TOSHIYA TSUNODA AND THE SOUNDS OF DARK ECOLOGY

There is now so much discussion about how the relationship between humans and the rest of nature have deteriorated that terms like 'anthropocene extinction' have been coined to describe the extent of the impact of human activity on the environment. The idea is that human activity is not only evidenced by the amount of pollution being produced and the impact of global warming on rising sea levels but also the impact of human activity on  earth events like the earthquakes in Oklahoma. 

Music and the arts have always explored the relationship between humans and the rest of nature. In As You Like It Shakespeare refers to 'Sermons in Stones' which could be the subtitle given to Richard Skelton's book set in the Lake District Beyond the Fell Wall. Now, as human activity is said to have become the prime driver of earth system function, there is a new sense of urgency. Human activity is the crucial element in our understanding of the environment.

This has led to a shift in how the environment is portrayed and depicted in the arts. Instead of putting Nature on a pedestal and removing all traces of human activity, it is through human activity that Nature is now being portrayed. One example of this is in the area of music and the musical exploration of the impact of human activity on the environment. Japanese sound recordist Toshiya Tsunoda has produced his 'solid vibration' recordings with an unusual approach. He uses his microphones to capture the sounds of human made infrastructure. In doing so he captures:

"in microscopic sonic detail their tightly-bound relationships with their surrounding environment - anchors, buoys, piers, road surface asphalt, all in quiet dialogue with the rock the wind, the waves and deep ocean currents." (http://thequietus.com/articles/19373-ecology-climate-change-music-art-field-recordings

This approach allows the listener to hear the impact of human activity on the world around them. They say that seeing is believing but in this case it is sound that is being used to provide a greater understanding of the impact of human activity on the environment. More detailed and informed reviews of Tsunoda's work can be read on:

Brian Olewick's blog at: http://olewnick.blogspot.com.au/2013_03_01_archive.html 

D.B. Harps blog at: http://twicezonked.blogspot.com.au/2009_04_01_archive.html