Archeoacoustics

Two years ago I found myself in a location and situation that brought to mind the connections between sound and memory, which lead to considerations about sound and history. Upon thought and research, then experiments within my own practice, I have since been exploring what can come from recreating or creating sound from back in time. I have been excited about what this research has meant to my own work, as well as exploring the work of others who I meet of other disciplines engaged in similar lines of practice.

Pre-Historic phalanges with anthropic holes through one side of their shafts have usually been interpreted as whistles. But identical bones are used by several peoples as human effigies — most commonly of women and babies. As Pascal Raux noted in “Animisme et Arts Premiers – Historique et nouvelle lecture de l’art préhistorique” (2004), distal limb bones with incised or sculpted heads, eyes, arms and vulvas prove that such bones were also interpreted anthropomorphically by Eurasian cultures in the past. The use of phalangeal figurines from central Siberia to Greenland also suggests that the practice spread around the Arctic from ancient sources. Ethnographic examples illustrate a few roles women have played in the region’s cold weather economies and how female effigies reflect such roles, but are not offered as strict analogies with Palaeolithic counterparts. Instead, a case is made from new internal readings of several pre-Historic objects incorporating feminine imagery — including the ‘femme au renne’ (reindeer’s woman) from Laugerie-Basse and an engraving from Étiolles — that some ancient feminine images reflect a vision of women in keeping with the division of labour in northern hunter-gatherer subsistence models. Economic necessities may partly explain how pregnancy and compact feminine effigies have been viewed ideologically in cold Eurasian areas for millennia. Finally, the possible existence of perforated phalanges from the Middle Palaeolithic and even earlier is noted and a protocol of tests is suggested for determining whether their holes are anthropic or natural. If any of the holes in these older specimens turn out to be man-made, then the conclusion that pre-Historic perforated phalanges are likely to be figurines will have to be extended to those made by archaic humans like Neanderthals.

PDFs of all my articles, including ones which I'm unable to share through Academia.edu for copyright reasons, can be downloaded for free from my personal site, www.duncancaldwell.com.

This article attempts to extend the study of rock-art beyond the visual to include the non-visual experiences and perceptions of human beings. It will be argued that there is ‘more than meets the eye’ when interpreting rock-art. Rather than restricting interpretation to the visual, the relationship between rock ‘art’, rock-art ‘site’ and the wider landscape is considered as articulated within a socially and historically specific Neolithic (c. 4000 – 500 BC) hunter-gatherer ‘mindscape’. An audio-visual perspective is argued, where the auditory sense and visual experience of the landscape combine in a vital interplay that is essential to the interpretation of 25 out of about 80 known rock-engraving sites in northern Scandinavia (c. 33 %). These sites have in common a strong water-centric focus; in particular noisy, running water. This approach provides a more profound understanding of these rock-art sites and the prehistoric use of ‘images’ as transmitters of different kinds of knowledge from the mundane to the esoteric. The ebb and flow of water and human breath are argued to be analogous within a frame of enquiry that also considers shamanistic practice in approaching and experiencing these rock-engraving sites.

This paper investigates the use of geometric simulation algorithms to model the acoustics of a church as it would have sounded in the late 16th century. Based on measured acoustic parameters, an average absorption parameter is developed for the heterogeneous walls of the Church of the Ospedaletto, obtaining a good match between the simulated model and modern acoustic measurements. Using these data, the model is altered to simulate the church’s acoustics before the large organ gallery was installed in the late seventeenth century. This method allows a high degree of confidence in the model’s
ability to reconstruct accurately the soundscape as it would have been experienced during the Renaissance.

Pre-Historic phalanges with anthropic holes through one side of their shafts have usually been interpreted as whistles. But identical bones are used by several peoples as human effigies - most commonly of women and babies. Distal limb bones with incised or sculpted heads, eyes, arms and vulvas prove that such bones were also interpreted anthropomorphically by Eurasian cultures in the past. The use of phalangeal figurines from central Siberia to Greenland also suggests that the practice spread around the Arctic from ancient sources. Ethnographic examples illustrate a few roles women have played in the region's cold weather economies and how female effigies reflect such roles, but are not offered as strict analogies with Palaeolithic counterparts. Instead a case is made from new internal readings of several pre-Historic objects incorporating feminine imagery - including the 'woman between reindeer hooves' from Laugerie-Basse and an engraving from Etiolles - that some ancie...

