Yes! A great piece to add to a New Year's special. Being that it's family, and it's a secret recording, and you've heard a taste of what the sound will be like, the suspense ends up being absolutely intense. I love it. You're just dying to hear the sad geese sound and then you get it and it lives up to the suspense. I do enjoy this piece.
A typical new year's ball drop from an unsual perspective. I was going to describe the tone as "surprising," but that is only if you have previously experienced the reserved and unenthuastic nature of her parents. So how come they sound like a flock of geese on one night out of the year?
However shocking they may sound, the most mysterious part of the recording is the recordist herself, who greets the new year in silence.
There's something fun about clandestine recordings especially of family members. Huddled quietly, trying not to draw attention while getting odd sounds you don't know if you'll ever be able to use for anything. Such is the case with Laura Kwerel's serendipitous sounds of her parents and neighbors on New Year's Eve. The sounds are funny and weird and the countdown to midnight has a quirky suspense to it. I could hear turning this from raw tape to a piece with some narration and description in personal essay form. It could be a nice drop-in for next New Year's....
I love Laura's tone as she introduces the piece and counts down the minutes towards New Years. It's so conspiritorial. It's very, very timely, of course, but you totally feel like you're her kid sister, up past your bedtime, sitting on the stairs, eavesdropping on the parents.
The piece is very simple, but the suspense is palpable. Once the moment arrives, the sad, unending honking of the adults in the room and their tepid greetings of "happy new year" seem so sad. Like a bunch of lost and lonely geese.
But Laura sounds gutsy and I wanted to hear a little more from her.
Comments for A Clandestine Recording of My Parents at New Year's
Produced by [redacted] [redacted]
Other pieces by Laura Kwerel
Rating Summary
4 comments
Sara Lerner
Posted on December 29, 2006 at 02:20 PM | Permalink
Review of A Clandestine Recording of My Parents at New Year's
Yes! A great piece to add to a New Year's special. Being that it's family, and it's a secret recording, and you've heard a taste of what the sound will be like, the suspense ends up being absolutely intense. I love it. You're just dying to hear the sad geese sound and then you get it and it lives up to the suspense. I do enjoy this piece.
Aaron Schillinger
Posted on March 06, 2006 at 12:27 PM | Permalink
Review of A Clandestine Recording of My Parents at New Year's
A typical new year's ball drop from an unsual perspective. I was going to describe the tone as "surprising," but that is only if you have previously experienced the reserved and unenthuastic nature of her parents. So how come they sound like a flock of geese on one night out of the year?
However shocking they may sound, the most mysterious part of the recording is the recordist herself, who greets the new year in silence.
Dmae Lo Roberts
Posted on January 03, 2006 at 02:23 PM | Permalink
Review of A Clandestine Recording of My Parents at New Year's
There's something fun about clandestine recordings especially of family members. Huddled quietly, trying not to draw attention while getting odd sounds you don't know if you'll ever be able to use for anything. Such is the case with Laura Kwerel's serendipitous sounds of her parents and neighbors on New Year's Eve. The sounds are funny and weird and the countdown to midnight has a quirky suspense to it. I could hear turning this from raw tape to a piece with some narration and description in personal essay form. It could be a nice drop-in for next New Year's....
Amy O'Leary
Posted on January 01, 2006 at 04:38 PM | Permalink
Review of A Clandestine Recording of My Parents at New Year's
I love Laura's tone as she introduces the piece and counts down the minutes towards New Years. It's so conspiritorial. It's very, very timely, of course, but you totally feel like you're her kid sister, up past your bedtime, sitting on the stairs, eavesdropping on the parents.
The piece is very simple, but the suspense is palpable. Once the moment arrives, the sad, unending honking of the adults in the room and their tepid greetings of "happy new year" seem so sad. Like a bunch of lost and lonely geese.
But Laura sounds gutsy and I wanted to hear a little more from her.