Sounding Urban Places - Interdisciplinary Research Project

The project seeks - on a practical as well as theoretical level - to enable an improved quality of life (for all living beings) in residential areas and public (urban) spaces through a considered artistically inspired (re-)design of the sonic environment. Through cooperation across a diverse interdisciplinary team, ranging from (sound) artists to landscape architects, and from historians and ethnographers to sound studies scholars, the project develops new insights and tools of relevance to such practical and applied fields as urban design and regional development. Additionally, the project is designed to establish new active collaborations with local stakeholders and businesses in order to set this innovative approach in practice, and thereby to contribute tangibly to the green transition and development of sustainable and more attractive living environments.

The research will focus on two urban environments in full transformation: the city of Kiruna in Sweden, and the Binckhorst area in The Hague. The research team focusing on the Binckhorst area consists of Justin Bennett (Royal Conservatoire, Sonology), Irene Ruiz Perez Canales (Royal Conservatoire, Sonology), Renate Zentschnig (Soundtrackcity), Marcel Cobussen (Leiden University), and Paul Craenen (Royal Conservatoire, lector).

Sound Up is a collaboration between Luleå University of Technology (main applicant), Royal Conservatoire The Hague (co-applicant), Leiden University, Soundtrackcity, I'm Binck, and Kluster.

Sound UP - Binckhorst

The Dutch part of the Sound UP project takes places at the Binckhorst area in The Hague, which is currently transforming from an industrial area into a mixed area for working, living, studying and leisure. In this context, the aims of the research projects are:

• Creating a public sonic archive of the Binckhorst​ with sounds of its past, present, and with audio creations that imagine a possible sounding future.

• Interviewing residents about their sound memories and experiences of the Binckhorst.

• Enhancing awareness of the sounds of the Binckhorst through workshops, soundwalks, and events such as the weekly streaming sessions from hidden Binckhorst locations.

• Creating permanent Audio Walking and Hiking Routes in the Binckhorst, making use of a geo-located audio, and with the integration of recordings of interviews and creative sound works by residents and schoolchildren.

• In collaboration with a local school, the John Dewey College, creating an educational package on sound awareness in the Binckhorst area, to be used by schools and organisations after the grant period​.

• The development of sound educational and participatory skills for artists and teachers​.

• The publication of refereed journal articles and conference presentations on sound participation and sonic archives.