A welcome

Sssh.

I have a blog.

It’s a research blog of sorts, begun in January 2009 as a deliverable for SOC 445, The Built Environment—a course at the University of Alberta taught by Rob Shields.

Mostly, it’s a blog about sound. It will end up being about other things, too, but mainly sound and sounds in urban environments. Using concepts we've covered in the seminar, as well as other sources I've come across in my research on sound and cities, I want to explore ways in which design and control of urban sounds, or lack thereof, affects our perceptions and lived experiences of urban social space. In addition to general musings on other people’s thoughts about sound and cities, I’m hoping to post my thoughts about specific sonic experiences I have, as well as audio clips of those sounds, if I’m lucky enough to catch them.

I chose the name for a couple of reasons.

Sssh is the sound you make to ask for quiet in order to listen. This makes sense, because I want to write about listening. I also like that it feels strange to say: “This blog is called sssh.” The name itself is a sound. It’s a bit disruptive to the flow of speaking, and I like that.

However, Sssh is also commonly employed in order to ask someone to be quiet not for the sake of listening better, but for the sake of not having to listen (to that person). So it’s a sound that both spotlights and stifles other sounds. I want its two senses to figure into this project in their own ways; while I’ll be spotlighting sounds and exploring what I—or we, urban dwellers—do hear, I also want to consider what I (or we) don’t, and why.

Finally, I think it would be swell if this project were to spawn some lively—even “loud”—discussions. If you’d like to comment or suggest or rant or rave, you can do it via a.macdonald@ualberta.ca, or you can leave a comment. Thanks for stopping by.