creating
sound & music
"Sound surrounds. Its phenomenal characteristics the fact that it is invisible, intangible, ephemeral, and vibrational coordinate with the physiology of the ears, to create a perceptual experience profoundly different from the dominant sense of sight." - Frances Dyson, Sounding New Media
Before the word was written, it was spoken.
Whether it's sound for the stage, screen or radio, I believe there is an integral link between sound and storytelling. Before we wrote stories down, we spoke them out loud. Our voice adds to a continual sonic flux of sound that allows our world to be heard.
The deep connection between sound and narrative drives my passion for sound design and music composition. Sound is leaky and ethereal. It's not contained by the same physical parameters as most senses. We can shape it and design the flow of its path to create, like we do with music or spoken word. One sound can mean many things; longing, empathy, desire, fear, nostalgia, hope. Many sounds can be harmonious or a cacophony. The sound of the sea and the sound of the city are in essense the same: a combination of single sounds.
I love to collaborate. My musical career started in the church choir at 6 years old. Cold Sunday mornings and bad haircut for a good 7 years. When I sit at the piano to write, sing in a choir, or I'm in the studio recording and creating sound, it's the start of a conversation. You can have a conversation with yourself, or you can share your thoughts with other people. I'm lucky to have met so many talented musicians, filmmakers, sound designers and artists with which to share conversations.
Theatre was a key starting place for me to have these conversations. I have worked with numerous theatre groups in Cambridge and London. Highlights include working as a musical director, composing and performing with London based Butterfly Theatre: The Tempest, Macbeth, As You Like It. We toured these shows across the UK in caves and other non- traditional settings.
Prior to 2008, I had considered music as the only sonic art form. When I studied audio production at college in Cambridge, I was introduced to organised sound outside of the structures of music. This education stays in the front of my mind to this day, as I work on soundscape and sound collage pieces for radio art festivals. In 2020 I studied a Sound and Sonic Arts masters module at Helsinki University Of Arts (Taideyliopisto), which really opened my ears to a fresh point of view on sound. Studying sound as a tactile medium especially resonated with me!
I composed & directed A Fenland Symphony, an experimental project which was selected for a BBC New Creatives commission. It was funded by Arts Council England, and was broadcast on BBC 6 Music in 2021. It was further included in the Cambridge International Arts Festival as an immersive audio piece, and has been accepted into a a few European radio festivals.
I'm now based in Helsinki, working across southern Finland on audio and sound production. In 2023, we made a short film 'Nuuskakeikka' which won 3 awards at Uneton48 film competition, including Audience Favourite.
My radio piece Rhapsody Park was awarded a special mention at the 60 Secondes Radio Competition, Montreal.
Other Finnish production credits for me include short films and animations made for Yle's streaming platform Areena. My commercial radio work in Finland has been nominated for an award with Kaiku-radiomainoskilpailu (Echo Radio Ad competition).
My sound studio in Pitäjänmäki is where I can be found. Tervetuloa!
