Re: Phantom ringing (added: The Listening Book)

[R & T Cummings <R_T_Cummings@compuserve.com>]

kim wrote:
>It would be quite frightening if I hadn't been experiencing it my whole
life.
>Does this happen to anyone else, or am I a freak?<

Pre-Script:  THE FOLLOWING EMAIL IS A TAD LONG - SORRY, I LOST IT ... 
(avoir trop bu? Croyez cela et buvez de l'eau)

Well, I guess I'll have to wave my freak flag with ya on that one (you are
>from the Bay area, right ;-) ) ... happens to me, too. I always thought
that this was normal. But then, maybe it was that Iron Maiden concert I
attended when I was 13  ... Hey cool, there's Eddy!  :-) But I suppose
nothing compares to that famous clip of Pete Townsend having Keith Moon's
drum kit blow up in his ear.  Ow.

More seriously, isn't the sound of our blood flowing in our head a part of
the background noise we hear? And doesn't our auditory system produce
(thermally generated?) its own background noise just like any system? Aha,
but why don't we hear white or pink noise? It would seem that ear ringing
is some sort of feedback then, non? Or did I forget to turn off my computer
- that high pitched hard drive whine really bugs me sometimes! 

For those of you who find this as interesting as I do, I would recommend
another really great book: "The Listening Book - Discovering Your Own
Music", by W. A. Mathieu, Shambhala, Boston & London, ISBN 0-87773-610-3.
Some of you must have read this - I find that I can always pick it up and
read a little for ideas, inspiration. A lot of the exercises he mentions
are great for Musik-Geeks like us - composing little "symphonies" from the
sounds around us - banging/ twanging something to discover it's vibe.
Walking, finger snapping, clapping riddim orkestras ... 

Here's an excerpt concerning Singing with Machines: "If your phone is
Touch-Tone, dial your own number. You will get a busy signal, but your are
now free to play with the buttons without dialing New Zealand. Notice that
if you start with a corner button and play horizontally you will get one
scale, but if you play vertically, you'll get another. Try the
possibilities. Perfect your legato touch until you can move from one tone
to the next with no busy signal peeking through. These tones have been
especially chosen to be off from the conventional music scale, so
Touch-Tone tunes have their own peculiar character. Of course, no buttons
down will give you the rhythmic on-off of the busy signal, an important
instrument in your orchestra. Concentrate on what you are hearing. Get
serious. Maybe this is the historical imperative of the telephone."

OK this is me speakin' again: Concerning listening, sometimes I like to
hear how the atmosphere carries sound differently. I mean how we can "hear"
spring coming after winter simply by the "dampedness" as opposed to the
previously "dry" sound. I hope it's not just me ...

BTW, can someone send me the ISBN and publisher from the Murray Shafer book
("The Tuning Of Our World")?

Thanks, Rob