The World According to Sound

GroupAccount image

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!



Chris Hoff & Sam Harnett

Series

Series image
1 Piece

Longer episodes of The World According to Sound.

Series image
61 Pieces

A 90-second radio show that brings you different sounds and the stories behind them.


Pieces

Piece image
By the time you hear this trumpet, it's probably too late.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:32
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
According to some, you need more than musical talent to make charming music. The recording of The Hour of Charm in this episode was preserved by t...

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:25
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
Let's take a listen to the rainbow.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:28
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
The world's largest encyclopedia as music.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:30
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
Be careful of which songs you cover.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:38
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
Sometimes the less you know about the artist the better.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:28
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
The sounds of people channeling the divine.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 16, 2015
  • Length: 01:29
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
A dead language brought back to life.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Dec 15, 2015
  • Length: 01:30
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
The sound of your life on hold.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Nov 09, 2015
  • Length: 01:35
  • Purchases: 3
Piece image
Between 10 and 15 percent of us hear things like this constantly.

Bought by KALW, KALW, and PRX Remix


  • Added: Nov 09, 2015
  • Length: 01:37
  • Purchases: 3