Much has been written about the sound of the steam locomotive at night... the sound of the lonesome whistle blowing, echoing off the hills as trains pass in the night. Here then is our tribute to the lonesome call of the steam whistle; a tribute in sound if you will.
Rather than presenting collection of sounds of steam locomotives passing, this CD is an atmospheric painting in sound of distant trains passing in the night.
Close your eyes and relax to the musical sounds of the age of steam, played out on nature’s stage!
How it was done… The stereo recording of night sounds was a bit of cheating. The left microphone caught the distant sound of traffic on Interstate 57, so we took the right channel and doubled it as the left channel but 15 seconds out of sync with itself and PRESTO! Stereo!
The railroad sounds were assembled in a continuous track, with assorted whistles added to the sounds of trains passing. Plenty of reverb was added digitally to simulate a rural and hilly or mountainous environment. Several sounds, particularly the distant whistles, were shifted in the stereo environment digitally. Two mono recordings, CO&E #17 and a high pitched whistle on SLIM&S #5, were used. A stereo effect was achieved digitally by fading the left and right channels alternately against itself, combined with the stereo effect of the reverb.
A number of recordings had whistling added to the base recording of the engine, either recorded the same day or at the same location. The nature sounds covered the edits where whistles were added or where the recordings were edited for time.
Sounds that appear through this recording in order: The sounds of a summer night were recorded from our front porch at Dongola, Illinois, on a night in 2008. * N&W #611 at Shawsville, VA, in 2016 * Whistles of SLIM&S #5 at Jackson, MO, in 1989 * CO&E #17 at Bainbridge, IL, in 1982 * Whistle of SLIM&S #5 at Jackson, MO, in 1987 * SLIM&S #5 near Jackson, MO, in 1990 * Whistle of N&W #1218 at Mt. Vernon, IL, in 1990 * NKP #765 near Madisonville, KY, in 1992 * Whistle of SSW #819 at Chester, IL, in 1990 * SOU #4501 at Rossville, GA, compiled from two recordings made in 2014 and 2016 * Whistle of UP #844 near Worden, IL, in 1990 * Whistle of TVR #610 at Chattanooga, TN, in 1991 * SLSF #1522 at Leasburg, MO, in 1991 * Whistle of N&W #1218 at Walton, KY, in 1991 * UP #3985 at Strasburg, MO, in 1992 * Whistle of NKP #765 near Calvert City, KY, in 1992 * SLIM&S #5 near Gordonville, MO, in 1999 * SLSF #1522 near Rolla, MO, in 1991 * SOU #630 near McDonald, TN, compiled from two recordings in 2013 * Whistle of N&W #1218 near Walton, KY, in 1991 * SLSF #1522 near New Baden, IL, in 1993 * Whistle of SLIM&S #5 at Jackson, MO, in 1991 * BHC #7 near Hill City, SD, in 1994 * CB&Q whistle on SLSF #1522 at St. Joseph, MO, in 1995 * NKP #765 at Granville, PA, in 2013 * IC whistle on NKP #765 at Princeton, KY, in 1993 * BHC #7 near Palmer Gulch, SD, in 1994 * OC #1293 near Baltic, OH, in 1998 * OC #1293 with SOU whistle near Baltic, OH, in 1998 * Whistle of Greenfield Village #1 in 1998 * SLSF #1522 near St. Louis, MO, in 2000 * SOU #154 near Knoxville, TN, compiled from three recordings in 2011 * BHC #104 near Palmer Gulch, SD, in 1994 * SLSF #1522 near Rolla, MO, in 2001 * OC #1293 near Baltic, OH, in 1998 * SLIM&S #5 near Gordonville, MO, in 1999 * BHC #104 near Keystone, SD, in 1998 * SLSF #1522 at Sullivan, MO, in 2002 * UP #3985 at Bonnots Mill, MO, in 1992 * SLSF #1522 near Rolla, MO, in 2002 * NKP #765 near Paducah, KY, in 1992 * BHC #7 near Hill City, SD, in 1994
