Soundmarks

In his article *Appropriation, Culture and Meaning in Electroacoustic Music: A composer's perspective* Steven Naylor talks about certain mechanical and environmental sounds being able to convey clear cultural resonances, especially if those sounds have become associated with particular locations and their populations. R. Murray Schafer identifies such locally important sounds as 'soundmarks,' a term that acknowledges their significance within their communities as a sonic parallel to 'landmarks.' Similarly, biophony, or sound produced by non-human biological sources may become associated with specific national identities, such as the evocative cry of the Common Loon for Canada.