First you get an audio filter that only allows sounds of a certain frequency through a gate circuit. Then you open the gates in a sequence corresponding to a particular piece of music.

So if you had this thing in your car for instance, and the first note of the piece was F#, you'd only hear outside noises that were in the frequency of F#. Someone dropping a garbage can lid, a dog barking, whatever. If the second note was C, you'd only hear C frequency sounds. If there wasn't anything "playing" the correct note in the sequence at the time you wouldn't hear anything so the music would fade in and out but you'd probably get the overall idea as the piece progressed.

You'd hear the music playing all around you that you never noticed before. Might be interesting at a party full of people talking. Or walking through the jungle.

Actually a better way to describe it is something that filters out all the noises around you that "aren't" Beethoven's Fur Elise.
-- doctorremulac3, Feb 08 2009

Ambient Addition http://www.quixotic...c-out-of-noise.html
Featuring a typically boring YouTube video. [Amos Kito, Feb 08 2009]

Wow, ambient "noise" as a musical instrument. Beautiful idea!

Also neat that the tones of the song would sound different each time, so each listen would be a unique experience. I'd like to hear Airport Fur Elise compared to Playground Fur Elise!

Did you get this idea by rhythmically opening & closing your ears while in a noisy place and hearing the change in pitch? I used to do that as a kid.
-- paix120, Feb 08 2009


Thanks Paix,

I had recorded a song once that had an intro of various samples from the city that I tuned to various notes in a chord pattern and figured this would do it in real time.

I have done something similar to what you're talking about though. If you put earplugs in your ears in a very loud environment, say a loudly air conditioned room where there's racks of electronic devices that need to be kept cool (like where I work) you can "reverse whistle" tunes by just moving your lips and tongue and listening to the white noise sound resonating in your mouth. Try it on a windy day, put your fingers in your ears and you'll see what I mean. Don't do it while people are watching though, they'll think you're nuts.

Cheap thrills.
-- doctorremulac3, Feb 08 2009


[+] even though you know this is how most "public opinion" polls are formed.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 08 2009


//music would fade in and out//
I'd prefer a sustain, so music remains. When I'm listening to Fake Fur Elise, I don't want it to go silent.

An invention called "Ambient Addition" [Link]expands and mixes noises so they sound like musical instruments.
-- Amos Kito, Feb 08 2009


Cool link. It's along the same lines with a different approach, using the ambient noise to trigger generated sounds whereas this thing is making music out of the actual ambient noise itself.

One way to make my thing sustain would be to have ambient noises that are generating sympathetic frequencies to the chord lined up at the moment play through an echo device that plays the sound for the duration of the chord or note needed.

I think you might be able to get all your notes out of even the white noise that exists in various amounts in noisy places. Sort of like a string instrument tuned to a particular chord that vibrates sympathetically to frequencies it's tuned to.
-- doctorremulac3, Feb 08 2009



random, halfbakery