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Re: A Chord of Nature - Cricket Orchestra

🔗Robert Walker <robertwalker@...>

8/6/2001 3:07:47 PM

Hi Jacky,

This is just great, prob. my favourite of yours so far.

It's a guess the sound sample game isn't it. I think the
first and last samples are subharmonic singing. (Actually
not so sure about the last one on re-listening but first
one still sounds pretty much like it has it in there).

At least some of the ones in between are precussion sounds
but I wouldn't be able to say which. I think at least one marimba
like istrument, and kind of cymbals like instrument, and a very
resonant kind of a drum, like a conga or whatever, but couldn't be
more specific. Surely you have the actual crickets playing
much of the time, or is that just you being clever in how you
manipulate them all? Actually on re-listening, maybe they aren't
actually there at all. I can't hear a single sample that is definitely
insect like on closest attention!

Actually I only know crickets from recordings, as we don't have
them in England, or if they are here somewhere, they are very rare, in fact the
insects and frogs make no sound at all here most of the time,
except occasional grashopper in summer. The frogs croak so rarely
I'm not sure if I've ever heard one except in a recording. However
the birds more than make up for it with our wonderful dawn chorus
especially in spring / early summer.

One sounds a bit like a train, and one like applause. Of course
not just one sample at a time, but several in parallel, all
different. What with the way you use it in Galunlati, there will
surely be shortwave static in there somewhere too.

robert

🔗nanom3@...

8/6/2001 6:51:30 PM

Hi Guys

Like Jacky I live surrounded by the sound of crickets all summer
long, and always, no matter how hot, open the window at night to
fall asleep to their sound. I like Jacky's chord very much because
that is close to how it sounds down here by the Gulf.

Anyway intrigued by the sleep qualities I am going to do a first, for
me, and present some math!! Now please don't run away :-)

If you take the frequencies Jacky found through actual
experimentation, and bring them down to the level of brain waves by
diving by 512 (2^9) you get

5.481161133 hz
7.217052539 hz
9.648332617 hz

13.3892498 hz
14.6077709 hz

Voila , the first three frequencies are all in the theta range which
is correlated with dreams and creativity , the next is alpha which is
associated with relaxation. Only one is in the beta range. In other
words the crickets are making harmonics compatible with sleep and
dreaming.

Here is a reference for brainwaves and frequencies.

http://www.cybermart.com.sg/eisho/bwha.htm

I suspect that brainwave induction has something to do with the
pleasantness of the piece, and it would probably be very cool for
meditation and trance induction.

Personally I plan to play with the tuning becuase any time you get
someone into a theta state it is also associated with healing. I was
a little disappointed I didn't find the Schumann resonance (7.83 hz)
but hey - thats the value of experimental data.

Please feel free to blast my mathematical analysis - it is a first
for me!

And Jacky thank you for the piece, and tuning. I did not get a
chance to hear the recent pieces that Jon Santo praised. Could you
repost them, or just send them on.

Mary