A new group in Los Angeles is drawing people together through the shared activity of capturing the city's ambient noises. The Los Angeles Field Recording Club, established by George Jensen slightly more than a year ago, hosts regular outings to sites including Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills, a scrap yard in Sun Valley, and sections of Griffith Park.
Participants range from those using basic phone microphones to others equipped with professional-grade recorders. Jensen, who has hosted radio programs on dublab and KCHUNG, began the club after recording peaceful sounds at a cove in Big Sur, according to LAist.
Jensen noted a distinctive rhythm in the urban environment. “There’s a certain fluctuation of sound happening — a pulse you might say — in this city,” he told LAist. “Once people sit and be still for a moment, they hear it.”
The outings function as a partly solitary experience, with members gathering briefly before dispersing to record individually. Jensen described the practice as having a meditative effect that encourages presence and offers therapeutic benefits.
The club plans to create an interactive online sound map for archiving recordings. Its next listening session takes place Sunday at 6 p.m. at Figueroa Unanimous Radio, located at 5820 North Figueroa Street in Los Angeles.
This report is based on coverage by LAist: https://laist.com/news/los-angeles-activities/meet-the-la-club-lovingly-recording-the-sounds-of-the-city