Organized by Pierre Prouteau (LAMC & amp; EASt/ULB, CREM, CASE)
Does the sound of the world tend to become always more amplified? Why does this feeling s tays on the mind like an earworm, sometimes with delight, often with a nega tive value attached to it – the nuisance of noise. How has this potentially universal tendency to enhance amplification been reinvigorated by electroa coustic? The objective of this study day is to address electroacoustic ampl ification in its physiological, acoustic, aesthetic, philosophical, technic al, moral dimensions—is the pleasure of some, the noise of others, and how is the occupied “volume” negotiated? And its afferent political dimension. The idea is to examine the definitions of sound intensity, its effects on a udience perception, and how electroacoustic amplification has impacted alre ady-existing repertoires, and contributed to create new ones. Can sound sys tems be a weapon in the media arena? As a weapon of the weak or an instrume nt of domination?
9h30-10h Coffee
10h-10h30 Abderraouf Ouertani (member CUNTIC, Univ. of Tunis) What amplificati on requires: The Impact of Amplification on Oud Practices (and its study)
10h30-11h Sarah Benhaim (Lecturer Univ. of Lorraine) Extreme listening : sounds and amplification in noise music
11h-11h30 Coffee
11h30-12h Muku l Menon (predoc, Univ. Tübingen) Modulating Religiosity: Qualified Amplific ation of Sounds, Ideas, and Practices
12h-12h30 Helma Korzybska (S2HEP, Univ. Lyon 1, member LESC/CNRS, Univ. Paris Nanterre) Redefining “noise”. Amplifications, modula tions and redefinitions of auditory perception through cochlear implants
12h30-14h Lunch Break
14h-14h30 Carola Lorea (Professor Univ. of Tübingen ) On mantras, picnic parties and car horns: towards a South Asian sonic the ory of amplification as auspiciousness
Conclusiv e remarks
14h30-15h Pierre Prouteau (LAMC , EASt/ULB, CREM, CASE) What is an "amplified society" ?
15h-1 6h Collective discussion and end of study day
Abderraouf Ouertani (member CUNTIC, Univ . of Tunis) What amplification requires: The impact of amplification on oud practices (and its study)
This presentation will des cribe the impact of the widespread use of electric amplification in the cas e of the oud, between constraints (sound degradation, feedback) and advanta ges (new sounds, going beyond the strict framework of chamber music). It wi ll also be an opportunity to discuss the place of socio-technical phenomena related to electric amplification in music studies and to problematise som e key concepts in ethnomusicology such as ‘instrument’, “music” and ‘musici an’.
Sarah Benhaim (Lecturer Univ. of Lorraine) Extreme liste ning: sounds and amplification in noise music
Considering lo ud sound objects in the field of music invites us to take an interest in th e technical means and technologies used to amplify musical productions, but also in musical genres that place particular importance on sound volume in their creative process and listening modalities. This is the case with noi se music, an experimental music that emerged in the early 1980s, which is u nique in that it is characterised by noise-based material and sound diffusi on conditions that are often considered extreme. I will examine how noise a rtists and listeners perceive noise and high-volume amplification aesthetic ally and sensorially, based on interviews and recordings from a field study conducted in Paris. After a brief review of the centrality of noise in noi se music, I will explain how amplification constitutes a noisy mediation fr om the point of view of instrumental performance, before showing how it pla ys a major role in live listening by promoting an immersive and ecstatic li stening experience.
