Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores the introduction of that quintessential nineteenth century invention—the phonograph—and positions its emergence within the mechanized sounds of the period. It examines the memory of smells through botanical memories of conservationists, environmentalists and wildflower enthusiasts. The book explores the link between settler colonialism and violence, in the context of acceptable and unacceptable forms of sound. It focuses on the 1965–66 methods of repression and violence in Indonesia and how the sounds these generated are indelibly imprinted on the minds of survivors. The book draws on the power of music to develop a sound autobiography connecting personal memories of place and sound. Violent acts are invariably accompanied by distinctive and memorable sounds. The testimonies in the subsequent court case reveal the way in which the incident was recalled by witnesses through these sounds.