Schizochronia: Time in Digital Sound

Abstract

You are sitting in front of a screen. The screen may be part of a digital audio work station, or it may be the screen of a laptop. You press a key and watch as the cursor moves through the waveform. You hear the sound at the same time as you see it traversed by the cursor. You decide to retrieve a sample, which you’ve stored in the computer. It’s located way up ahead of the present waveform: in a few seconds you’ve scrolled forward, claimed the sample and positioned it next to the waveform. You magnify the image, to get a better ‘look’ at the sound. You decide to insert the sample into the waveform, trying various positions. If you change your mind, nothing is lost: this is, after all, non-destructive editing.