Mukul Menon (predoc, Univ. Tübingen) Modu lating Religiosity: Qualified Amplification of Sounds, Ideas, and Practices
Sound in the context of public, communal, and private piety is linked to mediation with the more-than-human and the inscription of ide ntity, social relations, and associations with the past. Amplification as a tool and a method of augmenting such processes is especially evident in re ligious cultures that are based on what has been termed ‘acoustic piety’, t hat is, religiosity significantly produced, interpreted, and perceived thro ugh sound and in sonic terms. What do differences in sonic and cultural amp lification of religious practices in a hierarchical and stratified social e nvironment indicate about underlying social phenomena? To explore this idea , this paper takes as a case study the popular practice of recitations of t he 16th-century text, Addhyātma Rāmāyaṇam Kiḷippāṭṭ,< /em> a regional vernacular retelling of the religious epic Rāmāyaṇa in Kerala, South India. Using ethnographic and archival data, it looks at how, through the amplification of recitational practices and ancillary act ivities- including onsite live and playback performances, congregational so nic acts, public sermons, and political speeches in urban and rural context s- particular communities, socialities, and spaces are delineated. Modulati ons in how ideas and sounds are expanded indicate particularities of cultur al transformations and continuities. which are expressed, shared, and felt, but also creatively deployed by social agents.
Helma Korzybs ka (S2HEP, Univ. Lyon 1, member LESC/CNRS, Univ. Paris Nanterre) Redefining “noise”. Amplifications, modulations and redefinitions of auditory percept ion through cochlear implants
Introducing neurotechnologies into the bodies and perception of people who have lost the ability to hear raises numerous technical, cultural and ethical questions (Mills 2012, Frie dner and Helmreich 2012, Lloyd & Bonventre 2020, Bonventre et al. 2023, Kecman et al. 2026), nuancing widespread notions of human augmentation. Th e learning and rehabilitation process following the surgical implantation i s long and strenuous, leaving people with sounding worlds they often find d ifficult to interpret and to incorporate. Not only do individuals have to d eal with day-to-day technical issues and sensory fluctuations, but they als o must learn to manage the cultural gap with the newfound perception.
Using cochlear implants requires different types of adjustments and negoti ations, of sensory thresholds, somatic modes of attention, as well as expec tations… If “augmenting” perception doesn’t usually translate in a meliorat ive sense, some kind of enhancement does operate here. What kinds of amplif ications or intensifications are produced or enabled through these stimulat ion devices? How are perception and experience amplified in this context?
The technological design and implantation and rehabilitation protocols lead to very specific ways of heightening sensations and modes of attentio n. This communication proposes to offer insights into the complexity of equ ipping perception with technological devices, by focusing on the semantic, sensory, and affective redefinitions of “noise”, as revealed through the el ectrode calibration process and negotiations between patients and speech th erapists/audiologists observed in a cochlear implantation service in France .
Dr. Carola Lorea (Professor Univ. of Tüb ingen) On mantras, picnic parties and car horns: towards a South Asian soni c theory of amplification as auspiciousness
Based on extensive ethnographic research on mantras and sacred so und practices in India, this paper develops a preliminary theory of amplifi cation as auspiciousness. Drawing on sonic ethnography, I approach amplific ation not primarily as a technical operation, but as a culturally and ritua lly charged modality of sharing auspiciousness in space. I first demonstrat e how amplified sound is widely associated with safety, joy, the assertion of presence, life energy, and positive force. Through everyday and festive soundscapes—such as picnic-season loudspeaker cultures and the affective se nsorium of vehicular honking—I show how loudness and sonic expansion are so cially experienced as protective, enlivening, and affirming.
< span lang="en-US">The paper then moves beyond strictly audible sound to exp lore forms of non-electroacoustic amplification of unheard auspicious sound s. Focusing in particular on spinning and other kinetic practices, I examin e how motion itself amplifies mantras—understood as sacred, efficacious for mulas—by engaging agentive elements such as wind, fire, electricity, and th e human voice. Here, amplification is not only a matter of volume, but of c irculation, repetition, and scattering into space, underscoring the insepar ability of sound, movement, space, and felt vibration. By bringing together loudness, motion, and mantra practice, this paper traces the contours of a broader South Asian sonic ideology in which amplification emerges as a cen tral mode of producing auspiciousness and of making place.
