Empirical Studies of Computer Sound

This article discusses computer-generated sound as the object of empirical study, particularly in perceptual, cognitive, and computational research. The purpose of this article begins with the musicological, taken broadly as understanding the structure of music and its impact on listeners, as well as the creative and performative roles of those who realize the music. It continues with the use of computer-generated sound as material for studies on sonic cognition and temporal perception more broadly. This article focuses on computer sound that is fundamentally musical or intended as such but makes soccasional references to the literature on other computationally generated sounds. Some such sounds are used to bridge the gap between natural phenomena such as object looming and musical phenomena such as crescendi and diminuendi. When an object that generates sound approaches, the sound can be an important influence on one's biological responses and the response of avoidance when necessary.