In class, we practiced editing field recordings using Ableton. You can hear my edited field recordings using found sounds of hydrophone recordings in the audio player above.

I used gentle low and high pass filters to create different frequency ranges within the recordings. This way I could have a low frequency naturally-droning sound layered with a high frequency, detailed bubbling sound – to create texture and depth.

Using EQ and filtering as sound-shaping is a really useful tool. Of course, while it is used primarily for taking out certain unwanted frequencies – it can also be used in experimental ways. For example, you could find a harsh or dissonant sound and boost it rather than dip it.

I think EQ, particularly ‘EQ Eight’ in Ableton, is a really powerful tool for creating detailed and complex sound designs. With simple processing a low-pass could, for example, make a drone sound darker and bring out bass frequencies; while a band-pass in a particular frequency range could highlight a particular bird call in a field recording.

Attaching EQ to cues in QLab when designing for theatre is also really helpful, as this allows me to edit certain frequencies quickly in the rehearsal room or theatre. If we want a piece of music to sound more distant or feel like it’s getting drowned out, we can use a low-pass filter to achieve this effect. Or, for example, if you went into a theatre space where the bass frequencies in your sound design were rattling a metal structure within the theatre, you can EQ this out in tech rehearsals.

I think EQ (along with layering and pitching) is especially useful for soundscape composition, when you want to use everyday sounds to compose a soundscape that sounds more well-pitched, even tonal. I have done this lots before by layering a quiet drone underneath pitched and EQ’d field recordings and naturalistic sounds, to create a more lifted soundscape that underscores, as well as sets, a scene and creates ambience.