Urban Soundscapes: Characterization of a Pedestrian Tourist Route in Sorrento (Italy)

Giovanni Brambilla,Francesco Aletta,Massimiliano Masullo,Luigi Maffei

doi:10.3390/urbansci1010004

Abstract

The tourist experience of built environments has received a lot of attention in tourism marketing and management research. Several studies have shown that the environmental qualities of a place can contribute to its aesthetic appreciation and overall expectation of tourists. Such aesthetic qualities, such as cenery and soundscapes, should thus be regarded as key components of tourists’ satisfaction. This study proposes that a soundscape approach could be a suitable tool in tourism management, due to its general purpose of enhancing the users’ experience of a place, taking into account the acoustic dimension of the environment. Within this framework, this paper describes the characterization of the soundscape of a pedestrian tourist route in Sorrento (Italy). For this purpose, a group of acoustics experts, architects, and planners used the soundwalk method to collect recordings and perceptual data about the sound environment along a pre-defined tourist path. The results suggest that the tourists’ perceptual construct is underpinned by both visual and aural elements contributing to soundscape appreciation.

Highlights

The term “soundscape” in its current meaning dates back to the early 1970s, when it was introduced by the Canadian composer R
On the assumption that the soundscape approach could be a suitable tool in tourism management, due to its general purpose of enhancing the users’ experience of a place by taking into account the acoustic dimension of the environment, this paper presents the results of the soundscape characterization of a common tourist route in Sorrento (Italy)
Potential benefit that the soundscape approach and the soundwalk methodology can offer to the improvement of tourism management

Summary

Introduction

The term “soundscape” in its current meaning dates back to the early 1970s, when it was introduced by the Canadian composer R. M. Schafer at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver [1]. Schafer and his research group defined “soundscape” as “[an] environment of sound (or sonic environment) with emphasis on the way it is perceived and understood by the individual, or by a society” [2]. An increasing number of studies have been published, proposing theoretical models for soundscape characterization and practical approaches for its improvement. In 2014, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published a new International Standard, ISO 12913-Part 1, on soundscape, which defines the word as “[the] acoustic environment as perceived or experienced and/or understood by a person or people, in context” [3]

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Results

Conclusion