Site responsive live recordings using only sounds and objects recorded in the event venue.

Live recordings

As part of the River Stour Trust’s 50th anniversary celebration in 2018, and funded by the Dedham Vale AONB Sustainable Development Fund, sound recordist Stuart Bowditch recorded conversations with people who contribute to the conservation and preservation of the River Stour, the border of Essex and Suffolk.

I am very grateful to each of the following people for their generous contributions of time, knowledge and experiences to the project:  

Robert Erith
Robert Baker
Tony Platt
Lesley Ford-Platt
Catherine Smith
Simon Amstutz
Emma Black
Martin Gosling
Brenda Gosling
Sally Bartrum
Nigel Chapman
​Dave Dignum
Cat Burrows
Arthur Studd
Mark Prina
Will Akast
Ben Norrington
Adrian Walters

​RST Volunteers:
Jim Lunn
Paul Roberts
	
AONB Volunteers:
William Ford
Bob Smith
Lorna McGain
Howard Leader
Will Eden
Peter McGain
David Dale
Ian Thompson
​Steve Pritchard
​Deena Harding
​
These podcasts are complimented by three text installations, one at the Granary Tea Room in Sudbury, and one each on the River Stour Trust boats 'Rosette' and 'Edwardian Lady'. More information on the project website here http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/confluent.html

Confluent: River of Words

A project by Stuart Bowditch following in the footsteps of J A Baker, author of The Peregrine (1967), making field recordings around the River Blackwater in Essex and deriving work from those recordings.

Project website and blog are at https://www.resoundingessex.co.uk

This project was funded by an Arts Council England 'Develop Your Creative Practice' Grant 2019-20.

Bandcamp

Resounding - Field recordings around the River Blackwater, Essex

'Minute' was commissioned by mimosa|moise for their series of live events at Studio 3.03. They donated 9 very small objects from their studio space and these became the source for the sounds used in the performance. These included some rather challenging items including a plastic Christmas cake decoration, a homegrown chili pepper, 2 paper clips, an ear ring, castanets, a shell, very small beads, a light bulb and a marble. 

This studio version was recorded soon after the live performance and gives a fair representation of the set at the event. 

Many thanks to the hosts Martin and Lucia for their hospitality and to all those who attended.


Hybernation - Minute 130211

Hymn 007 was created and performed using recordings made and objects found within The Union Chapel during two weeks of March 2010. The live set was performed as part or Arctic Circle's Daylight series of events at the Chapel. Unfortunately I didn't press record on the day (I was distracted after dropping the laptop onto the hard stone church floor), so recreated this version using the same recordings and objects. They included a hymn book, a coffee cup and cardboard sleeve (served by Belinda), a safety pin, a 2 pence piece from the donation bucket (returned), the door to the stairwell, running up the stairwell, a band playing two weeks before (apologies). The title was inspired by the board that for months had been displaying 007 as its only suggested hymn. Also on the bill were the excellent Marconi Union and Grasscut. 

Thanks to Ben Eshmade, Katie English, Belinda Feldman and The Union Chapel.

Hybernation - Hymn 007

My travelling companion and I were in Den Bosch, Netherlands, for the weekend and found St.John's Cathedral whilst wandering around. There was a service in proceedings for the celebration of Pentecost. You can hear the opening and closing of the gates on the stalls as people come to sit down, and also in the middle section of music as people get up to queue for their communion wafers.

Photo by Ruth Philo.

Sint Janskathedraal, Den Bosch, Netherlands - 27th May 2023

On the fifth day of our walk along the Camino de Santiago I went to record the bells of Igrexa De San Tirso in the small town of Palas de Rei. The plan was to record from around 7:55 until 8:05 with the church bells in the middle of the recording, a strategy I have employed for many years now. Unfortunately, although I could see the bells, they didn't ring. But you can enjoy the songs and calls of a Wren, Robin, Blackbird, Long Tailed Tit, Song Thrush, Carrion Crow and Great Tit. To witness the impact of human activity, see how the bird calls diminish with the arrival of gathering peregriños. You can hear more successful attempts at recording bells in this fashion on my Touch Radio broadcast https://touchradio.org.uk/radio146.html

Igrexa De San Tirso, Palas De Rei, Galicia, Spain - 3rd April 2023

In August 2014 I went for a walk with artist Cathie Cox to explore the riverside environs of West Thurrock. We started at St.Clement's Church (which featured in the film Two Weddings and a Funeral) and its rather incongruous neighbour the huge Proctor and Gamble factory, and then proceeded along the sea wall amongst all of the industrial and liminal riverside landscapes, admiring the world renowned graffiti (true fact!) and having a chat with the friendly homeless man.

Sea Wall, Grays, Essex - 20th August 2014

I'm chuffed to have contributed a field recording to this exhibition of large format photographs taken by the excellent Mark Edwards. Countless Edens is on until 15th October at Primeyarc in Great Yarmouth and expertly curated by originalprojects; so head on over there if you get the chance.

