From Richard Marshall
I was intrigued by Paul Devereux’s assertion—quoted in Mike Pitts’s
review of Devereux’s book Stone Age Soundtracks
(17 November, p 54)—that
Neolithic burial tombs were used for ritual male chanting, based
on his measurements of their resonant acoustic frequencies.
I can honestly say that I have never yet encountered a bathroom (and I have
been in a few in my time) that does not strongly resonate within my vocal range
somewhere in the room. Crouching in the bath near the corner furthest from the
door seems to work best. Can this be a mere acoustic coincidence? I suspect
not.
Would a future archaeologist, running with Devereux’s logic, then deduce that
20th century bathrooms were, in fact, sacred enclosures where we might ritually
wash and shave before the solemn singing of You’ve Lost That Loving
Feeling into the dark mirror? Perhaps this would be followed by an act of
worship at the strange hoop-shaped object reminiscent of ancient Mayan ball
court apparatus, resplendent upon a porcelain throne.
But where could our womenfolk have chanted, if at all? Has anyone checked the
acoustics of the modern cooker hood recently?
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As a footnote, I might add that public toilet cubicles also tend to have a
resonant frequency in the human vocal range—although I would suggest that
any readers wishing to try this for themselves should make sure they do not have
an audience before commencing ritual chanting. Otherwise they may be offered the
opportunity to test the acoustics of police cells—or even the
sound-damping qualities of padded ones.
London
