Listener Challenge: Remixing Spring

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has just finished digitizing its entire collection of 150,000 animal sounds — including its especially vast collection of bird songs.

We want you to use some of those bird songs to create your own composition on the theme of Spring. Use as many sounds as you like (but at least one), manipulate them however you want, and add any of your own musical elements.

We’ll play some of our favorites on the show and choose a winner.

The deadline to be considered for our contest is Sunday, March 17, 2013 at 11:59pm ET.

UPDATE 3/18: Our contest is now closed.
We will reveal the winner on the show the weekend of April 6.
But you can continue to download the tracks and complete the challenge, just for fun. Listen to all the remixes here.

UPDATE 4/5: We’ve chosen a winner.
Marlo Reynolds is the winner of our challenge. Listen his track and the runners-up here.

STEP 1: Download the bird songs

Download all 13 bird songs at once as a .zip file.

These sounds are provided courtesy of the Macaulay Library at Cornell Lab of Ornithology for the Remixing Spring challenge and may not be used for commercial purposes. All rights reserved, Cornell University.

STEP 2: Create your remix

• Create an original composition.
• You can use as many (or as few) of the bird songs as you’d like — you must incorporate at least one.
• Feel free to write your own tracks, and to manipulate the birds songs however you’d like.
• Submit as many remixes as you’d like.

STEP 3: Upload your remix here:

STEP 4: Listen to the other remixes

Questions? Post them below or e-mail us.

Thanks for participating — we’re excited to hear your remix!