An online library offers free access to sounds from 270 Unesco world heritage sitesArmchair travellers can take a sonic tour of hundreds of Unesco heritage sites via a virtual library of atmospheric soundscapes available free-to-listen online. Its latest deep-dive offshoot, Sonic Heritage, takes in 270 Unesco sites and includes recordings of crickets chirping in Florence, Tibetan prayers in Kathmandu and the sounds from within India’s Taj Mahal. He explained how the project offers an alternative way of experiencing some of the world’s most visited sites that goes beyond tourist hordes and gift shops. “If you think about world heritage sites, all you think of is crowds and camera shutters and everything being ruined by over-tourism,” he said. “Do any of these sites have sounds that are valuable as experiences themselves?” he said.