HOLY SHIT, THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE POSTED A WHILE BACK!! AHHHHH, SO SO SO SO SORRY!!!!

John Cage – The Sound of Silence

Throughout the video, John Cage explains his love for music and tells others to experience sound of silence. He states that sound has no meaning but has variations to it. For example, he tells us that the sound of Beethoven and Mozart, their music is always the same. However, if you listen to traffic which Cage labels as silence, he says that it’s always different. Cage considers music as a means for a person to express his emotions and idea through talking. He feels that every sound in the universe is a response to something else and that there is always something to listen to. Furthermore, laughter and music are two things that don’t need a meaning, according to Cage.

After viewing the screening, I have realized that things we may consider as racket or chaos, is silence; such as traffic. I was shocked when he said that because traffic can be quite frustrating and annoying but Cage labels it as silence. It’s interesting to see how we view our surroundings and how a musician views their surroundings. But after viewing this, I will be far more aware of my surroundings and try to view everything from his perspective.

The Sound of Gibberish

First of all, ahahahah, that was just wacky. When it said “gibberish”, you would expect some crazy words, but that didn’t come till the middle or so. But throughout the tape, there was some really nice rhythm. For one, there were a few melodies I was familiar with, for example from that one childrens’ show “the teletubbies”. Than there comes the sound of a baby making “oogly woogly” sounds. Our first sounds as a baby was that of gibberish, that is what we think of it as now. But at that time, it was our first language.

I believe the best language is gibberish because of its ability to express ourselves without restrictions such as grammar or making sense. It’s interesting to see the different sounds that can come out of gibberish because it holds no boundary. Since the words don’t have to make sense, you can express yourself in anyway possible.

Acoustic Ecology

I did not know that “sound” had such a huge international organization of its own. The WFAE (The World Forum Acoustic Ecology) was founded in 1993 for all individuals who shared a common “concern with the state of the world’s soundscapes”. WFAE’s missions include: Education, Research and Study, Publishing and Distribution, Protecting and Preserving, and Designing and Creating. WFAE focuses on deepening the listeners’ understand of the sounds in their environments and their meanings. In reference to R&S, the WFAE focuses on monitoring and evaluating the actions affect and altering the quality of the sonic environment. It wants to understand the significance of the electro – acoustic media such as radio, television, background and foreground music, etc. Moreover, WFAE wishes to preserve natural places for quiet and maintaining healthy and acoustically balanced sonic environments.