Sound & Hearing

Name Those Tunes

A familiar melody is easier to separate and track than an unfamiliar one. This exhibit demonstrates how, having identified a familiar tune, a listener can more easily follow that one, even when it's been combined with another tune. Another subtle way to track one tune over another is to change the timing of the tunes. Conventions in our minds have taught us to focus on the notes occurring at certain places in a composition. In this exhibit exchanging the tunes makes one easier to follow than the other.


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