The sound of place as a medium for art : COFANoise

The Sound of Place as a medium for Art: COFANoise is a phenomenologicalinvestigation of the sound of place as a medium for art. Over the past 100 years, soundtechnology has advanced significantly from simple mono analogue electronic tapemachines to sophisticated digital computer software and hardware. The opportunitiesafforded by sound technology has enabled artists to record, edit, and transmit thesounds of place in a variety of ways. Since the early 20th Century artists have beenexperimenting with sound technology using different approaches to working with thesounds of place in their creative practice. The result is a number of differentmethodologies that can be applied when using the sound of place as a medium for artincluding sound walking, phonography, field recording, electroacoustic composition andsonification. Many artists apply these methodologies singularly or in combinations. Thishas resulted in the emergence of different genres to describe the use of the sound ofplace in art including Soundscapes, Sound Sculptures and Electroacoustic.The aim of this MFA thesis is to answer a fundamental question:How can the sound of place be used as a medium for art?In part one of this thesis I discuss sound in relation to place, listening as a creativeprocess, and various methodologies employed by artists who work with the sound ofplace in the production of their artwork. I present the theoretical conceptions of placeand a working definition of place, which informs this MFA research.In part two, I discuss the making of my practical work for this MFA titled COFANoiseincluding my conceptual ideas, documentary photographs, methodology and key artistswho influenced my work. I conclude with a short discussion on the sound of place as amedium for art and potential future research