BirdNote; Bird Beats by So Wylie

BirdNote®

Bird Beats by So Wylie

Written by Richa Malhotra

[Boreal Owl bird beat, https://twitter.com/sowylie/status/1339653980335575045]

This is BirdNote.

Music producer So Wylie transforms bird calls and songs into musical “bird beats.”

So Wylie: Bird beats are a fun activity that I stumbled upon in the midst of quarantine actually. I find an interesting bird call and create a piece of music out of it -- and also create videos so that people can see how I go from bird call to music.

The first bird beat she made was inspired by Rocky, a Northern Saw-whet Owl that was found in the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in 2020.

[Northern Saw-whet Owl Bird Beat]

Since then, Boreal Owl, Barn Owl and Eastern Screech-Owl have featured in her upbeat tunes.

So Wylie: I have a thing for owls. I have loved them my entire life, and so much so that people used to get me too many owl gifts.

The Barred Owl is her favorite of all.

[Barred Owl Bird Beat]

So Wylie: I love that bird, and I also love its call.

[Barred Owl bird beat]

So Wylie: I get cool videos and pictures sent to me of different birds so, if anything, I just wish that I had known this community was so huge and vibrant and passionate or else I would have been seeking this out sooner.

So Wylie has remixed songs of birds other than owls. To hear these and whatever she does next, you can find her on Twitter, TikTok, or Instagram @SoWylie.

Or visit BirdNote dot ORG. I’m Allison Wilson.

###

Senior Producer: John Kessler

Production Manager: Allison Wilson

Producer: Mark Bramhill

Associate Producer: Ellen Blackstone

Digital Producer: Conor Gearin

Bird Beats provided by So Wylie.

Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Northern Saw-whet Owl ML 125346 recorded by T. Sander, and Barred Owl ML 93169341 recorded by J. Lauzon.

BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.

© September 2021 BirdNote Narrator: Allison Wilson

birdbeat-01-2021-09-23 birdbeat-01