Chasing The Rare Sounds Of Aurora Borealis, And Other Fascinating Sounds Of Lapland - Part 1: Introduction

Posted April 19, 2021 by Asbjoern Andersen in Recording

In the first new series, Niklas Eurén talks about his special field recording project - to capture the rare sound of the aurora borealis, also known as northern lights. Here's the story behind his unusual adventure, in his own words:

Written by Niklas Eurén, photos by Niklas Eurén, Linda-Maria Eurén & Jonatan Pie

Please share:

Well hello there, or morjens, as we say here in Finland! I’m Niklas Eurén, Finnish sound designer and field recordist, and during the year 2021 I will be traveling around Lapland, Finland, trying to capture the sounds that Lapland’s really made of. The sounds are then released as sound libraries. The project is funded by the Alfred Kordelin Foundation.

Sound designer and field recordist Niklas Eurén. Photo by Linda-Maria Eurén

Chasing the aurora borealis

One of my main goals is to record the rare sounds of aurora borealis. It will be an ultimate task, as there are only a few previous recordings. It was professor Unto Laine of Aalto University, Finland, who first recorded auroras in 2011. So why is it so hard to capture the sounds of aurora borealis?

I’ve been in contact with Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory regarding my project, as they were part of the project that captured the first and only aurora sounds. I found out that:

1. Nobody really knows how and why the sounds are formed. There are some interesting theories though.

2. Nobody knows exactly where the sounds are formed, but they have to be formed way below auroras, maybe even ground level. So the sounds are not coming from the auroras, but there is a connection between auroras and these sounds.

3. Sounds are apparently heard only if auroras are seen. So e.g. during summer or cloudy days nobody has reported aurora sounds even though auroras have been active.

4. Sounds are really happening, so it’s not just somebody’s imagination.

So I will be extremely lucky if I catch any sounds from the auroras, but that doesn’t stop me. I’m excited to be part of something special, and that’s more than enough.

Photo by Jonatan Pie

Where I’m recording sounds:

The whole Lapland is my location, but I still have a couple of bases I’m going to use more than others. One of these bases is a family cabin in Enontekiö. Enontekiö is in the northern part of Lapland, and it’s a very special location because there in the wilderness you can experience absolute quietness. So it’s a perfect place to record sounds, as there is no surrounding noise!

Another base is really my home base, as I live in Kolari, Lapland. I have a short drive to the wilderness, so I can divide the year with multiple shorter trips.

Sounds from Niklas Eurén:

Niklas Eurén works as an independent sound effects recordist, and if you’re interested in hearing some of his current SFX libraries, here they are:

Cinematic & Trailer Sound Effects Arctic Trailer Play Track 111 sounds included, 34 mins total $35

Chilling sound effects made from sounds recorded in Lapland during two cold and snowy winters. Using snow, ice, freezing wind and other elements as tools, these sound effects have been designed for trailers, action scenes, games and for anything that needs a sonic boost.

Included are:
Booms/Impacts/Hits • Whooshes • Risers • Drones • Reverses • Stingers

Gear used:
Sennheiser MKH 8040, MixPre-6 II and Sony PCM-D100

Add to cart
Environments & Ambiences Arctic Water Play Track 50 sounds included, 111 mins total $40

Extensive collection of arctic water in different seasons. The sound effect library includes mountain brooks, creeks, a waterfall, a river, rapids, floods and more. Some other elements consist of streams flowing under the snow and blockfields/rocks. Included are also water dripping from an icicle onto the snow, and one track with rain from the Arctic Wind sound effect library. Recorded in Lapland, Finland.

Gear used:
Sennheiser MKH 8040, MixPre-6 II, Sony PCM-D100

Add to cart
Winter Sound Effects Arctic Wind Play Track 19 sounds included, 78 mins total $40

Extensive collection of arctic wind in different seasons. Sound effect library includes chilly winter wind, rapid wind gusts of spring, summer breeze with birds and insects, and massive wind roaring of autumn. Some other elements in these ambiences consist of trees creaking and cracking, needles and leaves, snow shifting with the wind, and rain. Locations include fell/mountain, forest, pine barrens, bog, lake, pond, and even inside kota or wooden Sami hut. Recorded in Lapland, Finland.

