Tuesday the 20th of June 2023.  Out of bed at 2.05am.  On the road at 3.04am.  Arrived at Rosahane graveyard at 3.52am.  Set up the 440's and MixPre3 and rolled out the mic cable back to the car as I wanted to sit in while recording, much better than standing about.  It was perfectly calm, on the way up to the hills I had wondered where the light was, as it was near to the shortest night of the year, however in one place I could see some light through a break in the clouds, I had thought it was not cloudy as I saw stars before leaving. I didn't quite catch the first bird (A Robin) as the mic cable tangled as I rolled it out, however I fairly soon got it sorted and began recording, had the record gain at 70db.   After making a few recordings it began to rain.  Gradually I found I needed to reduce the gain to 62dbs.  I had made a few recordings because a few jets roared over and I had to keep stopping and starting.  After packing up I headed for home, however I had gone the short distance, as far as the field where the sheep can be found when I noticed the rain had stopped so because the gear was not completely packed away I decided to have a go at recording, especially when I could see that the sheep were closer than the other day.  Only downside of this recording is that the two birds that sang were all over to one side of the sound stage.  Eventually the rain came in again and so this was my cue to pack up and go home.  Left at 6.32am, home at 7.21am.  MixPre3 & Lewitt 440's.  Recording 4058.

Dawn Chorus (1) 20 June 23 - 4.12am - Rosahane Graveyard

Recording 22nd of June 2023.  Got out of bed at 1.54am, left for Rosahane graveyard at 2.54am, arrived there at 3.44am.  Began setting up.  Had the 30 meters of cable and mics set up so I could sit in the car and relax while recording.  I found that I had left the sled from the MixPre recorder at home, I had the recorder and the block battery but couldn’t connect the two, I don’t usually forget things when recording, this was one of those rare times, happily I had the Tascam Dr100 recorder, I had intended to have this somewhere nearby getting more material, but now it would have to be the primary recorder.  The morning had a different feel to it compared to two mornings before, the sky was clearer and it was perhaps a bit cooler and not flat calm.  Usually the Robin begins the morning with his clear strong singing, he can really dominate sometimes, this morning though I only heard some ticking calls (before I left).  The Wren and Blackcap began to sing earlier than they usually would, the Chaffinch sang strongly too.  The results from the work two mornings before showed an odd lot of lines down below a thousand hertz, don’t think I have seen that before, now I think I know what it is, at this time of year we get many flies in the trees all buzzing about, it is at a low level and easily missed but microphones pick it up.  Glad it is that and not some odd man-made noise.   I only heard the sheep occasionally, but I heard a Great Tit in song, I wished he would move closer to the mics, but he didn’t.  A Squirrel could be heard sometimes.  The other morning he climbed down the tree next to the mics jumped onto the ground and ran off, I didn’t put that one on Soundcloud, considered it a bit short.   Most memorable of all was when two Chaffinches, a male and female flew down to the top of the gate post and done their courtship ritual, the male fluttered about the female in what looked to me to be a most sweet and affectionate way, they didn’t stay there long, think a jet flew over, a nuisance, but at least a chance, if needed, to make adjustments to the position of the mics.    
Left for home at 5.43am, stopped by the field where the sheep were, perhaps they had moved down the other end as I couldn’t see them.  Home at 6.35am.  Recording 4064.

Dawn Chorus (2) - 22 June 23 - 4.34am - Rosahane Graveyard

Almost eighteen minutes of early morning marshy pine flatwoods birdsong featuring Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) as the bird closest to the microphones and Eastern Wood Pewee (Contopus virens) as the most prominent background call. Frogs and other songbirds also add to the sunrise chorus. This audio was taken along the Primitive Trail road going east from Lighthouse road in the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge using Sony PCM recorders and omni-directional stereo microphones, June 2023.

Common Yellowthroat dawn calls with Eastern Wood Pewee and more

This recording is not so much a dawn chorus, it is rather a succession of soloists entering and leaving the stage, one after the other. The stage: a bush in the dunes of Juist, near the “Hammersee”. The first to awake (at perhaps 5.00 am) is a (male) blackbird, he has to share the stage after 2 minutes with a garden warbler- but they stay a bit muffled behind the curtain until about 29: 30. Then the curtain is lifted, in the following three hours we can listen to wrens, blackcaps, thorn warblers, marsh warblers and other guests passing by.
With 3:30 length, this is the longest recording without man made noise (okay, there is an airplane or two crossing the north sea, I admit) that up to now I could make in my home country Germany – a rare experience, therefore I am posting it at full length.
The North Sea island of Juist is very slim. At the spot where I took most of the recordings, there are only 1500 meters from the mudflat side to the open North Sea. In between lies a freshwater lake called Hammersee. Due to the proximity of these very different habitats, interesting acoustic neighborhoods of birds occur, which otherwise live far apart. So, if you listen carefully, you can hear various geese (gray geese, Canada geese, barnacle geese) and different wading birds (such as oystercatchers, redshanks, curlews) in the background, along with the “soloists”, the songbirds . And behind it all is the constant rumbling of the North Sea waves, and a steady wind. For my ears, this is a very exciting blend of sounds.
Clippy EM272 in A/B, 70 cm, Zoom H6

