Field-Recording Workshop
Many thanks for your interest in the field-recording workshop with Félix Blume. Fill out the questions on the form to be on the list for upcoming workshops. You will then receive the info before it will be online for future workshops. You can ask your questions in the form and I’ll answer them by email, so we’ll get in touch. None of the field below are mandatory (except name and email), so feel free to only fill those if you just want to add you email to the list…
FIELD-RECORDING WORKSHOP
Each year, Félix Blume offers different workshops in different countries and contexts. The workshop of this year is already full, but you can subscribe to the mailing-list to stay informed about upcoming workshops.
2023 WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION (as an example)
In the village of Azillanet (France), where I grew up, this workshop will allow us to think about soundscape listening both as a practice and as a way of approaching the world surrounding us. Taking this territory as a terrain of experimentation, we will listen to the tiniest details, from flies buzzing to the cicada’s singing, from birdsong to cricket’s song. We will use sounds as a basic material to propose a listening of the place, along with human and non-human inhabitants. We will try to perceive the dialogues between them, in the limit of the worlds (the village and the surrounding countryside), between day and night, between wandering and dreaming… We will distance ourselves from realism (if reality exists) to translate an experience or sensation into sound. We will (re)think notions such as point of view and point of listening.
Together, we will question ourselves about the construction of a sonic narrative. We will develop a narrative taking a distance from the words. Instead, we will look for information, musicality, memories, documentary elements, position and resistance statements within each sound…
We will consider listening as our principal sharing tool, using the collective sonic work that will result during the workshop as an excuse to share. We will invite listeners to create their own story, while offering them the pleasure of listening to their territory, but also the pleasure of dreaming with their ears wide open. The workshop will end with an open listening session with the public and inhabitants from Azillanet.
During the workshop week, we will discuss and practice the following topics:
- in situ listening (through listening exercises)
- sound pieces listening (both historical and contemporary)
- stereo recording as the base of sound pieces (through different techniques and setups available to the participants)
- critical analysis of sound recordings
- sound recording via contact microphones and hydrophones
- sound file notation, sound library storage and organization
- sound exploration of Azillanet’s and surrounding territory (garrigues, rivers, small woods, caves, etc…)
- morning and night time sound recordings
- sound creation through a collective project
- sound editing and design
- mixing and creation of a final sound piece as a group
- public broadcast and presentation of the resulting piece
REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATING TO THE WORKSHOP
This workshop is addressed to people who already practice listening and field-recording (even at a beginner level). To participate in this workshop It is necessary to own and be familiar with sound recorders and to have editing software skills (image or sound). If you have doubts about the level of your skills, feel free to contact me in advance.
NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS
This number of participants will not exceed a maximum of 10 people, in order to ensure a workshop with little group work and to provide all necessary assistance for the unwinding of individual experiences. Submission of an application does not guarantee your participation in the workshop. Selection of participants will be made, in order to favor an heterogeneous and coherent group.
The workshop will take place as indicated in the calendar below. Please note that the first submissions will be prioritized.
SCHEDULE
6 days workshop (7 nights), total of 45 hours.
Each day, the workshop will take around 7 to 8 hours per day, from 9:30 to 18:30 (according to the needs and willings of each participant). Individual support will be possible in addition to the group program (according to everyone’s needs). The schedule below will be adapted after the selection of the participants, in order to better address everyone’s expectations.
Day 1 : Arriving in the afternoon and welcome dinner.
Day 2 : Presentation of each participant, places and workshop planning.
In situ listening exercises.
Stereo sound recording, study of different stereo recording setup, outdoor recordings and comparative listening.
Day 3 : Listening to historical sound pieces.
Definition of the common project and different experimentation fields, planning of the sound recordings to be made on the following days.
Sound recording methodology.
Sound recorders and recording basics.
Acoustic and digital basics (if needed, according to everyone’s level and experience).
Sound recording in groups of two.
Day 4 : Sound pieces listening.
Individual or in group sound recording, trying to experiment with new sound recording setups.
Critical listening of the recordings made the previous day.
Review of the project group progress.
Listening, derushing and beginning of the montage, individual or in little groups.
Presentation of the process of some of Félix Blume’s projects.
Day 5 : Sound pieces listening.
Individual or in group sound recording at dusk at a place to be defined together (for example at Minerve, nearby village).
Sound editing examples, editing and plug-in principles, EQ, and RX Noise.
Individual or group sound editing.
Listening of a first mix of the sequences that will compose the final piece.
Day 6 : Sound pieces listening.
Extra sound recordings (if needed).
Individual or in group sound editing.
Group sound editing.
Final stage of a general structure draft in group.
Day 7 : Final group editing of the sound piece.
Final editing.
End-of-course open listening with the inhabitants of the village.
Day 8 : Departure
PLACE
At Azillanet, a small village in southern France (360 inhabitants), 40 minutes from Narbonne (nearest train station), 40 minutes from Carcassonne (train station and airport) or 1 hour 30 minutes from Toulouse (airport).
Azillanet on wikipedia
EQUIPMENT
Each participant must be autonomous with his own sound recording material: sound recorder, microphones, headphones and computer.
Some material will be available for the participants, such as:
2 pairs of ORTF Schoeps
2 pairs of MS Schoeps
1 pair of AB DPA4006
Binaural Sanken Cos11D and LOM.
Hydrophones, geophones and Aquarian contact microphones, LOM, Jez Riley French, AKG C411 etc…
Electromagnetic sensors LOM.
6 Genelec 8030 Speakers and 2 Genelec 8020 speakers.
Tripods, wind protectors, boom, adapted accessories and wiring.
LE COUVENT, workshop and accommodation site
In an old convent with a shaded interior courtyard offering peace and tranquility. Old building, located in the old village center. Ideal place for stays with friends, family or residence, all the spaces combine intimacy and conviviality.
Spaces :
- Shaded inner courtyard
- Dining room and kitchen on the ground floor
- Working room in the building
- 4 independent rooms to be shared by 2 or 3 participants
- Shared shower and toilets
COSTS
Workshop cost = 600 €
Not including food and accommodation, listed below. This cost includes breakfast and arrival and departure transportation from the nearest train station (Narbonne or Lézignan Corbières).
Please note that this workshop is not supported by an educational establishment, and it cannot be paid through this type of financing. If this is your case, you can contact Phonurgia, they offer multiple workshops focused on sound practices and they welcome this type of financing.
Accommodation costs
18€ / night in a double or triple room (to share with the other participants), total of 126€ for 7 nights.
Some other option are available in the village if you would like to have more privacy and a better place to stay. I could send you more info if needed.
Food costs
Self-service breakfast is included in the workshop cost
Midday meals (starter, course and dessert), as well as a light dinner have a cost of 25€ per day, total of 165€ for the whole course (lunch on departure day is not included).
A vegetarian diet is available, please do not hesitate to mention your food restrictions at the time of registration.
Flat-rate and payment
Payments will be made by bank transfer before the beginning of the course or by cash upon arrival.
Transportation
If you come by car, car sharing is encouraged. Free parking is available only a few steps away from accommodation. The other participants, we will come and pick you at the nearest train station (Narbonne or Lézignan Corbières) trying to group together the arrivals and departures (in some cases, you may be asked to wait at the train station at the moment of your depart or arrival).