The Physics of Musical Instruments

The Physics of Musical Instruments PDF Author: Neville H. Fletcher
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0387216030
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 763

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Book Description
While the history of musical instruments is nearly as old as civilisation itself, the science of acoustics is quite recent. By understanding the physical basis of how instruments are used to make music, one hopes ultimately to be able to give physical criteria to distinguish a fine instrument from a mediocre one. At that point science may be able to come to the aid of art in improving the design and performance of musical instruments. As yet, many of the subtleties in musical sounds of which instrument makers and musicians are aware remain beyond the reach of modern acoustic measurements. This book describes the results of such acoustical investigations - fascinating intellectual and practical exercises. Addressed to readers with a reasonable grasp of physics who are not put off by a little mathematics, this book discusses most of the traditional instruments currently in use in Western music. A guide for all who have an interest in music and how it is produced, as well as serving as a comprehensive reference for those undertaking research in the field.

The Physics of Musical Instruments

The Physics of Musical Instruments PDF Author: Neville H. Fletcher
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0387216030
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 763

Get Book Here

Book Description
While the history of musical instruments is nearly as old as civilisation itself, the science of acoustics is quite recent. By understanding the physical basis of how instruments are used to make music, one hopes ultimately to be able to give physical criteria to distinguish a fine instrument from a mediocre one. At that point science may be able to come to the aid of art in improving the design and performance of musical instruments. As yet, many of the subtleties in musical sounds of which instrument makers and musicians are aware remain beyond the reach of modern acoustic measurements. This book describes the results of such acoustical investigations - fascinating intellectual and practical exercises. Addressed to readers with a reasonable grasp of physics who are not put off by a little mathematics, this book discusses most of the traditional instruments currently in use in Western music. A guide for all who have an interest in music and how it is produced, as well as serving as a comprehensive reference for those undertaking research in the field.

The Science of Musical Sounds

The Science of Musical Sounds PDF Author: Dayton Clarence Miller
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description


The Physics of the Violin

The Physics of the Violin PDF Author: Lothar Cremer
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 0262527073
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This major work covers almost all that has been learned about the acoustics of stringed instruments from Helmholtz's 19th-century theoretical elaborations to recent electroacoustic and holographic measurements. Many of the results presented here were uncovered by the author himself (and by his associates and students) over a 20-year period of research on the physics of instruments in the violin family. Lothar Cremer is one of the world's most respected authorities on architectural acoustics and, not incidentally, an avid avocational violinist and violist. The book—which was published in German in 1981—first of all meets the rigorous technical standards of specialists in musical acoustics. But it also serves the needs and interests of two broader groups: makers and players of stringed instruments are expressly addressed, since the implications of the mathematical formulations are fully outlined and explained; and acousticians in general will find that the work represents a textbook illustration of the application of fundamental principles and up-to-date techniques to a specific problem. The first—and longest—of the book's three parts investigates the oscillatory responses of bowed (and plucked) strings. The natural nonlinearities that derive from considerations of string torsion and bending stiffness are deftly handled and concisely modeled. The second part deals with the body of the instrument. Special attention is given to the bridge, which transmits the oscillations of the strings to the wooden body and its air cavity. In this case, linear modeling proves serviceable for the most part—a simplification that would not be possible with lute—like instruments such as the guitar. The radiation of sound from the body into the listener's space, which is treated as an extension of the instrument itself, is the subject of the book's final part.

The Cambridge Companion to the String Quartet

The Cambridge Companion to the String Quartet PDF Author: Robin Stowell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139826549
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 672

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Book Description
This Companion offers a concise and authoritative survey of the string quartet by eleven chamber music specialists. Its fifteen carefully structured chapters provide coverage of a stimulating range of perspectives previously unavailable in one volume. It focuses on four main areas: the social and musical background to the quartet's development; the most celebrated ensembles; string quartet playing, including aspects of contemporary and historical performing practice; and the mainstream repertory, including significant 'mixed ensemble' compositions involving string quartet. Various musical and pictorial illustrations and informative appendixes, including a chronology of the most significant works, complete this indispensable guide. Written for all string quartet enthusiasts, this Companion will enrich readers' understanding of the history of the genre, the context and significance of quartets as cultural phenomena, and the musical, technical and interpretative problems of chamber music performance. It will also enhance their experience of listening to quartets in performance and on recordings.

Fundamentals of Musical Acoustics

Fundamentals of Musical Acoustics PDF Author: Arthur H. Benade
Publisher: Courier Corporation
ISBN: 0486150712
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 608

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Book Description
Landmark book hailed for exceptionally clear, delightfully readable explication of everything acoustically important to music-making. Includes over 300 illustrations. Examples, experiments, and questions conclude each chapter.

Science Of Percussion Instruments

Science Of Percussion Instruments PDF Author: Thomas D Rossing
Publisher: World Scientific Publishing Company
ISBN: 981310564X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 222

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Book Description
Percussion instruments may be our oldest musical instruments, but only recently have they become the subject of extensive scientific study. This book focuses on how percussion instruments vibrate and produce sound and how these sounds are perceived by listeners.

Engineering the Guitar

Engineering the Guitar PDF Author: Richard Mark French
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0387743693
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
A uniquely engaging description of the mechanics of the guitar, for engineers and craftsmen alike. Clearly written in a conceptual language, it provides readers with an understanding of the dynamic behavior of the instrument, including structural and component dynamics, and various analytical models, such as discrete, finite element, and boundary element models. The text also covers manufacturing processes, including both handmade and mass produced instruments.

Violin-making, as it was and is

Violin-making, as it was and is PDF Author: Edward Heron-Allen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Violin
Languages : en
Pages : 410

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Book Description


Vibration and Sound

Vibration and Sound PDF Author: Philip McCord Morse
Publisher: Acoustical Society of America
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 500

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Book Description


Time-frequency Analysis

Time-frequency Analysis PDF Author: Leon Cohen
Publisher: Prentice Hall
ISBN: 9780135945322
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 299

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Book Description
Featuring traditional coverage as well as new research results that, until now, have been scattered throughout the professional literature, this book brings together—in simple language—the basic ideas and methods that have been developed to study natural and man-made signals whose frequency content changes with time—e.g., speech, sonar and radar, optical images, mechanical vibrations, acoustic signals, biological/biomedical and geophysical signals. Covers time analysis, frequency analysis, and scale analysis; time-bandwidth relations; instantaneous frequency; densities and local quantities; the short time Fourier Transform; time-frequency analysis; the Wigner representation; time-frequency representations; computation methods; the synthesis problem; spatial-spatial/frequency representations; time-scale representations; operators; general joint representations; stochastic signals; and higher order time-frequency distributions. Illustrates each concept with examples and shows how the methods have been extended to other variables, such as scale. For engineers, acoustic scientists, medical scientists and developers, mathematicians, physicists, and mangers working in the fields of acoustics, sonar, radar, image processing, biomedical devices, communication.