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This was prompted by the discussions and in some cases disagreements around the title archaeoacoustics which like it or not has come to be an established term. In order to remind ourselves a back to basics approach in terms of etymology and syntax seemed pertinent.
Archaeoacoustics, Sonic Archaeology, Acoustic Anthropology or Anthropological Acoustics, Sonic Anthropology - The study of sound in heritage and cultural development archaeology ˌɑːkɪˈɒlədʒi/ noun
acoustic noun plural noun: acoustics; noun: acoustics
anthropology noun
sonic adjective
Archaeoacoustics, Sonic Archaeology, Acoustic Anthropology or Anthropological Acoustics, Sonic Anthropology - The study of sound in heritage and cultural development They all work! It can be easy to get hung up on a title if you are a traditional archaeologist or consultant acoustician. There have been attempts at a definitive definition for archaeoacoustics.... However due to it's multidisciplinary nature the term archaeoacoustics without getting too hung up works very well. It is interesting to note that the term archaeaoacoustics has also been added to the Collins dictionary as a newly recognised word with a definition thus - "...a mix of systematic measurement and vocal experimentation ... has become formally known as archaeoacoustics, or sound archaeology. " It's not a perfect definition but it's getting towards the nub. Several colleagues in the field have suggested as a formation title for a society "The Society for Archaeoacoustic Research" - I personally rather like this and believe the established term should be kept as it beginning to be understood and recognised in a wider context. It is certainly recongnised within my own academic institution and increasingly I am finding undergraduate research students under my supervision are increasingly coming to me with research project proposals based on initial findings around archaeoacoustics. Whatever is settled upon it has to work with a wider audience in mind and not just us niche researchers.
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Having had a chance to let the dust settle and reflect a little I wanted to get some ideas down regarding the discussions, debates and disagreements within the various factions of archaeoacoustic research. The 'hard' and 'soft science' alliance as I believe it should be, this praxis has to considered. From an acoustic analysis standpoint, yes we can create empirical data, in fact we can generate this data in the field live with relatively accessible equipment. This has only been possible for the last 15 years or so and become very efficient in the last 5 years. I can literally set up a lab in a cave on my own; maybe it is this very factor that has reignited archaeoacoustic research in the same 5 year time frame and certainly since the first conference organised by Chris Scarre and Graeme Lawson?
In this regard I think archaeoacoustic research has grown into itself thanks to technological advances. But therein lies the dichotomy, our ancestors didn't do acoustic analysis I'm pretty sure and wouldn't have been able to perceive of acoustics the way we can now spectrograms, sine sweeps, IR's etc. Re-enter the old guard - step forward Iegor Reznikoff with the sensory observational powers that I hope may never be measured. Sometimes we need to sense a space, take time to inhabit it, try to understand it, see it the way it may have been, and lets face it we can accurately visualise the past thanks to archaeology and anthropology. We can't however listen to the past - at least not until the invention of the inter-dimensional ear trumpet or time machine, so we have to apply our imagination, our creativity and scientifically these are very hard things to quantify! At best when we make an audio recording in an archaeological site it is a snap shot of now and we have to accept this. This recording can tell us many things, particularly in spaces that we know have remained relatively unchanged but there has to be an acceptance that we have not captured a moment in history other than the current moment; in too few generations we will become the ancestors and our legacy will be these historical snapshots in time (which photographs already are in barely 100years) and audio recordings. It is interesting to note that many field recordists in archaeoacoustic research not only conduct sine sweep analysis and impulse response analysis, but augment these with performance pieces recorded in the field, soundscape recordings and the human voice in documentary. Impulse responses can, incidentally when played back spark the imagination as well as provide pure forms of data. You start to imagine the size of the room, or is it a cave? from the reverberation time, the pre-delay time, the frequency content. Reverberation is also incidentally one of the few components of sound to make it into the Guinness Book of World Records, as in the world's longest reverb time is... it just so happens to be a de-commissioned WWII fuel dump built into the side of a Scottish mountain in the highlands. It is also pure co-incidence that the previous world record was also measured in a space in Scotland, Hamilton Mausoleum. It is worth pointing out that this does not mean it is the longest reverb time, it's just that Trevor Cox of Salford university happened to record this one using a starters pistol firing as the IR. It happens to be a staggering one minute and twelve seconds in length, the average living room is less than a second! All interesting trivia, but pertinent none the less. Another debate that was circulating, again raised by the acousticians was the title - ARCHAEOACOUSTICS. I shall share some thoughts in this regard in due course. The debate I was involved in included a long train journey and a bar in Lisbon, an anecdote that will need journalled in my next musing. I am delighted to have been asked for use of my initial conference summary report below by the conference organisers, Linda Eneix and the OTSF.
http://www.otsf.org/2017-conference.html Here's a link to Michelle Walker's, fellow Scot's archaeoacoustician and archaeology interim report of her research on the archaeoacoustics of a Bronze Age cave, Sculptor's Cave.
http://www.archaeologytoursscotland.co.uk/archaeoacoustic-research-blog Having just returned for the 3rd International Archaeoacoustics Conference some initial thoughts and report. The location for the conference; Tomar in the middle of Portugal, our academic host Fernando Coimbra, Professor of archaeology, Insituto Terra e Memoria, Geosciences Centre in conjunction with Linda Eneix and team of the Old Temples Study Foundation.
