Evan Grant: Making Sound Visible Through Cymatics

Extra credit reflection by RYAN S.

Original TED page w/ speaker bio, links, comments, etc:

Evan Grant:  Making Sound Visible Through Cymatics

Wow. I had always assumed that by studying the vibrations of sound, there would be certain frequencies that could form works of art. Or by working backwards you could turn works of art into songs. However, it wasn’t until I saw this video that I truly saw the potential of cymatics. In and of itself, cymatics has no true impact or importance, but it relates back to some of humanity’s most primal feelings.

Music has always been magical. It’s everywhere. It carries with it emotional weight. It has been with us since the creation of our species. It is the thing that could best represent our species. Cymatics allows for a physical view of music. Almost as if cymatics allows us to view music’s true form.

While many TED talks I watch either have a basis in the metaphysical or a basis in reality, very few have both. This is one of the few that does. It has a very practical use such as detecting and translating sonar, and it also allows us a better understanding of the word beautiful, because when we translate a song using cymatics, we can see the images it produces… or we can hear the words themselves.

Over all this was a very interesting TED talk, and I’m glad that I got the opportunity to watch it. I think cymatics can allow a new way of thinking about music. Over all, It was a well done video both in presentation, and subject