List of Sounds:
- the splash & skitter of rain against cobblestone and roof-tile, rain not unleashed in passionate torrents but sprinkled gently, steadily, soberly, with the prudence and nurturing of nature-as-mother: in time, these clouds will water farmland, but here they merely slow the bustle of a place less green yet more alive
- the endless, sprawling movement of nigh three million Parisiens, borne still on the backs of horses at the dawn of the electric century: fiacres in their thousands, whisked along with a light and willing trot; the determined tramp & trudge of Boulonnais, drawing carts with both merchant and wares; omnibuses, tramcars, and their noble Percherons, courses and gaits unchanging; on rare occasion, the grand emergence of a single horse and single rider, hauling nothing and no one, so great in privilege or public station that they are set above the common need for utilitarian efficiency
- the novel purr of engine and strange melody of automobile horn, as a new Renault landaulet taxi stops for passengers to embark or alight
- the whirring wheels of bicycle-borne hirondelles on patrol, sworn to guard the public peace
- footsteps in ceaseless procession, made brisk and purposeful by the rain, traveling routes shortened effortlessly, unconsciously, by knowledge of the city writ into muscle and bone, Paris offering then the same wordless intimacy as family or lover
- streets glazed with rainwater (and dotted sparsely with small pools) made audible through the random sodden tread of hoof, the spray of an ill-guided wheel, the slickened click of toe or heel, and the uncanny ability of children to seek out and splash in puddles
- the undampened and insistent chatter of commerce, at once a lulling and a clarion-call, the sound of a burgeoning ever-more-strangely severed from nature and weather
- the heaving, quick unloading of wooden crates from carts that are impatiently paused, both traffic and drizzle insisting upon utmost dispatch
- the diligent clatter of silverware, glasses, plates, and bowls echoing like housewives' chitchat among a friendly streetfront circle of restaurants and cafés; the jangle of coins in a busy till
- bottles of wine and liqueur cheerfully clinking as stock is replenished and enticing displays are arranged
- half-muffled, nearby dialogue from various shelter-seeking pedestrians who duck momentarily into neighboring doorways (always open), a changing and barely-overheard discourse that one discreetly, politely regards more as music than as voice
- the characteristic flip & fold of newspaper pages from the café patron who believes, indolently, that this is but a passing shower, sure to subside in this hour, or the next, or the next
- the pleasantly sure swishing-open of umbrellas, offering their close embrace of shelter to those who must, now, start walking home
- sporadically, hauntingly, the strains of an accordion joining the susurrating song of rain: it is so much a part of the damp, still air that it seems to "come from" nowhere, perhaps falling with the rain itself from the clouds or rising up like mist from the streets
- only once, the tolling of a single bell from Notre Dame's bell-tower
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Question: What is an ambience video?
Answer: Pleasant, soothing background images & sound for relaxation, study, play, or work; gently occupies an anxious or unfocused mind without causing unwanted distraction; creates a comfortable, inviting atmosphere; personalizes sparse, colorless, or impersonal environments; enlivens spaces where we live or work alone; fills silence with more subtlety, ease, and warmth than music or TV; offers softly dynamic "rainbow noise" instead of monotonous white noise; enhances interior design & personal style by turning screens/screensavers into live photographic displays.
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