This conference seemed to be at a point at which 'archaeoacoustics' realised itself. There was much discussion for and against forming an international professional society, the need to explore further standards in practice and perhaps most pertinently allying the hard and soft sciences in a harmonious union. There are ney sayers on bath sides, however I believe the way forward is to address, accept and respect both perspectives. The experiential and the empirical should support each other. I have decided as a field IR recordist that a study of field recording methodologies and techniques in archaeoacoustic research need explored further. There are enough researchers in the field across the globe engaged in audio field recording in heritage sites to justify a study to discover a mean approach which may lead to a standardised methodology. However with exponential advances in digital technology this needs approached with caution, risks and experimentation need to be made room for and encouraged. However digital technologies can help bring our archaeology and our imaginations alive, to paraphrase Dragos Gheorhiu; 'digital and VR technologies are the new shamanism - it can transport us'. As well as completing my paper for the conference proceedings publication, this proposed field work study will be unveiled as it progresses here on Archaeoacoustics Scotland. The conference was a truly amazing experience, Linda and her team have refined the conference package experience since the first conference in Malta, Feb. 2014. The programme featured long established researchers in the field and many new and younger researchers. The youngest presenter, Keith Harvey, 22 a first class Hons graduate of Perth College UHI. I was delighted to see how encouraging the established voices in archaeoacoustics were and nurturing in their advice and help towards Keith and others. It bodes well for the future. The programmes keynote speakers are internationally re-knowned from Iegor Reznikoff, Ezra Zubro, David Lubman and joined by conference opener celebrated writer and broadcaster Paul Devereux. It was both an honour to be amongst this wealth of knowledge and humbling to be accepted as a peer. Amongst highlights including field work methodologies and arcahaeocoustics case studies and site observations was a presentation from PHd student of Goldsmiths College, Annie Goh. Annie has turned anthropology in on itself to study the subject and the researchers of archaeoacoustics itself. I look forward to reading her published output. The Scots were well represented at this years conference with myself, Keith Harvey and PHD archaeologist Michelle Walker all representing the University of the Highlands and Islands. There was also within this rarefied bubble of intellectual stimulation a realisation that this data and findings be made meaningful to the public. Several of the presentations touched on this idea and brought to mind the Re-Imagining Space project. The conference included field trips and further presentations by in the field archaeologists and museum curators and academics. We were also treated to a surprise visit by Professor Chris Scarre co-editor of the first archaeoacoustics conference proceedings at Cambridge University in 2003, Chris also coined the term 'archaeoacoustics'. There was art inspired by culture, heritage and sound design, performances both impromptu and organised and all was a marvel. Portugal is beautiful and we will be back. Thank you again Linda Eneix and Josette Linda's unsung hero in the background. I will continue to follow up these musings as they inspire me. On the 18th of July 2017 I was granted access to Skara Brae structure 7 recreation located just 50 metres from the actual site. I spent about an hour there taking in the atmosphere and making several recordings, The first a B-format compatible surround recording a W,X,Y technique, the second a guerilla IR recording using the usual balloon pop and a mobile PCM recorder. and finally a series of recordings sat at the fire pit of rythm's playing rocks and drift wood sticks, Neolithic 'rock' music. Skara Brae is located on Skaill Bay beach on the North West of main Orcadian Island of North Ronaldsay, a stunning location.
The boat was used by a small crew to cross the Pentland Firth. Despite scepticism that it would not make the crossing, the crew not only succeeded but did it well under the time estimated. The Pentland Firth is famously a difficult sea sound with cross currents and whirl pools.     Have been on Orkney for the last 5 days, first time! So far visited the Ring of Brodgar, the dig at the Ness of Brodgar and Skara Brae. Site visits to Viking and Pictish settlements have also been on the itinerary. Whilst at the Ness I was fortunate enough to meet the site director Nick Card during a public open day at the dig site. Although very busy on the day Nick was able to share a few insights and we had the chance to meet site artist in residence and one of the geologists.
The neolithic style hide boat that was used in the BBC documentary about the Neolithic culture and how the people got to the mainland as well as between the islands of the Orkney archipeligo was also on display at the Ness. The boat the result of an archaeology PHD students research was successfully rowed across the Pentland Firth during the BBC filming. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08819tl I have been granted access to Skara Brae after hours to do some recording on site. A summary to follow, bot so far these islands have not let us down. |
N. Green
The rambling thoughts and musings of an audio engineer/sound designer turned archaeoacoustician Archives
September 2018
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