In this episode I read Chapter 2: “Sonic compositions” from the book Recording culture by Daniel Makagon and Mark Neumann. This book can be understood as one of the most important reflections on the increasingly popular methods in ethnographic field work using recording technology. Besides this it is exceptionally well written. The second chapter discusses some genres and formats of academic but mostly non-academic audio works (soundscapes, soundwalks and sonic maps, radio diaries and audio essays, audio documentaries) and their relevance and possibilities as genres of academic discourse.

I originally read this text for the seminar “Writing culture – recording culture” I taught in the spring term of 2019 at the university of Bern.