Acoustics
Objectives
a) To provide a strong understanding of the physical principles relevant to the generation of sound, including the functioning of musical instruments
b) To give a thorough understanding of acoustic phenomena, including the outdoors and indoors sound propagation as well as the perception of musical sound
c) To have a technical understanding of how musical instruments behave for effective instrumental practice
General characterization
Code
01100331
Credits
6.0
Responsible teacher
Riccardo Dillon Wanke
Hours
Weekly - 4
Total - 168
Teaching language
Portuguese
Prerequisites
None
Bibliography
Eller, E. J. (2012). Why you hear what you hear: an experiential approach to sound, music and psychoacoustics. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Fletcher, N. H. & Rossing, T. D. (1998) The physics of musical instruments. New-York: Springer-Verlag.
Pierce, J. R. (1992). The science of musical sounds. New-York: W.H. Freeman & Co.
Howard, D. M. & Angus J. (2006). Acoustics and Psychoacoustics. Focal Press.
Rossing Moore Wheeler (2014). The science of sound (3rd Ed.). Pearson Ldt.
Bregman, A. (1990). Auditory Scene Analysis. MIT.
Teaching method
Lectures with classroom demonstration experiments, including examples with real musical instruments, virtual animations and sound samples - and also discussions
Evaluation method
Continuous evaluation with three written tests during the semester (33%+33%+33%)
Final exam: one written test over the whole course.
Subject matter
1) Study of sound phenomenology from a physical perspective.
Sound event, vibration, periodicity. Acoustic parameters (Sound Pressure, Sound Intensity, Acoustic Power, dB scale).
2) Production, propagation, and perception of acoustic phenomena.
Sound waves and concepts of amplitude, frequency, and phase. Sinusoidal waves. Addition of waves, complex waves. Fundamental frequency, harmonics, partials, octave. Harmonic (and inharmonic) spectrum. Tuning systems.
3) Study of simple vibratory systems.
Strings, bars, plates, membranes, and sound tubes. Sound waves (transverse, longitudinal) in air and other media. Musical instruments and materials.
4) Room acoustics.
Sounds in enclosed spaces. Sound interactions (constructive, destructive). Reflection, Refraction, Absorption, Diffraction. Reverberation, echo. Materials and anechoic rooms.
5) Psychoacoustics and study of the physiology of the auditory system.
Anatomy and function. Acoustic and psychoacoustic concepts (consonance/dissonance, timbre). Infrasound, Ultrasound. Spatial hearing (interaural phase difference, interaural intensity difference). Hearing notes. Beats, Critical bands. Listening in context: auditory scene analysis (Bregman).