Hip Hop & Beat Making
Course 13: Sound and Hearing

Like vision and touch, our sonic awareness enables us to make sense of the world we live in. We examine the raw, objective characteristics of sound and how it travels through space, so we can harness our imagination and create captivating subjective experiences for our listeners. Every sound we hear has unique characteristics that remain constant regardless of the listener.

In order to understand sound and become producers, engineers, composers, and sound designers, it is important to gain a fundamental understanding of the raw nature of sound as it travels through our environment. It is essential for us to appreciate its objective qualities in order to create a subjective experience for our listeners. By learning about these properties of sound in this course, you are equipping yourself with the power to truly bring music alive.

When we hear a sound, it’s easy to forget that we are simply witnessing the air molecules being displaced and shifted by vibrations. Our vocal cords vibrate when we talk, while other instruments rely on their materials’ ability to vibrate in sequence. We will get into how sound travels through air and how our ears process that information.

Through this course, you will learn terms used to describe sound, explain how waveforms work, and analyze audio by hearing. The Listening Library centers on Frank Ocean and the digital field trip will take you to Barefoot Sound browsing their speakers and monitors. There will also be the course quiz, course review, and blog entry. In market time, you’ll develop a logo for yourself.