Gordon Hempton
Acoustic Ecologist, Emmy Award-Winning Sound Recordist, The Sound Tracker®
1989 Wally Hampton Photo Credit
1989 Wally Hampton Photo Credit
In 1989, Gordon Hempton was earning a living as a bike messenger in Seattle while pursuing his dream of recording vanishing natural soundscapes. After dropping out of college as a straight A student and after 9 years of striking out with grant applications to fund what was then a side hobby, Gordon entered the local library and spotted an advertisement for a grant offered by the Lindbergh Foundation. The Foundation’s mission to balance the progress of technology with the environment coupled with how the late Charles Lindbergh was a hero to his father, meant Gordon knew he needed to apply for the grant.
The afternoon he received the call notifying him he would be awarded the grant, Gordon looked at his then toddler-aged son and said, “Daddy doesn’t have to be a bike messenger anymore!” The Lindbergh Foundation grant was just the key to unlock doors and launch his dream career as the Sound Tracker®.
“The Lindbergh Foundation grant was a life changer. Once I received the award, other grants began to come in, like one from the National Endowment for the Arts and another from the Rolex Awards,” Gordon explained, “It goes to show, dreams do come true for those that have the courage to pursue them.”
Over 40 years later, Gordon is still capturing nature’s rarest sounds. He won an Emmy for individual achievement in sound and is author of the book, One Square Inch of Silence: One Man’s Quest to Preserve Quiet. He has circled the globe three times recording sounds from nature, and most recently, he co-founded Quiet Parks International, a non-profit organization committed to saving quiet for the benefit of all life.
To learn more about Gordon Hempton’s work, please visit:
In 1989, Gordon Hempton was earning a living as a bike messenger in Seattle while pursuing his dream of recording vanishing natural soundscapes. After dropping out of college as a straight A student and after 9 years of striking out with grant applications to fund what was then a side hobby, Gordon entered the local library and spotted an advertisement for a grant offered by the Lindbergh Foundation. The Foundation’s mission to balance the progress of technology with the environment coupled with how the late Charles Lindbergh was a hero to his father, meant Gordon knew he needed to apply for the grant.
The afternoon he received the call notifying him he would be awarded the grant, Gordon looked at his then toddler-aged son and said, “Daddy doesn’t have to be a bike messenger anymore!” The Lindbergh Foundation grant was just the key to unlock doors and launch his dream career as the Sound Tracker®.
“The Lindbergh Foundation grant was a life changer. Once I received the award, other grants began to come in, like one from the National Endowment for the Arts and another from the Rolex Awards,” Gordon explained, “It goes to show, dreams do come true for those that have the courage to pursue them.”
Over 40 years later, Gordon is still capturing nature’s rarest sounds. He won an Emmy for individual achievement in sound and is author of the book, One Square Inch of Silence: One Man’s Quest to Preserve Quiet. He has circled the globe three times recording sounds from nature, and most recently, he co-founded Quiet Parks International, a non-profit organization committed to saving quiet for the benefit of all life.
To learn more about Gordon Hempton’s work, please visit: