Cool Places in America~The Wave Organ

Over this summer, my parents have moved us to San Francisco. They thought they were getting a good salary, till they calculated the cost of living in the city... but while I was there I got to listen to this amazing organ played by Njord.

The Wave Organ includes more than 20 pipes that extend down into the water of the Bay. It is comprised of PVC and concrete pipes at various elevations and the  sound is created by waves crashing against these pipes creating low, subtle tones.

It is described to have a liquid music: low, gurgling notes that ebb and flow with the restless movement of the ocean and the changing of the tides. What makes the music? It is similar to the phenomena of the sound heard in a conch shell — a specific volume of air resonating at a specific frequency. In the Wave Organ, the columns of air within the pipes constantly change as the water moves in and out. As the length and volume of the air column in each pipe changes, the pitch of the sound it produces also varies — the larger the volume of air, the lower the sound — the smaller the volume of air, the higher the sound.

The view is of San Francisco’s Marina District, of downtown San Francisco’s skyline, the East Bay hills, Sausalito, Mt. Tamalpais, the Presidio, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Marin Headlands.  Its an amazing place to chill and take in the environment.

 ~Tyler


To find out more about Tyler visit Salem House Press and buy Tyler's latest book "Tyler Moves to Gibsonton Florida" on Amazon.com. Keep checking back often for great cheap vacation ideas that might end up surprising you and becoming the best vacation you ever had! Red proved to be always full of surprises...