Drip, drip, drip, plunk, plish, plosh, pop,
gurgle,
burble, babble, whoosh, hiss, roarÂ…

What is water without sound?

The beauty, artistry and importance of water
doesn't merely captivate the eye. It also enchants
the ear, and a growing number of people are
listening.

One East Coast center touts water sounds as a
stress-buster for recovering alcoholics. Another
author suggests using water sounds for comforting
mothers in labor.

A gardening Web site notes that drops from a
pinpricked water bucket into a pond can act as a
bird magnet. The manufacturer of a hearing-aid
device uses water as a background noise to cover
up the ringing of tinnitus.

Most notably, there is the surge of interest in
water fountains, which is as much about sound as
it is about vision.

According to Homeworld Business Magazine, the
market for fountains - or as the industry likes to
call them,
\"calming ponds\" - has exploded within the past
few years from 100,000 units in 1998 to 1 million
in 1999 to 3.5 million in 2000.

Ranging in price from under $20 to thousands of
dollars, fountains began hitting mass-market
popularity in 1999, about the time that
Michigan-based HoMedics began manufacturing its
EnviraScape line.

\"We saw fountains becoming a trend in a rather
pricey market,\" and sought to make an affordable
version, HoMedics spokeswoman Tami Estes said. The
company now offers 19 designs ranging from $20 to
$250.

\"We experiment with different designs to get the
desired sounds,\" Estes said. \"We watch this
closely because water sounds is one of the key
reasons that consumers buy fountains.\"

What are they looking for?

Rather than plops or splashes, when consumers call
up HoMedics with their views, they want \"the
sound of flowing water,\" Estes said.

Wal-Mart has noticed a similar trend.

\"The most popular water sound our customers look
for in fountains is babbling brooks,\" Wal-Mart
spokeswoman Susanne Decker said.

Among those who tout the healing powers of water
sounds are the fountain-makers themselves.

On its Web site, New York State-based Beyond the
Rainbow had this to say about the sound of
fountains.

\"Listening to a fountain is like sitting beside a
waterfall or swiftly flowing stream. The sound of
running water is soothing and relaxing. It helps
to block out less harmonious noises, and if we
focus on it,
can also block out the unharmonious noises inside
our own minds.