Sound installation
Sound installation (related to sound art and sound sculpture) is an intermedia and time based art form. It is an expansion of an art installation in the sense that it includes the sound element and therefore the time element. The main difference with a sound sculpture is that a sound installation has a three dimensional space and the axes with which the different sound objects are being organized are not exclusively internal to the work, but also external. A work of art is an installation only if it makes a dialog with the surrounding space. A sound installation is usually a site-specific but sometimes it can be readapted to other spaces. It can be made either in close or open spaces, and context is fundamental to determine how a sound installation will be aesthetically perceived. The difference between a regular art installation and a sound installation is that the later one has the time element, which gives the visiting public the possibility to stay a longer time due possible curiosity over the development of sound. This temporal factor also gives the audience the excuse to explore the space thoroughly due to the dispositions of the different sounds in space.

Sound installations sometimes use interactive art technology (computers, sensors, mechanical and kinetic devices, etc.) but we also find this type of art form using only sound sources placed in different space points (like speakers), or acoustic music instruments materials like piano strings that are played by a performer or by the public (see Paul Panhuysen).

Sound structure in sound installations

The simpler sound form is a repeating sound loop. This is mostly used in ambient art, and in this case the sound is not the determinant factor of the art work.

The most used sound structure is the open form, since the public can decide to experience a sound installation for just a few minutes or for a longer period of time. This obliges the artist to construct a sound organization that is capable of working well in both of the two cases.

There is also the possibility to have a linear sound structure, where sound develops in the same way as in a musical composition. In this case, the artist might risk not having the audience staying for the whole length of the sound.

Soundscape

A soundscape is a sound or combination of sounds that forms or arises from an immersive environment. The study of soundscape is the subject of acoustic ecology. The idea of soundscape refers to both the natural acoustic environment, consisting of natural sounds, including animal vocalizations and, for instance, the sounds of weather and other natural elements; and environmental sounds created by humans, through musical composition, sound design, and other ordinary human activities including conversation, work, and sounds of mechanical origin resulting from use of industrial technology. The disruption of these acoustic environments results in noise pollution.

By taking a phenomenological approach to the study of landscape, a person's experience of a place occurs through the medium of the sensing body. This embodiment of space can occur through different sensory perceptions such as taste, touch, smell, and sound. Soundscapes offer a lens through which we may gain knowledge of a place that can incorporate additional cultural significances which may be silenced in an exclusively visual study of the land. An example of a soundscape of a given place could be the sounds of a turpentine camp in Antebellum Florida; the scrape of the saw pushing back and forth against the bark of a pine, the resounding hammer of spikes, and the presence of the workday song sung by enslaved laborers. These are just a few of the sounds which compose the terrain and attribute to how we make meaning of place. Workday songs in particular are regional and aspects of the songs, such as lyrics, are informed by the particular location. A common occasion for singing a workaday song was wherever groups of men or women performed a common or monotonous task in order to lighten the toil and express emotion.

Soundscapes in music

In music, soundscape compositions are often a form of electronic music, or electroacoustic music. Composers who use soundscapes include real-time granular synthesis pioneer Barry Truax and Luc Ferrari, whose Presque rien, numéro 1 (1970) is an early soundscape composition.

Music soundscapes can also be generated by automated software methods, such as the experimental TAPESTREA application, a framework for sound design and soundscape composition, and others.

The soundscape is often the subject of mimicry in Timbre-centered music such as Tuvan throat singing. The process of Timbral Listening is used to interpret the timbre of the soundscape. This timbre is mimicked and reproduced using the voice or rich harmonic producing instruments.

The soundscape consists of three major sources or components. They are the biophony (the non-human, non-domestic animal sound signatures that occur in any given biome), the geophony (non-biological natural sounds that occur in any given biome and that include the effects of wind, water, earth movement, etc.), and anthrophony (human-generated sounds that include entropic electro-mechanical noise, and structured sound such as music and theatre).

