Studies of sound culture in the 60s–70s of the 20th century: historical and cultural analysis

Abstract

We consider cultural, social and historical features of the origin and development of studies of sound and auditory culture in the 60s–70s. 20th century through a review of concepts, analysis of art, sound and auditory technologies that influenced the emergence and development of modern sound research. Emphasis is placed on the thesaurus of the area, disciplinary distinctions, perception and interpretation of sound. Semiotic and spatial concepts of reasoning about sound as a sign with its signifier and signified in a certain (in)audible environment are presented. We analyze the contribution of the founder of sound research and acoustic ecology researcher R.M. Schafer in pedagogical, philosophical and socio-cultural areas of knowledge. R.M. Schafer developed a scientific concept called “soundscape”, which influenced the development of most studies of sound culture after the 1970s. The concepts presented in the work are interdisciplinary and combine many directions, where the basis is the discussion about the role of sound and listening in the socio-cultural space.