Why smell is heard and not smelled. Do spirits listen or sniff? Why do spirits listen and not smell? FAQ

- Simply about the complex, with humor about the serious, modestly about the great. The answer to the popular question "sniff or listen to perfume" in the article:

Chapter first.The Russian language and its understanding by each individual:

The Russian language is very rich and mobile, no matter what you say.

"Smell" or "listen" - say how convenient it is for you personally.

And "listen", and "sniff", and "feel" spirits - all words are permissible.

No one can stop you from making your own comfortable choice.

In the Moscow Museum of Perfumery and in all other museums of perfumery in the world, as well as in all perfume workshopsspirits LISTEN.

We never insist that you also use this word and we are always grateful for your understanding.

that you respect our choice.

And that's why museums, perfumers, musicians and many others choose the word "LISTEN".

Chapter two.Human nature. Olfactory hearing:

The olfactory (olfactory) memory of a person refers to one of the long-term types of memory.

A person receives olfactory memory by birthright, like all other types of long and short memory.

Olfactory memory is the most powerful and most reliable human memory.

Everyone who has already been to the tastings of the Moscow Perfumery Museum agrees with this without any doubt.

those whose soul turned over from a meeting with their past.

Olfactory HEARING (olfactory HEARING, olfactory memory) just as the musical ear (auditory memory) develops well.

For example, a child was sent as an apprentice to a perfumer, in the same way as now they are sent to study at a music school.

Unfortunately, there are no children's perfume schools in the world, where children would be sent to study as indiscriminately as in music schools.

Develop olfactory memory, as well as ear for music, best with early childhood.

That is why the old perfumery art in most cases is dynastic, and there are very few brilliant perfumers in the world,

like brilliant composers, poets, musicians.

Everyone can develop hearing, listen, distinguish and hear smells, including perfumes.

Of course, the person who has been trained does it better.

Everything is exactly the same as with the development of an ear for music or with the development of taste buds.

As a result, in life, someone hears and understands music better, and someone less.

Someone is a gourmet, someone is indifferent to the subtleties of taste.

The same is with the development of olfactory hearing (olfactory memory).

We are all different, and that's the beauty of it.

Just as theaters are created not only for professionals, so museums are accessible to everyone.

If you are modest and think that you smell badly or "do not distinguish" smells, then we assure you: IT IS NOT.

Chapter three.human nose:

The human nose is much more sensitive than "write on the Internet."

The human nose can smell much better than the human eye can!

In the human eye, three receptors work in harmony and allow you to see up to 10 million shades.

Meanwhile, the nose has as many as 400 olfactory receptors!

Take the risk of counting the right number and you will be surprised that the average person can distinguish at least one trillion odors.

Do not be surprised.

The scientific work of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Rockefeller University was published in the journal Science.

Chapter Four. Notebook perfumer:

In 1877 a English perfumer George William Septimus Piesse published a work,

in which he compared the volatility of natural aromas and the frequency of sound vibrations,

believing that the lower the frequency, the lower the sound and the longer it acts on the ear.

Accordingly, the lower the volatility of the substance, the quieter its aroma, but on the other hand, it acts on the sense of smell longer.

Conversely, sounds with a high frequency give a short but intense sound, and a powerful, sonorous smell also sounds for a short time.

This is how a musical notation for perfume looks like, a musical perfume notebook for Septimus Piesse

Any musician can easily read it,therefore, musicians also always talk about the spirits "LISTEN" and "HEAR".

Did you know that any piece of music can be transposed into perfume, and vice versa?

As in any art, in the art of perfumery, too, reference is made from one art form to another.

Septimus Piesse said: "As the artist mixes his colors, so the perfumer should mix his fragrances."

Chapter five. The nature of perfumery art:

Perfumes are created on an instrument called a perfume org a n .

Orgue à parfums - if you call the instrument in French.

Exactly behind the perfume organ, perfumer from notes writes, composes, collects and plays his fragrantmelodies, scales, chords.

The perfumer creates his own, incomparable, perfume melody

complex works are spirits

light popular melodies are perfume compositions

"I am a writer, my novels are without words; I am a composer, my music is without sounds. I am a perfumer," Paul Vacher (Paul Yours), the great perfumer,

author of legendary perfumes, including the Miss Dior fragrance for Christian Dior.

In the photo: the perfume organ of the French perfumer Isabelle Doyen:

Isabelle Doyen is a perfumer who graduated in 1982 International Institute perfumery, cosmetics and fragrances ISIPCA, former assistant to Annick Goutal and later teacher of Goutal's daughter, Camille.

