[Aztlan] Voice of the quetzal

[Elaine Day Schele]

Hi Jorge,

You make a very good case Jorge. Perhaps this is a happy coincidence.  The
sound expert (David Lubman) who made the recording and did a comparison of
the two also did an analysis on the how and why (architecturally speaking)
the sound bounces as it does.  Perhaps he can use your information to
reassess his opinion about the "chirps".

Elaine

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jorge Pérez de Lara" <jorgepl at estudioelias.com>
To: "Aztlan" <aztlan at lists.famsi.org>
Sent: Monday, January 01, 2007 2:05 PM
Subject: [Aztlan] Voice of the quetzal


> Dear listeros,
>
> I distinctly recall having had this argument many years before, in the
> old Aztlan.
>
> I personally think that the sound similarity between the echo of
> clapping from the Chich'en Itza "Castillo" and the supposed mating call
> of the quetzal is merely a (happy?) coincidence and one that came about
> long after Chich'en was abandoned. There are far too many things that
> are different now from the original conditions of the building and city.
> The first thing that comes to mind is that the current shape of the
> building is very much a result of the reconstruction work of XX Century
> archaeologists. Secondly, the plaza would have been paved with hard
> stucco, which would radically alter the sound features of the place. The
> building itself would have been covered with stucco and perhaps even
> other materials. And is there any evidence that anyone in the city's
> heyday would have gone around clapping his/her hands to get sound
> effects from buildings?
>
> I, for one, do not believe in the sound-alike quetzal call as being a
> featured purposefully built into the original design of the "Castillo".
>
> Respectfully,
>
> Jorge
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