A Sound Like No Other

my throwback post in appreciation of collective joy

Here’s one from a few years ago, because very few people saw it, and I love October, and I hit ten subscribers! And number 10 is a total stranger! Thank you, Ten. I hope (all of) you like it.

Have you heard the phrase “YouTube university”? I’m a student there. When I needed to replace the window motor in my car’s driver side door, YouTube videos taught me how. Not only did I save about $100, I earned satisfaction and self-respect.

Not long ago, I went back to YTU to learn how to sew on a button. The situation wasn’t time-sensitive like the car window, so after I felt like I could handle the button, I started exploring other videos. Soon I found myself totally engrossed in Russell Crowe’s appearance on Inside the Actor’s Studio. If you know the show then you’re familiar with the questionnaire at the end. The late great host James Lipton always mentions how it was pioneered by the French journalist, Bernard Pivot. Or Bear-Nar Pee-Voh, if you like. It is a really fun series of questions and one of my favorites is, “What sound or noise do you love?”

I don’t remember what Russell Crowe said, which says more about me than it does about his answer. I started thinking about how I would answer that question. Lots of answers come to mind: my children’s laughter, the song Sean Flynn by The Clash, the words I Love You spoken aloud. These are no less true and valid for being obvious. But it’s October and I’m in a post-season baseball state of mind.

I love baseball but I only ever watch the World Series, for two reasons. The first is that championship play is the best, no matter what sport it is. Everybody brings their A game in October and the high stakes and emotion make the Series really fun to watch. The second reason is that only the World Series is broadcast on network TV anymore. I don’t have cable but I have a pretty stout antenna so I get CBS Sunday Morning, all things PBS, and the World Series of Baseball. The Trifecta!

Getting back to sounds, though. Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles is the largest Major League Baseball stadium, with a capacity of 56,000. Let’s put ourselves there for this scenario. Imagine a World Series game 7, bottom of the ninth. The hometown Dodgers are down by a run. They’ve got a guy on second, two outs. The batter’s been chopping out weak foul balls on a 2-2 count for what feels like years. Finally, he gets his pitch. He swings, connects, and the ball launches skyward on a mythical crack of the bat. And then, simultaneously, 56,000 people throw their fists in the air and holler, YEAH!!!!

Have you ever pretended to make the sound of many sportsfans by putting your cupped hand to your mouth and whisper-shouting “Haaaaaaaaaaaa”? Me too! Even Moana, Disney Princess (or Daughter of the Chief, thank you) does it in an effort to cheer up Maui (demigod, shapeshifter, hero to all). That silly “Haaaaaaaa” works because it inspires a tiny flame of feeling, reminiscent of the bright bonfire of emotion in a packed stadium. The real, sudden roar of the crowd is a hopeful sound, a joyful sound, the sound of thousands of people united in celebration. A sound like no other, and one that I love.