Our presentation ‘Sonic Heritage: Listening to the Past’ at the (In)Tangible Heritage(s) conference was completed in June 2022.
This paper responds to the questions: How does the inclusion of sound influence our experience of objects, places and histories? In what ways can we utilise sound to construct hybrid experiences of overlaid histories? What steps can we take to ensure that this mediated experience of the past does not adulterate the heritage it seeks to evoke, while responding to key issues?
The presentation includes clips of our 26-loudspeaker installation ‘History Revisited’, explaining our approach. Our research highlights the social and cultural value of Oral History and field recordings in the transmission of knowledge to both researchers and the public. Together these recordings document how buildings and spaces within the dockyard were used and experienced by those who worked there. We can begin to understand the social and cultural roles of these buildings within the community, both past and present.
The video presentation is available on the conference youtube channel: