UPDATE Autumn 2019

Posted on October 5th, 2019

Huh — what??? Oh yeah, my AOR project!!!

*** SO WHAT’S GOING ON WITH AOR …? ***

Make Your Own Darn Good CookiesAs many of you know I published my first book this month last year. I am nearing completion of my second book and juggling the rest of life ….. “LIFE” partly meaning I have been blessed with the company of a WONDERFUL Lady during this past year and I am once again busting my hump to get a day-job … among other things.

As for AOR …

Recording the various unusual and even fairly normal but always amazing sounds I enjoy capturing remains a love of mine — however, AOR is a side-project for me. As far as how this comes into play with LIFE today, let me explain how AOR comes into play with Amazon….

Something I’ve learned in the book-biz, and having published through Amazon’s KDP service, is that once you’re listed on Amazon you get noticed better if you have multiple products on their site.  ‘Good’ books — even ‘decent’ books — don’t get written over night …. so getting my second book completed and on Amazon requires time, labor, more time, a number of late nights, and a lot of labor.  A faster way of getting an additional product on Amazon is to offer something you’ve already completed or doesn’t take much more work (or time). PROJECT
(FYI the e-book is also available at Smashwords.com)

My Celtic-rock band — bagpipes, drumkit, and No Energy Held Back!!!

The easiest and quickest thing to do is to get my Nae Regrets “Alive at NW Folklife 2009” CDs listed — I have a big box of them in my closet!  The next-fastest products I can make available are my AOR albums.  First among these would be “Wind & Harps” — everything is done and I have a box of these in my closet.  However, I would like to get these converted converted from a demo-style CD to a full jewel-case album.  These other albums could soon follow …

These have been entirely recorded and waiting for me to have more time to finish them off as albums.  My projection is that completing these would take 20-40 hours of work — hopefully less.  It’s a matter of selecting and arranging the audio, rounding out the liner notes, getting graphic art made, and then the final CDs produced.

All that said …

Cubicle Shiva

The employee your boss always wanted — Cubicle Shiva!

I have not forgotten or in any way dropped Archive Of Resonance — I’ve just had to prioritize and put AOR on hold.  From my previous experience I know that I do well when on a M-F 9-5 work schedule.  With some diligence and luck this will become a reality for me soon.  Working on the projects of my passions fits in well around a regular schedule.

So …. Fingers Crossed!

~ Don

Help support my endeavours! By my e-book at Smashwords.com or paper-book & e-book at Amazon.com today — ad if you like it, please post your review. 🙂  At least please enjoy these four free recipes!

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Update August 2019

Posted on July 31st, 2019

As much as I enjoy what I do with AOR, it has always been a side project for me — and for the past few years much of Life had been taking priority.  Consequently I don’t post much here on ArchiveOfResonance.com.  Nonetheless, there is some possible opportunity for AOR-work coming up — let me explain …

NOT my truck …. but I think of it as looking this good!

About three years ago I got back into a vehicle and onto the sidewalks (*bha-doom Crash!).  With this I had hoped to start making trips and work on my AOR recording list.  Yes, I have a list of sound events I’d like to record … I’m just like that*.  While AOR has had to take a bit of a backseat, once some of the priorities in my life are in better order I will be better equipped to capture these AOR recordings.
(*Here’s a glimpse at that list.)

Not me diving — but isn’t it a nice picture!

During this past summer I have been doing some work as a SCUBA diver. My ‘boss’ is Thane — my friend and bandmate in my Celtic-rock band, Nae Regrets.  Last winter I delivered one of my external hard drives to Thane — with its storage maxed-out holding AOR material.  I asked Thane to apply his expertise in retouching the audio for me — and the material was something I thought we could use with Nae Regrets.  Next week I’m slated to do more dive work. While Monday and Tuesday are confirmed, Wednesday is a bit up on the air. Thane has proposed that if we are not blowing bubbles on Wednesday we might instead get together to go over his work on my audio.