Gear used:
Sennheiser MKH 8040, MixPre-6 II

Add to cart
Instruments Birch Trumpet Play Track 12 sounds included $15

Made of birch bark, the birch trumpet, or tuohitorvi, as we call it in Finland, is a traditional Finnish instrument. We recorded long and short notes and then expanded the virtual instrument to cover four octaves.

Other names for the instrument include birch bark trumpet, birch bark horn, neverlur, näverlur, tās̆u taure, ragas, daudytė, and karjapasun.

FULL Kontakt 6.7.0 or higher required

Add to cart
Instruments Cow Horn Play Track 36 sounds included $20

Cow Horn is a traditional Finnish musical instrument constructed from the horn of cattle. In Finnish language it has many names, including sarvi, paimensarvi, lehmänsarvi, and sarvitrumpetti. Similar Nordic instruments include the Swedish kohorn and the Norwegian kuhorn.

The recorded cow horn had two finger holes. Without covering any finger holes, we got a note C#. Covering one hole made a note D, and covering both finger holes made a note D#.

We recorded long and short notes, and then expanded these to cover some lower and higher notes. Legato, portamento and vibrato was added via script.

Cow Horn was recorded with two microphones, Neumann TLM 103 and Sennheiser MKH 8040, and you can choose your preferred one. We captured 36 samples with 3 round robins.

FULL Kontakt 6.7.0 or higher required

Add to cart
Instruments Jouhikko Play Track 1088 sounds included $70

Jouhikko is a traditional bowed lyre from Finland. The recorded jouhikko had three horsehair strings, which is the traditional way. Other Finnish names for the instrument are jouhikannel or jouhikantele. Similar instruments include talharpa, tagelharpa, stråkharpa, hiiu kannel, crwth and gue.

This jouhikko was tuned in E-A-D. As there are different tunings, including the traditional A-D-G tuning, the virtual jouhikko has many options to cover those.
We recorded long notes, staccato, spiccato, pizzicato and tremolo, from A4 to C#5, and then expanded these notes to cover some lower and higher notes. Legato, portamento and vibrato was added via script.

Jouhikko was recorded with two microphones, and you can choose your preferred one. We captured up- and down-bows, 3 round robins, two velocity layers, and 1088 samples.

FULL Kontakt 6.7.0 or higher required

Add to cart
Wild Animals Sound Effects Reindeer Play Track 2000+ sounds included, 53 mins total $30

This is it, the largest reindeer (AKA caribou in North America) sound library in the world! Recorded in Lapland, Finland, in winter 2020, we have here over 53 minutes of reindeer in three different, mostly quiet locations.

The first location is a snowy trail in the woods. I was snowshoeing and the reindeer were walking in a distance. Clicking hooves are the deal in these recordings!

The second location is a place in the middle of the woods where the reindeer are sleeping, eating and doing reindeer stuff. No people in sight, no barriers. Just me and THOUSANDS OF REINDEER, and they took me in as their leader, so I got every imaginable and as well unimaginable sound as they were not afraid.

The third location is a reindeer enclosure. Here I got the most isolated sounds. This location also includes a feeding shed, where I recorded reindeer eating and digging!

INCLUDING:
footsteps • walking • running • scuffs • grunts • burps • sniffs • snorts • other mouth sounds • antlers • urinating • attacking • eating • digging • bells • clicking hooves • collar rattle

DOCUMENTATION:

REINDEER Documentation

GEAR USED:

Sony PCM-D100 in XY & Wide stereo 120°

Add to cart
Instruments Reindeer Antler Whistle Play Track 8 sounds included $15

Made of a Finnish reindeer antler, Reindeer Antler Whistle is a unique little instrument. The physical version of the instrument could produce only one clear note, which was then sampled to make a full-range virtual wind instrument.

