Courses
in Acoustic Communication
School
of Communication, Simon Fraser University
(Note: Since the retirement of Prof. Barry Truax, these
courses, except for CMNS 486 which he still teaches, now
have revised content and therefore these links should only
be used for reference; consult the School for current
versions)
Special Topics
Course: CMNS 486
Soundscape Composition as Context-Based Creation
Soundscape Compositional pdf's
The "acoustic" stream:
· CMNS 259-3, Acoustic
Dimensions of Communication I
"A course designed to develop the student's perception and
understanding of sound and its behaviour in the
interpersonal, social, environmental, media and creative
fields. The acoustic and psychoacoustic bases of sound will
be introduced with special reference to acoustic design, the
electroacoustic media, and sonic environments.
(lecture/laboratory)"
Note: CMNS 259 is offered both on campus and on-line in a
Distance Education version
· CMNS 359-4, Acoustic
Dimensions of Communication II
"A special topics course and small class work group at an
intermediate level in acoustic communication dealing
intensively with special problems in psychoacoustics,
acoustic design, soundscape studies, noise in the community,
acoustic aspects of social organization, language and
interpersonal communication, electronic sound production,
media analysis, theories of sound cognition and information
processing. (seminar/laboratory)"
· CMNS 859-5 (graduate),
Acoustic Dimensions of Communication
"Special topics in sound and communication studies with
emphasis on specific problems in psychoacoustics, theories
of sound cognition and information processing, soundscape
studies, acoustic design, community noise surveys, media
analysis and related technology. Students will gain
experience in designing and conducting research projects in
one of these areas. (seminar/laboratory)"
The
"electroacoustic" stream:
· CMNS 258-3,
Introduction to Electroacoustic Communication
"An introduction to the audio medium as a communicational
tool and to electroacoustic aspects of communication in
general. Specific techniques of field recording,
interviewing, editing, sound processing, multi-tracking, and
basic digital studio techniques will be presented using the
school’s studio facilities. Applications of the audio medium
to such areas as media analysis, aural history, social
documentation, interpersonal communication and sound-based
composition will be discussed. (lecture/laboratory)"
· CMNS 358-4, Sound
Recording: Theory and Design
"An intermediate level studio workshop to develop the
student's skills in sound production with an understanding
of the communicational implications of sound design. Audio
theory and its applications in both the digital and analog
formats will be presented, along with practical studio
techniques for stereo and multi-channel sound production.
(seminar/laboratory)"
·
CMNS 357-4,
Audio Media Analysis
This course provides an intensive analysis of the design and
function of audio in all forms of electroacoustic media,
including both historical analog and contemporary digital
forms of communication. Specific attention will be given to
sound design in advertising and other types of soundtracks,
the structure of broadcast media considered as a surrogate
listening environment, the sound recording as document,
patterns and functions of electroacoustic media usage in
daily life, and alternative uses of audio media.
. CMNS 486-4, Soundscape
Composition as Context-based Creation (seminar/laboratory)
Note: both
streams of undergraduate and graduate study can lead to
individual Directed Study courses.
Acoustic
Communication Bibliography.