Thane and myself playing to a large crowd at Northwest Folklife Festival

So, on one hand working on Wednesday would be good for diving. On the other hand, getting to move one or two of my AOR projects forward would also be great. Whichever way Wednesday works out, next week should be a win!

Yes, that was a lot of w-words.
~ Don

PS — Buy a copy of my first book!  Available on Amazon and Smashwords …

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SOUNDTRACKER – A Portrait of Gordon Hempton (MOVIE)

Posted on February 19th, 2016

(Original draft 19Feb2016)

I am a fan of many things.  Two of these are documentary films and checking out DVDs from the library – or as I like to call it “LibraryFlix”.  A few days ago I flew through the closest branch of my local library system to stock up on discs; I had a long weekend planned comprised of sitting on my couch while working on my laptop (AKA right now).  One of the films I picked up is titled, simply, Soundtracker.

The “Soundtracker” is both a ‘who’ and a ‘what’ – a person and what they do.  More specifically, The Soundtracker is a Washington State man by the name of Gordon Hempton, and he records sounds as they happen in nature that captures his imagination.  With decades of experience with this endeavour, Mr. Hempton has become an Emmy Award-winning recorder of sounds and occurrences.

I identified with much of what I saw (or perhaps I should say ‘heard’) in watching this documentary – both with how Mr. Hempton hears things and has interest in recording them along with the joys and frustrations found in making these recordings.  (To this end, I have specific points which I have listed below.)

So here’s the wrap-up and take-away, dear reader … If you want to see what going out and recording is like, watch this documentary.  If you want to get a view into the life and work of an Emmy Award-winning audio recording artist, watch this documentary.  If you want to see and hear how it is that people like Mr. Hempton and myself are inspired, watch this documentary.

Personally … I want a copy of this documentary and I’ve found where I can buy it online.  Wait a minute … I think I exchanged a few emailed with Mr. Hempton a few months back.  Okay, gotta scoot – there are half a dozen hummingbirds at a bird feeder and I want to record them.  That said …

Stop,     get Quiet,            Observe –

Don

Links

Similarities

  • Like me, Gordon Hempton previously lived in Seattle.  While he liked sounds in the city, he found that what he most liked and wanted to capture was nature sounds.
  • 14 minutes into the documentary Mr. Hempton is seen doing a recording session.  He simply wants to catch tall grass blowing in a slight breeze.  As he’s trying to do this, a plane passes over him and his gear.  While I like recording things as they happen, I understand this problem and frustration.  For Mr. Hempton it occurs over and over again through the documentary – which is part of the point of the documentary — that there are few places people can go totally free of machine noises.  Personally, while I like capturing an experience, there are things I want not in my recording — for example, if I’ve set up on a beach between the shoreline and nearby train tracks (as with one of my projects), I want to record waves and trains … not the leaf-blower operated by the grounds-keeper of a near-by high-rent house.  Yeah, this happens, I understand that, and there is no control over it — but it blows all the effort behind the recording session and it comes to seem that there is little to no auditory peace.
  • Generally speaking, I identify with much of what I saw – and heard – in this documentary – about hearing things, wanting to record certain things and wanting to record them without certain things, getting and being quiet, experiencing what is around you, the excitement (as in this documentary when he gets the train, horn, and bird) when you capture what you imagined in your mind’s ear, recording things only as they were and not combining sounds to achieve a certain sound.
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Blow Out (MOVIE)

Posted on February 15th, 2016

I just started watching the 1981 John Travolta film titled “Blow Out”.  Travolta plays a sound-effects engineer.  One evening while recording audio for a movie out on a wooded road, he captures on tape what he believes to be car accident – or is it actually a murder?

(This film also includes Nancy Allen, John Lithgow playing a baddy, and an early Dennis Franz who played a detective for many years on Law & Order)

At this point I’m only 26 minutes in on the piece, so I can’t tell you too much more about it – nor would I as to not spoil the film for you, dear reader, if you so choose to watch it.  I’m blogging about this film because of how it is sound oriented – and because of how sounds are presented in it so far.

