29 April 2020

It appears that the budding musicians in the house behind me have returned to school. There has not been a single “Baby Shark” rendition on violin, or the tortured first twelve notes of Für Elise, heard all day!!!

Sitting outside enjoying my cup of coffee this morning was so peaceful. All I could hear were the sounds of traffic, sirens, and the screeches of the young children attending the day care centre next door.

Bliss!

The only thing that was missing from my regular morning “Listen to the almost sounds of silence” was the near constant drone of overhead aircraft! They’ve dwindled to an occasional “take the FIFO workers up north” plane, and a number of small aircraft or helicopters enjoying the relatively uncluttered airspace.

So – today’s thought was obviously going to be…..What’s the difference between sound and noise?

Beautiful sounds, or maybe sounds you’ve become familiar with, are part of the fabric of our lives. Be it my music choices, the sounds of birdsong first thing in the morning, the gentle hum of a fridge doing its thing, the blissful sounds of a coffee machine doing its’ far-more-important thing, the sound of the voice of a loved one on the phone, or the beautiful sounds of my dog playing chasey with her bestie – in her sleep – these are all part of my daily appreciation of sound.

Noise – is obviously Baby Shark. It’s also the sound of the front doorbell, when I’m babysitting and I’ve just got him to sleep and the doorbell sets the dog off who HAS to know if it’s a delivery of dog treats. Noise is the sound of water ejecting from a sprinkler in an unusually abrupt manner, which means you need to jump fast to turn the reticulation off or you’ll get a lot water in places you don’t necessarily need water. Noise is the sound of the echo in some phone calls, when you’re speaking with someone when you don’t want distractions. Noise is the sound of a police siren when you are travelling a couple more km’s an hour above the speed limit.

What’s noise to someone and sounds to another? Anyone visiting my house, who hasn’t lived here for years, will think the screeching of the daycare kids, is noise. To me, it’s sound. Part of life in my house and the knowledge that there are happy children close by.

To some, the music of punk rockers, heavy metal, and ABBA is sound.

To some, classical music is noise.

To some, the sound of “Baby Shark” on a violin is sound.

To some, the sound of Fremantle footy fans celebrating a goal is noise.

To some, the sound of Fremantle footy fans celebrating a goal is sound.

Sound is in the ear of the behearer.