listening

listening
Originally uploaded by rod lewis

The sound of whitewater rushing is not white noise, as I’ve heard it described. White noise suggests the presence of all sounds so that the sum is a din of chaos. No individual contributor can be distinguished.
But river harmony is not merely a composite of splashing chaos, it is a simultaneity of tones. If one is willing to listen, one distinguishes individually, the tones of which the chord is made. The river contains its own harmonic series and the partials produced by the rushing water create a symphony that overpowers a scream, but through which a whisper can penetrate. A quiet thought becomes louder when thought midst the roaring water.