'Countless Edens is a body of photographic work by Mark Edwards, made over the course of three years, in the house and garden of the writer Ronald Blythe. Both house and garden were formally the house of Blythe’s close friend, the painter John Nash. Countless Edens draws upon the rich English landscape traditions of both literature and painting.

The pictures depict a garden that was initially planted by Nash when he first moved to Suffolk in the mid-forties. The garden was established in order to supply source material for both his paintings and illustrations. He bequeathed the house , situated on the Suffolk/Essex border, to his close friend, the writer Ronald Blythe. Blythe lived there until the end of his life, and continued to cultivate and attend to the garden. This intimate space, and the landscape beyond, forms the fulcrum to much of his writing.

The interior photographs extend this discourse to allow the viewer to examine the relationship between Nash and Blythe through objects, possessions and personal motifs that also allude to the paintings and writing of both. Viewed as a body of pictures, the photographs contribute to the work of both painter and writer in a response to place and history. With Ronald’s encouragement, Mark Edwards began to explore the outdoor and indoor space.

The exhibition includes a sound recording made at Ronald Blythe’s garden by artist Stuart Bowditich. Birds that can be heard include Garden Warbler, Blackcap, Dunnock, Wren, Chiffchaff, Starling, Blue Tit, Linnet, Nightingale, Bullfinch, Wood Pigeon, Redstart and Willow Warbler.'

Bottengoms, Wormingford, Essex - 6th April 2017

My travelling companion and I have taken to booking a few weeks away in October both as a means of extending the summer and a chance to discover somewhere new. We’ve been keen to travel to Palestine and Israel to see for our own eyes what is happening there, as well as to visit some of the holy sites associated with a variety of religions, and this is where we travelled to in 2019. Being interested in the sonic aspect of places and people’s activities, I found time to record the sound of many of these locations, as well as the places that we stayed and travelled through.

The original two hour broadcast on CAMP Radio is a collage of recordings made inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dormition Abbey, Tomb of the Virgin Mary, St. Anne’s Church, Church of Condemnation, The Western Wall and St, James’ Cathedral Church, all in Jerusalem; The Milk Grotto and Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem; St. Joseph’s Church and The Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, as well as streetscapes from each of those cities. The single recording there is from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on 2nd October 2019.
 
I’m not a religious person by any means but I felt strong emotions in these buildings, a palpable sense of their power and importance both historically and today. Following pilgrims throughout the cities we were able to witness some incredible services, rituals and ceremonies of people from the Catholic, Jewish, Greek Orthodox, Armemian Apostolic and Islamic faiths. 

We also sought out conversations and experiences with Palestinians and Israelis, had lunch with some Jewish people in Jerusalem and visited a settlement in Hebron and Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem to better understand both viewpoints of current and historical situations, although recordings of those encounters do not feature here.

Listening to these recordings now brings back a lot of those memories and emotions and I hope that you too can get a sense of the religious and historical significance of this area at this time, as well as recognising that they are real and everyday places that continue to be home to one million people today.

Church Of The Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem - 2nd October 2019

In 2016 I was recording a variety of locations for the Essex Record Office Sound and Video Archive 'You Are Hear' project https://www.essexsounds.org.uk . One of the threads of interest were 'Quiet Places' so I headed out to the sea wall at Paglesham, near the final resting place of The Beagle (Darwin's Ship), next to the abandoned oyster beds, overlooking Potton Island across the River Roach. As I lay on the sea wall soaking up the warmth of the sun, 10 minutes or so in to the sounds of swaying grasses and foraging bees, my reverie is broken by the sound of a PA system being plugged in some distance away. Sound checking ensued and the moment of peace was gone. So I walked back to the Plough and Sail public house which was heaving with people so I followed the sound of the crowd. In the car park a Barn Dance had been set up and in the middle of it all was a man that I knew, Keith Baxter. He's a lovely guy, great musician and a member of the Famous Potatoes https://famouspotatoes.co.uk , and as it turns out a fantastic Barn Dance host.

Famous Potatoes Barn Dance, Paglesham, Essex - 16th July 2016

A week before lockdown came in to force in the UK I recorded an interview with artist Terry Flower for the series of podcasts I did for Visit Stour Valley (available on Soundcloud and other platforms). He directed me to a lovely spot across the fields in some woods beside Belchamp Brook. I sat there for half an hour soaking up the atmosphere and contemplating the impending doom. There is plenty of spring bird activity including Chaffinch, Blackbird, Green Woodpecker, Great Tit, Pheasant, Jackdaw, Robin, Linnet, Blue Tit and Wren, plus a field full of sheep and some bird scarer explosions.

Belchamp Brook, Essex - 16th March 2020

Over a number of years my good friend Graham and I took regular road trips out to very uncool places, for a change of scenery, to chew the fat, to talk crap and experience underwhelming facets of life. The story of this trip is fraught with danger but one of the highlights of our trip was playing Mr G's bingo in Leysdown-on-Sea on the Isle of Sheppey. Unfortunately we didn't win the packet of fish fingers but Graham did win the Kenneth Williams mug.