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Organized by Pierre Prouteau (LAMC & EASt/ULB, CREM, CASE)
Does the sound of the world tend to become always more amplifie d? Why does this feeling stays on the mind like an earworm, sometimes with delight, often with a negative value attached to it – the nuisance of noise . How has this potentially universal tendency to enhance amplification been reinvigorated by electroacoustic? The objective of this study day is to ad dress electroacoustic amplification in its physiological, acoustic, aesthet ic, philosophical, technical, moral dimensions—is the pleasure of some, the noise of others, and how is the occupied “volume” negotiated? And its affe rent political dimension. The idea is to examine the definitions of sound i ntensity, its effects on audience perception, and how electroacoustic ampli fication has impacted already-existing repertoires, and contributed to crea te new ones. Can sound systems be a weapon in the media arena? As a weapon of the weak or an instrument of domination?
9h 30-10h Coffee
10h-10h30 Abderr aouf Ouertani (member CUNTIC, Univ. of Tunis) What amplification requires: The Impact of Amplification on Oud P ractices (and its study)
10h30-11h Sarah Benhaim (Lecturer Univ. of L orraine) Extreme listening: sounds and amplification in noise music
1 1h-11h30 Coffee
11h30-12h Mukul Menon (predoc, Univ. Tübingen) Modulating Relig iosity: Qualified Amplification of Sounds, Ideas, and Practices
12h-12h30 Helma Korzybska (S2 HEP, Univ. Lyon 1, member LESC/CNRS, Univ. Paris Nanterre) Redefining “nois e”. Amplifications, modulations and redefinitions of auditory perception th rough cochlear implants
12h30-14h Lunch Break
14h-14h30 Carola Lorea (P rofessor Univ. of Tübingen) On mantras, picnic parties and car horns: towar ds a South Asian sonic theory of amplification as auspiciousness
&nbs p;
Conclusive remarks
14h30 -15h Pierre Prouteau (LAMC, EASt/ULB, CREM, CASE) What is an "amplified soc iety" ?
15h-16h Collective discussion and end of study day
Abderraouf Ouertani (member CUNTIC, Univ. of Tunis) What amplification requires: T he impact of amplification on oud practices (and its study)
This presentation will describe the impact of the widespread use of electri c amplification in the case of the oud, between constraints (sound degradat ion, feedback) and advantages (new sounds, going beyond the strict framewor k of chamber music). It will also be an opportunity to discuss the place of socio-technical phenomena related to electric amplification in music studi es and to problematise some key concepts in ethnomusicology such as ‘instru ment’, “music” and ‘musician’.
Sarah Benhaim (Lecturer Univ. of Lorraine) Extreme listening: sounds and amplification in noise music
Considering loud sound objects in the field of music invites us to take an interest in the technical means and technologies used to amplif y musical productions, but also in musical genres that place particular imp ortance on sound volume in their creative process and listening modalities. This is the case with noise music, an experimental music that emerged in t he early 1980s, which is unique in that it is characterised by noise-based material and sound diffusion conditions that are often considered extreme. I will examine how noise artists and listeners perceive noise and high-volu me amplification aesthetically and sensorially, based on interviews and rec ordings from a field study conducted in Paris. After a brief review of the centrality of noise in noise music, I will explain how amplification consti tutes a noisy mediation from the point of view of instrumental performance, before showing how it plays a major role in live listening by promoting an immersive and ecstatic listening experience.
