Twenty Thousand Hertz+
The stories behind the world’s most recognizable and interesting sounds.
Hosted by Sound Designer Dallas Taylor, Twenty Thousand Hertz unlocks the stories, secrets and science behind what you hear.
Whether you’re a professional audio engineer with decades of experience, a fourth grader who loves sound and music, or anyone in between, you’ll find something to love: the sound design secrets of hit movies, the forgotten backstories of classic theme songs, the sonic craft of jingles and device sounds, linguistic mysteries, psychoacoustics, video game music, animal communication, and beyond. With moving human stories, immersive sound design, and non-stop ear candy, Twenty Thousand Hertz has grown into the world’s leading podcast about sound.
New to the show? Start here:
• I'm Lovin' It: How “Ba da ba ba ba” took over the world
• The Art of Foley: Bringing Slimer & Batman to life
• Tudum! The story behind the iconic Netflix sound
• The Legend of Zelda: A Beep to the Past
• Inside Hans Zimmer’s Remote Control Studios
• A sonic journey through the Solar System
• Mind the Gap: NYC & London’s iconic transit voices
226
Disney Parks: How Imagineers use sound to ench...
How does sound design shape our theme park experience?
19 min
227
Spooky Sounds: The secrets of horror sound design
How does Hollywood create the terrifying sounds in our favorite scary movies, and why does our brain react to those sounds with fear?
23 min
228
Acoustical Umbilical Cord: Why crying makes us ...
Why do we cry? ...and how do our tears in adulthood make us distinctively human?
20 min
229
Level Up: How video games tell an immersive sto...
Games are often defined by their graphics. How does sound for games work?
20 min
230
Watergate: How a tape recorder brought down a p...
How did an open reel tape recorder secretly planted in the White House basement lead to the demise of the 37th President of the United States?
23 min
231
Sonic Seasoning: Can sound affect our taste buds?
How does our sense of hearing affect our taste buds?
16 min
232
Fight or Flight: Why airplane sounds make us an...
Does flying make you nervous? You’re not alone. Dive into the psychological aspects of how sound can trigger these fears, and find out what all of those sounds really are.
23 min
233
Sound Firsts: Landmark recordings in history
What are the oldest sound recordings in history?
26 min
234
Noise Pollution: The hidden costs
Airplanes, construction, motorcycles - How have these everyday sounds affected our lives and what are the environmental and health repercussions?
17 min
235
Silent Sea: Whalesong & Undersea Noise Pollution
How has increased ocean traffic affected underwater life? ...and what can we do to reverse these effects?
21 min
236
Evolution of Accents: From Shakespeare to Vall...
You may not realize it, but your accent is a window to who you are and where you come from. How do accents evolve?
23 min
237
The Wilhelm Scream: Hollywood’s most iconic so...
A history of the most iconic scream in movie history that you’ve definitely heard, but might not have heard of.
17 min
238
The voices behind Dragon Ball Z & Firewatch
Who are the voices behind our favorite cartoon characters and commercials? Take a look behind-the-scenes of voice acting.
16 min
239
Hearing Loss: What causes it and how to preven...
As we age our hearing naturally diminishes, but what other factors are causing our hearing to disappear? Plus, take an informal hearing test.
17 min
240
From Screams to Serenity: How sound shapes us
Ever wonder why certain sounds make us cringe while others are soothing? Find out why we consider some sounds “good” and some “bad”.
17 min
241
Foley: Hollywood’s hidden sound heroes
What is Foley and how does it make our movie listening experience more realistic?
14 min
242
What do other planets sound like?
What do other planets in our solar system sound like to our ears?
19 min
243
Dolls That Talk (and some that listen)
Why have humans been so fascinated in re-creating toy versions of ourselves? Talking dolls have been around for over 100 years. Take a look at the evolution of how that came to be… and why they are so creepy.
14 min
244
Car Sounds: Crafting every click, rev, and beep
Discover how car companies are enhancing every aspect of your vehicle’s sound to provide the ultimate driving experience.
14 min
245
Audio Descriptions: Not just for the visually i...
Ever wonder how the visually impaired are able to enjoy their favorite movies? Discover how technology has been able to make this possible.
12 min
246
Inside Movie Soundtracks: How every layer tell...
What goes into making a movie soundtrack? Take a look behind the scenes with the sound designers that make your movies sound perfect.
14 min
247
From Analog to Digital (and back again)
The transition from analog to digital seemed like a fairly simple and expected process. However, what did we lose when we made the switch and why are so many people reverting back to analog?
14 min
248
Sounds We've Lost: Echoes of the Past
We've grown accustomed to the everyday sounds we experience; cell phones ringing, cars idling, Facebook messaging. What about the sounds that we've forgotten about, the sounds we’ve lost?
14 min
249
The Windsor Hum: Canada’s Most Mysterious Sound
There’s a hum emanating from an island in Detroit that is so loud it disturbs the residents of Windsor, ON. The hum has caused so much discomfort and annoyance that a film crew decided to investigate the cause.
10 min
250
How 8-Bit sounds became iconic
8-bit audio defined countless childhoods. How did early sound artists and composers create such iconic sounds using the most primitive game technology?
12 min