During my trip to Europe this winter break, I had the privilege of seeing the Alhambra from the Mirador de San Nicolás viewpoint in Granada, Spain. As the sun was setting, the glow of the Alhambra was one of the most picturesque sights I have laid my eyes on. In the background of my view, the snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains glistened as the sky turned from blue, to pink, to complete darkness. As I was watching the sunset from this lookout, there was a group of three Flamenco artists playing the guitar and singing a traditional Andalusian song. Flamenco music and dancing can be found everywhere in Granada and the addition of this part of the culture made my experience more memorable. After hearing the three men play that night, I was hooked and knew that I needed to adventure to a traditional Tablao for a Flamenco show. I chose Jardines de Zoraya and was blown away by the synchronicity and fluidness of the performance.
With that in mind, I chose this audio because it reminded me of the song that I heard the day I visited Alhambra. Without hearing this music, the image is stunning, yet the addition of the sounds makes it hard not to crave being there. The music enhances the rich cultural aspects of Granada and ensures that the Alhambra is more than a beautiful monument.
Terms of Use: “Sounds of the Alhambra” by Kyla Cacoilo is licensed underCC BY-SA 4.0
I’ve been seeing a lot of news stories about the planetary alignment that is supposed to happening over the next few days. When I began to research for this assignment, I began looking for astrophotography. I ended up settling on the above photo, taken in Wadesboro, NC by Thomas Smillie in 1900. There is a large collection of his photographs and cyanotypes on display on the Smithsonian website; Smillie was the first official Smithsonian photographer and the first curator of photography at the museum. I’d highly recommend looking at his work if you’re interested in early photography or the history of the Smithsonian.
This particular photo caught my eye because of the striking composition, but also the scratchiness of the background. The combination of the subject matter and the way the film was processed gives the photo an eerie, unsettling quality, not unlike that of early horror films. When I was searching for an audio track to include with the photo, Apparitions felt like it appropriately captured that sense of unease. The combination of these two works together, to me, feels evocative of the kind of superstitious dread you might feel when you’ve just watched a scary movie and then have to walk up a dark flight of stairs.
I chose to include an image of a dragon because this week I have been engrossed in the newest addition to the Empyrean Series written by Rebecca Yarros. This series is a romantic fantasy about dragons, wyverns, gryphons, and more magical creatures. I coupled the audio of pages turning with this image to convey the feeling of an onlooker watching me read this series. This series is intense and has its dark moments, and it’s strange to think about how the soothing the sound of turning pages is all that can be heard as I am transported into this magical realm of dragons.
Originally I thought to accompany this image with sounds of war, fire, or ‘fantasy music,’ but I think the juxtaposition of pages quietly turning is more impactful.
Terms of Use: “Physically Present, Mentally Elsewhere” by Grace Bayliss is licensed underCC BY-SA 4.0
I wanted a fun, colorful and funky photo to use for this assignment and the first thing that came to mind was a chameleon. Chameleons are my favorite reptile as well. This image specifically stuck out to me due to the composition, the contrast of colors, and how vibrant it is. The background also stuck out to me due to the colors and the bokeh like blur that is making the background out of focus. This puts more of a focus and emphasis on the tree limb and the chameleon. The jazz guitar sound adds to the funky look of the chameleon as the chameleon is very vibrant and colorful. I wanted to use a rainforest sound but then I changed my mind because I wanted to go with something more outside of the box. I looked at rave music, lo-fi, and house music but then I found this Jazz sound. The sound titled “more Jazz guitar.wav,” is a 120 beats per minute which creates the relaxed and upbeat ambience Then calm jazz guitar music created a different vibe and ambience which helped to change the meaning of the photograph and how you look at the chameleon.
Terms of use: “The Colorful Jazz Chameleon” by Katie Kimberly is licensed under CC BY 2.0. It is attributed to the photographer, Michael Kuhn. The sound originally created by Sub-d is licensed under CC0 by 1.0.
Just yesterday, I finished reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey and sought to craft my post in relation to the novel. I came across an image of a vintage Electro-shock therapy (EST) machine from the 1930s and felt it would be a fair representation of the novel since EST plays such a significant role in the tale. The title of the post, “He Who Marches Out of Step Hears Another Drum“, comes from the novel as well. The line refers to someone who is going against the established social norms and doing his own thing. Those who march to the beat of their own drum run the risk of colliding with hospital staff and being sentenced to EST. To enhance the image, I sourced two audio files, the first is the sound of a hydraulic hammer press starting up and the second is the sound of electricity buzzing. The sound of the hydraulic hammer press was included because it augments the foreboding feel of the image in conjunction with the sound of sparking electricity. I used Audacity to merge these two audios in a way that allowed the hydraulic hammer press to rev up to full speed prior to the crackle of the electric shock and created a new master audio file for embedding into the post.
Terms of use “He Who Marches Out of Step Hears Another Drum” by Sara DeRoo is licensed underCC by 0 1.0
I had the “Boop Oop a Doop” song stuck in my head for a few days – the one from Betty Boop. I’ve only seen the cartoon a few times, but it is certainly catchy. There is this one version on YouTube, and then I thought it would be a fun bit of audio for this assignment. Helen Kane sang the linked YouTube version, but I noticed many comments referred to an “Esther Jones.” I didn’t think too much of it then and continued my search for a song for the assignment. The search Betty Boop on Internet Archive guided my journey, and I found the results “Mae Questel, the voice of Betty Boop” and then the track “Don’t Take my Boop Oop E Doop Away.” This was the song. After retrieving the song, I thought, huh, that’s strange – Mae Questel is another name. My history teacher senses tingled, and it had been a while since I did a Wiki deep dive, so I searched for Betty Boop on Wikipedia, and sure enough – Mae Questel was a Jewish actress who played Betty Boop and Olive Oyl. So that was one name down – Who, then, was Helen Kane?
