SOUNDSCAPE

This paper both reintroduces the concept of soundscape and provides a case study of it. In the field of environmental aesthetics, the auditory and other nonvisual senses have been largely ignored. Sound studies to date have been primarily noise studies. Soundscape is defined as the overall sonic env...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of architectural and planning research 1985-09, Vol.2 (3), p.169-186
Main Authors: PORTEOUS, J. DOUGLAS, MASTIN, JANE F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acoustic data
Acoustic noise
Audio frequencies
Auditory perception
Landscapes
Neighborhoods
Signal noise
Sound
Sound pressure
Traffic
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Summary:This paper both reintroduces the concept of soundscape and provides a case study of it. In the field of environmental aesthetics, the auditory and other nonvisual senses have been largely ignored. Sound studies to date have been primarily noise studies. Soundscape is defined as the overall sonic environment of an area, from a room to a region. The soundscape of the South Fairfield urban neighborhood (Victoria, British Columbia, Canada) was investigated and regionalized objectively (by machine recording and analysis and expert listening) and subjectively (by means of a survey of residents based on a community sound list developed from the objective study). Traffic was the most ubiquitous "ground" sound, had the strongest positive relationship with sound pressure level, occasionally masked "figure" or keynote sounds, and was usually negatively perceived. Natural sounds were most preferred, but informational sounds were also appreciated. Problems of methodology and of congruence between objective and subjective results are outlined, and the qualitative nature of soundscape is emphasized. The study suggests that urban residents have low levels of awareness of soundscape and that the experience of modern urban life involves a high degree of sensory privation.
ISSN:0738-0895