Northwestern Sound

Listen to Chicago improviser Matt Young about performing improv in podcasts like "Hello from the Magic Tavern," from an interview by Sound Arts and Industries student Jeffrey Nils Gardner.

In this episode we conclude our series on radio producer Sarah Geis' course, The Art of the Podcast. Listen as Sound Arts and Industries student Julia Ferguson guides us on the quarter-long journey through the course that led her and her classmates to explore the medium of audio storytelling.

Listen as students Jason Foley, Lauren Kriel, and Erin Watt explore the question of cultural identity in this Radiolab-inspired piece that examines the popularity of DNA ancestry testing kits.

In this episode, we continue showcasing student work from the class The Art of the Podcast, taught by radio producer Sarah Geis. Students Jonathan Chambers, Julia Ferguson, Brendan Monte, and Pavan Vasdev interviewed Gabriel Gomes, also known as DJ Wizard, about his career in pioneering Moombahton music. Listen as DJ Wizard touches on cultural appropriation in music, selling out, and finding a place as a creative.

This past fall, radio producer Sarah Geis taught “The Art of the Podcast” for our program. This course guided students through the medium’s past, present, and future through listening, critique, and creation. Listen as students Sam Clapp, Dan Tinkler, and Molly Wagener present their essayistic documentary piece from the course, detailing their experience reporting on a ham-radio foxhunt.

Sound Arts and Industries student Brad Robin created the electroacoustic composition “Steam” after gaining inspiration from one of our core courses in sound studies. “Steam” was accepted into the New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival, where it was programmed for a concert at the Abrons Art Center. Listen as Robin discusses his process of creating the piece, followed by the complete recording of “Steam.”

Ali Aftab Saeed (@aliaftabsaeed) is one of the most influential sound artists working in Pakistan today, becoming an international viral sensation with his band Beygairat Brigade’s biting satirical pop song “Aalu Anday” in 2011. Listen as he and bandmate Saad Sultan discuss the stories behind some of their most controversial hits and their experience working with Northwestern faculty and students to record a new song in the soundstage of the MA in Sound Arts and Industries.

"Jagay Koi" https://soundcloud.com/aliaftabsaeed/jagay-koi

"Jagay Koi" Music Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8fo5Db7dVQ

Listen to projects from the new course Communicating Sound Science with Sound Media, where students use sound design to present topics in sound science so that they are accessible to a wide audience. The course is a microcosm of the unique interdisciplinary curriculum offered at Northwestern’s MA in Sound Arts and Industries and draws upon the expertise of some of its key faculty in sound arts, sound science, and sound studies.

Hear about the fascinating world of Foley art from Sandra Fox of the world-renowned Footsteps Post-Production Sound. Fox describes some tricks of the trade in an interview, and you can hear her in action at a recent workshop with Northwestern students sponsored by the MA in Sound Arts and Industries.

Northwestern University is the place for sound. Hear about how new facilities and initiatives are multiplying opportunities for sound-minded arts and research. Join us on a tour of the new sound spaces at Northwestern, which include the center for our MA, a brand new state-of-the-art recording studio, and a mysterious disc archive.