Frankly, in my opinion, some of the sound quality of the film could be better – chiefly with the dialogue.  What I’m enjoying the film for, however, is that the way sound is presented &/or the way they suggest Travolta’s character hears sounds is fairly representative of how I hear.  Please understand, I don’t feel that I have some sort of special hearing or hear differently than anyone else, it’s more a matter of stopping to observe the parts & all that can be heard.

Urging you today to Stop,            get Quiet,            and Observe –

Don

Blow Out at IMDB and Wikipedia

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A bit of an update from AOR-HQ here …

Posted on December 20th, 2015

Yes, things have been quiet of late.  Yours-truly has been busy, chiefly with launching & building a baking business.  I’ve also been without a vehicle for years, which plays a big part in keeping the variety of the recording I want to make from getting off the ground.  The good news is …

I am not done with A.O.R. – not by a long-shot.  There are about a dozen recording sessions I have conceived and want to capture.  Things with my baking company look to be taking a shift – changes that should make what I’m doing with the business even more fun, give me an actual income, and free up time allowing me to go after my pursuits.

The A.O.R. “Wind & Harps” album moved nicely this summer while I vended at various farmers markets.  I’ve gotten the itch to finish the second A.O.R. album – a recording made when A.O.R. was founded.  The sounds of a motor cycle rally – surround sound from the middle of the street, and the culture of the community from the sidewalk.  As soon as the holly recording project trinity comes together – time, money, and transportation – I’ll be off to make more recordings.

GOOD & BIG A.O.R. NEWS – This past September I added to my collection of recording gear.  As a birthday present from my mom, we went in together on a ZOOM H2n.  The H2n is a unit I’ve dearly wanted but haven’t been able to justify within my tax-bracket.  For A.O.R. recordings (and my music endeavours) I’ve used the ZOOM H4n along with other microphones.  This has been at best awkward for A.O.R. field recordings (AKA most A.O.R. planned projects) because it means I need the H4n, 2-3 mic stands, 2 mic cables, and a pile of batteries along with sundry other support equipment.  With the H2n all I need is the H2n, a little bit of support gear and a few batteries, and either it’s accessory tri-pod or a single mic stand to capture high quality surround-sound recordings.  I’ve already used it a bit and it works GREAT!  I’m looking forward to getting back to work on A.O.R. experiential recordings & albums.

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Seattle Ghost Tour & EVP

Posted on December 20th, 2015

Spooked in SeattleOn 2015Dec05 I met up with some friends in Seattle.  This was a bit of a reunion as all of us had attended our mutual friend’s wedding in Savannah, GA, back in October.  We had planned a multi-faceted evening – celebrating one of our party’s birthday and all of us going on a ghost tour.  Why a ghost tour?  Because Savannah is alleged to be one of the most haunted places in the U.S. and Seattle has its own share.  So, in the spirit of Savannah, we went on a ghost tour.

After dinner on the Seattle waterfront we made our way into Pioneer Square – the historic location where Seattle began.  Our tour started in part of the old Seattle underground at Seattle Ghost Tours.  We sat through a brief introductory lecture by our tour-guide, Adrian – an engaging and humorous fellow, adorned in eclectic black garb complete with silver spurs.  After that we transitioned to the walking tour.

We splashed around on wet streets, sidewalks, the square, and down alleys.  From time to time we tucked into spots where Adrian plied us with history, tales of death, and strange goings-on.  Early in the tour I wondered if I was a member of an awkward group subscribing to a horse-&-pony show.  Between Adrian’s delivery and my own knowledge of early Seattle history, I instead quickly found myself enticed.