The essence and inspiration of Music for Brainwaves came from Alvin Lucier’s iconic piece Music for Solo Performer. Neurofeedback and physiological data (EEG) are explored as components in the relationship among sound, space, and the body of the performer. Although EEG registrations have been well explored for sound installations, music performances, and music cognition, relatively little is as yet known of the application of physiological data (EEG) within a system including the projection of sound into an architectural space, and the consequent embodiment, as inner experience, by a performer.

Uamh-Binn  is an excellent illustration of both natural resonant acoustics and optical wave propagation formed entirely from hexagonally-jointed basalt columns within a Paleocene lava flow. 

Otherworldly and exceptionally symmetrical on the surface, the dreamtime characteristic of Fingal’s Cave, as it is commonly known, is its profoundly unique vibro-acoustics. 

With the naturally-formed roof arch, the breathing motion of the ocean, the hypnotically melodic singing of the waves, these spine-shivering harmonies may have you feeling as if you're standing inside the very center of a didgeridoo. . .which may be a very healthy place to be.  This remotely situated Scottish cave is rife with crystalline formations generating unusual energetic patterns -- as do many areas of the Earth known/associated w/healing or sacred rites.

Furthermore, many processes seen like this require the consideration of flux in order to correctly capture and explain their dynamics. Particularly significant, phase changes like this (such as liquid-crystal transitions) are found in biological processes present in bone formation or in vivo protein crystallization (in such things taken for granted in natural happenings like metamorphosis).

In a Historical Opera House (HOH), the proscenium is the foreground part of the stage. Until the end of the 19th Century, it was extended through the cavea, being the orchestra placed at the same level of the stalls, without an orchestra pit. Soloists often moved in the proscenium when they sung, in order to increase the strength of the voice and the intelligibility of the text. The Alighieri theatre in Ravenna, designed by the Meduna brothers, the former designers of Venice’s “La Fenice” theater, is chosen as a case study. During a refurbishment in 1928, the proscenium of the stage was removed in order to open the orchestra pit, which was not considered in the original design. The original design and the present one are compared by using numerical simulations. Acoustic measurements of the opera house and vibro-acoustic measurements on a wooden stage help to reach a proper calibration of both models. Results are discussed by means of ISO 3382 criteria: the proscenium increases the s...

This paper summarizes an acoustical analysis of a natural Amphitheater located in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico.  Unusual acoustical effects were generated using both electronic systems and conch shell trumpets.  These effects were recorded in high acoustical resolution and analyzed using FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) software.  Duration of reverberations were also measured and compared favorably to modern concert halls.

This webinar aims to discuss how digital technologies based on 3D modelling and sound simulation can expand our knowledge of ancient musical instruments. Computational methods for processing the 3D models allow for a more accurate analysis of surfaces, volumes, internal structures, and density of materials. Moreover, being non-invasive, these methods enable the study of the instruments' measurements and morphology, overcoming the limitations posed by their fragility. Although reconstructions cannot tell us unequivocally how ancient users and audiences perceived the sounds of these instruments, they offer the chance to break through the time barrier by reviving sound emissions. By combining optical metrology with computational analysis, some of the subjective observations on ancient instruments can be substituted by measurable parameters, opening up new perspectives for the study of sounds and the artisan production process of ancient instruments. As it has emerged from the STESICHOROS project-which has been funded by the European Commission's Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme-, studies on 3D virtual reconstructions and sound simulations can help us in defining novel approaches and methodologies not only for the "active preservation" of musical instruments, but also in enriching our understanding of ancient music and musical cultural heritage. Moreover, the webinar aims to explore the ancient sonic interactions and the spatial configuration of sanctuaries and theatres in their respective landscapes and environment in order to investigate the use of auralisation technology in the archaeological field, as well as experimental interpretative 3D reconstruction integrating acoustic models.

