| More cowbell! That's what Christopher Walken insisted | | | | propagating as a sphere from the source. The intensity |
| on... | | | | decreases as a factor of one divided by the square |
| With a salsa band, sometimes you're standing next to | | | | of the distance. So a sound that is coming from 1 |
| that cowbell though. | | | | meter away is actually four times the intensity as |
| Earplugs are pretty much a necessity if you want to | | | | something that is two meters away since 1/2^2 = 1/4. |
| not have your eardrums ringing for the rest of the night | | | | So you should probably not be right next to a source |
| and lose your hearing later in your life. | | | | of loud noise even if you are wearing earplugs. |
| Sound intensity is measured in units called decibels. | | | | Earplugs themselves reduce sound by different |
| Deci being a prefix meaning 1/10 and bels being the unit. | | | | amounts of dB. A reduction of six dB is the same as |
| But decibels are the commonly used form. | | | | being twice as far from the sound source. |
| The units aren't on a linear scale, instead they are on a | | | | So if you're in a really loud group, get enough sound |
| 'logarithmic' scale. So something that is twice as many | | | | reduction. If it's not so loud, you still want to hear the |
| decibels isn't twice as loud. | | | | music, so don't overdo it with the earplugs. |
| Human perception of intensity and volume also do not | | | | And in a small jazz combo, generally you don't need |
| correspond. | | | | earplugs, but still you probably shouldn't stand right next |
| I have taken advanced acoustics classes... so if you | | | | to the drums. |
| really want to get into the mathematics, ask me! | | | | Earplugs also reduce certain frequencies more than |
| What is important for a saxophone player is that | | | | others, so just be aware of that. |
| anything about 120 decibels (abbreviated as dB) will | | | | You can get special 'musicians earplugs' that are |
| cause permanent hearing loss. | | | | specially fitted to your ear and reduce the range of |
| Your distance from the source of sound affects the | | | | pitches equally, I don't have them yet, but may get |
| intensity level too. You can think of sound as | | | | some. |