THE MUSEUM AS SOUNDSCAPE

Sound as a design tool, and how it can approach questions of historical imagination in different ways, was demonstrated in the contribution by Martin Lesjak (INNOCAD architecture and 13&9 Design, Graz). In the exhibition what was. Historical Spaces and Landscapes at the Museum of History in Graz, there were two layers of sound guiding the visitors: the first, narrative layer made the changing soundscape of Styria over time perceptible through ambient noises. The second, more abstract layer consisted of a drumbeat, noise, and a heartbeat rhythm. Becoming increasingly dense and faster, they represented the growing density of settlement in Styria and the acceleration of historical processes up to the present day.

Toward the end of the exhibition, the sound became dissonant – an intentional part of the concept – which also served as a starting point for discussions following the lecture. Some workshop participants who had visited the exhibition themselves perceived the very prominent sound layer as disturbing, thereby highlighting a conflictual aspect of sound. The discussion addressed the extent to which working with sound in exhibitions must also take into account different needs – not least those of the supervisory staff. At the same time, Lesjak emphasized the conceptually justified relevance of the sound layer and pointed to the high visitor numbers of the exhibition: evidently, the very prominent storytelling through sound was not a deterrent for many visitors.