Mr. G's Bingo, Leysdown-On-Sea - 31st July 2014

During a research and development trip for the project Fabric: Silk Road (with Ruth Philo) I recorded two women working with silk on a large hand operated loom at the Museum of Silk Manufacture in Nanjing, China. Although I couldn't understand their commentary it was fascinating to watch them work together on this complicated and beautiful machine.

Ruth continues the project which you can follow at http://www.fabricsilkroad.co.uk and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/fabricsilkroad

Hand Operated Loom, Museum Of Silk Manufacture, Nanjing, China - 7th October 2018

Whilst collecting sounds for my Modern Tendring Vernacular project in February 2024 I went to record the tide bell at Harwich, which I had never seen or heard before. There was a strong wind and rain but I'd timed the tide right to capture the bell, and was meeting a chap called Geoff soon, so only had one shot at recording it.

Harwich Tide Bell - 24th February 2024

It had been a while since I'd done any recording so it was great to get up early and head out to one of my favourite spots, Arger Fen. I made two recordings, this one in the woods, and another in more open scrubland. Since it was before dawn there was plenty of bird action including tawny owl, pheasant, song thrush, robin, blackbird, mistle thrush, wren, chaffinch, crow, coal tit, dunnock and green woodpecker. Although I know quite a few species now I'm ever reliant on the Cornell University Merlin bird app for identification, which is fantastic and I really recommend it if you want to become a bird nerd.

Dawn chorus in the woods, Arger Fen, Suffolk - 2nd March 2025

To follow up on my recording of the Nightingales at Middlewick from last year (yes, I know it takes me a long time to do things) I wanted to record the skylarks as there are several nesting pairs on the site. Frazer Merrick (artist and runner) commented that he'd just heard them on Middlewick and Michael Padmore (from the 'Save Middlewick' campaign) tipped me off of some more locations. So I got up before dawn and headed out to hide amongst the gorse and broom. Even at 6:30 you can hear that there is a lot of traffic noise that the birds have to compete with. The skylarks were very actively singing, but I couldn't observe them flying with their distinctive up and down trajectories. Also in this recording are Chiffchaff, Great Tit, Linnet, Blackbird, Crow and Song Thrush.

Just at the end of this recording (edited off) I got bowled into by an out of control dog called Rocky, which knocked me off of my seat and onto the floor, covering me with wet footprints and slobbery tongue. Imagine what it would do to the skylarks if it had found them nesting on the ground.

Skylarks, Middlewick Ranges, Colchester, Essex - 5th April 2025

Myself and good friend Matt Shenton went on a well overdue trudge around the edge of Old Hall Marshes near Tollesbury. It's an RSPB site, so we were looking forward to hearing, seeing, recording, some birds, but as the car park is closed on weekends (doh!) we had a extra mile or so walk to get to the site. it was windy and fresh, but with a hint of warmth. Was good to take in heady lung fulls of muddy salt marsh air. 

Once we got there Matt recorded a fence with his contact mics and I sat quietly near the borrowdyke listening to a plethora of birds. There was however a lot of aircraft activity, which when looking at the Flight Radar app there was a light airplane doing a lot of small loops around Copford, and an Airbus 330 flying from Frankfurt to Cancun, amongst others. You can however revel in the delightful sounds of Sedge Warblers, Whitethroat, Wren, Chiffchaff, Swallow, Reed Bunting, Goldfinch, Blackcap, Greenfinch, Yellow Wagtail, Pheasant and Robin.

Sedge Warbler and jets, Old Hall Marshes, Tollesbury, Essex - 20th April 2025

I was in Bournemouth on an assignment but arrived early to have a mooch about the town. I hadn't visited since 1999 and that was under the cover of darkness as we were going raving at an all nighter, although I forget which club it was we went to. What I do remember is that it was the first time I heard the Ferry Corsten remix of William Orbit's version of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings. Anyway, I digress. Today it was calm and the sea had large gentle swells with non-boarded paddle boarders bobbing about. I loitered about under the zip line that goes from a tower at the end of the pier to the beach and after a few minutes some excited peoples zipped overhead. 

Zip Line on Bournemouth Pier - 25th April 2025

This recording has come about by my activities on the Constable Ambisonic project, where I'll be making ambisonic sound recordings of 20 locations of paintings by John Constable. https://www.constableambisonic.co.uk/

As I explore and reacquaint myself with 'Constable Country' I have been recording in a variety of locations in and around the Dedham Vale. This recording was made on a footpath leading up the hill from Fen Bridge Lane in East Bergholt on a lovely warm sunny afternoon. The first bird that I heard as I started walking to the site was a cuckoo and soon many more birds joined the throng, including Reed Bunting, Wren, Blackbird, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush, Robin, Skylark, Whitethroat, Goldfinch, Blue Tit, Cuckoo, Chaffinch, Stonechat, Linnet, Dunnock, Blackcap, Crow, Pheasant, Great Tie, Greylag Goose and Magpie. 

