Binaural sounds from Russia

Posted by IMR on 25 January 2010

AFTER HIGHLIGHTING THE recent surge in site visitors from Russia, a welcome email arrived from Vladimir of Sergiyev Posad, which is a town some forty miles north of Moscow.

He runs the oontz sound blog, showcasing several dozen binaural recordings he’s made in the town. Each recording stands in its own right as a good piece, but together they create an intriguing account of life in Sergiyev Posad.

Vladimir also works for the local newspaper, and perhaps this contributes to the sense of the town being represented in a full and rounded way through its sounds. A military band plays ‘Strangers in the Night’ to accompany an unarmed combat competition, and sparrows chirp among the noise of an indoor market. Local street musicians perform to a high standard, as in recordings of a group of drummers and a man playing the hurdy gurdy and gusli, the latter a kind of stringed instrument.

Many of the recordings are very clear and have little of the traffic and aircraft noise which constantly presses against Londoners’ eardrums. Accompanying photographs show Sergiyev Posad to be an attractive town, and the website comes across as the work of someone who likes both the place and the people.

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