Riverwalk Pano

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Sounds From the Riverwalk

These are two of the possible audio tracks I am planning to embed in the quick time virtual reality .mov
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Riverwalk recording 1

Riverwalk recording 2

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Promising location
The bridge over the Milwaukee River on Wisconsin Ave is at the heart of downtown Milwaukee. There are a variety of sights that are familiar to almost everyone who has even passed through on the bridge or Riverwalk Way, but there are also many things that may be overlooked regularly by even the most regular visitors. Gathering a wide variety of obscure and abstracted images from this area I feel I can create a video that is interesting to both people who have been there and people that have no ties with the place whatsoever.




limitations on sound capturing activities
Using a similar approach to the one for light, the sounds gathered should be a mixture of identifiable and abstract sounds. The plan is to record ambiance sounds as well as using the structure of the bridge and other metal objects to gather unique and unidentifiable sounds to and the the sense of rhythm and motion.

Recalled Place

A place I recall with a good deal of memory is right underneath the North side of the 6^th Street Viaduct on the West bank of the Menomonee River. There was a unique effect of smoke rolling across the water. I could see this happening even down the curve of the river. I am not sure what was causing it but I assume it had something to do with some of the unusual industrial structures I could see around there. I remember they had some sort of odd shape but I don’t recall exactly what they were…domes perhaps? Next to me, affixed to a kind of concrete pillar at the foot of the bridge was a sign indicating that the area was dangerous because it was a MMSD wastewater overflow point. I think I became so interested in this, and thoughtful about what that meant that I didn’t think anymore about the source of the smoke or the large industrial buildings. There were several ducks and geese around in the smoky water. I recall being disappointed I was recording sound and didn’t have anything to capture an image of the smoke on the water.

Sound Trek in the River Valley

On Saturday, February 10, 2007 I set out with two homemade microphones and a Sony MZ-NH700 minidisc recorder to gather some sounds along the Bridges near the mouths of the Milwaukee and Menomonee Rivers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The five recordings below represent some of my favorite moments of these recordings. The locations of the recordings are indicated on the maps Below.
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There are simple maps of the recording sites, along with indication of mic placement next to the recordings in each post below. The key provided on the first of these maps applies to them all.

Railroad Swing Bridge I

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The rail line ends just north of where it crosses this old swing bridge, which leads me to believe that the bridge is rarely, if ever, used these days. This spot, about halfway in between the Hoan bridge and the Broadway bascule bridge is probably the most tranquil peice of riverway this close to downtown. The sound I am trying to capture here is of a sheet of ice clinging to the shore, creaking and poping as the water laps underneath it. There is of course, a variety of wildlife as well...

Railroad Swing Bridge II

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My goal with this recording was just to use an alternate mic position to gather more of the fantastic sounds of the water lapping on the ice sheet. While doing this I captured a series of sonic events that have become my favorite from this set of recordings.

The Broadway Bascule Bridge

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This is a composite recording of some of the most unique sound events from my recordings of traffic on the Broadway bascule bridge. There are still just enough sounds that remind us we are still on the river.

The Water Steet Bascule Bridge

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The area where the Menomonee River meets the Milwaukee River is a fantastic place to go if you like seagulls. The sheer amount of them is astounding and the sight of so many birds flying, diving and performing other areobatic feats is pretty neat, but what struck me was the sound...it seemed there wear nearly a hundred voices overpowering the sound of the nearby Water Street bascule bridge.

The 6th Street Viaduct

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The 6th Street Viaduct was built in 2002 and is the first cable stayed bridge built for motorcars in the state. The suspended quality of the bridge along with its proximity to the rail line shown to the south along with two channels of the Menomonee river make it an ideal place to gather unique sounds. This recording was made standing under neath a large enclosed stairwell attached to the bridge, which acted like drum as the traffic passed over head.
I have always enjoyed the sound of a train braking, as each car slams into the next...