What is Sound?

Minute disturbances in the air, caused by a vibrating object

Air particles bunch together, then spread out (compression, rarefaction)

Changes in density (air pressure, or sound pressure) Causes a chain reaction; sound pressure wave propagates

Sound Wave Propagation

Animation by Institute of Sound and Vibration Research (ISVR) <http://www.isvr.soton.ac.uk/SPCG/Tutorial/Tutorial/StartCD.htm>

Sound wave propagates in all directions.

Compression / Rarefaction
Sound Pressure
High Normal

Low

Time

Time domain plot of a waveform: a graph showing amplitude changes

Amplitude, Intensity, Sound Pressure Level

Amplitude: extent of change in air pressure of a sound wave from the normal pressure

Measured in decibels (dB), a logarithmic scale that compares the amplitudes of two sound waves. A doubling of amplitude represents a difference of about 6 dB.
Intensity: power of the changes in air pressure as they contact your ear Sound Pressure Level (SPL): intensity of a sound relative to the threshold of hearing, measured in dB

Relative Intensity of Familiar Sounds

130 dB SPL 120 110 Threshold of pain Jet taking off 500 feet away Very loud amplified music

100 80 60
40 20 10 0

Power saw Heavy traffic on freeway Friendly conversation

Hushed conversation Quiet living room (no TV) Breathing Threshold of hearing

(adapted from table on p. 6 of Pellman, An Introduction to the Creation of Electroacoustic Music)

US OSHA Guidelines
Max duration 8 hours 6 4 3 2 1.5 1 0.5 < 0.25 SPL 90 dBA 92 95 97 100 102 105 110 115 Loudest parts at a rock concert Roomate screaming at close range Very loud orchestra Subway train Example source Lounge duo

(adapted from table on p. 3 of Mackie HR624 manual)

Periodic Waveforms
Amplitude

1 Cycle Period: How long does one cycle last? Frequency: How many cycles per second? Expressed in Hertz (Hz) Ex: 440 Hz (the A above middle C) Period = 1 / Frequency (for A440: 0.0023 sec.)

Range of Human Hearing

20 Hz to 20,000 Hz (20 kHz), approximately (for young folks; old folks cant hear as high) 40 Hz 800 Hz 2000 Hz 8000 Hz

15000 Hz
19000 Hz

Timbre
A sound-maker (e.g., guitar string) vibrates at many different frequencies simultaneously when you play one note. These frequencies, at various strengths, fuse into a single complex waveform, with a particular tone color, or timbre.

These frequency components are partials. Lowest (first) is the fundamental frequency, which you usually identify as the pitch. Harmonic partials are integer multiples of fundamental frequency.
Harmonic Series

Timbre
Jean Baptiste Fourier (18th century): Any complex periodic waveform can be expressed as the sum of a series of harmonically related sine waves.

A spectrogram lets you see this.

It follows that you can construct a complex waveform by adding together any number of sine waves

The Sum of Two Sines

Two sine waves with 3:1 frequency ratio

Add corresonding points of the two sines to get

Frequency and Pitch

Frequency is an acoustic fact. Pitch is a human perception.

Our sense of pitch has a logarithmic relation to frequency its based on ratios.
Interval the distance between two pitches (Example: C up to G a perfect 5th) Two intervals are equal if their ratios are equal. (Example: all octaves have 2:1 ratio; so if middle C = 260Hz, C above = 520Hz)

The Harmonic Series

Arithmetic series of frequencies gives ever-shrinking intervals.

(flat) Frequencies in Hz:

Double frequency: octave higher

Timbre

Resonance
Resonance frequencies at which an object naturally vibrates

Object vibrates at resonant frequencies when struck (e.g., bells)

Sympathetic vibration object can vibrate at resonant frequencies even when the air around it vibrates (Sing into a piano, and hold the sustain pedal.)

Formants
Formant a single resonant frequency A formant frequency is fixed doesnt change Distribution of formants affects timbre of musical instruments, including voice A guitar note has 1. a fundamental frequency, 2. harmonic partials above fundamental, 3. resonances of guitar body (formants) that reinforce some partials

A formant boosting 5th harmonic partial

Fundamental

Amplitude

Formant

400

800

1200

1600

2000

2400

2800

Frequency (Hz)

After Pellman, An Introduction to the Creation of Electroacoustic Music, p. 217

A formant boosting 4th harmonic partial

Fundamental

Amplitude

Formant

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

Frequency (Hz)

After Pellman, An Introduction to the Creation of Electroacoustic Music, p. 217