Klarinet Archive - Posting 000134.txt from 2002/11

From: b5w@-----.net (William Wright)
Subj: Re: [kl] Tuners
Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 22:37:55 -0500

After various combinations (testing most of the reasonable
possibilities), including two clarinet bodies and several
bell-mouthpiece-barrel-reed-ligature combinations on each body and
playing both indoors and outdoors in hopes that a different set of
background noises would change the results and using a fully-charged
battery and tonguing each note, I've satisfied myself that:

(I assume that electric circuits don't follow a strict verbal logic, no
more than music does, but I've satisfied myself that the final outcome
is as follows: )

Rather than simply choosing the lowest frequency above a certain
threshold loudness and assuming that this is the tone's fundamental
frequency, a tuner must search for a complete pattern of harmonically
related partials (small integer ratios), and the tuner must discard any
'unrelated' frequencies that happen to be present. Finally the tuner
chooses the lowest frequency of the pattern and displays this as the
tone's fundamental.

This is an interesting concept because it means that if your sound
excludes a partial that belongs in a 'harmonically complete' tone, or if
your sound includes a partial that doesn't belong, the meter will become
confused, and this will be your warning of 'impure' tone.

In my case, after I had dealt with various issues, it became clear that
my bulbous (nearly spherical) bell is changing the vibration recipe of
only **one note** sufficiently to confuse my tuner --- even though, to
my ear, the pitch is OK and only the 'color' has changed --- namely
F-natural.

My evidence is that my tuner 'understands' every note for several
octaves on both of my clarinet bodies when I use a flared bell (from any
instrument, I have several extra bells), and my tuner becomes confused
by F-natural (only) on both clarinet bodies when I use the spherical
bell. When all is said and done, interchanging barrels and mouthpieces
does not cause this effect.

....just thought you'd like to know.....

Cheers,
Bill

---------------------------------------------------------------------

   
     Copyright © Woodwind.Org, Inc. All Rights Reserved    Privacy Policy    Contact charette@woodwind.org