Today, Isabelle and Camille create fragrances for the Annick Goutal brand together.

Chapter six. Perfume ethics and etiquette. Art of Living. Art de Vivre:

Ironic French perfumers say:"When a person has nothing to say about spirits, he tries to decompose them into notes."

The perfume formula, a work of perfumery art, belongs exclusively to its author - the perfumer.

Exactly until he personally decides to publish / sell / transfer his formula to another person

It is completely indecent to ask a perfumer about the composition of his formulas, and even more indecent to talk about other people's formulas.

It is correct and much more useful to listen, enjoy, hear and try to understand

Isabelle Doyen says:“Before I sit down to write a new fragrance, I go to a bookstore.

Then I take a notebook with secret formulas and on a blank page I write one single word: "Password".

The password, which will determine the main direction of work on the fragrance, will evoke the necessary associations.

The password for Nuit Etoilee is "Wyoming" american state with nature of unreal beauty.

Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, rivers, forests - all this should be immediately imagined by those who breathe in the scent of perfume.

We don't know any museums where perfumers donate their formulas, and the Moscow Perfume Museum is no exception.

Museums never showed tactlessness, did not climb into the "forbidden bushes" and did not turn to any author / copyright holder of the formulas in order

to reveal their secret notebooks.

- Quod licet Jovi, non licet bovi (lat) - What is allowed to Jupiter is not allowed to the bull.

Perfumery museums always have something to tell about perfumes even without formulas.

Perfumes in museums are presented only in those boundaries and gradations in which they were presented to the general public by the author himself / perfume house / fashion house.

You can create your own secret formulas at, including at educational master classes with some

with the help of professional perfumers.

At our perfume tastings, we will never force you to look for any particular note in the sounds of brilliant perfumes.

We will not force you to applaud individual notes and chords,

we invite you, all without exception, to a concert of classical perfumery music to listen to the great perfumery works in their entirety.

The Russian language has more than thousand years of history. Some expressions that we use without hesitation in Everyday life, at first glance, may seem illogical or even strange. It is difficult for a foreigner studying Russian to explain why a fly sits on the wall and a vase is on the table. It is also not easy to remember, to say: to put on a coat or put on, to smell or feel. Well, the phrase “no, it’s wrong” has become a classic example of Russian logic. In this article we are talking about how to say correctly: "the smell is heard or felt."

Not only the East, but also the language is a delicate matter

The task is quite difficult. Not every linguist will be able to clearly explain how to say correctly: “they hear or feel the smell”. Often, in order to interpret the difficulties of Russian, it is necessary to turn to dictionaries, reference books, and even material from other languages. In particular, many are wondering how, according to the rules of the Russian - "they hear or feel smells"?

Every nation has certain picture world, which in one way or another is reflected in the system of symbols. But the system itself has internal laws and its own logic. Not only do we make the language, but it also makes us.

To understand the difference between the expressions "to smell or feel", it is not necessary to immediately turn to dictionaries. It is easy to see that the verb "hear" refers more to the physical ability to perceive sounds, and the verb "feel" reflects the state of mind.

We perceive external world complex, because our senses interact with each other. So, in painting there are cold and warm shades, in music - heavy melodies, etc. Therefore, sometimes we figuratively say that we hear a smell, understanding by this the process of perceiving a particular aroma.

Words, like people, may not fit together.

The term "valence" is familiar to many from the school bench. So in chemistry they call the ability of a molecule to bind to another molecule. But the language, despite the abundance of phrases and words that seem to have no logic, is actually a wisely organized system of signs.

In linguistics, valency is the ability of one lexeme to be combined with other words. For example, we say "thin road", "thin path", but "thin person". Semantically, the word "thin" fits better with inanimate objects or body parts, but people in general are not spoken of in this way. In the famous story of A. Chekhov, one of the friends is named precisely thin, and not thin, because this character, unlike his “fat” friend, has lost his individuality and honor, turned into a servile flatterer.

Chekhov used the epithet "thin" on purpose, to make the narrative more emotional. But sometimes we make random mistakes, because apart from the norms literary language there is also colloquial speech, which often goes beyond the norm. Therefore, in order to understand how to correctly say, “I hear a smell or feel,” you need to turn to explanatory dictionary and a dictionary of the compatibility of words of the Russian language. Well, the logic of constructing these phrases was mentioned above.

