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Perceptually Ergonomic 3-Dimensional Sound for Headphones.
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Sunday, April 18, 2010

Icelandic Volcano Eyjafjallajökull run off: Seljalandsfoss Waterfall


The volcano in Iceland!!!:



Behold, the run off of Icelandic Volcano Eyjafjallajökull, Seljalandsfoss Waterfall:

In light of the recent epic volcanic activity in Iceland here is my recording of one of Iceland's most scenic waterfalls that originates from the glacier the volcano is melting that, in turn, is causing flooding.  In fact, the bridge we drove on to get to the falls is in the midst of the floods.  Here is how it sounded before the most recent eruption.

Seljalandsfoss Waterfall:
(Use Headphones for All Recordings--they're "binaural recordings")

Song/Piece: Seljalandsfoss Waterfall
Microphone Setup: In-Ear Microphones
Master Recording Format: 44.1kHz/24bit
Streaming Format: mp3 LAME 3.97 variable bit rate ~240 kbps 44.1kHz

Be aware that throughout this recording I am wearing the 2 mics in my own ears and am turning my head quite a bit to check out the place. Therefore, your perception of where the waterfall is will likely make drastic spatial shifts often.

...On Monday I went on a road trip with the Icelandic Band Rökkurró (they have an AWESOME forthcoming album as of April 2010) along Iceland's scenic south coast. There was a lot of green moss and grass, volcanic rock, and fog. Rugged yet beautiful. It reminded me a lot of the Oregon Coast sans trees.


Seljalandsfoss Waterfall in the distance as we arrive by car:

2008:
2010 with floods from the volcano melted glacier:
 

The first waterfall, Seljalandsfoss, we stopped at was unique in that you could walk in back of it making a complete 360 walk of the waterfall. This 360 encircling of course meant you got pretty soaked with icy waterfall spray but that was no big deal-rather refreshing.

About to go behind Seljalandsfoss:



In back of Seljalandsfoss:



At the end of our walk we decided to try some pure Icelandic water direct from a stream. We used our hands to ladle the water out and it tasted quite deliciously pure. This was rather Vikingtastic I guess.

A fine grained look at the ultra-green moss that gives so much to the landscape:



We then made a stop at a second and far more internationally known waterfall called Skógafoss. To me, this looks highly similar to the "waterfalls" in NYC that were installed in the Summer of 2008. This is why I say "far more internationally known": replicas of this waterfall appear all over NYC. In my mind, this looks very similar to many of Elias Eliasson's waterfalls because the water exits the stream in a wide parallel formation (even though aspect ratios vary between Eliasson's falls). I'll agree that the aspect ratio of the fall is not exact to any one of Eliasson's falls but the exiting of the stream across a seemingly sharp 90 degree linear edge seems to be highly similar to this waterfall in Iceland.

***Disclaimer: I have not investigated much of Eliasson's theory other than seeing his exhibits first hand in NYC. Though, perhaps my innate visual perception of the falls is far more primary than a relation to an abstract theory convoluted by an artist for one's exhibit: a general conclusion, not a railing on Elias Eliasson.


A picture is worth 1000 words... Skógafoss Waterfall:



Along the ride we saw many interesting and beautiful sights.

...

Man, Icelandic Horses are sickeningly cute.

If they mated: Viking horses + '80s hairband =




(pssssst, where are their crazy guitars? and spandex? and pyrotechnics?)


We finally made it to the very coast where, in a quaint small town, there was amazing food.

Tumultuous Icelandic Coast in Stokkseyri (there is a rock wave break kind of far out):



The really great meal we had was at the restaurant where Dave Grohl ate when he came to Iceland. Amazing lobster. The really funny story about Dave Grohl eating here is that he heard some local teenage band practicing nearby and invited them to play a song to open for the Foo Fighters. Nilfisk is the band's name. It means "No Fish" (This is a fishing town). They'd been playing together for, effectively, just days. Pretty awesome story. You can see video coverage in the film "Screaming Masterpiece".

Aaron