As much as my birding skills are improving I still rely heavily on the excellent Merlin Bird App https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org

Reed Bunting and Cuckoo, Fen Bridge Lane, East Bergholt, Essex - 17th May 2025

As part of the Constable Ambisonic project I want to understand how we perceive the landscape, and what did Constable and his contemporaries bring to our understanding of the natural world, and who else has contributed to the language used and ideals we hold in regard to perception of landscape. Here I talk to artist and printmaker David Stone at the Cuckoo Farm Print Workshop, Colchester. We discuss a variety of topics including Romanticism, Capability Brown, Helen Allingham, Turner, JS Lowry and of course, Constable.

Constable Ambisonic - Perception of Landscape with David Stone

As part of the Constable Ambisonic project I want to understand how we perceive the landscape, and what did Constable and his contemporaries bring to our understanding of the natural world, and who else has contributed to the language used and ideals we hold in regard to perception of landscape. Here I talk to my mum, Terri Bowditch to try to understand how we came to live in the semi-rural town Essex market town, and how that affected my life growing up in the 1970's and 80's, in comparison to North West London where they had moved from.

Constable Ambisonic - Perception of Landscape with Terri Bowditch

Tourists taking photos, a woman coming from the Mill Residencies, a man singing, a chat about exam results, a man getting his photo taken with a baby, I’m featuring in people’s photographs, or influencing their decision not to take one, being in ‘the’ spot means that others also gravitate there, pause to get ‘the’ shot, then leave, voices of sports players drift on the wind, bicycles on the gravel, one of the cyclists singing, people waiting on the other bench getting bored waiting for me to move on so they go off in a huff, a cormorant, a light aircraft, tourists being dropped off by a Toyota EV, a man asking if the recording kit is mine, the tourists taking longer to get in the car than they were looking at the view, distant motor bikes, Moorhen, sitting on the bench in memory or Edna Cartwright, wood pigeons flitting from tree to the chimney on Willy Lott’s House, two cars, one coming in and one going out, jackdaws, the lad from the car coming in walking past and going in to Mill House, dog growling at the mic, a Kite ridind the wind.

As the world burns, fights, suffers, warms, society slowly implodes, capitalism collapses, doubles down, genocide is administered, famine engineered, drones are optimised for warfare, billions syphoned away from social needs, people exploited, trafficked, abused, killed, left to rot or fend for themselves, resources mined, the earth torn apart, extracted, refined, manufactured, advertised, marketed, sold, used, thrown away. All of that is happening right now, everywhere, except here. Here there are people making memories, sharing time together, making the most of the late warm summer afternoon, getting a glimpse of the chocolate box, the Moorhen wrestling with some weed, Willy Lott’s Cottage, of the ladies blue hair.

Sheltered, protected, preserved, presented. Sheltering me, protecting me, preserving me, presenting me, as the chocolate box? There is always a chocolate that is the least favoured, but less weight gained by not eating those.

​The high whispy clouds of this tranquil vista visible but out of reach could easily be the smoke of destruction a screen to hide the horrors behind heavens and hells are the same ideology but from the view points of the perpetrators or victims.

Full version now on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yxmbopr_7Y


Willy Lott's Cottage - 6th September 2025 (excerpt)

Sunday morning in town, its a bit breezy, people making the shortcut through the graveyard, a flock of pigeons or Rock Doves as they used to be called, air con units, aircraft heading away from London, a lady whose perfume I detected before I saw her, I feel like I have to behave differently in this urban environment as I can’t blend in to being a tourist, I’m more on guard, a man asking if he was in my way, I wave him through, people aren’t here to look at the attraction they’re on their way to somewhere else so why would I be sitting in a graveyard with a lot of recording kit on a Sunday morning feeling vulnerable? The concerned man walks back through the other way with a drink less concerned this time, a car with loud music travelling down Queen Street, a gull, a man sneezing, ‘Morning!’ said a man who took a photograph of the ruins, and exclaiming child in a push chair.

It’s warm on the outside, warm on the in, I can feel the effects of my (non-psychedelic) mushroom gummy, my 21st day of sobriety, I made it to 47 days last time so let’s see how I get on, I do have more clarity but I also feel slightly removed from some situations, its a new feeling as I take a step in to the next stage of my life, leaving a lot of things behind, embracing the new, and trying to be kinder to myself, a Robin, a man running, a woman on a phone call, the Rock Doves taking to the air and flying past the microphone, someone clapping, the shadows moving slowly but perceptibly, dapples, gravestones with names eroded away over time, a lady with a Nirvana t-shirt, I’m writing more today as I have my head down as a defence mechanism, not wanting to engage with passers by, the wind has died down a bit but I only notice as it picks up and moves the trees, a lady in her Sunday best, the fragrance of a woman after I have seen her, a man with a hand in his pocket, the Robin again, I need to take some tips from this experience as I’ll be recording in Ipswich Town Centre soon where I imagine there will be lots of passers by, I have done lots of urban recording before but not with film, and not for as long durations, Church bells but from further away than St.Botolphs, a motorbike, the Church bell of St.Botolphs, nearer with longer intervals whilst the further faster bells still play, here it sounds like a ‘Campanology Course for People with No Sense of Timing’, a Jay, a cough, curious children, a man with crocs who says ‘Allo mate!’ but wasn’t talking to me, people wearing all black even though it is still really summery, a man with a striped t-shirt, a woman with a spotty dress, at first it was interesting that the soundscape was punctuated with a bell nearby and somewhat haphazard but now it’s annoying that they haven’t got any better and it hasn’t formed in to a one note polyrhythmic masterpiece, the Robin’s warning call, some lads being laddish, a woman with blue hair. 

