‘Playing with Medieval Drama Soundscapes: evocation, recreation and artistic practice’

Mariana Lopez, University of York @Mariana_J_Lopez https://twitter.com/MidAgesModGames/status/1277977978316533761

1 #MAMG20 Hi! I’m a Senior Lecturer @TFTI_UoY and I’ll be presenting on ‘Playing with Medieval Drama Soundscapes: evocation, recreation and artistic practice.’ The focus is on the York Mystery Plays, the acoustical data linked to the medieval performances and its dissemination.

2 #MAMG20 The Mystery Plays are a cycle of plays performed in York from the 14-16th century. Each play used a wagon constructed for the occasion and handled through the streets of York, where they stopped at pre-determined outdoor locations to perform for audiences.

3 #MAMG20 Research (through on-site acoustic measurements/computer models) demonstrated that it’s likely that performers/organisers learnt to adapt the use of the street space, wagon configuration and positioning of performers to optimise challenging outdoor acoustic conditions.

4 #MAMG20 The soundscapes of the city would have also interacted with the performances, with sound sources competing for attention, including wagon wheels, animals, church bells, audience reactions, passersby and the sounds of Yorkshire’s weather!

5 #MAMG20 We designed an interactive interface to allow users to ‘play’ with historical acoustics. The aim: demonstrate that there isn’t one possible recreation of the past, there are multiple. Sensorial recreations are a curatorial act, influenced by our notions of the past.

6 #MAMG20 It’s useful to consider a classification of sound experiences of heritage sites that reflects on (1) functions, (2) the end user, and (3) audiences’ own perceptions of what history “sounded” like, as mediated through films, tv, video games, and others.

7 #MAMG20 The proposed classification is linked to ideas surrounding sensorial experiences as culturally specific, creative use of sound design, the technology available and the ethical considerations linked with transparency –acknowledging the gaps in knowledge, for example.

8 #MAMG20 Let’s focus on ‘Sound as evocation’ and ‘Sounds as Recreation’. The former refers to sounds designed to evoke the past, utilising preconceived notions widely known and accepted: sounds visitors would easily associate with a historical period. Let’s listen to an example! 9 #MAMG20 ‘Sound as Recreation of the Past’ are cases in which the aural experiences are based on thorough research on a space and its historical context—an approach that is often linked to sound archaeology. This is the case of ‘The Soundscapes of the York Mystery Plays’. 10 #MAMG20 The video shows the user selecting what acoustical setting they experience– there are several choices because we don’t have enough historical data to know–they are possibilities, not facts. The same with sound sources, they are likely options but specifics are unknown.

11 #MAMG20 Recreations are about choices. We can also learn about the past by thinking about modern performances of the plays, another angle that this interface seeks to engage users with. Let’s watch a video with some examples of oral histories!

https://twitter.com/i/status/1277982701941690369

12 #MAMG20 This project engaged with ethics, multiple histories and perception in sound heritage. This presentation is also a curated event, I carefully chose the examples played, the images shown. Would you have reflected on my work differently had I made different choices?