Deep in the night, when the air is quiet and still, the eerie sound of distant trains sometimes floats through the forest. This soundscape was recorded near Brockenhurst at 11pm.
Sounds
Forest Awakening
I woke up one morning listening to the dawn chorus, and the thought struck me that it would be interesting if I could try to ‘conduct’ an orchestra of forest birds and animals, and have them sing or sound in perfectly in rhythm, and by the wonders of recording technology I’ve managed to do that within this composition, which aims to create an almost classical, English pastoral feel and evokes The New Forest waking up first thing in the morning.
Forest Rain
This composition tries to evoke the sound of gentle rain falling in The New Forest woodlands.
Dusk Rider
A composition inspired by the sight of horseriders taking a very late evening ride across The New Forest. I’ve tried to incorporate the sounds of their hooves moving by to create rhythmic interest in the piece, and attempted to use the sound of a hunting owl to form one of the principal melody lines.
In Hibernation
An ambient music composition that was inspired by midwinter in The New Forest.
Starry Skies
Despite a glow in the sky from the directions of Southampton and Bournemouth, we still do get some beautiful starry skies deep in The New Forest. I think there’s an awe-inspiring majesty to them, which I tried to capture with this composition.
Arrive, Depart
I recorded this one quiet, early morning at Brockenhurst Railway Station. A train arrives and departs. The varied different sounds are quite amazing, and I loved the way that, after the train departed, gradually the sound of the rails faded away and nature took over once again.
Birds Fly South
Watching the annual migration of birds over the New Forest as they start heading for sunnier, warmer climates in the Autumn was my inspiration for this piece.
Along the Stream
I composed this after taking the dog out along a stream near Blackwater. It was one of those beautiful still, sunny mornings and the sunlight was filtering through the trees and catching the ripples here and there and turning them into tiny diamonds that seemed to dance and sparkle as they flowed downstream. I was inspired to try to capture the scene in sound.
Nocturne
This composition attempts to evoke the tranquility of night time in The New Forest woodlands.
New Forest Sounds 