Piece of Paper
Under the arch 
Sheltering
Then after 10 minutes
Wheels across the path to the grass
Someone let it go without screwing it up
Which is rare
Gave it a chance to leave
To go on its own
To seek sanctuary
Within the confines of wherever the wind takes it
We could all learn a lesson from that.

St.Botolph's, Colchester - 7th September 2025 (excerpt)

Yesterday a storm front blew in and passed over head. In front of it the warm summer air and behind it the cooler air of autumn. I didn’t realise until it had passed but the difference was clear and defining. Today the wind is feisty, autumnal, and its effects on the trees dominates the sonic space. Imagine being a tree, or a nomad, constantly at the mercy of the elements. No wonder the leaves are browning, yellowing, reddening, having endured months of intense sunlight, rain, wind, with no respite. Those fragile paper thin structures, so hardy.

I have come on a Friday to avoid the hordes, families, paddleboarders, dog owners, smokers, and sometimes that’s just one person, screaming, splashing, smiling, relaxing. Living. But that’s not for me. I prefer the quiet solitude of off-peak. I usually prefer off-piste too, but this project is otherwise, out of my comfort zone and into the spotlight, but doing what I enjoy most.

Pond skaters, ducks, the weir letting the Stour trickle through, holding it back, keeping it slow and steady, like the rental revenue on those flats in the Mill building. It is a different mill to in Constable’s time, but still. It stands as a monument to industry, labour, the effort of those generations making their daily bread, surviving, working for the man. It is strange that in just one spot, place, so many decisions, influences, powers, monies, have come to gather to make a once navigable river to transport goods, from Mistley, where seagoing vessels were unloaded on to Lighters (barges) as far inland as the ‘port’ of Sudnury. And then to transport different goods in the reverse direction. Just a few decades later and it was superseded by the railways.

A man on a strange paddle board/seagoing kayak/super yacht hybrid, lots of berries on the trees in readiness for winter, some harsh pruning. He notices me, and the kit, and studies us for a while before paddling off. I have swam in this mill pond several times but the water quality is too bad now, my trunks staying put in their new drawer for a good few months yet. ‘Danger: Deep Water’. I hope someone is in deep water and that CEO’s the land over are carrying the can for the unacceptable state of the Countries waterways. A woman in a puffer jacket taking a photograph across the pond, a damsel fly, which is one of the 22 species on this river, I am unable to tell which, a woman jogging, fish making swirls on the waters surface, a dark cloud covering the sun and turning off the heat.

​One day this place will not be here, and all of the memories of it will be gone.

A sock in a tree, a bus heading to Dedham, a motorbike, those with the loudest mouths, exhausts, will be remembered, a man looking at the mic as he goes by, two people all dressed in blue with binoculars, the fish trying to catch flies just above the waters surface, a couple that I have seen four times walking their dog but the man walks ahead followed by the dog pulling the woman reluctantly along, a strimmer or maybe a hedge trimmer.

 Watch the whole hour on YouTube https://youtu.be/clQXSbnL3DY

Dedham Lock and Mill - 12th September 2025 (excerpt)

It’s been a long trek on public transport to get here, and a bit stressful on the Tube with all of the tripods and kit bag, that has put in to perspective a few things. It would have taken Constable, everyone, a lot longer to get around. For instance Constable used to walk from East Bergholt to Stratford St.Mary to catch the Stagecoach, which would then take 9-12 hours, conditions permitting, to get to London. Also on this project I’m working relatively close to home and have a car so can reach nearly everywhere pretty easily. Yes, I know that I’m having an impact and I have been weighing up the value of my work versus the impact I am having on the natural world. This work isn’t solely for me, but will be a sonic record for use by anyone in the future, under a Creative Commons licence. My carbon footprint, though quite large as much as car runs on petrol, is considerably less than a Shahed drone, from manufacture to deployment, and I feel that these recordings offer a somewhat more positive contribution to society than those. Still, it’s important to evaluate why and for whom I am doing this work, any work, and the benefits and side effect thereof. 

