My Avian Awakening: Learning to hear the music of birds

by Christopher Sutton | Apr 12, 2011 | Ear Training

It’s often been said that birds are nature’s musicians. They have an incredible variety of sounds and songs, and each species has its own distinctive calls. An experienced bird-listener can identify the type of bird just by its song. And from Vaughan Williams to Olivier Messiaen to Bob Marley, the music of birdsong has long inspired composers in their creations.

One of the wonderful things about developing your ears is that the more you learn about the sounds you hear, the richer the world around you becomes.

Just as a capable musician will hear riches and depths in a piece of music far beyond what the regular man in the street hears, somebody who has taken a bit of time to understand the sounds of nature will experience the world around them in a fuller, more inspiring and ultimately far more enjoyable way.

I recently enjoyed this kind of transformation with sounds from an unexpected source: birds.

The bird-watcher’s bind

If you grow up in England, taking an interest in birds is something of a social faux pas. There is a long-standing stereotype of the bird watcher as a sad obsessed nerd who has no ‘real life’. Like the train spotter, he suffers prejudice as someone who lacks friends, or any appreciation of ‘cool’ stuff. Cool stuff like football, chasing girls, drinking too much… and whatever else the current prevailing social conventions happen to be.

Of course, as they grow up, most people realise how silly and arbitrary the cool/sad distinction is – and how anybody with a passion or a hobby they’re enthused about is a deeply lucky individual. You begin to see that somebody with a specialised knowledge of an intricate subject is to be admired, not stigmatised or ostracised.

Although I have yet to be won over by bird watching, I have had my mind (and ears) opened to the wonders of bird listening.

The Dawn Cacaphony Gradually Resolves

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