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The most common sounds
of the modern environment are low information, high redundancy sounds
to which the brain can easily adapt. These steady sounds can mask
other, low level sounds, thereby producing a reduced sense of space,
reducing the “acoustic horizon”, or the most distant
sounds that may be heard in a soundscape.
Spatial representation is inherent in our recognition of timbres
and tones. The result being a spatial image much like spatial images
projected on the retina.
This reminds me that I often hear sounds as shapes and see shapes
as sounds. Sometimes when I look at things, inanimate objects, I
hear them. A door jam might be my next symphony.
The crowded rock concert or dance club is characterized by high
sound levels of extreme constancy that give the illusion of “togetherness”
but because the individual’s aural space is drastically reduced,
there is literally no room for interpersonal communication. The
experience of being enveloped in quiet is replaced by that of being
smothered in sound. The individual becomes surrounded in a cocoon
of sound with no aural contact with others.
We often think of going out to see a band as a social activity.
Very often though, once the music starts, the power of sound most
often envelops the patrons into forced isolation. It can be fun
as long as you like going out with yourself or communing with others
telepathically. But the opportunity for social engagement is about
as long as the few seconds between songs. The space each individual
has can be generally determined by the power of the sound system.
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