FULL Kontakt 6.0.3 or higher required

Add to cart
Music Ringtones – Marimba Play Track 76 sounds included $16

Got a film or other production that has a ringing smartphone/mobile phone/cellphone, but you can’t use the ringtones from the original manufacturer? Well, this sound library is for you!

19 unique but not too complex smartphone ringtones or notification tones made with a marimba. Because these are made with a marimba, the tones are soft and easy to listen to. Ringtones are in both mono and stereo format, and also without EQ and with EQ. EQ’d versions are designed to sound straight from a smartphone, so you can just insert those into your project!

Add to cart
Environments & Ambiences Sauna Play Track 300+ sounds included, 72 mins total $15

Are you ready to HEAR the heat? This is the LARGEST sauna sound effect library in the world! We have here 3 different saunas and as a bonus a wood stove. Included are almost everything that you can hear in a Finnish sauna.

Sauna #1: Basic Finnish sauna with wood burning sauna stove. Attached to the stove is a water tank for heating the water.
Sauna #2: Barrel sauna, which is almost the same as the basic wood burning sauna. It’s just shaped as a barrel, and not so traditional.
Sauna #3: Electric sauna. This sauna type is very used, especially in places where wood burning saunas are not possible. Sauna stove in this sauna is electric, but it still has the same stones as the other saunas.
Wood stove (Porin Matti): It’s for keeping your cabin warm during the cold winter, and also for cooking.

This sound effect library is organized in chronological order. In wood burning saunas you pour water inside a water tank, put firewood inside the sauna stove and make fire. When sauna stove is hot, you pour or throw water to the stones to get sauna hot. Then you can whip yourself with a birch vihta. After sauna you can pour hot water from the water tank into a bucket, mix it with cold water and wash yourself. When using electric sauna you first charge the sauna, and then when it´s hot, you continue as in wood burning sauna.

INCLUDING:
pouring water on the stones • firewood handling • making fire • firewood burning • lashing/whipping with birch vihta / vasta / bath broom / sauna whisk • wood burning sauna • electric sauna • sauna stove • electric heater • wood stove • sauna stove door • wood stove hatch • water tank • birch bark • matches • sauna scoop • all kind of metallic sounds • and much more!

GEAR USED:
Sony PCM-D100 in XY & Wide stereo 120°

Add to cart
Footsteps Sound Effects Snow Footsteps Play Track 4000+ sounds included, 55 mins total $10

Walking, running, scuffing and jumping in different types of snow using snowshoes, boots, hiking shoes, snowboarding boots and alpine ski boots. All sounds were recorded outside, far away from any traffic or urban noise, in the absolute quietness of the northern part of Lapland, Finland.

About half of the sounds are recorded from a first person view. Most sounds are recorded in stereo, but there are also some mono sounds in the pack.

INCLUDING:
different walking paces • scuffs • running • jumping • deep powder snow• deep trampled snow• thin crunchy snow• trampled snow• thin packed snow• soft snow

GEAR USED:
Sony PCM-D100, Schoeps CCM 41, Sound Devices MixPre-6

Add to cart
Destruction & Impact Sounds Snow Impacts: Snowballs, Snowflakes and Snow Falling Play Track 450+ sounds included, 51 mins total $35

You’ll find all kinds of snow impact sounds in this sound library. Whether it is as small as snowflakes falling to different surfaces, snowballs hitting jackets, or chunks of snow falling from the trees, we have them in the library. There are also ambiences with snowflakes shifting with the wind and as a bonus making snowballs!

Sound library includes:
snowballs • chunks of snow • snowflakes • snow falling • trees • wind ambience • snow nuggets • snow shower • snow shifting • making snowballs

Surfaces include:
snow crust • hard snow • tree • branches • roof • plastic snow scoop • firewood • winter jackets • plank • towel • iron shovel • coverall • snow shovel • bark • plywood

Snow types include:
soft • hard • powder • frost • slush

Gear:
Sennheiser MKH 8040, MixPre-6 II and Sony PCM-D100

Video of snowflakes shifting with the wind:

Add to cart
Destruction & Impact Sounds Snowballs Play Track 200+ sounds included $10

Snowball impacts on many different surfaces! Including also making snowballs with leather gloves and wool mittens. Recorded in quiet Lapland, Finland. This sound library is part of my larger collection: “Snow Impacts: Snowballs, Snowflakes and Snow Falling”.

