Lora Smiley, Jerriod Grizzle, Megan Parham, Chris Short, and Marina Freeman report that locals and students enjoy the soothing sounds that are found in small town life.

ON NATURE’S LAP: Students congregate around the outside of lakeside within the GSU campus, in order to relax and talk with friends and listen to the sounds of the foutain. Photo: TBN. Listen to a cascading sound.

Statesboro, Ga.-With the hustle and bustle that today’s world brings, it is important to occasionally take a break, step back and enjoy the sounds of life.

“ I like the scenery and the sounds of Lakeside,” said Jack Jackson, a 20-year-old International Business major. He was explaining why he eats at Lakeside Café every day. “It is relaxing and soothing. The sounds that the fountains make give me time to stop and think about life,” he said.

Jackson is not the only person to use sound for relaxation.

Carlos Moreno, a 23-year-old Psychology major, said that he uses the sounds of the bars to relax.

“The music gives the bars a nice atmosphere and helps me relax. The music keeps me coming back,” he said.

Moreno said that when he is not at the bars he is very conscious of what he listens to in order to help him relax.
“I only listen to what I am in the mood for,” he said. “Walking to class, I usually listen to heavy metal. That wakes me up – you cannot do that with jazz.”

For some people the bar scene is a great way to relax but others prefer the soothing sounds of an ocean or the wind while being pampered.

Shannon Taylor, a massage therapist in Savannah, runs a massage parlor out of her home.

“I give massages to clients all over the southeast,” she said. “Sound is a definite in my massage parlor. The sound of the oceans or a breeze or even crickets make people more relaxed while being massaged,” she said.

Taylor said that it is all up to the customers what sound that they want but she insists on having sound in her massage parlor. “It just makes people feel better and it makes me feel more at ease while I am working,” she said.

A new not-so-soothing sound, new to Georgia Southern University campus, is the sound of jack-hammers, drills, and cranes. With the construction on the Henderson library students are finding it harder to relax.

Brooks Blumenthal, Superintendent for McKnight construction, the company that is working on the library

expansion, said that with all the construction noise he understands that it is hard for students to relax on campus.
“We try to reduce noise pollution but there is always going to be some noise. We try to do all of the big stuff early in order to accommodate the students.”

Blumenthal, a GSU alumna, said he has his own method for relaxing after hearing the construction noise all day long.

“I like to sit in my truck and just crank up the music. After a long day, it is all you want to do,” he said.

Producing sounds for relaxation is a multimillion dollar business. One such company FERRALLMEDIA offers “Environs,” music that customers can download onto Ipods to help them relax. FERRALMEDIA offers sound archives of peaceful meditative environments, such as audio clips of cascades and video clips of beaches.

“Environs are a great way to block out the distracting noise of the modern office," states the company.

There are a lot of different tastes for music and a lot of different ideas about relaxation. Look around and surely you are bound to find a relaxing sound that is sure to fit your mood and need.

Music MP3
Cascade Farrellemedia

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Relevant Websites
The Mozart Effect Divine Gold New Age Music Publishers
Environs, Ipod Relaxation FARRELLMEDIA.com
Relaxation Zone Ladies Home Journal
Tranquil Sounds TranquilSounds.com  

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