This triangle of land between roads and off of the main body of Hampstead Heath is rather sedate and affords a calm spot amongst the bustle of the city. Parakeets, car horns, a helicopter, a couple walking their dogs, a jet overhead banking in to the clouds that are gorgeous shades of blue grey. A golden labrador being stroked by some strangers, a slow 4/4 beat (approx 115bpm) in the distance, women with jackets tied around their waists, two girls questioning what was worth filming over there, a woman talking on ‘hands free’, the pulse in my knee making my crossed leg bounce up and down, the bench plaque reading ’34º43’34.8”N 139º23’41.1”E’, laughter coming from the couple on the bench along the way, a woman waiting for her dog to do a poo, lot’s of gilets on the edge of Hampstead and it makes sense that building stopped before the steep slope here, people waling behind me, pairs of people stopping to check their phones so maybe there is a Pokemon Go here, an invisible layer of the world bringing members of a different community to this corner of the world. 

There are lots of layers, digital, geological, social, historical, atmospheric, all relevant to the same ‘place’.

A heron, a beech leaf with a hole in it, some loud angry talking followed by some sirens, it's always about this time in a recording I’m feeling the need for some punctuation so maybe this is it, a different siren, a man in a cap pacing up and down, the cloud slowly thinning and more light reaching down to Earth, girls with coffees, a Vespa, a man whistling for his dog, a woman with a dog waving to the whistling man, they are pleased to see each other, the man has treats, a small boy on a bike stopping right in front of the mic, his father calling him away in possibly Italian.

My body clock is a bit anxious today as it guessed at 55 minutes, a fire engine, leaves are falling from the trees at about 5 per minute (within my limited field of view), a man with a blue helmet on a bike gets off of his bike and heads down the track in front of the camera.

I wonder if Constable was spoken to, questioned, viewed suspiciously, had his motive interrogated by members of the public whilst out capturing the landscape, I have over the years and with sound its easy to appease people’s suspicions but with image I imagine it will be more difficult. I’m sure I will find out.

Two lads stop talking as they pass by the mic and resume further along the path. 

Birds identified are Magpie, Sparrow, Wren, Great Tit, Dunnock, Robin and Chiffchaff.

Hampstead Heath looking towards Harrow - 27th September 2025 (excerpt)

A landscape, at noon. A man jogging with his dog, and man and woman chatting on the bench next to the Field Studies Centre, the mill pond has been cleared of weed and algae, and most of the vegetation has been trimmed making it easier to see the path of the water between the trees, spider threads drifting and glinting in the sun, Moorhens running on the water, the chatting pair heading back, about three minutes where I could hear no people, no engines, just the occasional bird in the stillness that accompanies a hot blast of sun, as near as I can imagine it might have sounded like in 1821, minus workings from the Mill.

- A mill pond where all the fiscal solutions gather to stagnate.

A woman on a mobility scooter says ‘I want to take a picture!’, a man taking photo from the same place as the mic but doing so carefully, I’m waiting for the coach load of tourists I saw earlier to arrive and in a few minutes they arrive, following their guide, two ladies ignoring the history lesson and having their own conversation, an airplane overhead, a dragonfly, too many conversations from splinter groups to make out the tour guide.

- The cold breeze of authoritarianism across one's face.

The perfume of photographers, ‘Grapes on the vine there, look!’, an Amazon delivery driver with two parcels for eat FSC, a lady with pink coat, stockings, scarf and hair getting her phot taken sitting o the wall, a cheeky remark by her friend, ‘We haven’t disturbed your peace, have we?’, ‘No, you’re fine’ I reply, jackdaws on the chimney of Willy Lott’s House, the tourists slowly dissipating, a moments peace before a bunch of students pile out of Flatford Mill, a couple taking in different views bump in to each other, table and chairs being dragged across floorboards, a dude with a Stetson, ducks ducking.

- The hard sunbaked ideologies of mainstream media.

With all of the activity it hard to tell the position of the hour as it’s gone to the head and not now in the body, a screaming child, a growling dog, a Chiselhurst and Sidcup Grammar School bus, a bush full of orange berries, a Buzzard Calling, student wheeling suitcases, a new party of tourists with a different guide, a lady apologising for the intrusion, I ask another lady for the time, and she says ‘Twenty five past 12’, so I got to 55 minutes again, the students walking back again dragging their suitcases, a cormorant flying overhead, a woman walking past the ‘PRIVATE’ sign. 

- Erosion of societies fundamentals falling in to the sea.

The Hay Wain - 30th September 2025 (excerpt)

Diners with trays of food and drinks from the cafe, the air con unit drone, this year is a ‘mast year’ for local trees which can be evidenced by the abundance of acorns on the ground, mast years are possibly a way that trees work together to create more fruit/seeds in one year that can possibly be eaten by seed eating animals and increasing the likely hood of seedlings growing next year, peduncle, the aircon clicks off, geese, lots of interest in the microphone as it’s in a very public place but I keep a low profile, conversations of diners, a dog barking, trays being returned to the rack, a tiny twister picking up leaves, hikers in brown boots and blue jumpers, the kissing gate slamming sound travelling on the wind, a lady carrying a bag full of poo, two dog bowls at different heights, my coffee finished, as is the flapjack, Table 123, walking sticks, ‘John!’, John acknowledging where his party are seated, the smell of soup, the Site Manager coming over for a chat about the weekends workshop, a pile of bricks, two yard bags on pallets, ‘Hort Loam’ printed on the site of one of them, two men being curious about the mic.

