Sound Bank Gallery, North Shields
19th April 2021 – 17th May 2021

Birdsong and understanding the other ‘Other’

For more than 150 years scientists have generally considered birdsong to be a male trait, however, recent research shows that both males and females in many bird species sing, and it was female scientists who turned out to be the key factor in these findings.

Many other factors, such as race, ethnicity, geographic location and socioeconomic standing, might not only inform our understanding of birdsong, but also ourselves.

To paraphrase author Rachel Mundy:

In hearing ourselves listen to birds, we can begin to notice foundational notions of difference that inform both how we hear, and how we see, birds and others.

Rachel Mundy