In 5 separate posts below: Curie Youth Radio Audio Tours --Please comment on some or all!

[sarah levine]

Below, in five separate posts, you'll find 14 audio tours of Chicago.

Please listen to some or all of these pieces. If you see pieces that already have comments, please scroll down through the discussion to find pieces that have not been commented on (this way, everyone gets heard).

We want to know at least one thing you liked, at least one element that didn't work in our pieces, and what you liked, what didn't work.

These pieces were intended to give you a sense of our neighborhoods and the stories behind them. This is some of Chicago life. Are our neighborhoods like yours? Tell us about where you're from, too.

[sarah levine]

hey this is armand . i like what you did. It gave me a lot of information that i did not know about the group you are in. sound was good also your voice.
I like the part with the ice cream vendors. You could work on the pauses in between the sound.

[Kathryn]

This piece, Xochitl Audio Tour, is informative about the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization Office. The imagery is pretty good, especially the part about the stereotypical activist and the modern day activist. Activists don't have to be nerds, they can be anyone. The narration is low and monotone, some highs and lows in your voice would make this piece more engaging. The ambient sound is very interactive, but there isn't enough of it. You could add sounds of a meeting or a project/policy discussion to give the piece more life.

Kathryn Kaye and Mariah Steward

[Noah Miller]

Hey guys - the first piece I listened to was Lamar's. Lamar, I love your tone of voice/your delivery when you narrate! I had some trouble understanding you sometimes, and so maybe you need to slow down just like 10% and relax into clearer enunciation. Your writing is also wonderful -- "as if they want everyone observing," "echos leaping off the walls," "the biggest brick castle ever." Your sounds were great -- well-recorded and evocative, and you dropped them in at just the right time. I would have gotten a few more close-up sounds of the kids if you could -- individual voices. Was the assignment focused on writing? Because I think some of the moments could have been illustrated in sound better than words: the "why" girl, the ABCs, the not wanting to leave.

All in all, great piece, and you pack so much into such a short time without making it sound rushed!

Keep an eye out for responses from other outLoud Radio folks: Alette, Charlotte, Jonathan, Kalen, Markeise, Phuong and Sandra.

[Youth Mic]

This piece is had great discriptions of where you guys are located and about the orginization. When listening i liked i liked the detail about ripe mongoes, four cement blocks, and especially the screen door. When i heard that part it was like imagaing myslef their getting a feel of everything you guys do. Also that your host voice was very clear. It was really nice how the speaker talked like one on one with you about the organization it felt more comfortable.

I have a couple suggestions that will improve the piece more. I thought that the piece should have a clear ending, maybe the host should sign off. The ambient sound should be little quitier because it made it harder to hear the voice sometimes.

eden (YouthMic)

[Phuong Tseng]

Hi
My name is Phuong Tseng and I'm an intern of outLoud.
I'm from Vietnam.
And I'll be
replying to (01_destiny_audio_tour)

I like how you describes Mr.Bob's life and his contributions to the neighborhood. It give me a sense of what kind of person he is when you give details about his clothes and his attitudes toward his dogs. You clearly explained why Mr. Bob is such an important person to the people in the neighborhood by giving me some facts of what he has dedicated in keeping a nice environment for every one in the neighborhood.
I think that you can add one element to your piece, try walking around the neighborhood with your recorder. By picking up sounds from the neighborhood, helps me visual the neighborhood in a better way by putting some relevant sounds that I heard in my daily lives.

Btw- The dog barking sounds did remind me of this big brown dog in my neighborhood.
Nice job!

Phuong Tseng

[Phuong Tseng]

Hi
I'm back and I'm replying to
(mayra audio tour)

I like how you start off with a very soft voice and low volume and turning your voice higher as you get to the descriptions of the garden.
The element-opening the gate- helps me visualize you opening the gate and taking a step into the garden. And nice job describing the how the gate looks like.
I also liked the atmosphere of the piece because it's very relaxing and calm. It's sounds very poetic.
In my opinion, I think that you could add the laughter of the kids running around in the neighborhood because it creates a sense of a happier neighborhood.
Btw- I didn't really get the part where
"She carries out the hose to wire them with care." -then suddenly jumps to- "The children from the neighborhood run around in the front". Jumping from one scene to another in a second seems like there's a disconnection of two scenery.

Phuong Tseng

[Youth Mic]

Responding to destiny's audio tour.The beginning wasn't interesting and didn't grasp my attention.Towards the middle and the ending the piece became very exciting and dramatic. I thought it was really good but they should of made more entertaining or varied. Wouldn't mind hearing from the main character Bob.

Adomako & Ashley(YouthMic)