Sound is usually the poor relation when it comes to tourism – in our visually-dominated culture, everything seems to be about where you take the Instagram photo or the video clip for TikTok. As overtourism becomes a crisis for many cities around the world and Insta-tourism increases the pressure on tourist destinations and the focus on how things look, sound can help us to throw new light on these issues and how we might address them. Rarely does sound enter the equation when we think about tourism or what makes a place great – and this holds true for preservation too. There are no “blue plaque” schemes marking out sonic sites of interest, and even UNESCO’s Intangible Heritage lists serve sound poorly. In our view, this needs to change – so in this project we take a sonic tour to examine the role sound plays in these spaces deemed to be the world’s most culturally significant. We consider how sound affects our experience of new cultures and tourism, and why sound often assumes lesser importance when it comes to recognising and celebrating heritage. Sonic Heritage aims to address these fundamental questions: What role does sound have to play in enriching our experience of the world’s most incredible places? What are the soundscapes that accompany the world’s most culturally-important sites and spaces? How should we identify, celebrate and preserve soundscapes around the world that are culturally or socially significant – before it’s too late?
First seen: 2025-04-21 02:31
Last seen: 2025-04-21 03:31