Physics and Music

Physics and Music
Author: Harvey E. White
Publisher: Courier Corporation
Total Pages: 452
Release: 2014-06-18
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0486779343

Comprehensive and accessible, this foundational text surveys general principles of sound, musical scales, characteristics of instruments, mechanical and electronic recording devices, and many other topics. More than 300 illustrations plus questions, problems, and projects.

Fundamental Physics Of Sound

Fundamental Physics Of Sound
Author: Shyh-yuan Lee
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 335
Release: 2020-10-16
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9811224331

This is a textbook on the basic sciences of sound. It contains sufficient latest information on the subject and is divided into four parts that fit into the semester structure.The first part deals with basic Newton's second law of motion, simple harmonic oscillation, and wave properties. Newton's second law, 'the net force is equal to the rate of change of momentum,' is used to derive the speed of waves in a medium. The second part focuses on the psychoacoustics of our perception of three attributes of sound: loudness, pitch and timbre. The third part discusses the basic physics of some musical instruments and human voice. From the point of view of physics, musical instruments and human speech are similar. They are composed of a sound source and a resonator. Human ingenuity has produced various aesthetic-looking and ear-pleasing instruments for musicians to perform. Magical human evolution has also shaped our vocal folds and vocal tract so that we can dynamically change loudness, pitch, and timbre in an instant, in a manner that no other musical instrument can emulate. The fourth part includes electricity and magnetism, room acoustics, digital technology in acoustics, effects of noise on human hearing, and noise regulations for hearing protection that are relevant to sound wave production, transmission, storage, and human ear protection. Our ears are extremely sensitive. Without proper protection, loud noise including loud music can damage our ears. Government regulation and education serve as a first line of protection in working environments.This small book is comprehensible, understandable and enjoyable to all eager students.

Music, Physics and Engineering

Music, Physics and Engineering
Author: Harry F. Olson
Publisher: Courier Corporation
Total Pages: 482
Release: 2013-04-22
Genre: Music
ISBN: 0486317021

This extraordinarily comprehensive text, requiring no special background, discusses the nature of sound waves, musical instruments, musical notation, acoustic materials, elements of sound reproduction systems, and electronic music. Includes 376 figures.

The Physics of Musical Instruments

The Physics of Musical Instruments
Author: Neville H. Fletcher
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 629
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1461229804

The history of musical instruments is nearly as old as the history of civilization itself, and the aesthetic principles upon which judgments of musical quality are based are intimately connected with the whole culture within which the instruments have evolved. An educated modem Western player or listener can make critical judgments about particular instruments or particular per formances but, to be valid, those judgments must be made within the appro priate cultural context. The compass of our book is much less sweeping than the first paragraph might imply, and indeed our discussion is primarily confined to Western musical instruments in current use, but even here we must take account of centuries of tradition. A musical instrument is designed and built for the playing of music of a particular type and, conversely, music is written to be performed on particular instruments. There is no such thing as an "ideal" instrument, even in concept, and indeed the unbounded possibilities of modem digital sound-synthesis really require the composer or performer to define a whole set of instruments if the result is to have any musical coherence. Thus, for example, the sound and response of a violin are judged against a mental image of a perfect violin built up from experience of violins playing music written for them over the centuries. A new instrument may be richer in sound quality and superior in responsiveness, but if it does not fit that image then it is not a better violin.

Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment

Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment
Author: Panos Photinos
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2017
Genre: SCIENCE
ISBN: 9781681746821

Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment' offers a basic understanding of sound, musical instruments and music equipment, geared towards a general audience and non-science majors. The book begins with an introduction of the fundamental properties of sound waves, and the perception of the characteristics of sound. The relation between intensity and loudness, and the relation between frequency and pitch are discussed. The basics of propagation of sound waves, and the interaction of sound waves with objects and structures of various sizes are introduced. Standing waves, harmonics and resonance are explained in simple terms, using graphics that provide a visual understanding.

Sound, Physics and Music

Sound, Physics and Music
Author: Catherine Schmidt-Jones
Publisher: CreateSpace
Total Pages: 88
Release: 2015-02-18
Genre:
ISBN: 9781508534556

Sound is invisible waves moving through the air around us. In the same way that ocean waves are made of ocean water, sound waves are made of the air (or water or whatever) they are moving through. When something vibrates, it disturbs the air molecules around it. The disturbance moves through the air in waves - each vibration making its own wave in the air - spreading out from the thing that made the sound, just as water waves spread out from a stone that's been dropped into a pond. This books explains acoustics (the physics of sound waves) as it relates to music and musical instruments. At also includes suggestions for explaining these concepts to younger audiences. Catherine Schmidt-Hones is a music teacher from Champaign, Illinois and she has been a pioneer in open education since 2004. She is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois in the Open Online Education program with a focus in Curriculum and Instruction.

Principles of Vibration and Sound

Principles of Vibration and Sound
Author: Thomas D. Rossing
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 251
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1461225027

Some years ago we set out to write a detailed book about the basic physics of musical instruments. There have been many admirable books published about the history of the development of musical instruments, about their construction as a master craft, and about their employment in musical perfor mance; several excellent books have treated the acoustics of musical instru ments in a semiquantitative way; but none to our knowledge had then at tempted to assemble the hard acoustic information available in the research literature and to make it available to a wider readership. Our book The Physics of Musical Instruments, published by Springer-Verlag in 1991 and subsequently reprinted several times with only minor corrections, was the outcome of our labor. Because it was our aim to make our discussion of musical instruments as complete and rigorous as possible, our book began with a careful introduction to vibrating and radiating systems important in that field. We treated simple linear oscillators, both in isolation and coupled together, and extended that to a discussion of some aspects of driven and autonomous nonlinear oscilla tors. Because musical instruments are necessarily extended structures, we then went on to discuss the vibrations of strings, bars, membranes, plates, and shells, paying particular attention to the mode structures and characteristic frequencies, for it is these that are musically important.

Good Vibrations

Good Vibrations
Author: Barry Parker
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 286
Release: 2009-12-15
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0801897076

Why does a harpsichord sound different from a piano? For that matter, why does middle C on a piano differ from middle C on a tuning fork, a trombone, or a flute? Good Vibrations explains in clear, friendly language the out-of-sight physics responsible not only for these differences but also for the whole range of noises we call music. The physical properties and history of sound are fascinating to study. Barry Parker's tour of the physics of music details the science of how instruments, the acoustics of rooms, electronics, and humans create and alter the varied sounds we hear. Using physics as a base, Parker discusses the history of music, how sounds are made and perceived, and the various effects of acting on sounds. In the process, he demonstrates what acoustics can teach us about quantum theory and explains the relationship between harmonics and the theory of waves. Peppered throughout with anecdotes and examples illustrating key concepts, this invitingly written book provides a firm grounding in the actual and theoretical physics of music.

The Physics of Sound

The Physics of Sound
Author: Richard E. Berg
Publisher:
Total Pages: 408
Release: 1995
Genre: Science
ISBN:

Appropriate for an introductory course in acoustics for non-scientists. This book incorporates the remarkable changes in digital audio technology -- including consumer products--into a firm foundation of physics of sound.