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Beethoven the famous composer was not a scientist but he knew enough about the science of sound to allow him to carry on composing amazing music even after he lost his hearing. As he became deaf when he grew older Beethoven cut the legs off his pianos and would compose his music sitting on the floor in order to feel the sound vibrations. This, combined with his ability to hear the music in his head even when the pianos were out of tune, allowed him to compose some great music. The vibrations from Beethoven’s pianos came from the strings, the strings pass the vibrations on to the air and to the piano itself, and then to the ground. Sound isn’t just about what we hear with our ears, our ears are only picking up vibrations which our brain interprets as sound. Since we have feeling too there are other ways we can pick up the vibrations.
Try taking a piece of Beethoven’s music (or any music) and turning the volume up loud – you can feel the vibrations of the sound in your body. If you hold an inflated balloon up to the speaker you'll feel the air inside the balloon vibrate.
Image How does the ear turn the vibrations into sound we hear? There is lots of information on sound and vibrations available here. Go Back to Curriculum Table |