Transformed wind chimes: Nature-Symphony 79

Nature-Symphony 79 (Unknown song of the galaxy generator) — The basically radiant, 'rainbow-colours' sound of three high-pitched metal wind chimes tuned to a pentatonic scale, together with very frisky bamboo chime, large and small, in four layers, all variously speed-reduced and thus at different lower pitches, additionally with a half-speed metal chime tuned to the wholetone scale in a fifth layer, adding piquancy and mystery / menace at times.

(Currently, each new Nature-Symphony has a good chance of being my last — see https://www.philipgoddard.com/philipgoddard-lights-out-time.htm —, but this time there is another one queued behind this one — a real oddity.)

Chimes used

(Layers 1–4)
Woodstock Pluto, Polaris and Mercury chimes — Rather high to very high-pitched, tuned to different modes on a pentatonic scale. When I put them together they tend to come across as though a single instrument.

Indonesian bamboo chimes, large and small — prominent and very frisky in this particular recording.

(Layer 5)

Davis Blanchard Debussy Bells chime — 8-tube, tuned to a motif in the wholetone scale, but with the odd pseudo-note sounding, which is dissonant against that scale.

I made both recordings on the rough steep slope just below Hunting Gate, about the highest spot on the Hunter's Path, high-up on the north side of the Teign Gorge, Drewsteignton, Devon, UK — the Woodstock and bamboo chimes as one ensemble on 2 January 1014, and the Debussy Bells chime on 24 February 2017.

Advisory

To get the best out of this, with its mass of detail, listen with high-grade headphones.

This recording taking place. The recorder (light grey furry windshield) is perched on a small branch rather than on a tripod.

Cropped part of main image. The small bamboo chimes help confuse identification by having the tubes dyed blackish. The more distant (and small) chimes at centre are the Mercury chimes, whose tubes have a bronze finish, which is the reason for their looking darker.

Techie stuff:

For the Layers 1-4 recording, the recorder was a Sony PCM-M10, with Røde DeadKitten furry windshield, perched on a branch by means of a GorillaPod. Post-recording processing was to apply EQ in Audacity to correct for the muffling effect of the windshield, and widening the soundstage by 160%, which also greatly clarifies the stereo image.

For the Layer 5 recording, the recorder was Sony PCM-D100, with two nested Windcut furry windshields, on a Zipshot Mini tripod. Post-recording processing was correction for muffling effect of windshields.

For this work noise reduction was quite strong reduction of mic wind noise communally for all layers, using my 'standard wind cut' preset (dynamic EQ) in TDR Nova GE, and cutting out almost all sound below 20Hz, using Bertom DeNoiser.

Layer pitch shifts (semitones above / below original): L1 half-speed, octave below original, L2 speed to give octave+5th below original, L3 speed to give 2 octave+5th below original, L4 ditto, pitch-shifted a further 5th down, L5 half-speed, octave below original.

Acoustic: All layers: back of cathedral.

Please remember to give this recording a rating — Thank you!