How do we hear?

Hearing depends on a series of events that change sound waves in the air into electrical signals. Your auditory nerve then carries these signals to your brain through a complex series of steps.

The ear is made up of three main parts: the outer ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear. 
The outer ear is the visible part of the ear and includes the pinna (the flap of skin and cartilage on the side of the head) and the ear canal.
The middle ear contains the eardrum and three small bones called the ossicles, which amplify and transmit sound waves to the inner ear.
The inner ear is a spiral-shaped organ called the cochlea, which contains hair cells that convert sound waves into electrical signals that are sent to the brain via the auditory nerve.
The auditory information is then interpreted as sounds, voices, speech, and music in the auditory area of the brain called the auditory cortex.