We are pleased to announce the launch of the online Journal of Sonic Studies, a new international peer-reviewed journal on auditory culture.

Sonic studies covers both the material production and consumption of sound (including music, noise and “silence”) and the cultural meaning of sound (e.g. through listening). It explores the dynamic interaction between the physical environment, the socio-cultural milieu, the producer(s) of sounds, such as musicians, sound engineers, sound artists, producers, as well as the individual listener. In short: sonic studies focus both on the production, the distribution, and the reception of sound.

With the biannual, peer reviewed online Journal of Sonic Studies we intend to provide a platform for those theorists and artists who would like to discuss these, as well as other relevant, issues regarding auditory culture. Although we explicitly invite both theorists and artists to contribute, we expect all contributions to have a firm theoretical grounding. Our editorial board, which includes artists/scholars such as Francisco López, Stephen Vitiello, Brandon LaBelle, Aden Evens, and Jean-Paul Thibaud will be a guarantee for this.

The primary aim of the journal is to think through and problematize auditory culture, in order to understand the impact and importance of sound for our culture and to expose possible misconceptions of certain aspects of sound and the way people, both listeners and producers, deal with and value sound. Also, since it is an online journal, we stimulate authors to make use of the extended possibilities that such a journal offers as opposed to traditional, paper-based publications. Consequently, we encourage contributors to include sound files, hypertexts, audio-visual material, etc.

For the first issue of the Journal of Sonic Studies we invite theorists and artists to submit a proposal for an article, or complete articles, on a particular aspect of auditory culture. Possible topics may include, but are not limited to, the history of auditory culture, the ontology of sound, the epistemology of sonic studies, the possible (interdisciplinary) approaches to productively study auditory culture, and the specificity of sonic studies.

An abstract of 800 words, or complete articles, should be sent by e-mail to v.meelberg at let.ru.nl or M.A.Cobussen at umail.leidenuniv.nl no later than January 31, 2011.

See http://www.sonicstudies.org for more details.