Mobility through sound. Methodological notes on the use of sound in mobility studies

This multimedia article emerges from the interplay of sight and listening during my fieldwork in Sarajevo (Bosnia-Herzegovina), and aims to establish both theoretical and empirical connections between sonic ethnography and mobility studies. It raises methodological questions about the incorporation of field recordings into ethnography and the interpretation of non-linguistic and non-musical sounds in research focused on studying migrants’ mobility and its support. This article proposes exploratory responses by dwelling on the role of listening in social research and – through the inclusion of soundscapes within the text – on the interpretation of sound as qualitative data. The textual component traces the theoretical, descriptive and interpretive coordinates that informed the operations of recording and assembling the sound composition. In conclusion, the article suggests broadening the focus to include the sonic environments of other spaces of solidarity along migration routes, thus opening up the use of this methodology to other contexts.