Planeta Forum

[planeta]

ANNOUNCEMENT

SPACES SPEAK - We experience places not only by seeing but also by listening. Experiencing 'aural architecture' is the focus of Spaces Speak, are you listening? (MIT Press, 2006, 437 pages, $39.95)
>> http://tinyurl.com/yytrqx

Join author Barry Blesser in an online Q&A that takes place online the Planeta Forum beginning January 15.
>> http://forum.planeta.com/viewtopic.php?t=852

REFERENCES

Author Website
http://www.blesser.net

MIT Press Log
http://mitpress.mit.edu/presslog

[bblesser]

As the author of Spaces Speak, I am delighted to have an open dialog with anyone interested in the aural experience of space. Actually, the topic is far broader because it is also a vehicle for elevating an awareness of sound in our techno-visual culture. Hearing actually serves three function: understanding speech, appreciating music, and connecting to the events of life. We have lost an appreciation for the third use of sound. We are always connected to sonic events; we have no ear-lids.

Those who work with sensory disabilities observe that individuals with vision problems lead perfectly normal social lives, but those with a prodound hearing deficit have the burden of the mental and emotional distress of isolation. Deafness is a major disruption even though most people think that vision is their primary sensory modality.

Yet in our modern culture, we create spatial acoustics and soundscapes that produce functional deafness. The most obvious example is the iPod generation. Not only do the elevated sound levels of ear-buds produce permanent hearing damage, but while wearing them, individuals are functional deaf to events in their environment. You cannot even hear the sound of your own footsteps. Many of us have had the experience of being functionally deaf in a restaurant with corrosive acoustics.

My book brings together the issues of aural architecture, but it is only a beginning. While it provides the initial foundation and langauge for discussing the subject, the ideas will not become relevant until a large number of others add to the starting base. I have already had dozens of wonderful email dialog with people who have shared their personal expereinces. No doubt, there will be a 2nd edition or a sequel to Spaces Speak, and I welcome the community to participate.

Please contribute to the discussion.
Barry

[planeta]

Reading your book I am impressed with the way you weave the lessons learned from so many disciplines. I had never given thought to soundmarks and soundscapes, though it makes perfect sense.

A few years ago a colleague wrote a blistering review of an ecolodge in Costa Rica that had received great praise. Her critique -- the neighboring compound blasted music at all hours of the night. Rarely in our review of 'eco' travel do we consider sound.

You mention of the iPod generation making individuals functionally deaf is on the mark. I wonder how this will play out, particularly as some companies prepare downloadable tours on MP3.

Questions - Do you have any suggestions on ways travelers can better appreciate foreign soundscapes? Also, how can tour guides and tourism planners educate visitors on what they are hearing?

[bblesser]

I predict that deafness and the iPod generation will be a hot topic within a decade, primarily because there is very little public understanding of hearing loss. First, the conventional wisdom holds that those who lived in a jungle in the 19th century never lost any hearing even in old age. All hearing loss is the result of abuse. Second, hearing loss progresses from high frequencies downward. Almost nobody notice a loss at 10kHz or even 6kHz. But when the loss enters the speech region, around 3kHz, some people notice. But everyone notices when the loss extends down to 1 kHz. By that time it is too late. The best advise is to get yourself tested by an audiologist and start taking care of your ears while you still have some auditory capacity. No much for a negative message.

As for learning to appreciate soundscape, not just while traveling, but also in you home town, consider the following switch in perspectives. Instead of thinking of sound as such, think of the event that create the sound. All sounds results from a dynamic action of some kind. There is no such thing as a static environment producing sound.

Create a mental picture of the objects, animals, and activities that are producing sounds. Tune into the children playing by listening to the sounds they make. Similarly for birds, cars, and cafe dialogs. One builds a picture of the world through sound. But unlike a visual picture, the soundscape is dynamic.

If you get more sophisticated, you can also sense the way passive objects and geometries change sounds. You can hear a building by its echo or by how it changes spectral coloration. You can hear a long cavernous street by its reverberaiton. Both the sound sources and the passive environment allow you to build a picture of the world. Vision and cameras are not the only way to acquire a picture. Smells and touch are also good senses.

In this way, soundscapes, like landscapes, are all part of sensoryscapes.

[planeta]

Sensoryscapes! That's a beautiful word.

We have paid attention to the International Dark Sky Association - http://www.darksky.org - that works to protect the nighttime environment (the dark skies) from light pollution. Is there an equivalent group working to protect the auditory realm?

[bblesser]

Noise has always been a political issue especially in the early part of the 20th century. There were laws and enforcers of laws because the soundscape was far more unbelievably polluted than now. Nevertheless, noise it is still a hot topic.

To get a basic education, I recommend starting with the Noise Pollution Clearinghouse at http://www.nonoise.org, which has many links to other individual sites. Also, visit http://www.quiet.org, or the UK Department of Health at: http://www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuidance/HealthAndSocialCareTopics/NoisePollution/fs/en

Just a quick web search shows dozen of sites. Washington State maintains a web site devoted to relevant rules and regulations, but enforcement is another question. http://www.ecy.wa.gov/laws-rules/noise.htm

Progress on protecting the soundscape only arises from grass roots politics.

[planeta]

Barry, your responses have all been first-rate. Many thanks for such timely and thoughtful replies.

Following up, do you have a few examples of how grass roots politics have been successful in protecting the ambient soundscape?

[bblesser]

I am aware of a few grass roots attempts to protect the soundscape, but these are exclusively NIMBY (not in my back yard). Homeowners who live near airports or major turnpikes have been active to protect the soundscape of their homes, often with uneven success.

While at times there have been political activities to protect public soundscapes, they often fail. During the 1920s, there was intense interest in the politics of soundscapes. See Emily Thompson's book, Soundscape of Modernity.

The World Forum for Acoustic Ecology is an international group that is concerned with soundscapes around the world but they are not well known in the general population. Perhaps they preach to those that already believe rather than acquiring new converts.

Although I know nothing about how noise reduction came about in Paris, the noise level has been dramatically reduced during the last two decade. I am sure that it would make an interesting story.

Maybe noise control is a movement waiting for an opportunity.