Amazing Music Beyond Hearing and the Unconventional Piano Method
It’s wild to think about, but these sites show how researchers have “tapped” into crazy sources for sounds – music beyond conventional hearing.
With the aid of a computer and sound samplings, we can hear COVID sing. This is the result of a computational algorithm that allows audible representation of the amino acid sequence and structure of the spike protein of COVID-19. Crazy, right? Listen here as COVID sings its music – no longer beyond hearing. Some listeners commented that this chosen orchestration by MIT researchers has a soothing tempo and sublime harmony.
Music Beyond Hearing
Here’s another “musical piece” published in Science News, March 30, 2023. The title is:
Plants Make Plenty of Noise that No Human Can Hear, Israeli Study Shows
We humans never hear these sounds because they are at a high frequency. However, the researchers stated:
“We found that plants usually emit sounds when they are under stress and that each plant and each type of stress is associated with a specific identifiable sound. While imperceptible to the human ear, the sounds emitted by plants can probably be heard by various animals, such as bats, mice, and insects.”
Plants Pound Percussion Perfectly
Another study states only one sound per hour is typically produced by healthy, unstressed plants. This can increase to 30 to 50 sounds per hour when the plant is stressed by lack of water, for instance. Professor Lilach Hadany, an evolutionary biologist and theoretician at Tel Aviv University, found that the sounds made by greenhouse tomato and tobacco plants can be detected up to three to five meters away.
Tests are underway to determine if other plants and even animals are able to respond to these sounds. Moths and small mammals can hear frequencies in the plant sound range, which at 40 to 80kHz are just too high for the human ear. We humans only hear up to about 20kHz. Our loss…
Mushroom Mood Music
But the wildest sounds are from mushrooms, not surprisingly!
Orchestral Orchid Opus
My personal favorite is the singing orchid. Very relaxing . . .
What’s the Connection Here?
So why bother with this exploration of “music” from plants – music beyond hearing? The researchers involved certainly were thinking outside the box when posing the question of whether plants can generate any sound at all. Of course, their choice of final instrumentation can be changed, producing a variety of end results. A comparison study would be interesting to hear.
Their creative and original thinking process parallels the cognitive process of the Revolutionary Piano Method, where the student uses a new way of learning to read notated music and to locate keys on the piano. This new method of using a thinking process – instead of rote repetition to learn – enhances the ability of students to solve problems on their own. This is an essential skill in our modern world, no matter in which industry one chooses to work.
My March 20, 2023 article was about how public attitudes towards “old-school” instruction have led to the creation of new types of education in various fields – even in music. So . . .
Education Revolution: What’s the Difference?
Want to teach yourself or your child piano? Want to hit keys on a piano or actually read and play piano music that’s written? Be careful; there are hundreds of method books to choose from and some look very entertaining. Some have gorgeous illustrations; some have audio visual reinforcements; some are meant to use with a computer.
But they all can be distilled into two piles:
- play piano by hitting keys – or –
- actually read written music in order to play piano
For the details check this out!
View the books on Amazon:
Leslie Young is the author/composer of the Revolutionary Piano Method. She co-founded a K-12th grade charter school in Texas and has been a piano teacher for about 40 years. She has had experience teaching a variety of students tackling piano for the first time or as returning students.
Leslie believes that “learning to play the piano is more about diligence and perseverance” – but would add that just as critical to success is the method that is used, the encouragement of critical thinking, and the instructional principles that promote immediate success.
She states: “In teaching piano to students of varying ages, what also varies is a commitment of time and the amount of dedication. Children of certain ages may do very well with a parent as teacher; others may need someone who is not family to instruct them. Some older children and adults prefer to make progress on their own, and this method is designed to act as a meticulous guide through new material. Some adults and teens insist on professional teachers, which also encourages continuity. Because these books are self-explanatory, a new or experienced professional teacher will have no trouble using the Revolutionary Piano Method with students. It is an easy way to learn piano.”
