One of the world’s most prolific wildlife sound recordists has released a large collection of his most treasured recordings of wild places to listen to for free on Soundcloud, as he nears the end of his life.
Martyn Stewart has recorded nearly 100,000 pieces, consisting of 30,000 hours of material, spread across 40 countries, and that have been used in 150 films and numerous nature documentaries. Some of these include sounds that, for the moment at least, can’t be heard anymore, as they belong to extinct animals or disturbed habitats.
The project, called Martyn Stewart’s Listening Planet was released through Apple Music’s Platoon Records, and is meant to inspire people to appreciate, as well as to try and protect, a more delicate part of the natural world—the auditory part.
A Trailblazer
For years men like David Attenborough and Steve Irwin brought into our living rooms up-close and personal images of amazing wildlife and landscapes through their television programs.
With a rise in meditation apps, 24-hour YouTube streams of sandy beaches or vibrant forests—and corresponding medical research showing such noises are hugely beneficial for us—most people won’t know that they have likely already listened to Stewart’s subtle contribution to civilization’s appreciation of the natural world multiple times.
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“Martyn is one of the key handful of recordists who helped set the protocols and other standards that gave the work credibility and standing in the world of sound,” Bernie Krause, a soundscape ecologist and friend of Stewart’s, told Corryn Wetzel, writing for Smithsonian. “Few can match the quality of his life-long efforts.”
Stewart was diagnosed with terminal bone cancer in December of 2020, and it’s partly through contemplation of his own passing that he’s decided to release some of these recordings.
Throughout his life, since he recorded his first bird at the age of 11, it was easy to record the sounds of faraway places. But times are changing, and the almost-inescapable presence of noise pollution has made his job a lot harder.
Among his “treasured” recordings include Hurricane Dorian on a remote beach, rain, trees, and more over a night in the Daintree forests in Australia, thunderstorms in the Australian outback, Denali National Park and Arctic Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, dawn in Zimbabwe, a Mexican pebble beach, and so, so much more.
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He’s also captured intimate sounds and calls of certain animals, some of which are extinct like the northern white rhino and the Panamanian golden frog.
“I hope they have the connection between sound and the animal emitting the sound,” said Stewart. “I think we have to become the voice of the voiceless. If we can get these beautiful sound recordings out and let people in the world listen to them, maybe we can start protecting what we’ve got left.”
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