Rare Ecosystems

Réunion is a volcanic island in the Indian Ocean, located between Madagascar and Mauritius. The 39 by 28 mile island has a tropical climate and is punctuated by two staggering volcanic peaks in the center of the land mass: Pitons des Neiges (“Snow Peak” – 10,070 ft.) and Piton de la Fournier (“Peak of The Furnace” – 8,632 ft.). This remote location is listed as one of the ten main biodiversity hotspots in the world due to its protected waters, contrasting landscapes, and isolation which has allowed for millions of years of evolution separated from any mainland influences. Rare Ecosystems is a collection of unique sounds from this specific closed ecological system. Producer Charles Van Kirk explored the island with local musician Aurus in search of interesting sounds. They hiked through the mountain town of Ciaos along the Chemins de la Chapelle trail, scouted the sonic properties of volcanic sand beaches along the coast from Saint Denis to Saint Pierre, and traversed the volcanic crater at Piton de la Fournier, sampling along the craggily surface of dried lava. Incidentally the volcano would go on to erupt on July 2, 2023, less than two weeks after their session.All of the sounds in this pack were recorded with a DPA 5100 surround microphone into a Sound Devices recorder. You’ll find drum beats derived from the field recordings using Sensory Percussion drum sensors. You’ll hear deep earthy subs and FX created from subterranean impacts recorded with a Geofon. And Aurus appears in the aquatic percussion section of the pack, demonstrating Cameroonian Akutuk techniques as taught to him by Loïs Zongo. These samples are truly special, unique, and yes… rare. Dive into this pack today and add a truly rare touch of sound into our next production.