Auditory meaningscapes—An ecological perspective on soundscape perception

Abstract

As a semiotic resource, the soundscape carries information about events relevant to the perceiving organism. Throughout evolution, the auditory system has been shaped to detect, localize, and identify such significant events in the environment in order to initiate appropriate behavior. The sounds are, in other words, environmental sign vehicles to be picked up and utilized by the perceiving organism, allowing it to navigate in the surroundings, avoid potential dangers, etc. Far from being a passive receiver, the auditory system is an active semiotic tool for collecting information relevant for the given situation. From the rudimentary hearing system of simpler organisms to the complex human auditory system, perception of auditory events is functional and instrumental; it guides the perceiver’s behavior by carrying information about potential interactions with the environment. A growing number of studies suggest that auditory perception is intimately coupled with action and that listeners’ perception of soundscapes is structured around semantic categories related to events and activities taking place in the heard environment. Thus, I argue, to get a richer understanding of soundscapes, it is necessary to pay attention to the semiotic dynamics of the interaction between the perceiver and the sonic environment.