Nature is waking up - North Sea island Juist, Hammersee (long version)

I had only intended to make a long recording of the wonderful wind in the chestnut trees in front of the house I stayed in on Juist, combined with the stormy waves of the north sea. So I strapped the mics to the trunk and made an overnight recording. I had by no means expected the intense dawn chorus that started around 4 am, a pre-dawn chorus that had not been celebrated in any of the previous nights. I slept next to it and missed it completely, only discovered it back home on the recording. Here it is…

Dawn chorus in strong wind and high tide

This track is based quite literally on the text from the haiku... I used a dawn chorus recording I made earlier this year during springtime and gave it 4 stems in the partition. The top is the normal recording, then after a little time the 2nd stem comes in, with the same birds song pitched down. Then follow stems 3 and 4 later on, each more pitched down to complete treble, alto, tenor and bass. 
What originally sounded like a crisp dawn chorus here in the woods, slowly sounds like a deep Jurassic jungle...

Duuster - Dawn chorus scales (Haiku-495)

A track from my recently released nature album "Dawn On Haleakala", “Dawn On Haleakala” is a unique recording of rare Hawaiian birds high on the slopes of Haleakala Mountain in Maui. This dawn chorus features an hour-long nature ambient soundscape from a pristine alpine environment. The Haleakala Conservancy is an ideal organization to endorse for the preservation and promotion of Maui's ecology. This recording was made possible in part by the support of Quiet Parks International. Support this album by streaming or purchasing it from the following links.
https://haleakalaconservancy.org 
https://www.quietparks.org

Listen to the full album here https://www.nickcmcmahan.com/dawn-on-haleakala

Sunrise - Puka ʻana O Ka Lā

I had left a drop rig overnight in a small section of woodland, with the DPA mics attached to a tree trunk. This recording was at early dawn, just after sunrise, featuring woodland birds including Song Thrush, Robin, Blue Tits and Great Tits.

12.04.2023
Zoom F3 + 2 x DPA 4060s (Tree Ears)

Woodland Spring Dawn Chorus - Hällsjö, Skultuna, Sweden

Botanical Birdsong was performed at the Botanic Garden in Leicester in collaboration with Attenborough Arts Centre on Saturday 19 August 2023.

A one-off musical performance inspired by the vocalisations of birds singing at dawn at the Botanic Garden.

Audiences can expect to hear the sounds of the robin, blue tit, great tit, blackcap, wood pigeon, blackbird and more in a soundtrack created by Leicester-based artist Lucy Stevens.

Lucy has worked with Rishii Chowdury and Akash Parekar to inspire a new composition of Indian classical music, which will showcase a wide repertoire of melodic phrases that mimic and complement the sounds of birds.

Botanical Birdsong

Cuckoos at dawn in south east England. A compilation from an early morning recording session. Recorded on farmland close to a river using a spaced Omni microphone rig.

Cuckoos calling at dawn in an English river valley

Sound recordist Colin Hunter 
Founder of the World Sounds project

Florida native, bioacoustics, nature art & poet, A & B dissection, RCC. Swamps, beaches, wildflowers, Hemp Farmer, ethnobotanist & lawyer. #leedAP #marfan http://kevinsonger.com

Lucy Stevens is a multidisciplinary British contemporary artist whose work explores our relationship and understanding of nature conservation.
She draws inspiration from ornithology and colour theory. She is also an amateur birdwatcher. Her projects often include working in collaboration with experts in the natural world including scientists, museum curators, ornithologists, photographers and musicians.

Her work interprets birdsong, museum collections and conservation data into mixed media abstract portraits on paper and sound works developed from gathering field recordings. 

Her most recent work in collaboration with The British Trust for Ornithology and Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust explores the effects of climate change on migratory birds. The new collection of mixed media artwork is informed by scientific research to demonstrate declines in bird populations and changes in bird behaviour due to extreme weather conditions. She also works closely with Leicester Museum’s natural science avian collection to change the narrative around museums and conservation. 

Lucy lives and works in Leicester. She received an MA and BA (Hons) in Fine Art from Nottingham Trent University. Her work has been shown in exhibitions and art fairs across the East Midlands and London. She has also taken part in artist residencies in Scotland, Brussels, France, and Sweden.

A cabinetmaker by trade.  I have been recording birds for over 40 years.  Even as a seven year old I loved to hear the sound of birds. 
I believe that birdsong is a perfect reflection of the natural environment and yet a part of the experience of the environment.  
Over the years I have made some wildlife films and videos.  For wildlife recording I have been around Ireland, Wales, Finland, Estonia, Sweden, Belize, Guyana, Brazil, Peru and Costa Rica. At the moment I have 26 albums of birdsong/nature, most of which can be found here for free download in high quality F.L.A.C. format.
  
Birdsong is Spiritual Medicine,
a Natural Treasure 
and a Companion to Silence.

New tracks tagged #Dawn Chorus