what Vermont religion
sounds like

Hear religion in public

on UVM’s campus and Church Street in Burlington, VT.

This poster/audio exhibit features sound collages, text, images, and material objects assembled and curated by UVM and Champlain College students in the Fall 2023 semester. The “Sounds of Religion” Smithsonian SITES traveling poster exhibition will also be installed in the Billings Apse, courtesy of the UVM Silver Special Collections Library.

organ playing at church

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devotional song to Lord Shiva

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call to prayer on a Muslim phone app

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Shalom Alecham sung before Shabbat dinner

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laughter and chitchat in the Interfaith Center

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contrasting silence of the center’s prayer room

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movement of breath in a yoga class

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pounding of footsteps of Diwali dancers

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sound of challah bread bread breaking at Chabad house

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crackle of hot oil as a celebratory meal is prepared

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scribbles and flipping of pages as a student teaches the Quran

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organ playing at church 〰️ devotional song to Lord Shiva 〰️ call to prayer on a Muslim phone app 〰️ Shalom Alecham sung before Shabbat dinner 〰️ laughter and chitchat in the Interfaith Center 〰️ contrasting silence of the center’s prayer room 〰️ movement of breath in a yoga class 〰️ pounding of footsteps of Diwali dancers 〰️ sound of challah bread bread breaking at Chabad house 〰️ crackle of hot oil as a celebratory meal is prepared 〰️ scribbles and flipping of pages as a student teaches the Quran 〰️

SACRED SOUNDS @ UVM

when was the last time you stopped to listen?

During the 2023 Fall Semester, students enrolled in Sacred Sounds recorded the sounds of UVM and the religious sounds of UVM. Our observations on the muted (but audible) nature of religion on campus highlight the relationships between religion and student life, including how the sounds mirror, diverge, and intertwine with each other. 

What sounds do you associate with religion at UVM?

What about UVM more generally?

If nothing comes to mind, don’t worry.
This exhibit will give you tools to listen more closely. 

Explore the relationship between sound and space: how would a noise be heard differently in Billings study room compared to a space like Brennan’s? Learn the difference between “Religion at UVM”and“UVM religion.” Institutional Religion versus what is sometimes called lived religion. Investigate what sounds make up the UVM soundscape.

Who do you hear? Who do you not hear? 

Catamount Soundscapes

“Sound shapes, structures, and influences how people navigate and experience a place, contributing to their sense of belonging to a wider community.”

Catamount Soundscapes
Dr. Brennan's Students

Sounds of Religion @ UVM

“The sounds of religion on campus are muted yet audible, heard mainly in the context of both formal and informal student activities.”

Sounds of Religion @ UVM
Dr. Brennan's Students

WHY LISTEN?

Even if you don’t consider yourself religious, understanding the religious context of the world around you is important. In the least religious state in America, it can take more attention to tune in. Opening your ears to religion could earn you a new friend, experience, and a delicious meal.

The sounds of a piano playing at church, singing a devotional song for Lord Shiva, and the chanting of group prayers at the vigil for Israel are examples of how sounds shape our perceptions of religion. To most, these sounds are recognizably religious, but what about the ambient sounds of laughter and chitchat in the Interfaith Center, the movement of breath in a yoga class, and the pounding footsteps of the Diwali dancers?

During the 2023 Fall Semester, students enrolled in Sacred Sounds recorded the sounds of UVM and the religious sounds of UVM. Our observations on the muted but audible nature of religion on campus highlight the relationships between religion and student life. Sound structures social interactions and determines how and where students feel comfortable expressing their religious identities. 

As a predominately white institution, the sounds of religion at UVM reflect the religious, ethnic, and racial makeup of the study body. The playing of reggae music at student gatherings and the practice of yoga as physical fitness rather than religious practice represent appropriations of sounds connected to racialized religious groups. Student groups such as the African Student Association and the Indian Students’ Association create spaces in which minoritized students can find community. 

Methods: Students learned how to create and edit field recordings with a technique of sonic ethnography that reflected their experiences of the presence and absence of religious sounds on campus. We engaged in relational listening between our ears and the microphone, acknowledging that listening is subjective. We also learned how to assemble sound collages in GarageBand. We adopted the ARSP Ethics Statement to ensure we sensitively recorded the sounds of our community.