Hillside Hawthorn

My Walk this Week 173 – Re-walking Cwmdu

My walk this week takes me back a couple of years to a day in the Welsh hills around Cwndu. The fact that this is a repost of images from that time, albeit a different selection and a re-edit of the soundscape, tells you how busy I have been lately.

Mynydd Troed hillside

Fortunately, when I am so busy that it is difficult to find the time for a decent walk, I can at least use my own StillWalks® videos and benefit from the different places they take me to in my head. This particular walk is a strong memory for me, although I had forgotten how the location and timing of it clearly coincided with the flight path of jumbo jets taking people on their holidays to foreign parts.

I have managed to do away with most of those jets in the re-edited soundscape below and I don’t really mind the sound of light aircraft as it is an activity to which I must admit being somewhat jealous, but it is the sound of the birds, bees and lambs that I prefer.

Cwmdu Walk Soundscape

The walk takes me along the valley floor and up to a shoulder between two ridges. You will be able to hear when I am climbing up to the top and then later my scramble down at the other end of the ridge and back to the farmland below.

And the reason I have been so busy? I have been planning a project with my tapestry weaving and interactive sound – Art and Audio InteractivityClick the link to find out all about it and even support it if you like. I’ll be working with disabled artists and those with visual impairment and if you are unable to support it yourself, I would be very grateful if you would share it to others you may feel have an interest.

So click the play button or soundscape title above for a listen and then the first image below to see the full images in sequence (not available like this on the mobile WordPress Reader in which case click the Visit button via the … menu or open in your mobile’s internet browser).

Posted in art, Landscape, My Walk this Week, Photography, Soundscape and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

5 Comments

  1. A great adventure walking Cwmdu with you, Alastair, thank you. I so enjoyed the soundscape and the accompanying photos. Jumbo jets–you did a good job of decreasing their sound; loved the birdsong and bleating sheep; always enjoy the rusty gate sounds, at the beginning and the end. I was keeping along with the photos, knew when we were climbing a hill, then knew when the farm equipment grass cutter would be coming up. Beautiful Welsh countryside. Also enjoyed your audio clip about your new interactive weaving project, found it fascinating. Liked the sounds, the big sneeze, the “hello,” and when you pinched it repeatedly. Interesting ideas you have about collaborating with disabled artists. Liked seeing the engineering of the sound makers in the tapestry, watching you weave, and hearing your voice and accent. I wish you the best of luck with this wonderful project.

    • Thanks Jet – it is exciting work to be doing and I’ll need to work very hard to get the project going but that at least is familiar ground Very pleased you enjoyed the walk

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.