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"Manreet Sodhi Someshwar is a gifted writer of great promise. I have a gut feeling we have a new star rising in Punjab's literary horizon. She has an excellent command of English and a sly sense of humour."
- Khushwant Singh on The Long Walk Home

"An enjoyable tale of a sassy girl's headlong race up the corporate ladder."
- India Today on Earning the Laundry Stripes


Wednesday 10 April 2013

How Sound Evokes Eternity Inside Taj Mahal


DISCOVER THE TAJ (3)

When you entered the mausoleum of Taj Mahal did your guide abruptly break into a shout? 

Taj attendants habitually call out to demonstrate the remarkable acoustics of the dome. (This fails usually as the air is raucous with other visitors.) When designing Taj Mahal as Mumtaz’s home in paradise, Shah Jahan put all elements to the task. Inside the mausoleum even sound had to evoke eternity. 

“The dome of the tomb chamber holds a tone for almost half a minute as the musician Paul Horn demonstrated in a night session with his flute on 25 April 1968.” Ebba Koch

The best way to experience the acoustics is to be the first person to enter the mausoleum at the start of the day - after the air has lain still through the night, like Mehrunisa does in The Taj Conspiracy. You can speak normally and hear your echo multiple times over. What a delight!

At any other time, I’d urge you to refrain from experimenting with shouting - in any case you’ll be competing with other visitors putting their vocal chords to devastating effect. Remember, the mausoleum is a sacred place. 


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