Desert Song

At first sight a sandy beach on the rocky and desolate Isle of Eigg, off the west coast of Scotland, appears to be like any other. But nothing could be further from the truth. When these white sands are walked on or are touched, they produce a musical sound.

 

In fact, the sands sing, and not just on one note. When slowly sifted through the fingers, the sands emit musical tones that can range from high soprano to low bass.

The “singing sands”, their Gaelic name is Camas Sgiotaig, are a mystery that has frequently been investigated. Scientists believe that the music arises from the structure of the sands.

They are made up of tiny grains of the mineral quartz, which the sea has ground to a rounded shape. Each grain is surrounded by a minute pocket of air; the friction between the grain and the air sets off a vibration that creates the musical note.

The note varies according to the amount of moisture in the atmosphere and the amount of pressure being applied. No dust or foreign matter can be present, however; in experiments in the laboratory, even a minute pinch of flour halts the vibrations.

The mystery of why the sands sing seems to have been solved. But why the sands should be found on this remote Scottish island is a question to which there is still no satisfactory answer.