ABSTRACT
Schafer’s term soundscape was offered as a way to determine what sounds mattered to us and how we should listen to them. A key criticism of this definition is that it privileges ‘natural’ sounds and rejects those of the urban world in which most of us live. Nor does this understanding help in thinking about what sound does nor the various ways we listen, and the influence this may have on attributing meaning to sound. This chapter traces through the origins, development and critiques of soundscape and how sound contributes to understanding the complex processes and relations that constitute place.
