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Questions tagged [acoustics]

For questions about the physical science of sound production, behavior, and mechanics. Generic physics questions should be asked at our sister site Physics Stack Exchange.

20 votes
1 answer
1k views

Why do the Fourier components of a piano note shift away from the harmonic series?

This comes from me answering a question about functionally modeling a piano playing a middle C note in Mathematica. I figured the note would consist of the fundamental frequency f0 ~ 440 × 2−9/12 Hz ...
ydd's user avatar
  • 303
4 votes
3 answers
1k views

Can you perform harmonics on wine glasses?

Playing harmonics on a stringed instrument is an acknowledged technique which involves placing a finger at a certain point on the string to damp a node that would otherwise sound. Is there a ...
Brian THOMAS's user avatar
  • 11.7k
2 votes
1 answer
126 views

Is there a system behind recorder fingering charts or do people just memorize them?

I'd like to understand how recorder fingerings work, e.g. for a Baroque alto recorder. Let's say you know which holes are open, which ones are partially open and which ones are closed. How can you ...
zabolekar's user avatar
  • 193
7 votes
3 answers
834 views

When people say that viola and double bass are too small for their range, what does it mean?

I'll stick to the viola example, though I've heard similar arguments made about the double bass. I've seen the following reasoning: the viola is tuned one fifth lower than the violin. A perfect fifth ...
zabolekar's user avatar
  • 193
19 votes
1 answer
1k views

How does pitch bending work on keyboard percussion

There is a less known technique for keyboard percussion that allows some form of pitch bending. For example: These are some way of getting it, but a similar effect is ...
musicamante's user avatar
  • 7,026
16 votes
3 answers
3k views

Are bells the only instrument whose second harmonic forms a minor interval with its fundamental?

I heard (from a Paccard church bells rep) that bells are the only instrument whose second harmonic forms a minor interval with its fundamental. Is this true?
Geremia's user avatar
  • 881
10 votes
13 answers
3k views

Does natural amplification TRULY exist in acoustics or does it have to be turned into an electrical signal first?

I have seen people claim these two scenarios as being possible acoustic amplifications. My question is, are they TRULY amplification or are there any other types of acoustic amplification in existence....
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 994
-2 votes
1 answer
124 views

Professionalism at piano playing [closed]

What is the easiest way to get professional on the piano and what is the trick behind using two different hands to play several different notes with different fingers. How is the memory improved by ...
Cornelius's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
2k views

Are percussion instruments the only instrument type capable of making an unpitched (indefinite) sound? [Electronic instruments excluded]

I just want to confirm, wind instruments and stringed instruments are completely incapable of creating an unpitched sound correct?
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 994
2 votes
0 answers
85 views

Bass vibration coming from outside

I have a low bass sound in my house that comes from a hvac from a bakery. It's not very loud but it's very hard not to hear. It's variating depending on external condition (in hot weather it's hell) . ...
Fred's user avatar
  • 21
7 votes
1 answer
389 views

Brass instrument lengths

I assume (perhaps wrong), that the fundamental frequency of brass instruments can be calculated with the wave equation: c = lambda * f, WHERE: c = the speed of sound. I calculated this to be 349 m/s ...
Stewart's user avatar
  • 979
1 vote
1 answer
47 views

Can a reed be mounted to directly vibrate strings? [closed]

Can a reed be mounted in such a way as to directly vibrate a string? Granted that for the sake of playability, the string instrument would have a length similar to a 1/8 violin. Also, how much would ...
D-Squared's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
305 views

Feeling that speaker's low bass getting stuck in one's ear

(The feeling is is subjective, but it is very hard to describe technically.) I have a speaker with very strong bass, which is fine, but when I play music with it, even in extremely low volume, it ...
Ma Joad's user avatar
  • 1,200
3 votes
0 answers
51 views

Modeling end-blown flute instrument using adaptive filter

I want to find the resonant frequency of specific end-blown flute called Persian ney, Using LMS in arrangement of system identification. Two signal is needed for algorithm: system excitation (x) ...
mohammadsdtmnd's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
180 views

Piano oscillation on a single string

Why is that when the hammer hits only one string on the piano, there is an oscillation and not a solid note throughout. I hear it like a wave of sound, not an absolute pitch. It doesn’t happen on ...
Dan's user avatar
  • 31

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