Information About

Holophonics





HISTORY

Holophonics rose to fame in 1983 with the release of a recording entitled ''Zuccarelli Holophonics (The Matchbox Shaker)'' released in the UK by CBS which consisted entirely of short recordings of sound effects designed to show off the system. These included the shaking matchbox, haircut & blower, bees, balloon, plastic bag, birds, airplanes, fireworks, thunder, racing cars. This specific system was designed and promoted by Argentine Hugo Zuccarelli , though the technique of Binaural Recording has been around for over 100 years.

Zuccarelli came up with a theory that claimed that our ear is a sound emitter, producing a reference sound that combines with incoming sound to form an interference pattern inside the ear. The nature of this pattern is sensitive to the direction of the incoming sound. Our ear's cochlea detects and analyzes this pattern as if it were an acoustic hologram. The brain then interprets this data and infers the direction of the sound. This was printed in the magazine '' New Scientist '' and was followed by two letters casting doubt on Zuccarelli's theory and his scientific abilities.Zuccarelli, Hugo; "Ears Hear by Making Sounds," New Scientist, 438-440 1983Baxter, A.J., and Kemp, David T.; "Zuccarelli's Theory," New Scientist, 606-606 1983

It is unclear whether Zuccarelli himself believed his own explanations or whether they were simply used as marketing hype, intended to distance his product from other common binaural recordings.

Like all Binaural Recording , Holophonics simply reproduces the interaural differences (arrival time and amplitude between the ears), as well as rudimentary HRTF (head-related transfer functions). This causes the auditory system to hear the illusion of sounds existing from specific directions. Well known limitations of the technique include unreliable effects for some listeners, as well as very poor frontal localization (everything sounds like it's coming from behind the listener, explaining the narrow choice of demonstrations) .


RECORDINGS RELEASED USING HOLOPHONICS




EXAMPLES OF HOLOPHONIC SOUND

  • From holophonic.ch: An example of holophonics: you hear someone lighting two matches, first on your right and then your left. You then hear the box of matches shaking all around your head. Listen with headphones. Notice that this demo is from Umberto "Umbi" Maggi , an Italian bass player and sound engineer who also claims to have invented holophonics. It appears that Zuccarelli and Maggi have worked together in Italy in the '80s. Another example from holophonic.ch is the sensual voice of a woman whispering into your ears going from the left to right.

  • The Virtual Barbershop , a more recent recording demonstrating multiple sound effects. It is rapidly growing in popularity on the Internet.

  • Blowdryer

  • Bell



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