BBC Radio 4’s documentary of the week is focusing on research supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) through it’s joint AHRC/Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Science Heritage research programme.
‘Hearing the Past’, presented by Professor Jim Al-Khalili will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 11 am on Monday September 12th. The programme will also be available via the Radio 4 website.
Broadcaster and Physicist, Jim Al-Khalili investigates how latest research in acoustics is helping us to recreate authentic sounds of the past. Imagine being able to eavesdrop on the sound of a ritual at Stonehenge four thousand years ago, or hear singing in the original Coventry Cathedral before it was bombed in 1940.
Jim also discovers how the same research is changing the way we study history and experience tourist attractions and is also helping us to improve the acoustic design of future buildings. For example architects of modern concert venues are learning lessons from the layout of Stonehenge.
Jim finds out how research into acoustics also goes beyond just making buildings sound good, in some cases it can save lives. For instance in an emergency situation clear tannoy announcements help direct people to safe exits, whereas unclear announcements can lead to confusion.
The programme will feature the AHRC/EPSRC funded research cluster ‘Improving Heritage Experience through Acoustic Reality and Audio Research’ (I Hear Too).
The research cluster is led by Dr Damian Murphy from the University of York. “Science and Heritage work together particularly well in audio and acoustic research. Our understanding of the past is greatly enhanced through the insight we gain into how our ancestors would have heard their world,” says Dr Murphy. “In addition this research helps us to better understand sound in the environment we currently inhabit from the acoustic preservation of old buildings and the design of new ones to offsetting the effects of our increasingly noisy world.”
The research is bringing together a diverse group of scientists, engineers, sound archivists, museum curators and sound artists.
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Notes for Editors
Contributors to the programme
Dr Damian Murphy, from the University of York is leading the overall project. He is also specifically involved in acoustically recreating the sound of Coventry Cathedral before it was bombed in 1940.
Dr Rupert Till, from the University of Huddersfield. Rupert works in the area of ‘archaeo-acoustics’, which concentrates on the sound of a site and how it would have been used in the past. He describes how he has been able to recreate the sound of a ritual at Stonehenge four thousand years ago. He also explains how the site’s acoustics are inspiring the design of modern outdoor concert venues.
Joe Savage, a curator at the National Railway Museum in York. Joe is interested in the use of acoustics in a museum or heritage setting. The NRM is currently re-developing its station hall area and wants to make use of latest research into acoustics. They are planning to show visitors how a railway station operates twenty four hours a day and how that working pattern has changed over time.
Sebastien Jouan, an acoustic designer. Sebastien works for Arup, a global firm of designers, engineers, planners and building consultants. He explains how studying the acoustics of sites such as Stonehenge and pre-1940 Coventry Cathedral can help us design better sounding buildings from concert halls and airport terminals to schools, hospital operating theatres, homes and offices. Sebastien will also demonstrate, through recorded sounds how improving acoustics in public places can also save lives in emergency situations.
Richard Ranft, Head of the Sound Archive at the British Library in London. This is an invaluable source of recordings for museums and historic sites. Richard is also keen to encourage people to record sounds of the world around them now before we lose them forever.
Sound Artists Louise K. Wilson (based at the University of Huddersfield) and David Chapman. Their work has centred on the Falkland estate in Fife, sourcing and collecting historic sounds associated with this former royal hunting park.
AHRC Media contact: Jake Gilmore, Communications Manager, 01793 416021; j.gilmore@ahrc.ac.uk
The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC): Each year the AHRC provides approximately £100 million from the Government to support research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities, from languages and law, archaeology and English literature to design and creative and performing arts. In any one year, the AHRC makes hundreds of research awards ranging from individual fellowships to major collaborative projects as well as over 1,100 studentship awards. Awards are made after a rigorous peer review process, to ensure that only applications of the highest quality are funded. The quality and range of research supported by this investment of public funds not only provides social and cultural benefits but also contributes to the economic success of the UK.
UK Science & Heritage Research Programme: Funded for five years by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) the Science and Heritage Programme was established in order to take forward recommendations made by the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee report on Science and Heritage. The Programme draws on a range of disciplinary expertise and resources in order to transform the ways in which changes to our cultural heritage and its conservation are understood. One of the aims of the programme is to develop the research community by building capacity and supporting new researchers. The programme is led by Programme Director, Professor May Cassar of UCL. Professor Cassar leads on the programmes development, external coordination and outreach as well as on extensive networking with the national and international research community including non-academic sectors. In addition she is also establishing the base line level of funding across all the research councils and developing a comprehensive map of recent and current research and training activity in heritage science. http://www.heritagescience.ac.uk/
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC): EPSRC is one of the seven UK Research Councils principally funded through the Government’s science budget which is administered by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). EPSRC is the UK’s main agency for funding research in engineering and physical sciences and invests around £850m a year in research and postgraduate training, to help the nation handle the next generation of technological change. www.epsrc.ac.uk