Physics In Music

Vibrations

Vibrations is where sound is created it is the source of all sound. When vibrating objects push together they create little zones of compressed air. When the zones of compressed air are released they spring out causing zones of compression and refraction that travel outward from the source. Which creates sound waves.

Sound Waves

Sound waves are created by vibrations they are a series of compression waves that move throughout the air. The way you sense sound waves is when they hit your ear drum it vibrates. Sound waves travel through matter and do not travel through outerspace.

 Picture From talkbass

Frequency & Pitch

Frequency is the number of compression pulses that go past a fixed point in a given amount of time. Frequency is measured in hertz, or cycles per second. Frequency is dependent on how long its wavelength is. The longer the wave length the lower the frequency. The shorter the wave length the higher the frequency. Pitch is our minds interpretation of frequency.

Amplitude

Amplitude is the maximum distance a particle moves from its resting position. Amplitude is also the height of a sound wave. A quiet sound has a lower amplitude and a loud sound has a higher amplitude.  

Picture From Planetquest

Purpose Of All Of This

All of these play a part in the way we hear music. From little vibrations that travel in sound waves that vibrate your ear to let you sense the sound. To different frequencies and pitches due to certain lengths of sound waves and height of the amplitude.

 Sources

 http://www.exhibits.pacsci.org/music/MusicPhysics.html

 http://www.indiana.edu/~emusic/acoustics/frequency.htm

http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/Navigator/navigator_technology.cfm