What do dictionaries say

In the first half of the twentieth century. both forms were absolutely equal - "hear the smell" and "feel the smell". This can be checked in the dictionary of D.S. Ushakov.

However, since the middle of the twentieth century the language system has changed somewhat and now the only correct general literary norm is the combination “smell”. It is in this form that this expression is presented in the dictionary of word compatibility, published in 1983 by the Institute of the Russian Language. A.S. Pushkin. On this moment it is one of the most authoritative publications of its kind.

Meanwhile, in a "live" speech ...

Linguists are engaged in fixing, describing and substantiating the literary norm. However, almost 30 years have passed since 1983, and the language has changed somewhat, because it is constantly and relentlessly evolving. As people's living standards improve, the perfume industry improves, new types of perfumes appear, specialty stores open, etc.

As a result, now we see that the expression “to smell” has not completely fallen out of use, but has migrated to the field. Perfumers do not think about whether you need to smell or feel. After all, for them, spirits are a kind of music of the body, special language moods and desires.

Thus, if you do not know if you hear or smell perfume, then you can safely use it in colloquial speech both of these phrases. In everyday communication, this will not be a mistake. True, in official documents, if they have to be drawn up, a normalized combination should still be used. If we are talking about an unpleasant smell, then in any case, you need to use the verb "feel".

What other verbs are combined with the word "smell"

In addition to the word “feel”, the following verbs are combined with the lexemes “aroma”, “smell”:

• absorb;
• be in love;
• have;
• publish;
• not tolerate;
• do not endure.

The smell itself can be heard or penetrated somewhere / from somewhere, as well as remind you of something, like it or not like it.

How to translate the expression "smell" into other languages

Interestingly, in European languages with the word "smell" the verb "feel" is also most often used: fr. sentir, engl. "feel". True, it should be noted here that if the English do not think about whether to smell or feel, there are other subtleties in their language. Remember at least famous song Nirvana "Smells like teen spirit". After all, "smell" literally means "to smell", to perceive by smell. How would you translate the title? impossible, isn't it?

In Ukrainian there are the same variants of combinations as in Russian. Against the background of the normalized expression “smell the smell” in colloquial speech and journalism, you can find the phrase “slightly smell” (literally “hear the smell”).

Perhaps the tendency to perceive perfume aromas as music is characteristic of many Slavic peoples.

Thus, there is no unequivocal answer to the question of how it is right: the smell is heard or felt, does not exist. The second option is the official norm, but the first is also acceptable in colloquial and professional speech.

You have probably noticed that in perfumery stores, consultants usually offer customers not to smell, but to listen to one or another aroma. “Strange,” you thought. “Everyone knows that we catch smells with the nose, not with the ears. Then why do they say that fragrances are listened to and not smelled? Where did this strange terminology come from? Well, let's figure it out.

Why they say "listen" to the scent, not "smell"

Of course, “listening to the aroma” is a figurative expression. You don't have to hold a bottle of perfume to your ear to hear something there. And yet, where did it come from?
It's all about the associativity of our thinking.

For example, we often draw parallels between smell and taste. Describing the taste of vintage wine, we are most likely to talk about its amazing bouquet.

And many aromatic plants are associated with a certain taste, as we often use them as seasonings.

Some scientists have also tried to draw an analogy between color and smell.

They assumed that the seven primary colors of the spectrum could correspond to seven musical notes.

Scientists have managed to draw semantic parallels between smell and sound. A great contribution to this area was made by the English perfumer Piess, who was the first to introduce the concept of a harmonious and disharmonious combination of smells and arrange the main aromatic extracts into sound series.

Since then, in the perfume business, the question of listening to smells or smelling them has disappeared by itself. And the perfumers themselves began to create their aromatic masterpieces according to the principle piece of music: from notes and chords.

Basically there are 3 chords:

Upper chord or upper notes
middle chord or heart notes
and bottom chord or base notes

Together they form a fragrance that, like musical symphony, is not a static (frozen) sound, but plays, develops in time.

Now you understand why they say that the fragrance should be listened to? Agree, in this context, the word "sniff" already sounds somehow strange 🙂

However, there is one small but.

Aromas listen, but perfumes still sniff

Some consultants in stores are so addicted that they offer customers to listen to perfume instead of aroma. Which, strictly speaking, is wrong.

Since the source of the smell (in this case, an aromatic liquid, a bottle of perfume or a scented blotter) we still sniff.
And now we are already listening to the aroma.

