Hearing Cultures: Essays on Sound, Listening and Modernity (Wenner Gren International Symposium) [Paperback]

Veit Erlmann (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1859738281 | ISBN-13: 978-1859738283 | Publication Date: November 18, 2004 | Edition: First Edition

Hearing Cultures is a timely examination of the elusive, often evocative, and sometimes cacophonous auditory sense. It answers such intriguing questions as: Did people in Shakespeare's time hear differently from us? In what way does technology affect our ears? Why do people in Egypt increasingly listen to taped religious sermons? Why did Enlightenment doctors believe that music was an essential cure? What happens acoustically in cross-cultural first encounters? The ear, as much as the eye, nose, mouth and hand, defines experience. This book shows how sound offers a refreshing new lens through which to examine culture and complex social issues.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"There's no doubt in my mind that Hearing Cultures will become a classic in the developing field of sound studies. Not only does it offer inquiries into listening and hearing--which are pressing questions in the study of culture--but it also ranges widely across time and space, from Egypt to England, from the sixteenth century to the present. Think of it as mandatory reading, because it will be soon."--Anahid Kassabian, author of Hearing Film

About the Author

Veit Erlmann is Endowed Chair of Music, University of Texas at Austin.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Berg Publishers; First Edition edition (November 18, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1859738281
• ISBN-13: 978-1859738283
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #844,585 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)