1999
Max Neuhaus explores and illustrates this soundstate through the different ex- periences of listening underwater (Kahn 1999)
Kahn focuses on how Neuhaus moved beyond the "Cagean" tradition of listening to incidental sounds by actively shaping social and physical spaces.
Kahn notes that Neuhaus famously gave up his career as a world-class percussionist to focus on "Sound Works." He shifted the audience from passive listeners to active "perceivers" who move through a sound field at their own pace.
Kahn discusses the Water Whistle series (1971–1974) as a radical exploration of the "water" element in his book's title. By placing listeners in a pool, Neuhaus used the density of water to bypass the outer ear, allowing sound to be felt through bone conduction.
"Listen": Kahn highlights Neuhaus's early Listen walks (beginning in 1966), where he would rubber-stamp the word "LISTEN" on the hands of participants and lead them through industrial soundscapes (like power plants). Kahn argues this was a way of "framing" noise as a found object, essentially a readymade for the ears.
Times Square (1977): Kahn analyzes this permanent installation as a landmark in urban sound art. By hiding a sound source under a subway grate, Neuhaus created a "zone" that pedestrians would discover accidentally, blurring the line between art and environment.
Kahn uses Neuhaus to illustrate the concept of "Significant Silence." For Neuhaus, the goal wasn't necessarily to add more noise to the world, but to use sound to define a space where the listener becomes aware of their own biological and psychological presence—the "meat" in Kahn's title.