The Perception of Microsound and its Musical Implications
Sound particles or microsounds last only a few milliseconds, near the threshold of auditory perception. We can easily analyze the physical properties of sound particles either individually or in masses. However, correlating these properties with human perception remains complicated. One cannot speak of a single time frame, or a time constant for the auditory system. The hearing mechanism involves many different agents, each of which operates on its own timescale. The signals being sent by diverse hearing agents are integrated by the brain into a coherent auditory picture. The pioneer of sound quanta, Dennis Gabor (1900-1979), suggested that at least two mechanisms are at work in microevent detection
microsound sound particles music perception temporal acuity music composition grains pulsars pointillism