26 AUGUST 1916, Page 18

The Scienee of Musical Sounds. By A. C. Miller. (Macmillan

and Co. 10s. &I. not.)—Professor Miller, of Cleveland, Ohio, describes in this book his new method of photographing sound-waves by means of a " phonodeill," and gives many photographs of musical sounds, including an operatic selection on the gramophone, and of the tones of various instruments. Science, he admits, cannot go so far, even with a " phonodeik," as to define the ideal musical tone, but it certainly yields some instructive results. For one thing, the author seems confident that the acoustics of concert-rooms and halls can be corrected by scien- tific treatment based on this method ; contrary to the common belief, he says that the stringing of wires or cords across an auditorium is useless.