HearSay Audio Arts Festival, Kilfinane, Ireland 2017
Well the flights have been booked, the car has been hired and I'm almost set to leave for Ireland in just over a week's time. It was by chance that I discovered HearSay in the spring and applied for a past just in time before the deadline closed. I was delighted to be accepted and RSVPed straight away and then thought about the logistics afterwards. As I usually do.
This happened before I was involved with Sound Salon and Sound Walk Sunday and my involvement in geolocated audio has deepened since then so I am really excited about talking to people about how audio can be taken to a new level when pinned to a location. I was pleasantly surprised to see there will be a geolocation experience at the festival this year.
'Stranger Kilfinane' is a geolocated audio walk through the village featuring the voices, sounds and stories from local people. I can already see it floating my boat- geolocation, oral history, storytelling...all my boxes ticked. Thank you Chris Brookes, Cathy Fitzgerald and Annie McEwan for that.
I won't spend the entire weekend wandering around Kilfinane with headphones on...my plan is to absorb and learn from some of the best producers and artists in the field. Maybe nick some of their ideas too ;-) Ok, be inspired is a better way to put it.
I need this time away to collect my thoughts. More importantly than that, I am seeking validation and encouragement. I am my worst critic, so much so that a lot of stuff just never sees the light of day.
I'm also looking forward to catching up with Alan Hall again. He taught me on the MA Radio at Goldsmiths 1999-2000. It was him that helped me get my foot in the studio door at BBC Radio Three. His radiocraft made a lasting impression on me, nothing is too otherworldly for him and he taught me to think 360 when making audio.