Nella seguente ricerca si affronteranno le problematiche relative alla notazione musicale bizantina e alla sua trascrizione secondo una linea di ricerca fortemente innovativa: l’intento è di contestualizzare gli antichi canti non solo nella liturgia, ma anche nello specifico luogo e nel tempo in cui  sono stati ideati.
Questo elaborato parte dai recenti studi interdisciplinari di acustica legata all’architettura delle chiese bizantine, nei quali si porta alla luce il forte legame che specifici canti hanno con un'altrettanta specifica struttura nella sua dimensione spaziale e riverberante, e vuole indagare il grado di consapevolezza che i compositori dell’ecumene bizantina dei diversi secoli avevano di tale dimensione.
La parte conclusiva dell’elaborato, invece, sarà dedicata a due esempi specifici, selezionati perché - fatto estremamente raro nel mondo bizantino a causa dei ben noti  rovesci della sorte - si tratta di inni databili o datati (rispettivamente negli anni a cavallo tra XIII e XIV secolo e al 1453), di cui è noto lo scriba  e anche il contesto monastico in cui operava. In più, pur tenendo conto dei mutamenti nella struttura dei monasteri in esame, possiamo descriverne la struttura, dato che sono edifici sopravvissuti al trascorrere dei secoli. Al fine di raggiungere gli obiettivi di questa ricerca, è essenziale dapprima chiarire e contestualizzare nelle rispettive epoche e aree geografiche i manoscritti sopracitati per poterne facilitare il confronto, mettendo in evidenza le principali differenze presenti nei vari tipi di notazione in uso nell’area bizantina.

With one exception, which has been described as a suspended “kiva bell,” long stone rods have been interpreted throughout the archaeological literature of North America as whetstones or pestles. Two particularly long rods in a collection of prehistoric artifacts from New England raise questions as to the real use of some of these objects. The prevailing interpretations of the two artifacts may be incorrect, or at least incomplete, because the rods lack the kinds of wear that are found on most whetstones or pestles. They also have different acoustical properties from true pestles, which are usually shorter, and are identical in materials, acoustics, and form to probable prehistoric lithophones from the Old World, which can be played on the lap. The identification of the pair of rods as good candidates for being the first known cylindrical, two-toned prehistoric lithophones from New England introduces a new avenue for the study of fossil sounds and rituals in both the region and conti...

Numerous studies have been dedicated to the rich
ancient Egyptian architectural heritage, especially to places of
worship. Such studies generally focus on the visual, geometrical
or light dimensions. However, anthropological works from
Visual and Sound studies emphasize the importance of
multisensorial strategies that are used to communicate with the
divine. Hence, it appears important to investigate the role of
sound within such worship spaces. For the first time, such a
study is being conducted on the acoustical properties of an
Egyptian temple. Situated in Upper Egypt and dated back to the
1st century BCE – 1st century CE, the main temple of Dendara
complex is dedicated to Hathor, the goddess of music, love and
joy. Epigraphic and iconographic studies testify the importance
of sound activities in the temple through numerous mural
textual allusions and representations of deities, dancers or
musicians singing or playing instruments to venerate Hathor.
No text has ever been found about any acoustical considerations
that could have governed the design of such monuments.
However, the edifice presents remarkable acoustical properties,
either planned or empirically derived from geometrical or
structural considerations. The quality of silence or the presence
of environmental sounds experienced in the various volumes of
the temple, as well as the reverberation or resonances of the
different chapels or rooms were undoubtfully perceived during
daily activities or during celebrations and processions. In order
to characterize these properties, an acoustic measurement
campaign has been conducted, using a spherical microphone
array and exploiting recent advancements in the necessary postprocessing
of the collected directional room impulse responses
(DRIR). This campaign also serves as a first step towards
auralization of the 3D numerical model of the temple.

With one exception, which has been described as a suspended “kiva bell,” long stone rods have been interpreted throughout the archaeological literature of North America as whetstones or pestles. Two particularly long rods in a collection of prehistoric artifacts from New England raise questions as to the real use of some of these objects. The prevailing interpretations of the two artifacts may be incorrect, or at least incomplete, because the rods lack the kinds of wear that are found on most whetstones or pestles. They also have different acoustical properties from true pestles, which are usually shorter, and are identical in materials, acoustics, and form to probable prehistoric lithophones from the Old World, which can be played on the lap. The identification of the pair of rods as good candidates for being the first known cylindrical, two-toned prehistoric lithophones from New England introduces a new avenue for the study of fossil sounds and rituals in both the region and continent because it is likely that similar artifacts will be examined for characteristic wear, tested acoustically, and recognized as the objects of prestige and ceremony that they may have been in their role as un-suspended musical instruments.

PDFs of this and other articles, which I'm unable to share through Academia.edu for copyright reasons, can be downloaded for free from my personal site, www.duncancaldwell.com.