The World I Hear

It’s pretty astonishing to really stand in the middle of a city block, close your eyes, and focus wholly on the sounds being produced around you. For me the ambient sound of New York City is something that is absolutely amazing. If you were to go anywhere in the city, from Midtown Manhattan to the South Bronx, there will not only be a unique abundance of sound, but sounds that can very easily create a mood or a specific environment. For this exercise I focused on two places that I visit quite often, right out side of Hunter College and in the middle of Astoria Park.
When you really listen to what goes on outside of Hunter there are countless sounds and textures that are created. For most of the day this area produces the sounds of a bustling and energetic location. Like most places in the city, the sounds of cars, trucks, and emergency vehicles dominate over most other sounds. There is a constant ebb and flow of horns honking, engines running, trucks barreling down the street, and the occasional siren blaring. For many this might be annoying or distracting but this is the soundtrack to my education. I study, read, think, and learn in this environment and for me it is almost soothing.
In Astoria Park the prevalence of traffic sound still exists, but does so in a very different way. Running straight over the park is the RFK (or Tri Borough) Bridge. There is a very constant buzz of traffic created by the cars and trucks that cross the bridge, but unlike the area around Hunter the sound here does not vary as much. It is smooth and calming, reminding me of the sound river water makes as it flows downstream.