Surfaces include:
ground (snow crust) • hard snow • tree trunk • firewood • winter jackets • plank • towel • iron shovel • coverall

Snow types include:
soft • hard • frost • slush

Gear:
Sennheiser MKH 8040, MixPre-6 II and Sony PCM-D100

Add to cart

My gear for the project:

For recording auroras and other sounds I have the following gear:

· Sound Devices MixPre-6 II

· Sony PCM-D100

· Sennheiser MKH 8040 stereo pair

· Sennheiser MKH 8020

· Telinga Universal MK2 parabolic reflector

I have planned to use 8040’s for all kinds of ambiences and mono sounds. In my sound list I have e.g. ambience from the fells, snow and ice and even mosquitos! The parabolic reflector with 8020 (or 8040) inside should give me good animal sounds, including birds and reindeer – and if I’m lucky, I could point the reflector towards the sounds of the auroras. And my precious Sony PCM-D100 is always with me wherever I go. Once it was even in the middle of a huge reindeer herd!

Photo by Niklas Eurén

For carrying the gear in the wilderness I customized a Paris pulk (expedition sled), because my main methods for going from location to another are by cross-country skiing and by snowshoeing. In Finland I’m allowed to go almost everywhere in nature, so usually I’m not limited to trails. Many times I just follow animal trails, because why not.

Here’s a video of me customizing a Paris pulk (expedition sled)

While in the wilderness, I capture GoPro footage, so you can follow me on YouTube to see some action. I will be uploading a lot of videos and sounds during my trips to this channel

A big thanks to Niklas Eurén for sharing the story behind this adventure! Stay tuned for more episodes.

Please share this:

THE WORLD’S EASIEST WAY TO GET INDEPENDENT SOUND EFFECTS:

A Sound Effect gives you easy access to an absolutely huge sound effects catalog from a myriad of independent sound creators, all covered by one license agreement - a few highlights:
Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:

Fire Sound Effects Campfire, Fireplace and Stove Play Track 54 sounds included $14.90

54 sounds on fire! Another indispensable toolkit of fire, wood burning, flames and different fire ambiences that were recorded indoors and outdoors. Find the true sound of it with Vadi Sound Library.

About Campfire, Fireplace and Stove

From loopable fire, wood burning, fireplace and flames, bonfire, stove and campfire, this 96 kHz – 24bit collection has both organic Foley and sound design usability in stereo and mono format.

You will get lots of organic firewood crackles, sizzles, hisses, whooshes and campfire ambiences of the forest, sometimes with owls hooting, dogs barking and the crickets. Fire bursts and igniting with spray and flamethrower, matches, magneto lighters, closing and opening of metal lids are included too.

These 54 immersive sounds are windy, wild, fast or calm and peaceful and were recorded at different seasons, at night and day, indoors and outdoors and all fire burning sounds are loopable. You will get intuitive, detailed naming, UCS compatibility and the usual Vadi Sound craft and attention to detail.

Keywords:

Fire, fireplace, stove, campfire, bonfire, flame, burn, burst, crackle, sizzle, hiss, gas, ignite, forest, night, day, indoor, outdoor, match, lighter, whoosh, air, brush, debris.

What else you may need

You may want to check out Drag and Slide Pack for 477 sounds of dragging, sliding, scraping and friction sounds of different objects made of wood, plastic, metal on various surfaces.

Lots Of Chains is another option with 450+ sounds that capture pretty much every material and action of the chain.

