Soundscape Ecology
When you begin your training in the realm of design the terms “function and form” are some of the first to be learned and these principals underpin design work across a whole spectrum of industries. We came across a product this week that got us once again considering overtly the balance of these two aspects.
Archittettura Sonora is the brain child of a group of acousticians, engineers, architects and landscape designers who (in their words) wanted to “redesign the reality of space and landscape through an immersive sound experience”.
We’ve talked in previous blogs about the sensory capacity of the landscape to be healing or transformative and sound is no different.
All this talk of sound got us thinking about the concept of “soundscape ecology”. Soundscape ecology is not a new concept but it is becoming increasingly talked about in the industry and there are calls for it to have its own formal branch under the heading of the more traditionally recognised “landscape ecology”. Soundscape ecology in essence is the collection of sounds which emanate from the landscape both biological and man made.
Many of us have stood in the landscape listening to the sound of the wind through the trees on a blustery day, birds twittering in the hedgerows or the waves crashing against rocks on a stormy coastline. There’s no doubt the sound of the natural landscape is important and often emotive. Clients increasingly talk about their gardens or landscape in sensory terms and sound specifically is becoming increasingly synonymous with ideas about well being like mindfulness. So what of the man-made aspect of sound?
Many human-derived sounds in the landscape are by-products of human activity but when it comes to design many of these can also be deliberate. Consider, for example, the increasing number of immersive sound exhibitions popping up across the art world and the positive reaction of art-goers to these. The impact of sound on the human experience of our environment is increasingly being recognised as not only significant but sometimes profound. So how does that relate to our work as landscape architects?
When designing landscapes our clients often have a wish list which is both aesthetic and functional and it’s our job to merge the two seamlessly. Because of this, when it comes to detailed design, we very often need to design bespoke items because “off-the-shelf” products often seem to solely consider function over form. This approach works well for items like fire tables, garden furniture or water features but some items require greater levels of technical engineering or expertise. Traditionally when it comes to designing in sound, garden designers have looked at hiding speakers in the landscape; nestling them inconspicuously in the undergrowth or placing them high above the eye-line attached to the walls of buildings.
Here at Studio 31 though, a part of our ethos is about uncompromising design and whilst striving to achieve this, occasionally we come across a company like Archittettura Sonora. These guys provide a design solution with a higher functional specification than the average market leader at the same time as considering the speakers themselves as a part of the landscape; a deliberate feature rather than a hidden necessity.
And that for us is where they have hit the nail on the head. Design should be deliberate, uncompromising and immersive, subtle, beautiful and sensory. Sound forms such a huge part of the way we understand the world and if we take a moment to just listen, we might recognise the powerful role sound has to play in design.
Photo by Alphacolor