S4E2: Sonic Methods with Jonathan Prior
In this episode Claudia talks to Jonathan Prior about sonic methods and together they try to explore the ways in which methods such as recording, sound walking, and listening could help animal studies scholars better understand and appreciate the animals and worlds they are most concerned with.
Dr Jonathan Prior is a lecturer in Human Geography at Cardiff University, Wales. His research and publications take an interdisciplinary approach, spanning environmental philosophy, sound studies, and landscape research. His first book, Between Nature and Culture: The Aesthetics of Modified Environments, co-authored with Emily Brady and Isis Brook, was published in 2018 by Rowman & Littlefield. You can access some of Jonathan’s recordings on his audio project website (12 Gates to the City) or archived on the Internet Archive. You can also learn more about Jonathan;s work on his university’s website or connect with him on Twitter (@jd_prior).
Mentioned:
Sonic Geographies, exploring phonographic methods by Michael Gallagher and Jonathan Prior;
The reintroduction of beavers to Scotland by Kim Ward and Jonathan Prior;
Making Noise in the Roaring twenties: Sound and Aural History on the Web by Emily Thompson;
Acoustic Ecology and the World Soundscape Project by Barry Truax;
David Dunn and The Acoustic Ecology Institute Website; In the Field: The Art of Field Recording by Jana Winderen.
""I don't want to be there in the recording as it is played back; I don't want my voice to be there, my breathing to be there, or my footsteps to be there, because in each case it would become about me listening to something. I don't want people to identify with me in my recordings, or, for that matter, with any other people. Yet obviously I am there, listening with my fullest concentration, often in a very solitary fashion. When you achieve that level of focus it becomes like it sometimes can be with photography; you are concentrating so much that you just know you have a good photograph or a good composition. But it is totally not about me, it is about the content, and that is why I really do not want to send around portraits of myself" - Jana Winderen, The Art of Field Recording
Thank you to Animals in Philosophy, Politics, Law and Ethics (A.P.P.L.E) for sponsoring this podcast; the Sonic Arts Studio and the Sonic Arts of Place Laboratory (SAPLab) for sponsoring this season; Gordon Clarke (Instagram: @_con_sol_) for the bed music, Jeremy John (Website) for the logo, and Hannah Hunter for the Animal Highlight