Author: Luuk ★2017
Date: 2018-09-20 16:59
Very interesting discussion (I'm a former physicist). My own experience as an amateur clarinettist involves a tuning session during which the conductor, using a tuning device, remarked that I sounded 'too low' while the tuner indicated I was perfectly in tune. And this had nothing to do with the surrounding chord, it was just everybody tuning on A.
More interesting will be that while I was working at the Philips Electronics laboratory in the '90s, I witnessed a psychoacoustical demonstration in which a small speaker (10cm diameter) just laying bare on the table (no box, soundboard or anything present) was used for creating the illusion of heavy bass being present.
The explanation given was that between sound source (CD player) and amplifier a circuit was evaluating all low frequencies, recognizing the musical notes, stripping the lower fundamental and probably the first harmonic and emphasizing or even injecting calculated higher partials of the bass note in order to enable the listener to perceive the bass note while there was really none present. It sounded fabulous.
This device was being developed in order to create big, bassy sounds from small speakers such as present in modern, flat televison cases. I don't know if it ever reached the market.
This demonstration made clear to me that perceiving a note does not prove it is really there. And I suspect that when the abovementioned device miscalculates higher partials, the perceived note might change in pitch.
Regards,
Luuk
Philips Symphonic Band
The Netherlands
|
|
The Clarinet BBoard
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
