favorite sources of light. Mickey said campfire, Zach- camera flash, Ross- candles, Elisa- the moon, Kyle- microwaves (with or without tin foil inside), Micah- light off the water, George- the sun, Ben-bio-luminescence of immature-stage lightening bugs (resident entomologist), Kate- frosted globe bulbs, Melanie- light up sneakers, Bobak- neon signs, Jocelyn- 70's lamp from her family's house with an orange bulb, Ari- inner light exuding out.
And with that “brilliance” we moved on to the audio portion of the night- well, actually no. First we were teased with an audio temptation from Mickey who almost played us the hold music from Uber Eats, since he had ordered a pizza to share with the group...but then there was some drama about that so we didn't hear the audio, but we did get the pizza.
Kyle kicked things off with audio from a 2016 summer night in DC's Trinidad neighborhood- featuring 10yr old Donnie on guitar, a neighbor sharpening his knives and other porch-side-sonic delights. This lead to chat about the anti-social nature of air conditioning and the specialness of sonic snapshots as a audio glimpse of a place in time.
Mickey moved us from the stoop to the Sidewalks. Sidewalks is his podcast and he played us a beautiful descriptive episode that was born from a post on Medium and read by Molly Jane Bennett. This lead to some voice coaching tips. 1. have the person read the copy all the way through first at least once. 2. when interrupting try to get them conversational- “imagine what you see at that moment x” 3. try to guide the speaker as if they are a character that an actor is attempting to know and convey.
Elisa shared a clip from a conversation recorded during the 3-day festival “Freedom Sounds” marking the opening of the African American Museum of History and Culture. Artist RhymeFest participated in a panel discussion about the social power of music and his reply to one discussion question seemed to call for sound design- so Elisa generated one and posted it to the Smithonian site. This lead to a vibrant discussion about the ethical editorial choices when working with poetic turns of phrase that may or may not be actually factual (such as saying “Marvin Gaye ended the war in Vietnam”). Disturbing and highly contrasting examples were debated thoughtfully and with humor and the concepts of truth v. truthiness all seemed like a timely precursor to the third Presidential debate which would be airing later that night.
Ross shared a self-made composition from his expanding video game music portfolio and some composer favorites were mentioned later (Disaster Piece, Hyperlift Drifter)as well as reflection on how much activity is too much activity in a video game (when does sound guide and when does it compete?).
Ben shared an audio postcard, somewhat covertly or at least somewhat surreptitiously recorded in the Caribbean across a few different years which was a windy expression of shifting US politics/political influence with the threat of sharp blades nearby.
Zach offered a video game version of the Cars song created using chiptune.
Melanie shared an audio mix that she constructed using the voice memos she commissioned (aka requested) from friends to construct a day out watching the Cubs (this was before the Cubs won the World Series!). Which lead to a chat about the value of anonymously uploading sounds both silly and/or innocent and revealing secrets.
And Jocelyn created a compelling new sound design for the opening of the third and final Presidential debate – a live mix, using only sounds recorded at the 2016 NEA Heritage Awards concert. Highlights included an Irish reel, Alaskan three part vocal harmony and some well-timed aching Native American hand crafted flute.
If only the night had ended there- but instead many of us stuck around the watch the third Presidential debate. Thanks so much Mickey for hosting.
Everyone- get to the voting booths!
See you in November the next DC Listening Lounge (which is not on election day).

Many of us are getting excited to flee the political atmosphere and head to Chicago for Third Coast Audio Festival. 

DC Listening Lounge will proudly be showcasing work from the 2016 Sound Scene. Keep an ear tuned to, and eye out for, "Simon Sings," by DCLL member Will Mitchell at the conference. If you're there- come by and make some music.

The next DCLL meeting will be held at Bond's apartment in Silver Spring on Tuesday November 15th at 7:30-10pm.

Please bring any combination of audio (limit excerpts to 6min or less), food, drink and friends to share. 

Address: (email for additional details)
Blair Mill Road
Silver Spring, MD, 20910
Directions from Bond (Metro/North Entrance):From Silver Spring Metro (Red line) get off the south exit and walk pass the NOAA building. After crossing the street (MD-410 E) keep going straight until you reach a parking lot. Then take a left and go pass the Giant. You'll find my apartment building's north entrance to your right across the parking lot. You can't miss it.

Directions (Bus/South Entrance):

Take S2 to the Eastern Av & Blair Mill Rd stop, then walk 3 minutes east up Blair Mill Rd. South entrance will be to your left.

You can also take S4 to the 16th St & Portal Dr (So) stop (although it's a further walk). From there, walk south and take your first left onto Roxanna Rd NW followed by another left when you hit Northgate Rd. Keep going up Northgate Rd until it turns into Blair Mill Rd and walk an additional 3 minutes until you reach the south entrance to your left.

Upon arrival please call me at the following number so I can buzz you in. (email for number)

Some gigs you might want to consider:
 Marketplace, known for an irreverent approach to business and economic news on multiple platforms, is hiring.
A China-based correspondent to cover a three-year expatriate assignment... We're looking for someone who can tell compelling stories of how China's economy works and how it's transforming, along with how China's economy intersects with the rest of the global economy.
An LA-based senior editor to lead the Sustainability Desk, which covers energy and other natural resources, population and agriculture, and climate change. It follows issues such as drought, wildfires and deteriorating infrastructure from a national and often global perspective. Sustainability at Marketplace is highly project-oriented.
Questions? Interested? Feel free to contact me at msawyer@americanpublicmedia.org.
–Audible's Original Content team has begun production on a new documentary sports series. It will include highly-produced, long-form stories (the kind that are really about more than sports).
Our team is looking to hire an additional reporter and producer. These are both full-time, temporary positions with benefits and competitive salaries, that will last for the duration of the first season (32 weeks).
Both positions can be performed remotely (i.e. wherever you are currently based). We might favor candidates in the New York and Boston areas.
You do NOT have to be a huge sports fan to be considered for these positions. It's more important that you have strong storytelling skills and be passionate about long-form audio. You just shouldn't, you know, actively HATE sports.
We are looking to hire both positions quickly, so if you are interested, please apply soon! The application is here.