Meetings/Workshops on Communication studies in the United Kingdom

AHRC (Arts & Humanities Research Council)

Up to now, the acoustic design of almost everything has assumed a typical listener with "normal" hearing. This includes the physical environment (homes, workplaces, public space), products (transport, appliances, audio systems), and digital systems (TV, radio, games). There is a pressing need to explore how acoustic design can improve accessibility for an aurally diverse population. What are the problems? How can the sounds of places, things and systems be reimagined? What new design methods, case studies and information are needed?

AHRC (Arts & Humanities Research Council)

It is clear that listening encompasses a far greater range of hearing types than has heretofore been generally acknowledged. How may music and performance best address this wide range of aural diversities? What are the technical, aesthetic and sociocultural consequences of aural diversity for musical practice and theory? What are the aural skills that are required? What technologies exist or may be created to support musical engagement by aurally diverse practitioners and how may aurally diverse audiences be reached? What are the historical contexts and characteristics of aural diversity that have affected music? How may we envisage a new kind of music-making that encompasses every kind of listener? How may discussions of equality, diversity and inclusion be improved by awareness and acceptance of aural diversity?