Noise From Scratch
Making noise doesn't have to be hard or expensive.
Chances are, you have a whole ensemble of noise instruments hidden in your home.
Before you go broke at the music store, try out these simple tricks to make noise with junk:
Finally, don't ignore free, open source audio software as a source of noise.
Audacity is a must for databending and everyday audio recording, and you can download it for free.
Chances are, you have a whole ensemble of noise instruments hidden in your home.
Before you go broke at the music store, try out these simple tricks to make noise with junk:
- CD Aleatory Remix: With a sharpie pen, Draw lines on the back of a CD you don't want anymore.
The CD will skip and reshuffle the music in novel ways. - Radio Tuner: When you fine tune an AM radio, you'll find drones and pulses that feel at home in any industrial soundscape.
- High Pitched Terror: Rub styrofoam on a wet glass plate.
The faster you rub, the higher the pitch.
Works well on car windows. - Tape Loop: If you've got an old cassette player, you can make your own loop center.
Just open the case of a cassette, and remove the tape.
Then cut just enough tape off to wind around the spindles and tape the ends together.
Search "diy cassette loop" for diagrams. - Walkie-Talkie Theremin: Tune two walkie-talkies to the same frequency.
Then hold them a few inches apart and press one of their talk buttons.
The resulting feedback can be played like a theremin.
Move the handsets farther apart to lower the pitch. - Cheap Maracas: Fill a pill bottle with fine gravel.
Screws work just as well. - Noise Toys: Electronic toys make some of the strangest sounds on their own.
But the best noise comes from "circuit bending" the toy.
Anyone with a soldering iron can learn how to circuit bend battery-powered toys into rugged noise instruments.
Search "circuit bending" for detailed instructions. - Candy Wrapper Whistle: Any candy wrapper or thin blade of grass can produce ear-splitting whistles.
Hold the wrapper horizontally, and pull the edges taught.
Press the corners of your lips together and leave a small opening.
Now hold the outstretched candy wrapper in front of your mouth and blow hard. - Cheap Microphone: Computer speakers and headphones become microphones when plugged into an amplifier's input.
In most cases, the headphone's jack won't fit in the amplifier's input, so keep a 1/8th inch to 1/4th inch headphone adapter on hand.
Finally, don't ignore free, open source audio software as a source of noise.
Audacity is a must for databending and everyday audio recording, and you can download it for free.
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