Audio Recording and Editing

Week 1Workshop
Written By Hali Dardar

Yoshi Ono

Arienne Dwyer

http://infield.faculty.linguistics.ucsb.edu/courses/audio.html

SESSION A: June 24 - June 27, 8:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
Life Science Computing Facility A

Instructors

Tsuyoshi Ono, Professor of East Asian Studies
University of Alberta

Arienne M. Dwyer, Associate Professor of Linguistic Anthropology
University of Kansas

Course Overview

Audio recording is the backbone of most language documentation and/or language maintenance projects. In these hands-on workshops, we will cover principles of making and editing audio recordings, as well as making time-linked transcriptions and other analyses. knowledge to be able to make and process the highest quality possible recordings within a person's constraints; to be able to capture, preserve, and make use of analog and digital audio recordings; to become familiar with basic audio editing and transcription software. Participants will have the opportunity to experiment with workshop-based recording equipment, and use annotating programs such as Transcriber and Praat as well as  audio editing software such as Audacity.

Note:  Participants are also encouraged to bring a sample recording and/or their own recording equipment and a sample recording.

Course Material

Course Schedule

Day 1: Audio signal and audio recording basics.
What makes a good recording? Audio compression and lossless vs. lossy recordings.

  • Recording techniques; comparison of "bad" vs. "good" recordings

  • Equipment: microphones and recording devices

  • Exercises: making test recordings; microphone choices

Day 2: Audio capture: getting recordings into the computer

  • Capturing participant recordings (both digital and analog)

  • Microphone placement and test recordings


Day 3: Tools and Techniques for Audio time linking and transcription.
How can I ready my audio for linguistic analysis?

  • Annotation software: Transcriber and Praat and other tools
    Basics; Analytic methods; Export methods

  • Hands-on practice, including bringing transcriptions into another piece of software (e.g. MS-Word, Excel, etc).

Day 4: Further recording & analysis techniques; audio preservation

  • Improving the quality of your recordings

  • Conversion between different audio formats

  • Care of original recording media and the digital captured media.

Hali Dardar
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