Composing Places: Practices and Potentials of Sound Mapping and Locative Audio Samuel Thulin A Thesis In the Department of Communication Studies Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Communication) at Concordia University Montreal, Québec, Canada November 2014 © Samuel Thulin, 2014 i CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES This is to certify that the thesis prepared By: Samuel Thulin Entitled: Composing Places: Practices and Potentials of Sound Mapping and Locative Audio and submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Communication) complies with the regulations of the University and meets the accepted standards with respect to originality and quality. Signed by the final examining committee: Chair Dr. J. C. Castro External Examiner Dr. J. Farman External to Program Dr. S. High Examiner Dr. O. Chapman Examiner Dr. L. Grenier Thesis Supervisor Dr. K. Sawchuk Approved by: Dr. J. Stolow , Graduate Program Director November 21, 2014 Dr. A. Roy, Dean Faculty of Arts and Science ABSTRACT Composing Places: Practices and Potentials of Sound Mapping and Locative Audio Samuel Thulin, Ph.D. Concordia University, 2014 Since the early 2000s, advances in mobile, networked, and locative technology have made the possibilities for combining sounds and places more numerous than ever before. This research-creation dissertation asks how people participate in creating and experiencing relationships between sounds and places via mobile technology. Working across the fields of media studies, mobilities research, sound studies and soundscape studies, this dissertation aims to contribute a focus on sound to the growing body of work examining locative media and mapping, while also contributing a focus on mobility and place to sound studies research. Through a research-creation project delving into sound mapping (the practice of attaching sound recordings to online maps, accessible regardless of the user’s location) and locative audio (the practice of attaching audio to particular locations to be listened to by a user in-situ on a mobile device), I examine the potential of ‘composition’ for understanding and challenging current mobile sound practices. Composition, as a concept and practice involving relationality and the dynamics of process and product, serves to open up the ways in which places and sounds may come together. For this project, I created three musical compositions using only recordings found on online platforms with sound mapping components. I also created two interactive, locative audio compositions situated in the neighbourhood of Verdun, Montreal, which led to twenty-four recordings of project participants engaging with the works. I corresponded with sound map contributors through e-mail, and I interviewed locative audio participants in-person. Putting these initiatives into dialogue with other projects, historical precedents, approaches to working with sound, and theorizations of locative media and mapping, I examine both the norms and the potential of current technologies and practices. I argue that the way place and sound come together through sound mapping and locative audio involves a continual interplay between: 1) maintaining established practices and existing bonds; and 2) attempting to forge new bonds and new ways of approaching places. Continued exploration and experimentation via composition contributes to understanding this interplay, shedding light on how people engage with places through mobile technology. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This research-creation project would not have been possible without the generous guidance and support of my supervisor, Dr. Kim Sawchuk. Thank you for always pushing me to stretch my thinking and my practice, and for providing so many opportunities for me to explore my work and share it with others through projects, exhibitions, and conferences both inside and outside of academia. Thank you, Dr. Owen Chapman, for your unfailing enthusiasm, support, and encouragement, and for inviting me to take part in your research-creation projects. Our exchanges have contributed immeasurably to my development as a scholar and artist. I am grateful to have Dr. Line Grenier, Dr. Steven High, and Dr. Jason Farman rounding out my Examining Committee. It is wonderful to have the opportunity to discuss my research with you all. I am very thankful for the financial support I received for this research from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and from Concordia University. Thank you to the incredible faculty and staff of the Communications Department at Concordia for creating an excellent environment in which to do research. Thanks to Monika Kin Gagnon, Jeremy Stolow, Charles Acland, Yves Théorêt (UQAM), and Will Straw (McGill University) for inspiring courses and helpful feedback during my doctoral degree. Thanks to Andra McCartney for supporting my work from the moment I arrived at Concordia (for my MA), for sitting on my doctoral comprehensive exam committee, and for always providing thoughtful suggestions. Thanks also to Brian Massumi (UdeM) for sitting on my comprehensive exam committee. For courses prior to my doctoral degree, as well as continued encouragement, thank you Liz Miller, Bill Buxton, Tim Schwab (all Concordia University), and Jonathan Sterne (McGill University). To my colleagues and friends in the PhD program and the Mobile Media Lab, I am so happy to have had the opportunity to work with all of you, and I look forward to future collaborations. Special thanks to Dave Madden, Constance Lafontaine, M.E. Luka, Shirley Roburn, Jacqueline Wallace, Magdalena Olszanowski, Alison Loader, Antonia Hernández, Ben Spencer, Jaimie Robson, Eric Powell, Nimalan Yoganathan, Isabel Macdonald, Christina Haralanova, Mariam Esseghaier, and Krista Riley. Since beginning my PhD, I have been fortunate enough explore my research by giving workshops and presenting works through organizations outside the university, including: OBORO, Agence TOPO, the Canadian Centre for Architecture, the International Digital Arts Biennial of Montreal, DHC/ART and the Phi Centre. I have also had the great pleasure of contributing works and performances to Magali Babin and Patrice Coulombe’s 24gauche series and Eric Mattson’s Voisins/Neighours festival, as well as working on sound design for apps by Catbird Productions. These experiences iv have been invaluable to my reflections on sound, mobility, and place, and I am thankful to all those involved in these initiatives. Many thanks to the participants of this research-creation project. Your openness and generosity is greatly appreciated; it has been a privilege sharing ideas and sounds with you. Thanks to all my friends and family near and far. Thank you to my parents, Penny and Eric, for always nurturing my interests and continuing to encourage me in everything I do. Thanks to my older brother, Jesse, for inspiring me musically from a young age. Finally, thanks to my partner, Cheryl, whose unending encouragement and support has contributed to this project in innumerable ways, simultaneously expanding its horizons and making it so much easier (and more fun!) to carry out. v Table of Contents List of Figures................................................................................................................. viii ! INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 1! Research Context .........................................................................................................................2 Key Concepts: Place and Mobility...............................................................................................9! Methodology: Research-Creation and Composition..................................................................16! Chapter Overview ......................................................................................................................23! ! SECTION I: Sound Mapping ! Chapter 1 No Pure Sound: The ‘Stickiness’ of Recording............................................................ 30 Tinfoil Prologue .........................................................................................................................32 Sound as Signal: Un-sticking the Message ................................................................................34! Re-sticking Sound ......................................................................................................................39! Phonography, the Soundscape, and Sound Environments: Maintaining the Place of the ! Recording ...................................................................................................................................45! Recording Today: More Mobility, More Stickiness?.................................................................54 Conclusion..................................................................................................................................59! ! Chapter 2 ! Stuck on Cartography: Sound Meets Map................................................................... 62 Mapping:! Between Objective Product and Subjective Process .................................................64 Silent Sound Maps, Cybercartography, and the Sonic Sound Map ...........................................69! Predominant Sound Maps: This Was Recorded Here................................................................73! Sound Map Project –