Sound

Abstract

Sound, basically characterized as air in motion since ancient Greece, has been at the core of the theories of many philosophers, as well as musicians, poets, scientists, and theologians. Under the auspices of Hellenic thought, Renaissance scholars tried to define what sound is, unveiling its vibrating forces to understand its ability to shake the human body and soul. In such a way, the ever-present metaphors of harmony were much more than mere imagined, unreal thoughts: through them, Renaissance humanists shaped, organized, and understood the structure and passions of the world itself.