As we made our rounds, Adrian asked the group various questions of a predominantly ghost-relative nature.  When no one spoke up, I responded drawing from my sorted familiarity on the topic … which was about half the time, so I made myself look like I’m well versed in the subject matter along with being a big-time ghost nerd.

Zoom H2n

Zoom H2n

Among Adrian’s questions, the subject of E.V.P. recordings came up.  E.V.P., or Electronic Voice Phenomenon, are generally viewed as when and where something (and by ‘something’ I mean a ghost) that was not physically present makes a sound during a recording session.  Usually these sounds are speech, and often these sessions are held intentionally where a person talks and trying to engage any possible present ghosts.  I like weird stuff, and I’ve watched more than a few ghost-hunting TV shows (and things on Sasquatch, UFOs, etc).

During these episodes I noticed that the brand and model of recording units frequently used is one of the ones I own and use – a ZOOM H4n.  My ZOOM H4n has served me well for both A.O.R. recordings and my music work.  This was all the more amusing as I happened to have my recently-acquired ZOOM H2n in my back-pack.  The H2n is an ideal unit for field recording – and by the very nature of having it with me I look liked all the more of a ghost nerd.  Oh yeah, I came on this tour ready to do my own E.V.P. session, because surely on the tour is a prime opportunity for recordings.  I’m a ghost nerd, GREAT!

Zoom H4n

Zoom H4n

The tour took us to a number of places around Pioneer Square – apparently it’s quite haunted – ultimately wrapping up back at the Seattle Ghost Tours underground HQ.  Before leaving I got to talk with some of the staff members about doing E.V.P. recordings.  I asked why I see the ZOOM H4n frequently used, what sort of device settings it needs for E.V.P. recordings, other brands/models of units used, and where to find more information on doing E.V.P. recordings.  Yep, ghost nerd.

Now … WHY DID I ASK ABOUT THIS?

PAY ATTENTION because this is the main reason why I wrote this post …

Of the different A.O.R. recording projects I have thought to do, recording what-should-be quiet places and seeing what I get has come to mind.  After having this ‘quiet places’ idea, it occurred to me – with a half-grin smirk and a “wouldn’t it be neat if …” wonder – that such recordings could produce E.V.P. occurrences.  I mentioned while talking with the to the Seattle Ghost Tours staff that my grandparent’s house – a historic landmark where some murders are understood to have taken place – is considered to be haunted.  It now belongs to my parents and so far as I know I am slated to inherit it.

Do you see where I am going with this?

Here’s the dichotomy …  On one hand, I have a potential E.V.P. recording location entirely at my disposal.  On the other hand, if I held E.V.P. recording sessions there and did get something, then I know what I’m getting into when I inherit the house — and maybe ignorance is bliss.

So here’s where I give the tidy wrap-up to this post – where I say that the Seattle Ghost Tour(s) was great, I had a good time, you should go too, etc etc.  This leaves everybody is happy, and tonight we’ll all sleep well in our respective beds.  Okay, so that’s the healthy cynicism one can have about blogging – but really, I did enjoy it and would recommend the excursion.  I was pleased and piqued with the tour, and I found it added to my knowledge of early Seattle history and my experiences coming from the Seattle Underground Tour.  If you ABSOLUTELY think that anything with ghosts is hooey, then don’t spend your time or money – but if you have even just ONE question, ONE experience that makes you think that ghosts may exists, then go … like me, you’ll probably enjoy this tour!

Your Ghost Nerd,
Don

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Scooby Doo — WHERE ARE YOU?!?

Posted on February 25th, 2013

Dear Archive Of Resonance,

Where have you been lately?  You started ArchiveOfResonance.com, you put up a few posts, we got to start hearing about your recording projects and adventures to go catch them … but then you kind of fell off the radar.  What’s up — what is AOR currently working on — when does the next album get released?

Sincerely,
Your Minions Of Adoring Fans

Dear Adoring Minions, (and I do mean both of you)

Thank you for your inquiry!  The short answer is …. I have been BUSY!

