Hofstra Drama 20 – Sound for the Theatre

1. 4/6/17, 8pm, 13th Floor of Vander Poel Hall
2. Farthest-Car horn honking, rumbling of thunder, a screeching siren.
3. Medium-Howling wind, a toilet flushing, some people chatting in the next room over, people playing Foosball.
4. Closest-Music from my headphones on the table, raindrops hitting the window in bursts, someone shifting through puzzle pieces behind me.
5. Moderate amount of activity and and medium-low sound level
6. Unsettled
7. Rumbling thunder, howling wind, raindrops on window.

1. 2/19/2014, 3:07 AM, My bed in Vander Poel 1207

2. Identify the sounds farthest from you: Farthest from me, I can hear my AC unit.  It is off, but it always makes some kind of white noise.  I can also hear Marina’s sleeping breathing/snoring  (Do I have to ask permission for this???).  Whenever someone opens a door in the hallway or goes into the bathroom, I can hear them and the door they open and close.  I actually really like the sound of people moving around on my floor.  It is less lonely when you know other people are awake at 3:00 AM.  However, the sounds at medium range have got to stop… [WARNING: dramatic post]

3. Identify the sounds at medium range:  The sounds at medium range are the focus of this journal entry.  I don’t know what event is going on on the 13th floor of my building once or twice a week at 2:00-4:00 AM, but it sure is annoying and disconcerting.  I am not the best sleeper, so tonight, I am taking a moment from trying to fall asleep to note my sound environment…which is not assisting in my entering dreamland.  I think that there is a group of people in the common room above my room either playing a really intense game of foosball or taking a break from studying to practice their sumo wrestling.  There is an occasional boom coming from the ceiling, and it sounds like someone is falling to their knees or body slamming someone to the tightly carpeted floor.  It honestly sounds like the cement ceiling is going to crack and the structure of the ceiling/floor are just going to crumble on to me and my little bed.  Maybe one of those foosball sumo wrestlers will come along with the rubble.

4. Identify the sounds closest to you: When I lifted my phone to record evidence of the annoying sounds coming from above my bed, my elbow cracked.  Elbows make such high-pitched cracks.  I can also hear my breathing when I lay on my side and my right ear is pressed to my pillow.  When I reposition my hand holding my phone, I can hear the way it brushes my phone case, which is a plastic/cardboard hybrid material.  Oh! And I am congested, so I can hear mucus in my head, when I swallow (Ewe).

5. General sound level and activity:  The sound activity is pretty dull, except for when the ceiling sounds like it’s being pounded into pieces.  It’s the middle of the night, so it is quite calm, with intermittent disturbances.

6. One word to describe the sound environment: Disturbed

7. 3 essential sounds to the sound environment: 

– The AC unit white noise

-The crashing from above

-Marina’s sleep breathing