A never-ending stream of people, interested, curious, wanting to explore, experience and learn. They’re passing by here, passing, being born, passing by and passing again. Here is still here but for how long will the cycle continue?

Slowly the cafe activity is winding down towards closure and as the localised sound dies down sound from further afield can reach us, such as a tractor ploughing a the field. The Flatford Accessible Shuttle Citroen electric vehicle, a woman carrying a bunch of yellowing oak leaves, a man opening and closing the gate for the car to pass through, it has slightly flat tyres, a conversation about birds that I don’t quite catch, chairs in the cafe being rearranged, cutlery being moved on the collected trays, a puff of wind moving all of the leaves at once but only by a couple of inches, the door to ‘back stage’ being closed by Maddie, a very slow wheezing pug in a blue harness, a window being closed, a door being bolted, the last diners leaving the garden, a moment of reflection. 

The earth wearing lands cape
Land belongs
We long to live
Live to die
Die to land the dream of love
Love of another
The other is wise
Wise of words
Words escape
A cape of good hope
But we’ll need much more than that.

Birds identified (in the full hour recording) are Dunnock, Robin, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Long Tailed Tit, Mallard, Great Tit, Magpie Wren and Spotted Flycatcher!

Boat Building Near Flatford Mill - 2nd October 2025 (excerpt)

As part of the Constable Ambisonic project I want to understand how we perceive the landscape, and what did Constable and his contemporaries bring to our understanding of the natural world, and who else has contributed to the language used and ideals we hold in regard to perception of landscape. Here I talk to artist and photographer Alan Hockett whilst sitting in a car after having been to the site of Constable's 'Weymouth Bay from the Downs above Osmington Mills'. We discuss a variety of topics including new towns, edge lands, the Leisure Class, our childhood playgrounds, and of course, Constable.

Constable Ambisonic - Perception of Landscape with Alan Hockett

Idling ships upon the bay, moving windsurfers upon the bay, my travelling companion and good friend Al laying in the grass making some art and chatting to the walkers on the path, restarting the recording as there was a hum, a hiking couple, hiking man craning his neck to have a look from 200m away, I’m suddenly self conscious about my choice of bright jumper in an overcast scene, must buy green, grasses are my favourite plant as they evoke summer, a wildness and understated strength and resilience.

Chitter chatter in the hillside habitat, two hikers descending the path next to where I am sat, a young couple in urban gear, a coach coming down the lane at the top of the hill, the steely blue of Weymouth Bay scratched by the wake of a small fishing boat, a man with binoculars, in this unfamiliar place I’m mostly noticing surface activities and fixtures and not engaged with or thinking about deeper considerations, accepting it more on face value than underlying narratives or other social contexts, which is how we might look at a painting, for its composition, materials or techniques, but of course it was made within, or maybe influenced by the socio-economic or political climate at the time, the coach returning back up the lane, a ship starting its engine, Portland.

The sighting of one bird by one person at one place at one time with millions of years of evolution of different strands and billions of potential probabilities happen, and then it was gone in a second, a man noticing that I have headphones on, a beam of sunlight on the water, the active society of birds,  a hiking party some of whom are not wearing blue, some fast 4/4 beats (135bpm) from  car on the lane, more light making its way through the clouds and defining a difference between the sky and there sea, anxiously waiting tpfor the hour signal from my friend. 

Birds identified are Skylark, Wren, Meadow Pipit, Greenfinch, Pheasant, Blackbird, Siskin, Long Tailed Tit, Goldcrest, Dunnock, Pied Wagtail, Cetti's warbler, Robin, Linnet and Goldfinch.

Weymouth Bay from the downs above Osmington Mills - 11th October 2025 (excerpt)

This recording is the result of ten creative participants - musicians, artists, and other creatives - who came along to the Constable Experimental Improvisational Soundscape Orchestra workshop led by Kelly Ann Buckley (K-A-B), to explore the grounds of Flatford Mill, the landscape that inspired so much of Constable’s work. Together, the group connected with the soundscape through a series of exercises that included deep listening, elements of graphic score writing, gathering natural ‘instruments’ from the land, and other activities that encouraged locking in with the environment and with each other. At the end of the session the group interpreted their findings, using a mix of their unconventional ‘found’ instruments and conventional ones. The piece was fully improvised, with no rehearsal before the performance. 

Many thanks to National Trust Flatford for supporting this project by providing The Granary building for these workshops.

