ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses how the ear works and interprets sound. It also discusses other important skills and ideas like analyzing music recordings, the frequency pyramid, and the 3D reference ball. Understanding human hearing and learning how to better interpret frequencies will result in an increased ability to manipulate sound. Like a microphone, the ear is a transducer. The bones in people middle ear help amplify sound, while the inner ear's muscles help protect it from loud or sudden volume changes. Sound can be divided into three successively occurring categories that arrive at the ears in the following order: direct path, early reflections, and reverberation. Audio engineers work with intangible tools: sounds, pitches, and instruments. Different tools are used to manipulate sound in different ways. In order to move sound around in the 3D ball, volume/amplitude, reverberation, also known as environment, panning, and equalization are used.
