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The Acadian Forest

from From Shore To Sanctuary by Mark Brennan

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Over 12 original soundscapes mixed into once continuous track that conveys the beauty, spirit and joy of experiencing the Acadian Forests of Eastern Canada and New England.

We begin our journey through the Acadian Forests of Nova Scotia and Eastern Canada on a quiet marsh where dawn is just breaking. Spring Peepers are calling, a Barred Owl can be heard in the woods far off in the tree line which we can now just see with the first light. As the Frogs cease their calling and daylight approaches we find ourselves on a quiet lake, experiencing the stillness as a Common Nighthawk ends his booming calls for the night. This is the Acadian Forest, recorded at a remote lake in Nova Scotia in May. Hermit Thrushes, Kinglets and drumming woodpeckers can be heard as well as a solitary Swamp Sparrow calling by the lake shore.

Later a pair of Hermit Thrushes call back and forth through the forest as a gentle breeze can be heard in the tree tops. Our next destination as we continue our journey is in a virgin forest and at the base of a towering 80ft Red Spruce listening to a pair of Black Backed Woodpeckers feeding on the trunk, a Winter Wren and Ruffed Grouse sing and call and high overhead over a nearby wetland the Common Snipe can be heard winnowing.

The richness of the Acadian Forest can be felt as we experience the tropical calls of migrant Warblers and Fly Catchers and a lone American Robin singing while a Downy Woodpecker drums opposite him. This recording was used in my film, The Acadian Forest, The Story So Far.

Any recording of the Acadian Forest wouldn’t be complete without the song of the Veery, the thrush of the deep river valleys, singing his ‘veer, veer, veer’ song. This was recorded in the famous Margaree Valley, right next to the Margaree River, a heritage river in Nova Scotia. Next we continue near water in the wilderness of Gully Lake, where the hermit Willard Kitchener Macdonald lived for 60 years in a small log cabin deep in this Acadian Forest after leaving a troop train. This area is protected now and I had the pleasure of meeting Willard a few years ago before he passed away whilst being a part of the team working towards making Gully Lake a wilderness area. Again the ‘flute of the forest’, the Hermit Thrush and American Redstart, sing after a heavy downpour.

Finally our final visit is high up in the Pines where a pair of Northern Flickers call back and forth, the male displaying to the female whilst I was recording this. The wind is haunting in this track, made on a cold, late April day.

At over 22 minutes, these sounds of the Acadian Forest evoke a timeless feeling, free of human noise and represent intact natural areas, something we can all relate too.

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from From Shore To Sanctuary, track released January 8, 2012

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Mark Brennan Nova Scotia

Canadian Visual artist & Nature Recordist, Mark Brennan's, interest in wild places has led him on a path of self discovery. As a landscape painter, naturalist & nature recordist his travels have taken him to Wilderness areas across Canada. From Banff National Park to the windswept coastlines of Labrador, his relationship with nature has deepended over time & with it - his work in wild nature. ... more

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