This linguistic subtlety is best displayed by the phrase “smell<духи>can you hear how it smells<какой аромат>". Do you catch the difference?

In general, of course, no matter how you say it - smell perfume or listen to them - people will understand your informational message. But something tells us that speaking correctly is important first of all for you. And now you know how to do it right 🙂

The perfume composition does not make a sound. This is fine?

Since the time of the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius Cara, many theories have been proposed about the nature of smell. All of them can be divided into two groups: contact and wave. Biochemist, perfume critic and author of the Perfume Guide Luca Turin is one of the main proponents of the wave theory. According to it, aroma is determined by the frequencies of vibrations of interatomic bonds in molecules perceived by the olfactory organs. But neither she nor any other serious theory offers to compare smell with sound. However, identifying fragrance with music is a common practice, and perceiving perfume is equated with listening. Why?

The main reason is an insufficient vocabulary for describing smells, a secondary reason is romanticization. perfume art. The terms "note" and "chord" have firmly settled in the perfumery lexicon. They were first proposed by the English perfumer and chemist George Wilson Septimus Piess in mid-nineteenth century. In his book "The Art of Perfumery" (1857), he gives the correspondence of the perfume ingredients known to him and the notes of the sound scale. It is enough to have elementary knowledge of music to understand: Piesse's work looks, at least, controversial. Modern supporters of “listening” to spirits give the following logical (as it seems to them) chain: aroma, like music, consists of notes, they merge into chords, and even workplace perfumer is called the organ behind which he creates his "melody". This may seem like a nice comparison, but it has nothing to do with reality. We know five basic senses: sight (sensory organ - eyes), hearing (ears), smell (nose), touch (skin) and taste (tongue). Odors are perceived by the olfactory apparatus, consisting of the olfactory epithelium in the superior turbinate, the vomeronasal nerve, the terminal nerve, and the accessory olfactory bulb in the forebrain, and are interpreted by the limbic system of the brain. Not a word about the ears. In addition, the smell is a combination of many chemical compounds unable to make sounds. The identification of smell with music, as well as with visual images, tactile and taste sensations, - the result of synesthetic perception, individual in each case. And, as already mentioned, when describing our own impressions of smell, we resort to the help of dictionaries from other perception systems, because the olfactory vocabulary is extremely poor.

What do they do with the smell if they don't listen? The obvious answer to this question would be "feel", "feel", "perceive". These are neutral words, but they are most suitable for the process of smell perception. No one forbids and will not be able to forbid describing aromas and smells with any associations and epithets, but the use of the word "listen" in this context is a gross logical error. Journalists and consultants in perfume shops are its main distributors. The only question on this topic, to which we still do not have an answer - what is the word "sniff" worse words"listen"? IN English language the process of smell corresponds to the word "smell" (smell, smell), in rare cases "feel" (feel) and never - "hear" (hear). What negative connotations does the word “sniff” have in the Russian language, that, being the only true one that determines the process of smelling, it was replaced by another verb that does not correspond to it in meaning and logic?

Have a question? Ask it in the comments belowand we will definitely answer Aromo libraries

In the event that you happened to get into a perfume shop, while pursuing the idea of ​​​​buying yourself a new original fragrance, you always need to follow a few unspoken rules for choosing it, which give you a chance not to get into trouble and become the owner of a truly exclusive purchase.

When and how to choose perfume?

So, it is better to go for spirits in the morning, literally immediately after waking up. This even has a scientific justification: it is in the morning that a person’s nose best recognizes smells and aromas. It is even better if you go to a salon or a store without the remnants of yesterday's perfume on your clothes or skin and without wearing your favorite scent.

In almost all perfume shops, you will initially be offered to “taste” the smell of perfume preserved on blotters. This is the name of special thick paper strips, pre-scented with all brands of toilet waters and colognes available in the range. True connoisseurs of perfume are sure that this way of buying perfume can only be compared with the purchase of a car or coffee maker that has not been personally tested. And if this situation can somehow be corrected, then the wrong fragrance will definitely gather dust on the dressing table, reminding you of an unsuccessful purchase.

The only way to test the perfect sound of a scent is by applying it to the skin. In stores, special test bottles are stocked for this. But the heat in the room, numerous buyers with the same intention to find "their" fragrance and even your mood can become an obstacle. Also, probes of different eau de toilette do not need to be applied to the same place, which can easily be classified as perfume suicide.