Evening star., 1936-08-10
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES &. TRACEWELL.

AS long as sound waves are sound
waves, their tendency will be to travel,
and to leap forth into space, to :mpinge
upon distant ear drums. Once they have
done that, their particular mission in
physics is ended, and they lapse into
the universal silence.
What can be done is an honest at
tempt. on the part of the listener, to
get all that volume can give him, in
the way of tone and stimulation, with
out at the same time wasting" sound.
No harm is done, as far as is known,
by this wastage, except in so far as it
has inimical and often harmful effects
on human nerves, and through them on
dispositions, temperS and tissues, for
there is little doubt that there can be
physical i'll health caused by excess
sound as well as psychic harm to the
sensitive.
One is not speaking, therefore, Of
something which does not exist when he
speaks of the waste of sound. 1t surely
exists, and, like most wastes, is alto
gether needless. The modern phenomena
of the road reveal the same sort of
waste of speed and power, with what
devastating effects the public records of
fatalities and maimings show.
II
There are some ways in which the
careful person may take steps to prevent
the waste of sound.
He may resist the urge when guests
arrive, to turn up the radio" SO that it
roarS away above the sound OF many
voices.
1t is common knowledge that no one
listens to the radio under such circum-
stances, so why make its speaker work
overtime to no purpose?
Another sensible procedure is to make
an honest attempt to determine just
how much volume one really needs.
1t might surprise some people to dis
cover that, in wasting sound all their
lives, they had been missing the true
essence of music. This lies in tone,
not sound. 1t means the fine art of
expression, which only uses volume as
contrast, not as the whole thing. When
one makes a piano fairly rock. all
through composition, one is very likely
to miss the composers intent.
Every one has heard-and diSliked-
the person who plays a piano in a
mechanical fashion, in monotone as
it were, all parts equally loud and ex-
preSsionlesS. In fact, the poorer of the
old-fashioned piano players never at
tained such mediocrity as may be heard
from person who does not understand
that monotony OF expression is as tire
some in music as in conversation.
Yet many persons, in all innocence,
attain this monotony by turning on all
types of mechanical music. as it may
be called, to full concert pitch" which
simply means pitch suited to a great
hall
When this tremendous volume is Sc
cured in a small room, the result is
distortion, although the resulting Clamor
may be so great that not even an expert
could sense it. All would be lost in the
uproar
Discrimination in music means sound
conservation. Only when waste is
stopped will the pattern, the melody, the
harmony and countless other features of
true music be appreciated to their full.
Key what music you have. no matter
what sort it is, to the size and acoustics
Of the room in which it is played, and
then you will have musical thrift and
| savings as well. That the American
people, in recent years, have attained
| this musical common sense to a real
| degree speaks well for their musical
future.