The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the WorldThe soundscape--a term coined by the author--is our sonic environment, the ever-present array of noises with which we all live. Beginning with the primordial sounds of nature, we have experienced an ever-increasing complexity of our sonic surroundings. As civilization develops, new noises rise up around us: from the creaking wheel, the clang of the blacksmith’s hammer, and the distant chugging of steam trains to the “sound imperialism” of airports, city streets, and factories. The author contends that we now suffer from an overabundance of acoustic information and a proportionate diminishing of our ability to hear the nuances and subtleties of sound. Our task, he maintains, is to listen, analyze, and make distinctions. As a society we have become more aware of the toxic wastes that can enter our bodies through the air we breathe and the water we drink. In fact, the pollution of our sonic environment is no less real. Schafer emphasizes the importance of discerning the sounds that enrich and feed us and using them to create healthier environments. To this end, he explains how to classify sounds, appreciating their beauty or ugliness, and provides exercises and “soundwalks” to help us become more discriminating and sensitive to the sounds around us. This book is a pioneering exploration of our acoustic environment, past and present, and an attempt to imagine what it might become in the future. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 30
Page
... whistles, horns and sirens. Sound signals may often be organized into quite elaborate codes permitting messages of considerable complexity to be transmitted to those who can interpret them. Such, for instance, is the case with the cor ...
... whistles, horns and sirens. Sound signals may often be organized into quite elaborate codes permitting messages of considerable complexity to be transmitted to those who can interpret them. Such, for instance, is the case with the cor ...
Page
... whistle so the tall mountains re-echoed to it. The story is remarkable because it touches on one of the most interesting aural illusions. The wind, like the sea, possesses an infinite number of vocal variations. Both are broad-band ...
... whistle so the tall mountains re-echoed to it. The story is remarkable because it touches on one of the most interesting aural illusions. The wind, like the sea, possesses an infinite number of vocal variations. Both are broad-band ...
Page
... whistling of the wind over a glacier miles away can be heard across the intervening stillness of the valleys. On the ... whistles as it battles with itself; the ash hisses amid its quiverings; the.
... whistling of the wind over a glacier miles away can be heard across the intervening stillness of the valleys. On the ... whistles as it battles with itself; the ash hisses amid its quiverings; the.
Page
... whistle. In a strong wind the evergreen forest seethes and roars, for the needles twist and turn in turbine motion. The lack of undergrowth or openings into clearings keeps the British Columbia forests unusually free of animal, bird and ...
... whistle. In a strong wind the evergreen forest seethes and roars, for the needles twist and turn in turbine motion. The lack of undergrowth or openings into clearings keeps the British Columbia forests unusually free of animal, bird and ...
Page
... whistles! The songs of many birds contain repetitive motifs, and though the function of the repetitions is often obscure, these melodic leitmotivs, variations and expansions show certain similarities to melodic devices in music, such as ...
... whistles! The songs of many birds contain repetitive motifs, and though the function of the repetitions is often obscure, these melodic leitmotivs, variations and expansions show certain similarities to melodic devices in music, such as ...
Contents
The Rural Soundscape | |
From Town to City | |
THE POSTINDUSTRIAL SOUNDSCAPE | |
Music the Soundscape and Changing | |
Notation | |
TOWARD ACOUSTIC DESIGN | |
Listening | |
The Acoustic Designer | |
The Soniferous Garden | |
Silence | |
The Music Beyond | |
International Sound Preference | |
Footnotes | |
Other editions - View all
The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World R. Murray Schafer No preview available - 1993 |
Common terms and phrases
acoustic design acoustic environment acoustic space acoustical engineers aesthetic aircraft ambient noise American animals anti-noise aural space Barry Truax birds broadcasting by-law called century CHAPTER church bell clock composer continuous culture decibels ear cleaning echo effect European factory forest frequency frog garden hear heard Hermann Helmholtz hi-fi horn human Industrial Revolution instance instruments invention keynote sounds landscape legislation listening lo-fi London loud machine man’s modern Moozak Murray Schafer musicians natural soundscape night noise abatement noise pollution notation orchestra Pierre Schaeffer pitch post horn produced psychoacoustics quiet radio recording reverberation rhythms Sacred Noise signals silence singing siren society song sonic sonological competence sound event sound level sound object soundmarks soundscape studies street symbolism symphony tape telephone tempo Thomas Hardy tone town traffic Vancouver vibrations visual voice waves whistle wind words World Soundscape Project York