Advanced Studies Field Science: Topic - Music and Science of Natural Sound

434p Field Studies in Science: The World’s Soundscape

Credit hours: 6

# students: 18

Prereq: Fair 206 or permission of instructor.

Murray Schafer, a Canadian composer, coined the word “soundscape” to describe all the sounds that reach the ear from a particular environment. His book by the same name broke new ground in thinking about soundscapes, and in particular about how soundscapes have evolved and changed with the rise of humans as a dominant species. Through student-led seminars, we will consider Schafer’s ideas, and the ideas of other authors, including such topics as the physics of sound and how sound travels through the environment, how and why animals produce sound, the relationship between natural sounds and music, the history of sound, sound pollution, sound justice, whether society should consciously shape the soundscape we live in, and other issues that students bring to the class. In the field, we will explore Bellingham area soundscapes, recording sound from natural environments (wind, rain, birds, frogs, and other environmental sounds) and human influenced environments (farms, trains, marina sounds, downtown sounds, etc.). As a class we will conduct a scientific study on the function of bird song in red-winged blackbirds. In the lab, students will use digital software to create a variety of soundscapes. No previous recording or digital editing experience is required.