Mukul Menon (pr edoc, Univ. Tübingen) Modulating Religiosity: Qualified Amplification of So unds, Ideas, and Practices
Sound in the context of public, c ommunal, and private piety is linked to mediation with the more-than-human and the inscription of identity, social relations, and associations with th e past. Amplification as a tool and a method of augmenting such processes i s especially evident in religious cultures that are based on what has been termed ‘acoustic piety’, that is, religiosity significantly produced, inter preted, and perceived through sound and in sonic terms. What do differences in sonic and cultural amplification of religious practices in a hierarchic al and stratified social environment indicate about underlying social pheno mena? To explore this idea, this paper takes as a case study the popular pr actice of recitations of the 16th-century text, Addhyātma Rāmā yaṇam Kiḷippāṭṭ, a regional vernacular retelling of the relig ious epic Rāmāyaṇa in Kerala, South India. Using ethnographic and archival data, it looks at how, through the amplification of recitational p ractices and ancillary activities- including onsite live and playback perfo rmances, congregational sonic acts, public sermons, and political speeches in urban and rural contexts- particular communities, socialities, and space s are delineated. Modulations in how ideas and sounds are expanded indicate particularities of cultural transformations and continuities. which are ex pressed, shared, and felt, but also creatively deployed by social agents.
Helma Korzybska (S2HEP, Univ. Lyon 1, member LESC/CNRS, Univ. Paris Nanterre) Redefining “noise”. Amplifications, modulations and redefin itions of auditory perception through cochlear implants
Intr oducing neurotechnologies into the bodies and perception of people who have lost the ability to hear raises numerous technical, cultural and ethical q uestions (Mills 2012, Friedner and Helmreich 2012, Lloyd & Bonventre 20 20, Bonventre et al. 2023, Kecman et al. 2026), nuancing widespread notions of human augmentation. The learning and rehabilitation process following t he surgical implantation is long and strenuous, leaving people with soundin g worlds they often find difficult to interpret and to incorporate. Not onl y do individuals have to deal with day-to-day technical issues and sensory fluctuations, but they also must learn to manage the cultural gap with the newfound perception.
Using cochlear implants requires different types of adjustments and negotiations, of sensory thresholds, somatic modes of a ttention, as well as expectations… If “augmenting” perception doesn’t usual ly translate in a meliorative sense, some kind of enhancement does operate here. What kinds of amplifications or intensifications are produced or enab led through these stimulation devices? How are perception and experience am plified in this context?
The technological design and implantation an d rehabilitation protocols lead to very specific ways of heightening sensat ions and modes of attention. This communication proposes to offer insights into the complexity of equipping perception with technological devices, by focusing on the semantic, sensory, and affective redefinitions of “noise”, as revealed through the electrode calibration process and negotiations betw een patients and speech therapists/audiologists observed in a cochlear impl antation service in France.
Dr. Carola Lor ea (Professor Univ. of Tübingen) On mantras, picnic parties and car horns: towards a South Asian sonic theory of amplification as auspiciousness
Based on extensive ethnographic researc h on mantras and sacred sound practices in India, this paper develops a pre liminary theory of amplification as auspiciousness. Drawing on sonic ethnog raphy, I approach amplification not primarily as a technical operation, but as a culturally and ritually charged modality of sharing auspiciousness in space. I first demonstrate how amplified sound is widely associated with s afety, joy, the assertion of presence, life energy, and positive force. Thr ough everyday and festive soundscapes—such as picnic-season loudspeaker cul tures and the affective sensorium of vehicular honking—I show how loudness and sonic expansion are socially experienced as protective, enlivening, and affirming.
The paper then moves beyond str ictly audible sound to explore forms of non-electroacoustic amplification o f unheard auspicious sounds. Focusing in particular on spinning and other k inetic practices, I examine how motion itself amplifies mantras—understood as sacred, efficacious formulas—by engaging agentive elements such as wind, fire, electricity, and the human voice. Here, amplification is not only a matter of volume, but of circulation, repetition, and scattering into space , underscoring the inseparability of sound, movement, space, and felt vibra tion. By bringing together loudness, motion, and mantra practice, this pape r traces the contours of a broader South Asian sonic ideology in which ampl ification emerges as a central mode of producing auspiciousness and of maki ng place.
DTSTAMP:20260531T121610 DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Paris:20260424T090000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Paris:20260424T180000 SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR