Meditation: Dawn Chorus Dukes Quarry.

“Thine ear is a sign of My bounty…” Baha’i Writings.

Listening note: At the start of the recording the meditative experience is very quiet. The listening level should be such that towards the end, when the Dawn Chorus is at full level, the birdsong still sounds natural and not too loud. Headphones recommended. 

On Wednesday 2nd June 2021 I took the opportunity to experience the beauty and tranquility of the Dawn Chorus at the abandoned areas of Dukes Quarry in the Peak District, Derbyshire, UK, which is not far from the busy A6 road from Belper to Matlock. Having walked along a short section of narrow lane to access the location and carefully trodden down a wooded track strewn with boulders and branches under torchlight for safety, I extinguished the torch and settled in for some intense meditative listening as the sun gradually arose and we passed from darkness to light. The complete experience, lasting around 1 hour 45 minutes, was recorded in binaural stereo as a perceptual sonic record of the event, which I am inviting you join in listening with me.

The recording presented is an edited version of the whole, which included a lengthy walk-in, considerable waiting in anticipation in darkness at the start, various spoken observations and comments and more extended walking over the stick strewn area near the water cascade, nevertheless the edited recording, without my comments, represents an evocation of the uninterrupted flow of my personal experience of the anticipation of the approach, initiation and blossoming of the spectacular dawn chorus at this location.

As with all my environmental works, this is not a clinical natural history reference recording, or purely an environmental soundscape, but a documentation of my experience, observation and interaction with this sublime location, and its reaction to my presence.

Ultimately, it is an invitation for us all to commune with the natural world we inhabit, to tread with reverence, care and respect, to reflect on the outcomes of our presence and learn from our experiences. That learning, as we all realise in these challenging times, must involve changes in our own behaviour in order to sustainably ‘carry forward an ever advancing civilisation’.

dallas simpson, 07/06/21

Meditation: Dawn Chorus Dukes Quarry

F16 Falcon 'Gismo' at Scampton Airshow, 10/09/17.  Pilot Tom de Moortel. Various passes, recorded in the spectator area. High Quality Audio - full 3-D headphone binaural surround sound from Sound Devices 744T recorder. Headphones Essential. PLAY LOUD!
Enjoy.

Meditation: Dawn Chorus Dukes Quarry

dallas simpson

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