Add to cart
Sci-Fi Sound Effects Sci-fi Shooter Game – Sound Design Starter Kit Play Track 1173 sounds included, 78 mins total $69
Blast off into a dark sci-fi world teeming with creatures and unknown wonders. Introducing the heart-pounding warfare and general FPS & Sci-fi game audio SFX pack filled with the intensity you need to start your first-person shooter game. Welcome to “Sci-Fi Shooter Game” – a game audio sound effects library featuring over 1100+ designed SFX, tailored specifically for game developers and sound designers seeking a solid foundation for their game audio. Build alien atmospheres, futuristic battlefields, UI sequences, gizmos, gadgets, doors, mechs, robots & more. Sci-fi Shooter Game covers almost all your needs, whether it’s a dark synth-wave loading screen music loop, the realistic clanks of robotic mechanical footsteps, the futuristic hum of UI elements, or the thunderous blast of weapons; every sound is expertly crafted for maximum impact and intensity. With over 78 minutes of finely tuned audio and a solid foundation of almost everything needed to complete a sci-fi shooter game, you’re in for an action-packed adventure.
- 1173 files / 484 glued files
- 6.69 GB of game audio assets
- All in 96k 24bit .wav
- Includes over 78 minutes of audio
Add to cart
Bundles Illumination Designed Bundle Vol. 1 Play Track 67 sounds included $62

Illumination Designed Bundle Vol. 1 features an experimental collection of sounds crafted from the electromagnetic signals of various light source.

This bundle offers a variety of sci-fi inspired sounds, including cinematic elemenets, drones/ambiences and explosions. Our Audio Craftsmen used a Lite2Sound photodiode amplifier to capture the electric signal lights emit. These were then meticulously edited and manipulated to create a series of unique sounds.

The 3.27GB collection includes three volumes:

Illumination Designed Vol. 1:

A series of unique cinematic elements that blend stingers, risers, impacts and low frequency rumbles.

Illumination Designed Vol. 2:

A series of unique ambiences and drones.

Illumination Designed Vol. 3:

A series of futuristic, hi-tech explosions.

This bundle is designed to enhance film, TV, and game productions or trailers with an experimental, cyberpunk, or abstract edge. The sounds are suitable for genres like sci-fi, thriller, and fantasy, adding mystery, eeriness, and tension to projects.

All sounds are delivered in a high-quality 24Bit 96kHz format, allowing for further sonic manipulation. They have been meticulously edited and tagged with extensive UCS compliant metadata for easy organization and use.

Add to cart
Car Sound Effects 2000s Cars 3 Play Track 2376 sounds included, 287 mins total $200

Compilation of 10 different 2000s cars. Sounds are recorded with RØDE NTG1, RØDELink Lav, Line Audio Omni1, Shure KSM137, Shure VP88, Sonorous Objects SO.3, FEL Pluggy XLR EM272 and FEL Clippy XLR EM272 microphones, Sound Devices MixPre-6 II and Zoom F3 and Zoom H4n recorders. Library contains wav files of driving, interior and exterior foley, mechanical and electrical sounds. It is also available in UCS.

Models:

1. Fiat Bravo 2007 compact car

2. Ford C-Max 2003 MPV minivan multi purpose vehicle

3. Honda Civic Type S 2006 sport compact car

4. Land Rover Freelander 2003 compact crossover SUV sport utility vehicle

5. Mini Cooper 2006 subcompact supermini car

6. Opel Vectra C 2005 large family car

7. Renault Megane 2002 compact car

8. Skoda Fabia 2007 subcompact supermini car

9. Volkswagen Polo 2009 subcompact supermini car

10. Zastava Yugo Koral In 2002 subcompact supermini car

Add to cart
Cold Weapon Sound Effects Sci-Fi Weapons Bullet Hell Sound Effects Pack Play Track 389 sounds included, 8 mins total $49

‘Shoot ‘em up’ has never been this exciting! From powerful laser and plasma blasts, to specialised sounds such as fire, rain and laser circles, Sci-Fi Weapons: Bullet Hell adds intensity to virtual battles. With our trusty Vaemi’s El-Ma electromagnetic field mic, we’ve captured some wild electronic shenanigans, blending them with our synthetic sounds to cook up weapon effects that’ll make your players go, “Whoa!”

Add to cart