Deep Within the Forest
Exploring the sounds of the forest with psychedelic improvisations, deep listening and stargazing in the hills of the Auvergne
Deep within the forest
There I wait for you
For you my love
— Blue Crystal Fire by Robbie Basho
Back in July I visited an old friend of mine - Vasco Moyal. Vasco and his family have invested their time, hearts and energy into refurbishing a beautiful old lodge — La Belle Verte — a quiet haven deep in the Auvergne region of Central France, in the small rural French commune of La Loge des Gardes.
I have known Vasco back since our days working at the infamous underground club The Alibi back in the early 2010s. Walking through the doors here at La Belle Verte could not be more further removed from those days collecting glasses and pouring pints in the basement of the Dalston dive-bar in which we first met!
On our first day together, late in the afternoon as the sun was setting, Vasco invited me, my wife Camille and our daughter Pearl for a wander through the forest surrounding the lodge. Here, a sprawling network of tall Douglas firs stretch far off into the horizon, dipping gracefully with the Bourbonnaise mountains and decorated with a beautifully rich tapestry of lichen and moss. Plump, purple-blueberries line the pathways and bushes.
“They are a little too bitter here for my liking…” Vasco told me. “But a little further on at higher altitude they are just perfect for making blueberry tart!”.
He was right… the tart was out of this world!
The mysteries of the forest never fail not to enchant me. The fragrances, the sounds… the sensory dimension I experience when in the forest is pure Nature — revealing her secrets to those willing to listen. I find myself entering into a different state of mind, entering into symbiosis with an energy that, despite not understanding its source, I feel a worldly comfort around — watching a fire slowly burn, or tasting freshly baked bread. A sense of home.
"When you go out into the woods, and you look at trees, you see all these different trees. And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever. And you look at the tree and you allow it. You see why it is the way it is. You sort of understand that it didn’t get enough light, and so it turned that way. And you don’t get all emotional about it. You just allow it. You appreciate the tree.”
– Ram Dass
During my walks in the forest with Vasco, we enjoyed sharing conversations about the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku - the process of bathing oneself in the ambience of the forest. A practice which developed as a form of therapeutic relaxation, focusing the self towards sensory engagement and enhancing one’s connection with nature.
…a dose of green therapy?
For a dose of forest therapy, look no further than
by .I really enjoy Whitney’s work. She has a way of placing you in the forest with her photography and words as if you were really there….
You may have noticed in the picture above, the presence of a bag tied around a tree…
For those of you who read this post…
Nightscapes : Nocturnal Sounds from a Forest Lake
I use the Tree Ears recording technique - which involves taping 2 omnidirectional microphones (these Lom Uši Pro’s) to each side of a tree trunk. This allows me to place my mics in a wild location that’s not too noticeable to curious passers by - human or otherwise - and is very simple to set up.
…I have talked before about how I like recording the sounds of the forest using the tree ears technique. This is exactly what is going on here. It’ a technique I use to really listen to the true soundscape of the forest. For me, the best method to get close to the true sound of the forest is to remove oneself from it!
And so with my mics strapped around the trunk of a gentle giant fir, and adding another mic - a geophone - tucked deep in the foot of the tree beneath the trunk, I had set up to capture the nocturnal soundscape of what I affectionally came to label as Vasco’s forest (though it’s actual name is the Foret Domaniale de l’Assise) — the sounds of which you can hear below.
There are some wonderful sounds collected here. Feel free to scan through, or listen all the way through if you wish, as it’s quite a lengthy soundscape — composed from the recordings made that night deep within the forest…
The following night, Vasco and I talked about giving a performance at La Belle Verte and sharing these sounds with the community. It would be programmed on August 11th, falling on the weekend in which the Perseid meteor shower, a spectacular celestial event, reach its peak.
With the support of our stargazing guide Cédric Asal (Ciel, mon Ami) and equipped with telescopes capable of reaching into deep, deep, space — we watched shooting stars scatter the sky. Galaxies, moons and satellites glowing delicately. I had never seen the night sky so clearly as I saw it that night…
The sounds of the very forest that surrounded us formed the basis of the live performance which I gave, interspersed with improvisations on electric guitar, and joined too for a while by Vasco himself.
Here, a snippet of the devotion we gave to Vasco’s forest — enjoy…
Seeking wisdom from the insights of others has inspired me greatly on my path, and being here on this platform offers something that I want to explore more of in my work by way of opening out my discussions to readers and listeners.
Coming up in part two of this feature - Deep Within the Forest - I’ll be speaking to French sound artist, recordist and engineer Mélia Roger about her practice recording sounds in the forest as she shares an in-depth look at her latest work - Tendre Phonocène.
Got your own field recording story you’d like to share…?
I’m going to feature more of these stories in future. I really dig hearing other people’s perspective — the challenges, joys, trials and tribulations, however arbitrary or convoluted - so please feel free to get in touch!
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Mat
🌻
A lovely dispatch! One thing you might consider is posting audio near the top of the post, so readers can experience the ambience as we trace your written narrative, especially when it’s a nice, longer capture like this. I enjoyed hearing a snippet of your performance too!
Thank you for sharing your explorations and recordings with us.