Making the Third Ear

Course Description

Summary

This class will start with a grounding in the history and science of psychoacoustics. We will listen to binaural beats, watch psychostrobic flicker, create beating patterns using oscillators, and conduct other experiments in the sound studio to gain a deeper understanding of psychoacoustics. We’ll study an array of musical examples in popular culture (iDosers) and contemporary music (Lucier, Schmickler, with a special focus on the work of Maryanne Amacher) and look how sound, space and the brain have influenced thinking in visual artists and vice versa (Hecker, Sandback, Anthony McCall, Sharits). Students will propose a project at mid-term, ranging from compositions to visual art installations to scientific experiments, and will present their work in a collaboratively curated exhibition at the end of the term.