Sound waves and music

First, let's look at how some musical instruments are powered by standing waves:

• Standing waves in instruments
• Example of flute sounds
• Example of organ sounds

Now, it's time for you to create your own music with a very simple instrument: an aluminum rod.

• Ring the rod experiment

For more information

• The Flute Acoustics website provides the real lowdown on sounds produced by an instrument.
• Project Rhea discusses the timbre of different instruments
• Paul Fasted's Fourier synthesis applet allows you to add together harmonics of a fundamental wave and both see and hear the wave form.

Copyright © Michael Richmond. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.