K-A-B Experimental Soundscape Orchestra - 23rd August 2025

As part of the Constable Ambisonic project I want to understand how we perceive the landscape, and what did Constable and his contemporaries bring to our understanding of the natural world, and who else has contributed to the language used and ideals we hold in regard to perception of landscape. Here I talk to artist and artist and broadcaster Wendy Bailey to discuss the project more broadly.

Constable Ambisonic - Stuart Bowditch in conversation with Wendy Bailey

Adam Conway (drums) and Stuart Bowditch (electronics) play for Dave David Productions in the Bear Pit at Focal Point Gallery in Southend-on-Sea. This is the first 15 minutes of a 40 minute improvised session.

The Butler's Portion @ Focal Point Gallery 17/10/15

A live session for Jonny Mugwump on his Exotic Pylon show on 15th May 2010. The set was made entirely from sounds sampled from his show broadcast on 24th April, earlier sessions from the studio that day and objects found at Resonance 10 minutes before going live. 

http://www.exoticpylon.com/pages/2010/disorder%20at%20the%20pylon.html

Hybernation Live on Resonance FM 150510

The gents toilets at the Railway Hotel in Southend is not somewhere usually described as inspirational. For several months the hand drier was broken and made a very loud screeching noise as it spread germs around. Daryl Easley, a fellow DJ on Ship Full Of Bombs internet radio station, sent me an unsolicited recording of it made on his mobile phone, which I then fixed using a Teenage Engineering OP-1 and the Samplr iPad app.

Southend Objectified

The Railway Hotel Gents Toilet Hand Dryer (Broken)

A live recording of my set at unStatic, as part of the Leigh Art Trail. All the sounds are sourced from within the 'My Kitchen' vegetarian restaurant where the event took place, some recorded the day before and some found objects on the night. 

Hybernation - Live at unStatic 160610

Constable's Skies - A talk by Professor John Thornes at Boat House Gallery, National Trust, Flatford on 6th March 2018.

Professor John Thornes, a professional academic meteorologist, discusses the sky in John Constable’s paintings. To John Constable the sky was "the keynote", the "standard of scale" and the "chief organ of sentiment" in landscape painting but how much meteorology did Constable understand? John Thornes, a professional academic meteorologist, discusses why the sky plays such an important part in Constable's most famous representation of British landscape, The Hay Wain.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/flatford/features/constables-skies---a-talk-by-john-thornes

Recorded by Stuart Bowditch.

Constable's Skies - A talk by Professor John Thornes

As part of the River Stour Trust’s 50th anniversary celebration in 2018, and funded by the Dedham Vale AONB Sustainable Development Fund, sound recordist Stuart Bowditch recorded conversations with people who contribute to the conservation and preservation of the River Stour, the border of Essex and Suffolk.

These podcasts are complimented by three text installations, one at the Granary Tea Room in Sudbury, and one each on the River Stour Trust boats 'Rosette' and 'Edwardian Lady'. More information on the project website here http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/confluent.html

River of Words Podcast 4 - Habitats

River of Words Podcast 3 - Volunteers

River of Words Podcast 2 - Natural Beauty

River of Words Podcast 1 - Partners And Collaboration

Field Recording made at Joyce's Bay, Goldhanger 14th November 2019 as part of my project Resounding, following int he footsteps of JA Baker, author of The Peregrine.

http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/resounding-344243

Goldhanger - Joyce's Bay - 14th November 2019

Field Recording made at Highams Farm Sluice, Goldhanger 14th November 2019 as part of my project Resounding, following in the footsteps of JA Baker, author of The Peregrine.

http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/resounding-344243

Goldhanger - Highams Farm Sluice - 14th November 2019

Field Recording made at Down Hall Sluice, Bradwell 21st November 2019 as part of my project Resounding, following in the footsteps of JA Baker, author of The Peregrine.

http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/resounding-344243

Bradwell - Down Hall Sluice - 21st November 2019

Field Recording made at Mayland Creek, Steeple 21st November 2019 as part of my project Resounding, following int he footsteps of JA Baker, author of The Peregrine.

http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/resounding-344243

Steeple - Nayland Creek - 21st November 2019

Field Recording made at Mundon Creek, 28th November 2019 as part of my project Resounding, following in the footsteps of JA Baker, author of The Peregrine.

http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/resounding-344243

Maylandsea - Mundon Creek - 28th November 2019

Field Recording made at Bohuns Farm, Tollesbury, 5th December 2019 as part of my project Resounding, following in the footsteps of JA Baker, author of The Peregrine.

http://www.stuartbowditch.co.uk/resounding-344243

Tollesbury - Bohuns Farm - 5th December 2019

Stuart’s work is inspired by location and the people, experiences and objects he encounters there. 

He is particularly interested in sounds that are associated with place, overlooked and overheard noises of the everyday and highlighting the auditory as a defining factor in how we experience a particular environment. 
​
His recordings of people, their activities, experiences and environs have contributed to art installations, phone apps, archival records, dance performances, public consultation events, musical compositions, a computer game, a eulogy and sound tracks to short films.

Stuart Bowditch

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