Wild Soundscapes: Discovering the Voice of the Natural World
Bernie Krause
Wilderness Press, 2002
# ISBN-10: 0899972969
# ISBN-13: 978-0899972961

Bernie Krause, a professional field recordist and bioacoustician, shares his expertise in exploring nature’s sonic landscapes in Wild Soundscapes. Remember when you first lifted a pair of binoculars to focus on a creature in the distance? When the wonder of the natural world first unfolded before your eyes? Now, you can experience that delight again-through the incredible sensory world of natural sound.

Wild Soundscapes is the first comprehensive guide to listening to-and recording-nature. Learn how to tune in to nature’s biophonies, or creature symphonies, how to use simple microphones to hear more, how to record, mix, and play with sounds you gather. Keep it simple or launch yourself into a new creative field. Whether you’re an amateur naturalist, novice field recordist, musician, want to create your own natural sound library, or just want to gain further appreciate of the natural world, this is the book for you. You’ll be introduced to:

–Basic bio-acoustics: Nature’s web of creature sounds
–“Wolf ears:” developing outdoor listening and observation skills
–Sound Safaris: expeditions and fun experiments to do with kids, hikers, and fellow nature lovers
–Acoustic ecology: how human noise impacts habitat health

Wild Soundscapes comes with a full-length CD, narrated by Krause, sampling a variety of natural sounds: the crashing sea, the singing of ants, the bugling of Yellowstone elk, the plop of falling Costa Rican crabs, and more. With the help of this CD, Krause demonstrates techniques and tricks for field recording success.