The “Physics of Musical Instruments” was a video recording of a lecture given on the same name by Sarah Bolton, Professor of Physics at Williams College. Part one of a two part lecture, Professor Bolton works to describe the principles of sound and the correlation to the creation of music, the interpretation of music, and the reasons for which different instruments operate in the ways that they do. In order to provide this information, Professor Bolton explains the different physics principles that serve to allow for this occurrence to transpire; she refers to this process as the science of musical sound.
In order to introduce the topic, Professor Bolton first reviews what sound waves are: a disturbance that moves through the air. These sound waves travel through the air and vibrate against the eardrum which in turn translates those vibrations into sounds that our brains can interpret. Repeating sound waves are used in the creation of music. These waves of compressed sound are what comprises the noises that are heard by humans. The example provided here was the manner in which a tuning fork operates, with the sound waves created, the compressed air, serving to make the noises. These sound waves will create different sounds based on the wavelength and the frequency at which they are transmitted. The wave length refers to the length of the wave created, which will vary based on the distance between two given points, and the frequency is the term used to measure the number of compressions per second. The frequency of sound is referred to as measurements in Hertz (Hz), named for the man who came up with the concept; it refers to the amount of time per second that the vibration occurs. The higher the frequency of the sound, the shorter the wavelength will be, with the lower the frequency the longer the wavelength will be. The speed of the sound is equal to the length of the wave times the frequency of the sound.
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"Physics of Musical Instruments".
The range of human hearing is between 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz, with the speed of sound being measured at 343 m/s. The wavelengths that are heard by humans fall between 17m and 17cm. The frequency of the sound is also directly correlated to the pitch of the sound, with the greater the frequency of the sound, the greater the pitch that sound will be; correlations were made between the piano, the violin, the human voice, the tuba, and the piccolo in order to demonstrate the highest and lowest notes of each and the range in which those objects fall. The highest note of the piano registers at a frequency of 4186 Hz, with the lowest note on the piano falling at a frequency of 27.5 Hz; each of the other instruments mentioned fell between those ranges as well.
Pitch and the musical scale was covered next, allowing individuals to see the direct correlation between the note as it shows on the musical scale, ranging from High C to Low C, and the differences in the frequency at which those musical notes vibrate, gicing a range between 262 Hz and 524 Hz, totaling a full octave; when the full octave is reached, the frequency doubles from the initial frequency. Next, the resonant motions of a string were covered as they correlate to the wavelength, showing how the sound waves are created, and the formulas were given to determine the pitch of a plucked string, with guitars offered up as the example; in order to increase the pitch that a string plays, the frequency of the fundamental resonance of the string must be increased. In order to play a higher note on a guitar with cords, the fundamental resonant frequency must be changed by adjusting the length of the string. In order to increase the frequency, the tension and the velocity of the string must be increased.
Timbre and tone quality differ from instrument to instrument creating different shapes in the sound wave and allowing for individual identification of the different instruments. The more complex the harmony, the more complex and the greater the number of waves present. The correlation between tuning and harmonics has to do with the intervals or frequencies of the sound waves, which are used to change the type of harmonics present, in turn changing the timbre and tone of the instruments used, to a degree. The harmonic spectrum is related to the intervals common in music, and the sequence of those harmonics coincide with the resonances on a musical scale. It is important to note that every object has a resonance that gives an integer multiple of the same frequency; a drum has less of a pitch than a flute and anharmonic instruments, like a drum, result in different spectrums based on the manner in which the instrument is created and the ability of the sound waves to travel as a result. The video was highly educational and quite enjoyable, offering a greater understanding of the manner of music creation through the application of physics principles.
