Uncarved Block: Sounds for Calm Spaces

Sound and music appeal directly to the emotions.

Sound and music appeal directly to the emotions.

There is no language barrier involved in the perception of wordless sound.

Urban environments are increasingly hectic and sonically unpleasant.

An Interview with Uncarved Block

Les J. Hewitt, the man behind the Uncarved Block name, makes relaxing, immersive sound-environments for public and private spaces.

He currently lives in the middle of England in a house he shares with a black and white female cat, who thoroughly checks that the music is suitably "chilled-out".

Q: When did you start making music and what first influenced you?

Later, I had a toy glockenspiel. I remember I loved the sound of it. Another musical toy I had was a humming-top. I'd get it spinning as fast as I could and listen as the harmonics faded out while the top slowed down. There was always music in the house; both my parents enjoyed listening to music. They had quite different listening tastes too, so I got to hear a wide range of music as a kid.

Q: How did that progress into you making your own music?

Q: How does music fit into your life now?

I have music playing nearly all the time at home, when I'm not writing some more! I was living next to a busy road a few years ago, so I began to record music that I could leave running as a layer of pleasant sound between myself and the traffic noise.

It had to let me get on with reading or whatever else I was doing, so it couldn't be distracting. It had to remain unnoticed until I listened to it. These days I still do that, though the new house is much quieter.

Q: Where do you want to take your music from here? Do you have a view of a path at all?

I have a few ideas I'm developing.

A while ago I had this idea about providing "Calm Space" installations in public places. I thought it'd be a nice gesture to offer people "sonic oases" where they can escape from the cacophony. I've done a couple so far and they've been very well received, so I'll be doing a lot more, I think. By the way, there's no charge for being in a public Calm Space!

I'm also looking at ways to include visuals in these events and I've found a few interesting paths to explore in the areas of lighting and video projection

I'd like to make the Calm Space experience as accessible as possible, so I'm thinking of making DVD projects that people could use to get a few minutes of deep relaxation at home or at work, wherever there's a computer or TV with a DVD drive handy.

Q: How do you see your music working within a therapeutic environment?

My notes and sounds are chosen very carefully and there is a lot of space in the sound-image which tends to create a more immersive experience for the people hearing it.

The music becomes a safe place in which they can shelter, helping them to become more relaxed and open to the creative and restorative ideas involved in the healing session.  I use no words in the music,as I think words could be distracting.  My job is to shut up and provide the music!