The World According to Sound

We’re a weekly, 90-second radio show that tells stories with sounds instead of, well, stories.

Each episode features a new sound and the story behind it. Sometimes the sounds come from things you’ve seen but never listened to: bridges , muddy holes in the ground, or wifi networks . We’ve found sounds that express data , tell a piece of history , and let you get inside someone else’s head –maybe someone’s head you don’t really want to be in.  Sometimes the sounds have surprising sources: cult leaders , silent musicians , or a classics professor . Every episode features roughly thirty seconds of talking and sixty seconds of sound, and it’s best to listen with headphones, unless you have a sweet sound system. For the second season we are also packaging episodes together into longer 4-1/2 minute series all on the same topic.

Here's how radio stations use our show: 1) As a weekly segment; 2) To fill in the two-minute slots in Morning Edition; 3) To replace the holes left as Jim Hightower cuts back on his weekly commentaries; 4) And generally, wherever there are short station breaks which you'd rather fill with content that is new and thought-provoking (as opposed to, say, with just music).

We hope you enjoy The World According to Sound and that it gets you to think a little bit about the world through your ears instead of your eyes. Thanks for listening!