'Meeuwsen Natuurgeluiden' (Sounds of Nature) is a one-man enterprise run by Henk Meeuwsen. Read more about him below.
I was born in 1963 and grew up on a farm at the edge of the forest. Up until the age of sixteen, nature was simply part of the fabric of my life. Lapwings in the fields, swallows under the roof, blackbirds, house sparrows, rabbits, and more - I met them all during my childhood adventures or had them pointed out to me by my father. In the winter of 1979 I realised that nature held many more secrets to discover: I saw birds feeding at the suet balls and noticed, for the first time, what the difference was between a great tit and a blue tit. I began to make a habit of setting out early in the mornings, and it was on one of the first of these walks that I found myself face to face with a wren. I was well and truly sold. That I could experience nature at such close range felt like a small miracle.
Slowly I learned to recognise various birds and their sounds and, increasingly, grew to take real pleasure in the qualities of different birdsongs. I can still remember the first song thrush I ever heard. It seemed so incredibly beautiful to me! Once I’d finished secondary school, my interest in nature led me to study forestry, and currently I am working part time for the Environmental Science Group at Wageningen University. In 1998 I began making sound recordings. It didn’t take long for me to realise that the quality I had been able to get was fully equal to the best recordings internationally. In 2000 I founded Meeuwsen Natuurgeluiden (Meeuwsen Sounds of Nature), and I have been perfecting nature recording techniques ever since.
Every aspect of making the CDs, from recording to audio mastering and production, I do myself. After I make a recording in the field I listen to it very critically, also with an ear to the technical quality. Only the very best recordings make it through to the CD. Compiling a CD is also a matter of creating unity between the various sound fragments. Before releasing any CD I listen to it dozens of times and make sure that every detail has been fine-tuned to perfection.
There are few things more rewarding than to sit in a secluded spot somewhere, completely surrounded by nature, listening and recording. It’s like working in paradise. And this is what I hope to achieve with my CDs: to bring a little piece of paradise into every listener’s home.
