Soundscape assessment of a monumental place : a methodology based on the perception of dominant sounds

Perez-Martinez, G; Torija Martinez, AJ; Ruiz, DP

Abstract

Some monumental sites have unique soundscapes that deserve to be managed not only by their tourist and
cultural value, but also for enhancing the visitors’ overall impression. These sites can include a multitude of
sound sources within a variety of different locations with geometrically different spaces in size and shape, so that
the soundscape assessment could be quite challenging. The hypothesis of this study is that regardless of the
complexity of sound sources comprising a given acoustic environment, the perceived soundscape quality is
driven primarily by the evaluation of the subjectively dominant sounds. This hypothesis was tested in a field
study conducted in a monumental site with historical relevance located in a semi-natural environment (the
Alhambra of Granada, Spain). The main finding was that, for a given location, the higher the percentage of
visitors reporting a pleasant sound as dominant, the higher the reported soundscape quality and overall impression.
Moreover, it was found that: (i) the sounds of birds, water and visitors (voices and footsteps) are the
sounds primarily reported as dominant, (ii) the throngs of visitors (human sounds) negatively affect the
soundscape quality, (iii) natural sounds increase the reported pleasantness, especially water sounds, which
significantly improve the perceived soundscape quality. The practical implication is that, with appropriate information
on subjectively dominant sound sources to prioritize corrective actions, soundscape management and
its enhancement will require much less time and operational effort than other options for soundscape assessment
based on the use of extensive questionnaires.

Citation

Perez-Martinez, G., Torija Martinez, A., & Ruiz, D. (2018). Soundscape assessment of a monumental place : a methodology based on the perception of dominant sounds. Landscape and Urban Planning, 169, 12-21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2017.07.022

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 31, 2017
• Online Publication Date: Aug 17, 2017
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2018
• Deposit Date: Dec 2, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 2, 2019
• Journal: Landscape and Urban Planning
• Print ISSN: 0169-2046
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Volume: 169
• Pages: 12-21
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2017.07.022
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2017.07.022
• Related Public URLs: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/landscape-and-urban-planning
• Additional Information: Funders : Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad - Spanish Government;CEI-BIOTIC Granada;Ministerio de Educacion - Spanish Government; Projects : Formacion de Profesorado Universitario (FPU); Grant Number: TEC2012-38883-C02-02; Grant Number: P_CP_27; Grant Number: AP2012-6117