Stone Age soundtracks : the acoustic archaeology of ancient sites / Paul Devereux.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Devereux, Paul.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Architecture, Prehistoric.

Architecture, Ancient.

Architectural acoustics.

Antiquities, Prehistoric.

Civilization, Ancient.

Physical Description:

160 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 22 cm

Place of Publication:

London : Vega, 2001.

Summary:

In the world of our Stone Age ancestors sound mattered much more than it does today. Their world was quieter, less polluted by noise. They were acutely aware of the properties of all types of rhythm and resonance, and sounds often held magical qualities for them. Recent exciting research has started to reveal the rich soundworld in which they lived. This new approach to investigating ancient sites is known as acoustic archaeology. It is reconstructing a vanished aspect of the past, often using computer modelling and sophisticated equipment to calculate frequencies and resonances, and has demonstrated that stone-built chambers, temples and even caves were deliberately constructed or used in ways that would enhance the ritual sounds produced within them, sometimes accompanied by the use of hallucinogenic substances.

In the process it is exposing the very origins of music and revealing a lost world where echoes were regarded as the voices of the spirits.

Paul Devereux's book, upon which Channel Four's "Secrets of the Dead: Sounds from the Stone Age" programme is based, is the first to explain what has been discovered, at locations ranging from chambered mounds in Ireland to French and Spanish Palaeolithic caves and Mayan temples in Central America.

Contents:

Part 1 The Sounds of Time 15

Chapter 1 Spirits and Sound 17

Chapter 2 Cultural Perspectives 25

Chapter 3 Ritual and Sound 29

Chapter 4 Mind, Body and Sound 46

Chapter 5 Music to the Ears 55

Chapter 6 Echoes of Ancient Knowledge? 65

Part 2 Making the Old Stones Speak 73

Chapter 7 Eavesdropping on the Stone Age 75

Chapter 8 Talking Pictures 105

Chapter 9 Stone Age Rock 'n' Roll 119

Chapter 10 Old Sounds in the New World 137

Epilogue: Clap Your Hands! 149.

Notes:

"Companion to Channel Four's 'Secrets of the Dead: Sounds from the Stone Age' TV Programme"--Cover.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [152]-156) and index.

ISBN:

184333447X

OCLC:

47776395

Online:

Publisher description