The Bathroom

This assignment, for Musical Toronto, was to examine a soundscape, and see how it changes over time. A soundscape, a concept R. Murray Schafer describes vividly in The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World, is "our sonic environment, the ever-present array of noises with which we all live." I thought the environment of the bathroom, one in which we all partake, can be full of especially interesting sounds that are familiar to all of us. I have tried to not vividly describe too many things, but instead euphemistically portray what we all know.

The bathroom is a place of solace for me. It is a place for me to be alone with my thoughts; a place where I can close the door on the world. Conventions of social interaction usually inhibit much discussion in the bathroom, well at least for me, I feel awkward carrying on conversations with fellow bathroom-goers. Have you ever entered a public washroom, closed the door on a cubicle, and just listened? I have...

I enter the washroom ready to be alone with my thoughts. I scout out both cubicles and choose the one that has less dribble on the toilet seat. I close the door and the sound of struggle entails as I try to force the antiquated lock closed. Remnants of opera, coming from down the hallway, is the soundtrack for this journey. I will not describe the sounds that I make, as this is not the interesting part of the environment we live in, but will share with you the sounds of the company I soon have. After about two minutes of sitting, praying to the porcelain god, or just being the lord of the ring (or more realistically, reflecting), a gentleman (since this washroom is just for guys) enters and takes the only remaining, less tidy cubicle beside mine. First, he struggles with the lock, then plays a short sonata: the zip of his fly (EXPOSITION), the lowering of his pants and the clank of his belt against the floor (DEVELOPMENT), and my favourite part: the cathartic sigh of relief as he makes contact with the toilet seat and his body begins the natural process of emptying the excess waste (RETURN OF THE THEME, CODA, AND FINAL V-I CADENCE ALL IN ONE). The soft trickle of waste follows with several interludes of flatulance and groaning. A soft splashing sound results as the waste falls into the water, and sinks. The magnitude of the splash varies based on the weight of the avalanche of waste. The feathery sound of cleanup begins, as the toilet paper unwinds, is ripped off, and gently passes through, and cleanses the garbage chute.

Another sigh, not quite as cathartic as the first, follows, marking the end of his visit. All of the excess waste from thus far into the day is whisked away as the toilet is flushed and the sound of drowning commences.

It is amazing what we can deduce just by listening. Through common, shared experiences, a hint of sound is all we need to follow in, and comprehend another's experience.