What is a soundscape intervention?
The term “soundscape”, as it has been established in the area of acoustic ecology, characterizes an “acoustic environment as perceived or experienced and/or understood by a person or people, in context”.1 A soundscape intervention is a site-specific design to preserve or improve a soundscape. There is a broad variety of interventions conceivable to design soundscapes, ranging from micro-scale actions in specific locations like a park, to interventions on a large scale, referring to a whole city quarter. Soundscape interventions are related among other things to a reduction of unwanted noise, to the introduction of pleasant sounds for masking purposes or to the preservation of soundmarks that embody a local identity.
What makes a soundscape intervention unique from a noise control perspective is that it goes beyond reducing noise levels, to instead promoting or improving the quality of a soundscape as a whole. At the end, a combination of different types of soundscape interventions are frequently applied to achieve a significant impact on residents and soundscape visitors.
1 ISO 12913-1:2014
SEA ORGAN IN ZADAR, CROATIA
SEA ORGAN
In the audio example you can hear the sounds created by the pipes of the Sea Organ.
![Sea Organ in Zadar](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/IMG_7004-scaled-e1637061104915-1024x425.jpg)
![Sea Organ in Zadar](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/IMG_7048-scaled-e1637061133114-1024x417.jpg)
![Sea Organ in Zadar](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/IMG_6970-scaled-e1637061171471-1024x422.jpg)
SHEAF SQUARE IN SHEFFIELD, UNITED KINGDOM
SHEAF SQUARE
This installation at Sheaf Square in Sheffield, United Kingdom was implemented in 2006. Promoted by residents and local authorities, it is a permanent installation. Designed by Si Applied Ltd.
In the audio example you can hear the sounds created by the water installations at Sheaf Square.
![Cutting Edge in Sheffield](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/1635770169431-scaled.jpg)
![Cutting Edge in Sheffield](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/1635770169480-scaled-e1636450720383.jpg)
![Cutting Edge in Sheffield](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/1635770169420-scaled-e1636450664940.jpg)
![Cutting Edge in Sheffield](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/1635770169510-scaled-e1636450639848.jpg)
![Cutting Edge in Sheffield](https://soundscape-intervention.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/IMG_3398_bearbeitet-1-scaled-e1636450860731.jpg)
References
[1] Oberman, T., Jambrošić, K., Horvat, M., & Bojanić Obad Šćitaroci, B. (2020). Using Virtual Soundwalk Approach for Assessing Sound Art Soundscape Interventions in Public Spaces. Applied Sciences, 10(6), 2102. https://doi.org/10.3390/app10062102
Photos: Tin Oberman, Xiaochao Chen
Audio: Tin Oberman, recorded September 2017
Entries submitted by: Tin Oberman