Soundscapes and the Environment

There are two distinct soundscapes, either hi-fi or lo-fi, created by the environment. A hi-fi system possesses a positive signal-to-noise ratio.[12] These settings make it possible for discrete sounds to be heard clearly since there is no background noise to obstruct even the smallest disturbance. A rural landscape offers more hi-fi frequencies than a city because the natural landscape creates an opportunity to hear incidences from nearby and afar. In a lo-fi soundscape, signals are obscured by too many sounds, and perspective is lost within the broad- band of noises.[12] In lo-fi soundscapes everything is very close and compact. A person can only listen to immediate encounters; in most cases even ordinary sounds have to be exuberantly amplified in order to be heard.

All sounds are unique in nature. They occur at one time in one place and can't be replicated. In fact, it is physically impossible for nature to reproduce any phoneme twice in exactly the same manner.[12] Today, there is a split between original sounds and unnatural acoustics brought on by the transmission and storage of sound. In other words, recordings have made it possible to simulate any sound environment anywhere. The portability of acoustics has transformed the idea of soundscape because it made hi-fi gadgetry mainstream in a lo-fi setting. Producers have displaced sounds found in the countryside, wildlife, and water and injected them into the homes of people everywhere, further enhancing the lo-fi problem found in urban spaces today.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soundscape)

Installations by artist

World Voices Project: Audio-Visual Installation - New York, NY

ArchiCulture Studio designed the visual identity, site and graphic elements of World Voices Project, an artistic audio installation that took place at New York's South Street Seaport [Google Map] from July 20 through August 3, 2008.

World Voices Project, created by location sound engineer and artist Brenda Ray, is a mosaic of recordings of people reading the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights in their native language. The exhibition marks the 60th Anniversary of the Declaration, celebrated around the globe.
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkWV4jt9l1M&feature=player_embedded )

INSTALLATION CONCEPT:

The Seaport is one of Manhattan's most popular tourist destinations, situated on the East River just south of the Brooklyn Bridge. The exhibit was located on the third floor of the Pier 17 in a large food court area and attracted hundreds of visitors daily. In this massive atrium, the installation's presence was achieved with a large banner that hung below the skylight of the 50 foot cathedral ceiling, welcoming visitors to the exhibition area. Our choice of the banner's mesh fabric allowed light and air to pass through it, giving the exhibit a flowing and expansive ambiance.

The nature of the space presented certain acoustical and visual challenges. The primary aesthetic criteria was to maintain the focus on sound, but the space was an acoustically hostile environment. A jungle of almost sixty hanging headphones, representing as many languages, was the most effective way to isolate the audio and attract a crowd. ArchiCulture Studio needed to create visual elements that were educational, economical, elegant and engaging without overshadowing the audio. To identify each headphone according to its corresponding language, we created curved labels that followed the shape of the headsets and sat elegantly above the listener, much like a halo.

Each device also had a hanging tag with background information about the language. The headphones were attached with a bungee to a suspended aluminum speed-rail grid that could be raised and lowered on electric chain motors, allowing the headsets to be accessible to all ages.

The spaciousness of the atrium and a spectacular view onto the East River gave the listener an expansive, contemplative vista. Another challenge was to incorporate the windows into the exhibition without inhibiting the view of the river as well as compete for the visitors' attention. With a desire to depict where the languages came from, a transparent world map was printed onto the windows. It was visually pleasing and the "New York City Waterfalls", the Olafur Eliasson art installation under the Brooklyn Bridge was very much apparent on the other side of the glass.

The overall design was modern and sleek, lending itself to the intended audio focus by using neutral colors and materials: silver headphones, black & white language label lettering, black bungee cords, aluminum speed-rails above, a black metal information table with a clear glass top, and a dark blue rug inspired by the planet's oceans.
(Source: http://www.archiculture.net/special%20events/WVP-SouthStSeaportInstallation.html)