The China: Temple Bells & Crowds sound library was recorded in two locations. The first within the Yungang Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage site from the Wei Dynasty era, and the second, an ancient Taoist temple built in the Tang Dynasty in the outskirts of Beijing.

The library includes recordings of large prayer bells, Buddhist wind chimes, wooden wishing sticks adorned with twinkling bells, background and foreground crowd walla in Mandarin, Chinese, birds, and other ambient sounds captured on location in stereo. We’ve also included some bonus designed sounds made from the recordings.

These authentic recordings offer a sonic window into the atmosphere of ancient Chinese temples and shrines as they exist today. The sounds can be useful for adding realism to cinematic, game, or multimedia projects requiring an accurate representation of this cultural setting, or as fodder for creating mystical and spiritual designs.

Specs:
34 Sounds - 18 Buddhist Temple, 9 Taoist Temple, 7 Designed Sounds 
Total Runtime 48:44
1.64GB in Total
Stereo - 24 bit, 96kHz
Detailed UCS Metadata

Website: www.aha-sound.com

China Temple Bells & Crowds Demo

The Art Gallery Crowds sound library invites you into the immersive world of an art gallery. Recorded in a Los Angeles gallery across multiple spaces, from vast concrete halls to intimate wooden galleries, this collection captures the true ambiance of these cultural sanctuaries.

The primary focus of the library is the movement and chatter of small to large multilingual crowds in various spaces, and the arrhythmic footfalls on creaking wooden floors and echoing concrete paths. You'll also hear snippets of security radios and guardians making their rounds, kids playing, laughing and crying, and camera shutters clicking.

Whether you're crafting an immersive cinematic museum scene, composing an atmospheric soundtrack, or designing a multimedia installation, this authentic collection provides a sonic window into the living world of art galleries.

Specs:
-12 Sounds
-Total Runtime 38:54
-1.14GB in Total
-Stereo - 24 bit, 96kHz
-Detailed UCS Metadata

Art Gallery Crowds Demo

A while back we stayed at an AirBNB near Joshua Tree National Park. The hosts set up a bird feeder right outside the porch which inevitably drew what seemed to be the entirety of the region's wildlife to our doorstep, including a bobcat and some coyotes. Unfortunately, we didn’t get any sound from the bobcat, and only subpar recordings from the coyotes, but the Gambel’s Quails stole the show and gave us a lot of interesting and goofy sounding bird calls to listen to. The atmosphere the birds created was so interesting to us that we spent countless hours listening, taking photos and recording them. Anyway, we love those little goofballs so much that we’re sharing their performances with all of you for free! Enjoy!

Specs:
- 22 Sounds
- Total Runtime 17:56
- 1.31GB in Total
- Stereo - 24 bit, 192kHz
- Detailed UCS Metadata

Joshua Tree Bird Party Demo

Specs:

390 Sounds

Total Runtime 19 hours 41 Min.

43.9 GB in Total

Stereo - 24 bit, 96kHz (a few 192kHz files, and a few mono recordings of hard fx)

Detailed Universal Category System (UCS) Metadata

14 UCS Categories & 17 Ambience Subcategories

Immerse yourself in the authentic Soundscapes of Modern China—the result of a year-long journey. This collection captures the diverse sonic tapestry of urban, suburban, and rural areas in Beijing, Chongqing, Guangdong, Shaanxi, Yunnan, Liaoning, Sichuan, and beyond.

With over 390 high-quality recordings (96kHz, 24-bit), this collection is perfect for anyone seeking to add authentic Chinese ambiences to their projects.

Some of what you can expect to hear:

Urban Soundscapes: Bustling markets and lively streets to the serene corners of city parks, experience the pulse of Chinese metropolises.

Natural Soundscapes: Mountain streams and diverse wildlife.

Transportation Soundscapes: High-speed trains, metros, trams, boats, and unique vehicles like the "San Beng Zi" (three-wheeled trucks) paint a vivid picture of China's varied transportation landscape.

Cultural Soundscapes: Temple ambiences, traditional markets, and festival sounds bring China's rich heritage to life.

Weather Soundscapes: Experience the pitter-patter of rain, the rumble of thunder, and the whisper of wind across different Chinese settings.

Crowd Soundscapes: Authentic Mandarin walla, crowd atmospheres, and the distinct sounds of daily life.

Whether you're working on a project set in China or need versatile ambient sounds for any type of media, our library offers a wealth of options. Many of these sounds can seamlessly fit into non-China related content, providing a rich resource for various creative endeavors.

Check out our metadata spreadsheet for a full list of sounds included in the library. 

