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From: smoliar@vaxa.isi.edu (Stephen Smoliar)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,comp.sys.mac,comp.sys.atari.st,rec.music.makers,rec.music.synth,rec.music.classical
Subject: Re: Sonic Holography.
Message-ID: <4359@venera.isi.edu>
Date: 17 Dec 87 14:38:30 GMT
References: <2151@crash.cts.com>
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Reply-To: smoliar@vaxa.isi.edu.UUCP (Stephen Smoliar)
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In article <2151@crash.cts.com> haitex@pnet01.cts.com (Wade Bickel) writes:
>
>        As I remember, the original question asked for an endlessly rising
>     tone.  These various plays on cyclic nature of the western scale achieve
>     a similar effect, but are not quite what was asked for.
>
I am suprised that no one has cited the "Little Boy Suite" on this topic.
I cannot remember the composer's name, although I seem to recall that he
was French.  This was one of the works composed with Max Mathews' Music V
system;  and, as I recall, it goes down, rather than up.  Nevertheless,
the principle is applicable in either direction.

The composition was based on a timbre whose Fourier spectrum was periodic.
Thus, it could be extrapolated both above and below the limits of human
hearing.  One could then gradually lower the fundamental, creating the
sense of a descending pitch.  However, new partials would enter from
above as others would drop off below;  and the effect was one of an
endlessly descending tone.  (The dramatic effect was intended to be
that of the dropping of the "Little Boy" atomic bomb.)  I have heard
this referred to as the "fencepost" effect, because it is like driving
past a long row of fenceposts with new ones always entering the visual
field and no end in sight.