perhaps if we record a "real" sound and then record a computer playing a
sound, they will sound the same to the recording technology. however, as
humans, existing in a *real* three-dimensional space, the wave output of a
speaker, which does not propagate spherically like a "real" sound but is
concentrated in a specified direction, will sound different than a sound
made by some other object.
listening to music out of a computer speaker (of high quality, even) is
like looking at a photographic printout (of high quality as well) : the
computer can capture and reproduce to its best abilities, but its output is
always *flat*. i think it's a bit silly that all music must be stereo, out
of only two speakers. it removes the spatial richness of the sounds, by
playing 24 tracks or more out of a single sound source, a very "unreal"
situation. but then, nobody seems to mind the two-dimensional nature of
photographs, and stereoscopic cameras can be a bit cumbersome.... !
"We're no longer satisfied with flooding the air with sound from a
public-address system. We insist upon something more luminous and
transparent so that sounds will arise at any point in the space, bringing
about the surprises we encounter when we walk in the woods or down the city
streets."
--john cage
.af.
quoted 1 line Hello all,
>Hello all,quoted 73 lines What I keep seeing on these threads is a completely untenable, and quite
>What I keep seeing on these threads is a completely untenable, and quite
>perplexing tendency to differentiate between "real" and "not real" sounds. The
>former, having been produced by "musical instruments" or by a recording them
>from the "real world". And the latter being that which is
>generated/modified by
>some kind of logic engine. Since when is what goes on inside of a
>computer, the
>kind that rests on your desk, or at the top of your spinal column for
>instance,
>not "real". A computer being manipulated in such a fashion as to produce such
>and such a sound is a very real event, in a very tangible sense. It is no less
>"real" than banging two sticks together. This is really a very old and tired
>metaphysical debate rearing it's head once again. The absence of realness or
>thingness, or whatever you want to call it, just simply does not exist. On a
>more practical tangent: If you like twiddling your knob, buy a knob
>controller.
>
>Regards,
>Christophe
>P.S. What the fuck does Eno know about Africa.
>
>Lukas Bergstrom wrote:
>
>> > From: Lee Azzarello <roswell@antioch-college.edu>
>> > Subject: Re: (idm) Re: lets talk equip.
>> >
>> > >ajwells@ix.netcom.com wrote this on 3/8/00 1:32 PM
>>
>> > >removes the artist from the reality that sound emanates from THINGS
>> > >vibrating, not numbers approximating waves... that physical quality of
>> > >sound is often lost or changed in a computer environment...
>> >
>> > I don't understand. I mean, speaking of electronic music, there is
>> > nothing that vibrates, or even moves inside analog _or_ digital
>> > equipment.
>> > I understand the necessity of
>> > physical vibrations with non-electronic music (being a classical pianist
>> > myself), I still haven't found a sampled piano that sounds anything like
>> > the Steinway Grand in the hall I practice in.
>>
>> Actually...these two comments triggered some thoughts about psychoacoustics
>> I've had. Bear with me. Every time you hear a sound, your brain instantly
>> attempts to extract a variety of information from it: where is it, what is
>> it, is it moving...the brain assumes that there will be some acoustical cues
>> to help it along, and can recognize when the acoustical properties of a
>> sound aren't "valid". Such sounds (like a perfect, repeating sine wave, for
>> example) sound artificial. Real-world sounds tend to be messier and more
>> complex. Check this article
>> http://unisci.com/stories/20001/0306006.htm
>> for an example of the kind of information people can extract from sounds,
>> beyond location.
>> Now I'm not suggested that every artist sculpt their sounds until they sound
>> like something produced by a real object. ep7 has a bunch of sounds that
>> have been folded in on themselves so many times that they've got some really
>> engaging acoustical properties, but they don't by any stretch of the
>> imagination sound real. I just wish more producers thought about acoustics,
>> instead of just sampling and filtering mindlessly (like jungle producers
>> looking for a natural sound, and then time-stretching their drum samples all
>> to hell.)
>>
>> Final thought for the day: people should play more games with their
>> speakers.
>>
>> Lukas
>>
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