The Acoustic City

How does sound shape urban life? What do soundscapes reveal about the experience of modernity? This innovative essay collection explores a series of critical themes including the diversity of urban soundscapes; acoustic flânerie and different ways of listening to the city; the emergence of specific associations between place, music, and sound; and the acoustic ecology of architecture, landscape and urban design. A specially commissioned CD features contributions from Félix Blume, Ekkehard Ehlers, Yui Onodera, Schneider TM and many other artists.

Sound artist B.J. Nilsen was hosted at UCL Urban Laboratory as a Leverhulme Artist in Residence in 2012, working with Prof Matthew Gandy. The book was published with the support of the Leverhulme Foundation, UCL Urban Laboratory, and UCL Grand Challenges.

The collection and accompanying CD will be of interest to a wide range of disciplines including architecture, cultural studies, geography, musicology, and urban sociology.

A website has been launched for the project, theacousticcity.com. An official London launch took place in September 2014 at the Arcola Theatre.