Disruptive, disturbing, and dangerous are all adjectives that are commonly attributed to noise. This may be because the experience of noise is likely to trigger the auditory startle response, which in turn propels one out of harm’s way. For those who are unable to consider noise beyond its negative connotations, it remains a threat. However, there is a growing number of artists and composers who choose to consider noise differently and use it as an aesthetic material. With unconventional methods, instruments, and applications, these creatives liberate noise from its habitually perceived confines and transduce it into aesthetic material that can be used to challenge power structures, call attention to injustices, encourage collaboration, and is even transformed into means of spiritual and artistic expansion. In this writing, I will highlight artists and composers such as Luigi Russolo, John Cage, Pauline Oliveros, and others who use noise aesthetically.
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