The Auditory Culture Reader

by Michael Bull (Editor)

Sight and sound are equally crucial to our understanding of the world, yet the visual has dominated discussions of cultural experience. The very way we relate to, and think about, our everyday world has been influenced by this emphasis on sight over sound. Providing a definitive overview of an emerging field, this pioneering reader is the first to redress a glaring imbalance by investigating how auditory culture subtly and profoundly impacts on our everyday lives.

From the evocative tolling of village bells to the grating rattle of exhaust pipes, what we hear influences how we feel and what we do. As technology advances, the world has become an increasingly noisy, confusing and disturbing place. The recent addition of mobile phones alone has irrevocably changed our auditory experiences. In order to retreat from jarring sounds, we seek new sounds – sounds that calm, block, soothe. Beginning with the role of sound in historical and social thought, The Auditory Culture Reader moves on to consider city noise, music, voices, and new technologies and medias of sound. It explores, for example, the sectarian sounds of North Belfast, sounds of the powwow amongst Native Americans, football chants, recorded sermons, and the power and influence of the DJ's voice.

Filling a significant gap, this groundbreaking and multidisciplinary reader combines classic texts, interviews and original contributions by leading social and cultural theorists. It represents a landmark statement on a surprisingly overlooked aspect of our everyday experience.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

510 pages, Paperback

First published April 5, 2004

Reviews

[S. Alberto ঌ⁻⁷ (semi-active, always yearning) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It offers a broad and insightful collection of essays on sound studies, the experience of reading it felt uneven. Some chapters were incredibly engaging, especially those that connected sound to space, memory, and everyday life. Others, however, felt overly dense or repetitive, making it a bit of a slog at times.

As someone reading this for my sociology of sound seminar, I appreciated the interdisciplinary approach—it brings together anthropology, sociology, media studies, and more. The discussions on how sound shapes social life, identity, and power structures were particularly interesting. However, like many academic readers, it can feel like a mixed bag depending on the essay. Some pieces are thought-provoking, while others felt more like theoretical exercises without as much grounding in real-world applications.

Overall, it’s a solid resource for anyone studying auditory culture, but I wouldn’t call it an easy or consistently engaging read. It’s best approached as a reference text rather than something to read straight through.

[Jehnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting cross-disciplinary look at sound. As a historian it is intriguing to think about how to integrate sound studies into a field that revels in the written word.
Not all of the chapters were equally useful, but they offered up unique ways of thinking about the topic.

[Robert Tate Morrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only read some of the essays for class. Very interesting stuff.