tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post1756503357465326934..comments2024-03-27T23:06:03.736-05:00Comments on The Music Salon: Friday MiscellaneaBryan Townsendhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09482696991279345516noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-65454386778465927172015-03-14T10:20:48.253-05:002015-03-14T10:20:48.253-05:00Once again the extremely well informed commentaria...Once again the extremely well informed commentariat at the Music Salon weighs in. Thanks to you both. I recall one orchestral player mentioning to me that they thought that higher-pitched sounds were more dangerous than low-pitched ones. So you are in more danger if you sit by the piccolo than if you sit by the bass drum.<br /><br />Anonymous, I think I am philosophically hypersensitive to scientific research! Or at least journalistic reports on scientific research. What got my dander up in the present instance was this sentence: "Products preferred by customers are the ones that reproduce." They suppressed the agency for a passive construction to strengthen their "it's evolution" argument. Violin designs that are preferred by customers are the ones that get reproduced by craftsmen is a better phrase. I take your point though. It is rather interesting if they can distinguish between intentional improvements in design and just random variations in design. But the long-term driver is still most likely to be the improvement in sound, n'est-ce pas?Bryan Townsendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09482696991279345516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-77700767901929057032015-03-13T19:19:46.026-05:002015-03-13T19:19:46.026-05:00I share your skepticism about the evolutionary nat...I share your skepticism about the evolutionary nature of violin design, but you're not doing justice to the argument. It's probably wrong but not idiotically so, as you seem to imply. They're trying to tease out variation by design from variation by copying error. Since we know that not every violin maker tried to innovate -- some did, others did not -- the distinction they make is sound and even interesting. <br /><br />I just don't believe they have enough data to support their claim, however.<br /><br />The Economist also makes the common mistake of calling natural selection an optimizer. It is no such thing.<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-10145830218776317382015-03-13T10:55:02.734-05:002015-03-13T10:55:02.734-05:00Some facts about hearing and hearing loss I though...Some facts about hearing and hearing loss I thought would be nice to share: Prolonged listening of sounds above 85dB lead to hearing loss. At 85dB you need 8h of listening for hearing loss to occur. Each increase of 3dB cuts the time to half. I.e. for 88dB it will be 4h before hearing loss occurs. Then at 91dB 2h and so on. At even higher decibel levels (such as 120dB) hearing loss occurs almost instantly. Obviously it will be a problem for orchestral musicians as concerts can reach levels of 85dB and beyond, especially if you sit close enough (i.e. in the orchestra as opposed to in the audience). I'm pretty sure that some orchestral parts reach 100dB or maybe even 110dB. I don't know exactly how severe the danger of hearing loss is to the average concert goer but it certainly is there. Some seats obviously have better (louder) sound. One thing to note is that the ear becomes less sensitive after a period of listening. For instance if you will no longer consider something you've previously considered loud if you listen to it long enough. This effect is temporary as your sensitivity will increase again if you stop listening to something as loud for a while. Finally, a person with hearing loss will not only have trouble hearing softer sounds but will paradoxically become more sensitive to loud sounds and get increased hearing loss more easily. Some hearing aids are bad in the sense that they amplify every sound when they actually should dampen loud sounds. Rickardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08084578675339015204noreply@blogger.com