Music Lab: Sound Science
at the Science and Tech Museum This Weekend
Saturday, July 16 - Sunday, July 17, 2005
10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

Ottawa — The exhibition halls of the Canada Science and Technology Museum will be filled with music this weekend as the museum puts on a Sound Science event exploring how sound is produced, recorded and preserved.

Activities on Saturday, July 16 will investigate sound production – how music is made and how our ears are able to hear it. Musicians from the local group, Contact, will be on hand to play some pop music and explain how their instruments work. Performances are at 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. in the museum's auditorium (Saturday only).

Sunday's activities will explore how music and sound are recorded and preserved. At 11:00 a.m., Gilles St-Laurent, audio conservator at the National Library and Archives will give a special presentation on the technology involved in preserving Canada's audio heritage. He will also give the audience pointers on preserving their own recordings. And for those who wonder how their favourite artists record their albums, local audio expert Tom Dewar will give an interactive presentation on modern music recording technology in the auditorium at 1:30 p.m. (both presentations on Sunday only).

Some of the other ongoing activities on both Saturday and Sunday include:

• musical crafts for kids to take home
• a display of music machines from the museum's collection, including a 1936 Wurlitzer 412 jukebox which has never been on display at the museum before
• hands-on experiment stations where visitors can explore the frequency, pitch, speed and wavelengths of sound

All activities are included with regular admission fees. From trains to telephones, and satellites to snowmobiles, all the Museum's activities and exhibitions offer a glimpse into Canada's rich science and technology heritage. Main exhibition halls and displays are open to the public daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $6; $3 for children (ages 4-14); $5 for students and seniors; $14 for a family (2 adults and 3 children); children under 4 are free. The Canada Science and Technology Museum is located at 1867 St. Laurent Boulevard and offers free parking on-site.

General information: Call 613 991-3044 or our Toll free number: 1-866-442-4416.

Media contacts:
Caroline Desabrais, 613 998-5342, cdesabrais@technomuses.ca