Echoes of Cembra: Village Soundscape at the Turn of the Millennium
In 2000, the AEiC (Acoustic Environment in Change) project ventured into the picturesque Cembra Valley in Northern Italy to explore its unique sonic environment. The blog texts produced during this time offer a fascinating snapshot of a community nestled amidst steep hills, where sounds reflected off ancient stone walls seemed to echo a history shaped by both human activity and the constraints of nature.[1] Revisiting these texts today allows us to reflect on the transformations in Cembra’s sonic landscape—particularly when compared to earlier periods, such as 1975, documented in the Five Village Soundscapes study (Schafer 1975/2009).
Illness, Isolation, and Perceptions of Bells in Bissingen
What does it mean to experience a place from a single point of listening? During a field trip to Bissingen, Germany, illness confined me to my room — and offered an unexpected perspective on church bells, isolation, and the fragile rhythms of time. This personal reflection explores how soundscapes are not only heard but embodied, manifesting through the listener’s states of body-mind and creating shifting relations to community and place.