$urviving in the current economy is no small trick, and while I’m keeping afloat I also have to hustle — which makes life a juggling act.  As many of you know, a big part of my life is also my music.  I have been preparing to record 2 & 1/2 albums — one on my Scottish smallpipes, and an EP & LP for Nae Regrets.  Providing I can keep my musical focus during the coming months, I project that I will be able to start record early in 2013 — and I have other album projects I would like to soon follow.

As for AOR work — past, present, and future…

  • The first copies of Wind & Harps have been available for a few months now and have been consistently receiving positive responses.
  • As my blog-post readers know I tried capturing audio for the Trains & Waves project during Autumn & Fall 2012 — with little luck.  I am looking to Spring 2013 with new recording fever as in the meantime it is my intention to contact local railfans AKA “train spotters” to get tips on better locations.
  • The recordings of the Oyster Run motorcycle rally is of course ‘in the can’.  I should be meeting soon with Adam about capturing the source artwork and getting the album art completed.  Following some work — and headaches — I now have a new-to-me computer working which should enable me to produce the final surround-sound audio.  This may require acquiring a set of 4-channel speakers first.  Whatever the case, I’m looking to get this together by late-spring 2013.
  • Also come Spring I want to record Water Drums!  There is a functional-art fixture on Snoqualmie Pass that I’ve wanted to record for years, and finally it looks to be coming together.  This should be an interesting project seeing as I intend to get it turned out in an ‘over-night’ fashion.

Lastly, and more recent, my life and ‘work’ are getting both more-nuts and likely-better.  I will be moving AOR’s headquarters (in other words, I’m moving house) and aiming to start a company making and selling my baked-goods — in particular, my biscotti.  People have enjoyed it and encouraged me to market it for years, and now — thanks to a friend — I’m seeing how to do so realistically and pursuing the endeavour.

So, I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth, nor have I gone into hiding — I’ve just been busy.  I have not dropped AOR, only I have had to take a bit of a step to the side of it briefly.  We survived the Mayan end-of-the-world and with the re-boot of their mighty clock I am now going forward on numerous dreams and aspirations.

Keep an eye out in the following months ~ Don 25Feb2013

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One More 2012 Trains & Waves Attempt(?)

Posted on October 21st, 2012

Today I joined two friends and their daughter to Alki Point for some beach combing.  In true Pacific Northwest fall style, we walked the shoreline scanning the sand for beach glass — they were finding glass while I only kept finding interesting rocks.  When I say ‘true Pacific Northwest fall style’, I mean that we experienced gray skies, cold damp breezes, and rain/hail/sun (sometimes intermittent, sometimes all at the same time); this weather is otherwise known as “Scotland“.

The drive out to the point was nice.  I had been working out-of-town for the past week & a half; it felt good to be in motion and to get to see some of my city.  Trees were displaying their October & November colours; it was nice to see joggers and bicyclists enlivening the sidewalks along with entwined scarf-clad couples and dog walkers.  Most of all, I enjoyed reconnecting with my friends.

Between our times of bending over followed by exclamations of “Hey, look what I found!”, I told them about my trip and some of my recent AOR recording efforts.  Just days before on Penn Cove, in the same location where Wind & Harps was recorded, I captured most of a 20 minute thunder & hail storm passing overhead.  A few days before that I tried recording wind tossing about tops of alders as local tree frogs called to one another — but I think all I got was a lonely baying dog and a guy with a loud lawnmower on some neighboring acres.  I told them about the 3 times during the 2 weeks prior to my trip where I tried recording for Trains & Waves, and the difficulties with catching a lack of trains, the wrong kinds of trains, leaf blowers and an electric chainsaw.  If this issue persists I’m going to have to call this album Leaf Blowers & Waves — just doesn’t have the same romance to it, huh?
(Lawnmowers, leaf blowers, and electric chainsaws — OH MY!  As you can imagine … I’m really growing to dislike power lawn & property implements.)

