ABSTRACT
In 1907, the sociologist Georg Simmel alerted us to the “form-creating factors in the mere structure of our sensory function for the simple everyday relations as well as the complex circumstances of human beings”. Sensory techniques, as unfolded above, are closely linked to the concept of cultural techniques. The histories of hearing techniques that we wish to investigate are closely linked to the history of modern society. One of the most significant results of cultural and technological changes was the reformulation of the relationship between sound and space. The history of hearing techniques cannot be understood without hearing technologies that play a decisive role for “societal hearing”, but they also configure “normal” hearing and hearing impairment of the human individual. Enabling technologies, on the one hand, exceed a mere functionality or assistive appropriation of a technical object as they enlarge the personal usability and participation.