The current metadata is exported from Soundly due to unreleased features in Basehead 2024. The files themselves contain the full metadata, and an updated file with additional fields will be provided once Basehead 2024 is officially released.

Gear used in this library:

Zoom F6

LOM Uši Pro

Triton Phantom Fethead

Wildtronics Pro Mono Stereo Parabolic

Lom Geophone

Zoom F1

SP-TFB-2 Sound Professionals In-Ear Binaural

Zoom SSH-6

Soundscapes of Modern China

Soundscapes of Modern China Sound Library Preview

Specs:

39 Sounds

Total Runtime 1 hours 13 Min.

2.35 GB in Total

Stereo - 24 bit, 96kHz

Detailed Universal Category System (UCS) Metadata

Experience the vibrant Soundscapes of Hong Kong! This collection is a Sonic Snapshot into the dynamic sonic landscape of one of Asia's most diverse and exciting cities.

With 39 high-quality recordings (96kHz, 24-bit), this collection is essential for anyone looking to add authentic Hong Kong ambiences to their projects.

Some of what you can expect to hear:

Urban Soundscapes: From bustling traffic intersections to park atmospheres, experience the rhythm of Hong Kong's urban life.

Transportation Ambiences: MTR trains and station atmospheres.

Crowd Ambiences: Authentic Cantonese walla, mixed with English and Mandarin, reflecting the city's international character, as well as some cheering and clapping from an office party.

Distinctive Hong Kong Elements: The iconic sound of Hong Kong’s crosswalk alerts for the blind.

Whether you're working on a project set in Hong Kong or need diverse urban sounds for any production, our library offers a rich palette of options. Many of these sounds can seamlessly fit into any cosmopolitan setting, providing a valuable resource for various creative projects.

Check out our metadata spreadsheet for a full list of sounds included in the library.

The current metadata is exported from Soundly due to unreleased features in Basehead 2024. An updated file with additional fields will be provided once Basehead 2024 is officially released.

Gear used in this library:

Zoom F6

LOM Uši Pro

Sonic Snapshot: Hong Kong

Sonic Snapshot: Hong Kong Sound Library Preview

Here's another micro library giving you a Sonic Snapshot into the ambiences of Sultan Ahmed in Istanbul. Hear sounds from the tram that passes through town, large crowd walla inside the Blue Mosque and the call to prayer inside the Grand Bazaar. We only had an 11-hour layover to explore, but we hope to come back this beautiful city and record more sounds!

Sonic Snapshot Istanbul Preview

This library features ambiences recorded in China's Sichuan Mountains, captured primarily from dusk to dawn using drop rig recording equipment. While I aimed to exclude all human-made sounds in this collection, one of my favorite recordings has the sound of distant Buddhist prayer bells chiming as birds begin their morning chorus. A couple of files contain minimal human presence, but the vast majority are purely natural soundscapes. Finding locations free from human activity in China is difficult, making these recordings especially valuable.
The recordings are enriched with UCS naming conventions and detailed metadata, including identifications of many sub-tropical bird species identified using Chirpity and Merlin Bird ID. Some species you can expect to hear include Cuckoo Birds, Great Barbets, Koels, Nightjars, Thrushes, and Roosters.
Listeners can experience low-noise natural ambiences featuring dawn bird choruses, frogs and crickets at night, bat activity, water sources, and rainfall recordings.
*Note: All sounds in this library are included in the Soundscapes of Modern China (SSMC) collection. If you'd like to upgrade from this library to SSMC, please email info@aha-sound.com for a special discount code.*
21 Files | 21 Sounds
Total Runtime 63 min.
1.22 GB in Total
Stereo - 24 bit, 96kHz
Detailed Universal Category System (UCS) Metadata

Sichuan Nature Ambiences Preview

Sichuan Nature Preview

This library features a Sonic Snapshot into the sonic signature of Shanghai, China. Hear traffic ambiences from a city with the world’s highest EV adoption rate, street sweeper bells played by workers driving three-wheeled trucks loaded with cardboard, walla from art galleries and metro stations, and the low-frequency drones of passing ships in the Huangpu River at the Shanghai Bund.

Sonic Snapshot: Shanghai Preview

We recently visited Shanghai, and our BNB had an electric mahjong table — so naturally, we recorded it. Hear all the mechanical sounds it makes, from the magnetic dice roller to the automatic shuffler and dispenser. We also captured manual shuffling, as well as tile and table foley. Many of these sounds can be repurposed for designed mech SFX as well.

Sonic Snapshot: Hong Kong Sound Library Preview

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