They recalled a beach they had recently visited with both trains and waves — so close that when they scrambled up a bank of large rocks to escape the incoming tide they were met at the top by a passing train — they named Picnic Point in North Lynnwood but went on to describe what sounded more like Lighthouse Park in Mukilteo.  While I will have to enquire further as to where they were, they said that about 6 freight trains passed per hour and they did not recall hearing commercial airlines overhead.  The big ‘curved track’ next to the park strikes me as what I saw a few days ago when pulling into Mukilteo on a ferry and considered as an alternate Trains & Waves recording site.

So the point of this post…?
Well, part of it is about sharing the details an outing with friends during one of my favourite times of the year.
The other part — I’m excited, as I may have one more opportunity to record Trains & Waves before the Pacific Northwest receives “Scotland” for the next 6+ months!

I can get to & from Lighthouse Park with much less effort than Richmond Beach, it just takes considerably more time.  I’d like to have this recording ‘in the can’ and preparing to be the 2nd AOR release.   And I’ve already checked — this Wednesday looks to be the best-weather day.  I wonder though if the cute redhead I met at Richmond Beach 2 weeks ago will also be there?

~ Don  (I’m single, a Libra, I like recording sessions on the beach and other places, and…)

 

UPDATE 22October2012 1537hrs — Using GoogleMaps I’ve learned a few things about both Picnic Point park and what is more correctly called Mukilteo Lighthouse Park.

  • Both have substantial sized sections of train track arcing through/near/by the parks.
  • Being a person currently living without a personal vehicle, to use public transportation to get to/from Picnic Point I would have to three buses traveling to downtown Seattle, the east side of Lake Washington, then to north Lynnwood, where I would have to walk the last 5.2 miles, requiring a mere  3+ hours each way.
  • Walking directly to the park, on the other hand, would double the foot mileage and take about the same amount of time.  On the other hand, were I to go to Mukilteo … about 2 hours and it drops me off right at the park.

CONCLUSION — Unless I find a ride to Picnic Point, I’m going to Mukilteo.
(Please inform the redhead who was at Richmond beach 2 & a 1/2 weeks ago so we can meet again; this time I’ll do better at responding to what I thought afterward were your “You may ask for my number” green lights — I promise!)

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It seems that…

Posted on October 10th, 2012

…every time I go out to do an AOR recording session I learn something — more over, a number of somethings.

Examples being:

  • On cold/wet/windy days bring kleenex.
  • Don’t stand up-wind of what you’re recording if what you’re recording has anything to do with the wind (dudh!).
  • Set your cell phone to silent, vibrate, or stun.
  • Bring snacks; make sure they have quiet wrappers.

Today, Adam & I returned to Richmond Beach taking a 2nd shot at capturing materials for Trains & Waves.  Primarily I wanted to see Adam to get pictures of freight trains for the album art — a green Burlington Northern or an orange Burlington Northern Santa Fe turbine engine pulling a string of cars in the golden sunlight we only have in autumn.  Any recording on my part would be a bonus.

When we were out last Tuesday we had paltry results — very few trains, most of them commuter class.  The sounds of commuter trains compared to freight machines is the equivalent of an economy car next to a tractor-trailer — their sound just doesn’t register the same impact.  If you’re not familiar, think of this — you’re standing at the top of a stairwell with a roll of toilet paper in one hand and a bowling ball in the other … when you toss them down … yeah, that bowling ball is the freight train.  I don’t mind having some non-freight trains on this album, but they’re not the main flavour I’m seeking.

Last week … mostly commuter trains, a few freight trains, and myself not operating my gear correctly.  This week … pretty much the same supply of trains, and myself not bothering to pull all my gear out (although now I know what I did wrong last week).  I got to see samples of a few of the pictures Adam took, which I’m looking forward to seeing full size.  One of them looked particularly cool, taken right before we left.  After staying for another spectacular sun-set, one last freight train came in the dark — what Adam got comprised not only of of its lights but the lights reflecting on the metal tracks.  This probably won’t be the album cover, but it probably will comprise part of the album art.