The Betty Boop Wiki explained who the other voice actresses were, and further scrolling led me to a reference about the Helen Kane Lawsuit. Helen Kane sued Fleischer Studios and Paramount in 1932 for allegedly copying her distinctive “baby” singing style to create Betty Boop. Another handy, dandy Wikipedia search later for “Baby Esther” led me to the page of Esther Lee Jones – the same Esther Jones of the YouTube comments from earlier. Baby Esther was an African American child singer and entertainer in the late 1920s known for using a distinctive “baby” or “boop-oop-a-doop” vocal style. During Helen Kane’s infringement lawsuit against Fleischer Studios over Betty Boop, evidence showed that Baby Esther had performed this style earlier and, in fact, was the inspiration for both Fleischer’s Betty Boop and Kane’s flapper persona, weakening Kane’s claim that she originated it. This testimony helped lead to the dismissal of Kane’s case in 1934.
There is little known about Esther Jones; unfortunately, there are no recordings of her songs or voice. What a piece of history that would have been—the first Betty Boop on record. But alas, we live in this timeline. And there was my little wormhole, peaking back through history over an unfamiliar topic. As for the rose pictured, Betty Boop has her own flower as well, a floribunda rose, to be specific, which was produced by rose grower Tom Carruth.
Worry, anxiety, and distress are normal emotions to have in life. Worry, anxiety, and distress, however, are not the end of the story. For me personally, you can bridle these thoughts and emotions by seeking professional support, confiding in a trusted group of friends, or by confiding in someone you trust and love. I chose the image Rainbow over the Missouri because, as someone that has and manages anxiety, I believe that in the midst of times of darkness, there is peace, hope, and beauty always present. Some folks need a little light to make it evident and others hold onto faith when there is no light. Others may need a reminder of hope from a familiar and trusting voice. Although the beautiful green landscape and waters are shadowed by darkness in the image, I love that the rainbow is present with just the right amount of sunlight to make it appear. To supplement the emotions this image evokes to me, I chose Pitx’s Dark Side of Tranquility. The use of acoustic guitar is calming for me while the 120 beats per minute express the uptick anxiety can have on someone like me. Anxiety no longer keeps me down as long as I seek support or just have that someone I love and trust to lend a listening ear.
Hygge is the Danish and Norwegian concept of embracing comfort, coziness, and contentment during the cold months. Since Tallahassee is experiencing its yearly one month of winter, I have been enjoying the opportunity to embrace coziness and comfort. I feel that this photo perfectly exemplifies a sense of cozy comfort. What could be more peaceful and warm than reading a book in fuzzy socks by the fire?
I added the sound of a cat purring because this is one of the coziest sounds imaginable. I am biased, of course, since I love my two cats immeasurably. However, some studies have shown that the sound of a cat purring may actually lower your blood pressure! For me at least, the sound of a cat purring immediately evokes a sense of warmth and peace. This sound adds that additional layer of comfort to the photo and implies that, out of frame, there is a cat enjoying the Hygge lifestyle with you. If you have a cat, you know that they are the perfect companion to the Hygge lifestyle, as there is nothing a cat loves more than a warm nap.
Upon researching topics the idea of the Industrial Revolution came into mind as I’ve always been more of a city buff. Yet at the same time I enjoy nature and it’s gifts such as horses, dogs, cats, trees, and flowers. How can someone want to both be in an urban center yet have nature all around them at the same time? Although I’ve never been or lived in London I have lived in New York and often would find myself strolling in Central Park, appreciating flower stands, or watching birds and squirrels make homes in the trees. Wondering why people are drawn to the nostalgia of living more among nature it brought me to my audio choice being a part of Beethoven’s 6th Symphony, specially the pastoral suite pt. III. The theme of the pastoral contrasting with London a portrait of Industrial Era London may seem strange at first. However, when you look more closely at the painting you see elements of nature all through the cityscape such as the roads still being open dirts, trees growing along the buildings, and storefronts painted with earthy colors. It makes me feel that people even in large cities still feel a sense of nostalgia for when humans were more immersed in nature and are still trying to recreate it.
Over the last few months my sister has really gotten into baking, specifically iced sugar cookies. I have never seen her take pleasure in a hobby before, but when she gets to cooking, I can see her face light up when her masterpiece comes out of the oven and it’s time to decorate. Looking through all of the pictures on Unsplash, none of them were really speaking to me on a personal level until this one caught my eye, and my sister immediately came to mind.
The audio to pair was easy to select. How it came so easy, you may ask? Well, my sister is what we like to call our “manic baker.” Jokingly, we describe her as this because she cooks as though she is being timed (with a countdown to the end of the world) and has no sense of the mess she makes while doing it. If you were to see my kitchen after my sister bakes, you would think the Tasmanian Devil went through it. It is truly chaotic, but I can attest that her finished product does not reflect the process. The audio I chose is very upbeat and just what I imagine is playing in my sister’s head while she bakes. Maybe there’s a method to the madness?
Terms of Use “Madness in the Kitchen” by Kaleah Gonzalez CC BY-NC 4.0
