Audiobooks on NPR

On today's Morning Edition author Neil Gaiman asks, "What makes a great audiobook?" Interviews with author David Sedaris, narrator Martin Jarvis, and others reveal personal insights into this unique literary form. Says Sedaris, "I wouldn't fight for my freedom, but I'd fight for my iPod." You can also hear an incredible clip from the "first" audiobook, Walt Whitman reading his poem, "America," in an 1890 recording.

Spooky Sounds for Halloween!

Just in time for Halloween, three students in my audio production class––Stephanie Inserra, Deanna Dibenedetto, and Kaleigh Griffin––produced this radio essay on New York's oldest haunted house. Enjoy!

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

On This Day

On September 25, 1851, Thoreau wrote in his journal: Some men are excited by the smell of burning powder, but I thought in my dream last night how much saner to be excited by the smell of new bread.

What a lovely thought on this autumn afternoon in the Catskills. But, then again, Thoreau always has a lovely thought; he wrote volumes of daily wonderful, mind-blowing thoughts. The Blog of Henry David Thoreau, compiled by Greg Perry, offers one of these gems every day, pulled from the many years of Thoreau journals. It is an awesome project.

Speaking of the great man, Silver Hollow Audio is just about to mark the first anniversary of our audio edition of Thoreau’s Autumnal Tints. So as the wind blows about outside, and you have a mug of hot apple cider in hand, you can listen to Thoreau wax poetic about leaves and trees and life. It makes for a perfect hour or two. Try a preview here.

Summer in the Studio

With summer here (finally), it is often challenging to stay in the studio with such inviting weather beckoning from the windows. But Silver Hollow has had a busy month. We recorded our next audiobook with author Patty de Llosa (pictured). She came up to the Catskills for a week to narrate her book, The Practice of Presence: Five Paths for Daily Life. It was a delightful time for all, recording in the morning and afternoon, with breaks for lunch, walks and Tai Chi. Right now we’re in the process of editing and mastering the audio. It will be available as a digital download in late October.

Aside from putting together radio shows for Pulse of the Planet, Brett is also narrating and editing a book called The Foundation: A Great American Secret: How Private Wealth is Changing the World this month. We also had fun recording NYC actor Doug Shapiro's newest installment of DougToons, an animated short available for download soon. Summer certainly doesn't seem to have slowed us down at all. Now if only we can find time for a hike or some fishing...

Anniversaries & Landmarks

This month marks the second anniversary of our first independently produced audiobook: Henry Beston’s The Outermost House: A Year of Life on the Great Beach of Cape Cod. It was a wonderful way to launch Silver Hollow’s audiobook line, and it will always be a special title for us.

The seaside cabin on Cape Cod where Beston lived was declared a National Literary Landmark in 1964, although it was swept away in a winter storm in 1978. Now the Maine farm that Beston shared with his writer-wife, Elizabeth Coatsworth, and their two daughters, will share the same recognition. On June 21st, a celebration to mark this occasion will be held at Chimney Farm in Nobleboro, Maine. Beston’s biographer, Professor Daniel G. Payne, who assisted us in the production of the Outermost House audiobook, will be a guest speaker.

For more information about the event, you can read a local news summary here.

The Other Audies…

So June is audiobook month, and the industry kicks off the auditory celebration every year with the Audies. If you've never heard of the Audie, it’s the big award for audiobooks and spoken word entertainment, like the Emmy or the Oscar for TV and film. We've yet to hear any of this year's winners, but in the spirit of recognizing good audio, we wanted to take a moment to recommend a few of our favorites from years past (in addition to our own titles, of course!).

• The Kite Runner, written and read by Khaled Hosseini. It is an absolutely gripping audiobook.
• Here If You Need Me: A Memoir, written and read by Kate Braestrup. This book will make you cry, but it will also make you feel lucky and loved and hopeful.
• Assassination Vacation, written and read by Sarah Vowell. Vowell is the ultimate witty writer. Plus, you will unwittingly learn something about American history.
• Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia, written and read by Elizabeth Gilbert. It is armchair travel and a cup of coffee with your best friend all in the same place.

As we looked over this list of favorites, it struck us that we’re drawn to audiobooks in which writer and reader are one in the same. Many listeners feel this way, and we’re of two minds about it. In terms of production value, it is often difficult to listen to a reader who is not a professional actor or voice-over artist––there is lots of unsavory mouth noise, the read is monotonous, or the vocal quality is poor. But in these cases, and many others, the writer adds eloquence (or punch) to his or her own words that likely could not have been replicated by anyone else.

Happy listening!

Sounds of Summer

Acoustics, dynamics, compression, and timing are some of the audio considerations we grapple with in the studio environment. But in the natural environment this time of year, we find ourselves enamored by a different chorus.

While most studios I've worked in are soundproofed from the urban cacophony, the only real intrusion here is a passing thunderstorm and an occasional chainsaw. That's not to say it's quiet outside: there's the ever-present babble of Warner Creek, the exchange between mama warbler and chicks (pictured), and just this very evening, the munching of Hosta leaves by a resident deer just beyond the studio wall.

Winter months in the Catskills are long and quiet, so the sounds and sights that warm weather brings to the region are a welcome diversion from our own audio creations. And we never tire of nature's endless audio program.