So what is it that I learned today?

While trying to record — and I think I did get some good material today (some) — I again got to deal with dog-walkers & etc people.  I know … it’s a public place … but I am looking for something in particular, so one does their best to mitigate (one of the things I’ve learned is if you wear sunglasses and don’t look toward people approaching you, they’ll often leave you alone).  In about a 15 minute span I was approached by two sets of people who helped clarify why Adam & I have been seeing so many not-freight trains.  Essentially the commuter trains have the main use of the tracks in the morning and evening; the freight trains operate mid-day.  We have been arriving at the park around 3 … perfectly missing the freight trains.  I’ve thought to call BN & BNSF to ask for the schedule of these heavy trains, but in today’s climate I’d probably be having a lovely little chat with TSA by noon the next day.  I’m willing to go the distance for this project, but there are points where I draw the line.

I have already adjusted my schedule so that I may be back at the park tomorrow arriving by 10AM.  I’ll get about an hour to set up and hopefully 2 good hours of recording just trains and waves — ideally not dogs and walkers because I plan on going to go an even further distance north on the beach.  With my schedule, this is pretty much my last opportunity to record for Trains & Waves until late spring 2013 — and at that, I’m only getting the opportunity now because we’re experiencing an ‘Indian summer’.  It is my hope that, like the recording sessions for Wind & Harps, ‘the 3rd time is the charm’.

I also learned today that if I want to get some of the other sounds of this park — like the frogs that start making calls in the evening — to record them without walkers and dogs and kids around I’ll probably have to back there sometime late at night … possibly the middle of the night.  Hopefully I got just enough today.  Additionally, when you walk too far, too fast, down and back up a whopper of a hill, carrying too much gear, anti-inflammatories, muscle balm, and a good night’s sleep are your friend.

Don ~ 09October2012

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AOR … Launch!

Posted on October 9th, 2012

What — I’m blogging now — I’m a blogger?!?

Oh, right … okay.

Archive Of Resonance is off to an interesting start — since the beginning of this year it has taken form in leaps and bounds.  Finding our footing with Wind & Harps took a fair amount of work for co-founder Andrew and I.  When Andrew released AOR to me late last month, it proved to be both a speed-bump and a gift — and as I’ve learned from my experiences as a musician, I’ve dealt with this shift and kept on rolling.  Another experiential recording has been captured, I’ve been having new session ideas along with contributions from friends, and buzz is building.

I’ve noticed that when I’m involved with different AOR efforts, people seem to be a little more kind and receptive than usual.  When Andrew and I sought to record what became Wind & Harps, three noted Seattle-area meteorologists gladly helped with information on undisturbed windy places around the Puget Sound.  The people I met at The Oyster Run seemed to be rather welcoming and the few people I interacted with last week doing the first Trains & Waves recording were also quite pleasant.  Tomorrow I should be doing another session with Adam for Trains & Waves, and while I’m out Andrew is doing me a favor in delivering the first CD supply to my place.

 ArchiveOfResonance.com launched a few days ago with generous help from my friend Donna.  While most of our recent contact has been about this site, it’s a joy to have her company.  A couple of weeks ago I reconnected with a friend of mine — Adam — at a wedding I performed at.  In my opinion he’s one of the best artists I’ve ever met; he’s also a good photographer.  He took interest in AOR and my music projects and has offered to collaborate his skills with my endeavours.  I’m glad to be getting Donna‘s genius and Adam‘s artistic eye — they’re good people and I feel both grateful & honored to call them my friends.

I of course have no idea if AOR is going to publicly blossom or just prove to be a personal side-project that lives in the shadows, but I like this project so far … there seems to be something ‘right’ about it.  Wherever it goes, I’ll follow, and may the road be interesting along the way!

~ Don

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