Chantal Elizabeth Berry
Thesis
Sensory Environments 1500-1750
Supervisor: Mark Jenner and Amanda Rees
My research focuses upon acoustic ecology, or the sounds and rhythms of human-nature relationships between c.1500-c.1750. I consider how changes in human activity have altered natural soundscapes and consequent human perceptions of the natural world. My research also looks to communicate experiences of ‘the natural’ through sonic recreations of past environments.
Between 2017-2020, I studied at the University of Leeds School of Music and specialised in electro-acoustic composition, engaging with artistic approaches to convey philosophical ideas about nature, largely by electronically editing field recordings and employing compositional techniques such as plunderphonics and musique concrète. Whilst undertaking an MA in Renaissance and Early Modern Studies at the University of York in 2020-2021, my interest in acoustic ecology developed from explorations of modern sound, into historical sound, and has led me to research how retrospective applications of acoustic ecology might contribute to developing scholarship in soundscape conservation and architectural acoustics and spiritual histories within studies of the Anthropocene.
Alongside PhD research, I have collaborated with an LCAB (Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity) artist in residence, aiming to develop sound-based artworks that evoke historical soundscapes, bringing 'lost' sounds to life. Recently, I have co-organised an interdisciplinary seminar series ‘Sensing the Environment in Art and Music’, funded by the University of York Humanities Research Centre and have been a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the History Department at York.
Research
Papers and publications
- 2023. LCAB online essay Chantal Berry
- June 2023 'A Pilgrimage of Sound - An evocative soundwalk through the acoustic world of 16th-century York that will enable you to immerse yourself in our city’s rich heritage' Chantal Berry. Festival of Ideas
- June 2023 'Soundscape for 'hands-on' activity'. Chantal Berry. York Festival of Ideas 2023
- March 2023. 'Sampling the Acoustic Community; Laxton village and its court Leet 1651-1727' Chantal Berry, University of York, History Department Research Seminar
- July 2022 'Sensing the Environment in Art and Music'. Xinrui Zhang & Chantal Berry Seminar Series
