I found the concept of the sound of silence to be a stand out in this week’s lecture. The sound we create to fill uncomfortable silence. Physically we can create the steady drum of our own heartbeat, the sound of blood pumping through our ears and our slow breathing. Mentally we create a distant sound, a rhythmic beat, a song in our head or mishearing a voice. These are the things I notice in an empty room, or a silent cinema.

However, in a physical sense, our bodies do not turn the radio of our bodily functions on at will. Our hearts no not start beating in order to dull an uncomfortable silence, It’s always beating, and our blood is always pumping. This soundtrack never stops. It’s the act of listening that lets us tune into this. It’s our conscientious effort of deep listening that lets us notice the sounds of our the own bodies.

The mental song we create is equally fascinating. I noticed a mental song I created last week when watching experimental film in cinema studies. It was when I was watching The Dante Quartet; a series of handprinted film stills cut together to create a mix of colours in a swirling and moving fashion. The film is totally silent, and so was the cinema we were watching it within.I began to feel a sound in my mind that wasn’t a specific instrument, but it felt like a frantic piano. Then it was a beat, and then strings. This continued to grow “louder” or more apparent until the film ended.

It reminded me of this Shel Silverstein comic about the sound we can create in our minds.