eli5 How does the brain separate out frequencies it’s hearing so that we can make out different instruments in a song? It seems like some insanely complex analysis behind the scenes??
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Sound is just air wiggling around. Different instruments make different wiggle shapes. Growing up we learn what each instrument sounds like and your brain learns that a smooth hump shape is a certain instrument and a bumpy shape is another instrument.
When you hear a recording, your brain recognizes all the instruments playing, just as it can recognize the voice of your parents or friends in a group of people.
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