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...the sounds in the wilderness have something to ‘say’ to us about the environment, about the season, the time of day, about the life that we encounter in this space
— Westerkamp, 1988. Listening and soundmaking : a study of music-as-environment
I came to B-CSC without specific expectations, and I leave with a wealth of visual and audio material. I have opened my eyes and ears to the unique energy of this remote location—to the surprises, to the beauty, the unexpected, and the uncomfortable. Experiencing time and space away from my everyday experience was a very important aspect of the residency. This was a completely new site for me, having never visited the Australian Alpine region before, and I was able to find time for reflection and experimentation in a state of perceptual receptivity. I have since learned about the history of the region—the changes imposed upon the natural system and the impacts of one of the largest hydroelectric schemes in Victoria, another example of human intervention in nature. Every day has been different; each of the sites I visited featured a unique temporal complexity (with differences in temperature, light, sound, air, weather, etc.). This framework allowed for an unscripted process of listening/recording and reacting to the variable conditions as they occurred.
The recorded sounds and images of my journey, my artistic findings, and new knowledge/research of the region will be used to create a new body of work. I expect the nature of my work to change in accordance with this new material, which I am excited to share with audiences—who may otherwise never have been able to see and hear the story of this bioregion. This has been an unforgettable experience; the sounds and sights I have experienced and their fundamental power has touched me deeply.