Solitudes

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For the Stargate SG-1 episode, see Solitudes (Stargate SG-1).

Solitudes is a brand of music created by the late Dan Gibson who was a Canadian photographer, cinematographer and sound recordist.

During the late 1940s, he took photographs and made nature films, including Audubon Wildlife Theatre. He produced many films and television series. It was through this film-making that Dan learned how to record wildlife sound. He pioneered techniques of recording, and also helped design equipment to optimize results, including the “Dan Gibson Parabolic Microphone”. Some of his early recordings of the 1950s and 1960s were released on LP Records, and start his Solitudes series, which was introduced in 1981. In 1994, Dan was awarded The Order of Canada for his environmental works. In 1997, Dan was awarded the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award at the Juno Awards ceremony in Hamilton, Ontario.

In 2004, he released his first DVD, Natural Beauty, which was originally shot in High Definition. It is part of the new age genre. Many CDs have been released over the years. The music was originally designed to capture the sounds of various natural environments; sounds common to most albums include the wildlife, noise from swaying vegetation, and streams on water from a certain destination, usually indicated or implied through the theme of the specific album. In the 1990s, instrumental music was integrated into the nature sounds to create a whole new line of albums with thematic elements based on the type of music played and the instruments used. Dan's son Gordon Gibson took over Solitudes and currently is co-owner of Somerset Entertainment.

Contents

[edit] Major Productions

  • Wings In The Wilderness - Feature Film (Narrated by Lorne Greene)
  • Audubon Wildlife Theatre - 78 episode TV series
  • Wildlife Cinema - multiple episode TV series
  • To The Wild Country - 10 episode TV series (Narrated by Lorne Greene)
  • Wild Canada - multiple episode TV series

[edit] Film Awards

  • Whitethroat - Golden Gate Award - 1965 San Francisco Film Festival
  • Land of the Loon - Best TV Film of the Year and Certificate of Honour for outstanding contribution to the art of cinematography from the CSC, 1967 Canadian Film Awards
  • Adventure Trent Severn - Award of Merit, 1967 Canadian Film Awards
  • Winter Potpourri - Michigan Outdoor Writers Award of Merit 1969
  • Sounds of Nature - Etrog for Best Sound in a Non-theatrical Film, 1971 Canadian Film Awards
  • Fly Geese F-L-Y - Blue Ribbon Award for Best Children’s Film, 1972 American Film Festival
  • Golden Autumn - Teddy Award, 1973 U.S. National Outdoor-Travel Film Festival
  • Dan Gibson’s Nature Family - Best Wildlife Film of the Year, 1972 Canadian Film Awards
  • Return of the Giants - Best Wildlife Film of the Year, 1973 Canadian Film Awards
  • Land of the Big Ice - Best Wildlife Film of the Year, 1974 Canadian Film Awards
  • Wings In The Wilderness - Etrog for Best Sound in a Non-theatrical Film and Certificate of Honour for outstanding contribution to the art of cinematography from the CSC, 1975 Canadian Film Awards
  • Return of the Winged Giants - John Muir Award fo Best Ecological Film, 1977 National Educational Film Festival, USA and Best Wildlife Film, 1977 Saskatchewan International Film Festival

[edit] Album Awards

  • Solitudes albums have sold over 20,000,000 worldwide
  • 15 Solitudes albums have been Certified Gold (50,000 units sold) in Canada
  • 11 Solitudes albums have been Certified Platinum (100,000 units sold) or multi-Platinum status.

[edit] Albums with sample tracks

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Commemorating 25 years of innovation, this collection features Solitudes’ most memorable music and nature sound recordings on CD, along with the breathtaking DVD, Natural Beauty*. Instrumentation includes piano, guitar, flutes, clarinet, harps, horns, keyboards, bass, drums, & percussion. *DVD is only available in NTSC format (no PAL available).

Enjoy the most relaxing and soothing recordings from the renowned Solitudes. Internationally acclaimed naturalist Dan Gibson has compiled his favorite nature sound and music recordings into this special 2-CD anniversary edition.

Listen to the Mockingbird as it sings playfully, expertly mimicking most everything it hears. From across North America to the Island sanctuaries of the Caribbean, Dan Gibson's recordings of this remarkable vocalist will engage and delight. Highlighted is the Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher, Curve-billed Thrasher, Gray Catbird & Topical Mockingbird among several others.

Dan Gibson’s personal compilation of his very best loon recordings are mixed with original compositions by Hennie Bekker and Debussy’s Clair de Lune. Instrumentation includes keyboards & guitars.

Experience the natural beauty of the northern wilderness with this relexing blend of breathtaking nature scenes and soothing music from Solitudes creator, and legendary film-maker, Dan Gibson. Each of the nine nature scenes featured in this DVD can be viewed with music and nature sounds or with nature sounds only (no music).

Retreat to a cozy shelter and revel in the drama of a thunderstorm crackling overhead. Solitudes creator Dan Gibson reunites with composer Hennie Bekker to bring you this profoundly engaging album. Instrumentation includes keyboards.

Join Dan Gibson as he shares his most memorable sound recording experiences and a wealth of information about how to identify wildlife. This three-disc set offers superb recordings of over 170 species from across North America and provides fascinating insight into the man who recorded them. Featuring the sounds of warblers, thrushes, wrens, owls, loons, geese, hawks, gulls, seals, elk, wolves, amphibians and much more.

[edit] External links