Acoustic heritage: community challenges in its safeguarding Patrimonio acustico: desafios de la comunidad en su salvaguarda

Although there is no formal definition of acoustic heritage, it is commonly described as a heritage that contains the quantifiable acoustic parameters of the architectural and archaeological spaces of the past. The main problem with this definition is that it assumes a direct, often artificial or unnecessary relationship between acoustic heritage, architectural heritage and archaeological heritage. However, this article tries to dissociate these concepts by presenting acoustic heritage as an independent heritage. The approach presented in this text is to relate acoustic heritage with intangible cultural heritage since the study of the quantifiable acoustic parameters of spaces yield information relevant to communities use of space, and consequently, to the study of a collective inheritance. Due to its dependence on new technologies and its inherently dynamic nature, acoustic heritage has enor-mous potential to explore. In this context, this article aims to offer a contingent discussion on the need for heritage s recognition and safeguarding, as well as the methodology involved in recording active spaces, acoustic heritage and the primary role that the community should play in this process.