Improvisations

Ocean Noise is a work inspired by the noise pollution that humans have introduced into the oceans of the world. This improvisational piece is accompanied by a fixed media soundscape constructed from underwater samples I recorded in the Boston Harbor using a hydrophone. Over the course of the piece, the soundscape is progressively intruded on by the approach of a ship docking in the distance. As the ship nears, the listener can hear a progressive distortion in the water's soundscape. Eventually, this noise saturates the entire auditory field, overwhelming the natural sounds and replacing them with manmade sounds. Similarly, the improvisation ramps up its energy and dissonance. Mimicking the approach of the ship and becoming an additional human made interruption of the natural sounds.

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Austin Engelhardt, piano

Nick Muellner, saxophone

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Recorded at the University of South Carolina recital hall in Columbia on April 26, 2025.