The sonic effect: Soundscape and XX Century urban and architectural research

Is an acoustic alternative possible in the analysis of the relationship between individuals and urban landscapes? Can the vision of the world be enhanced with the hearing of the world? Starting from these questions, the essay investigates how architects and urban designers - but also composers, artists and writers - have addressed the theme of the “acoustic paradigm” during the 20th century. The text begins by focusing on the field of soundscape studies, which have had a strong cultural impact and have evolved greatly since the early 1960s, while the conclusion is an excursus on some examples of acoustic environments, from the most renowned experiments of the Hellerau School or the work of Carlo Scarpa, to some less-known experiments of aural experiences, in the attempt to analyze how sound and space are always intertwined in defining the atmosphere we live in and the emotions we feel.