Cleveland County Artists

 

 

    Music can be a valuable asset to interdisciplinary study.  This means that you can learn other subjects through music, such as science, math, or history.

 

    Sound is simply vibrations within a certain range of frequencies one can hear.  In other words, sound waves move and transmit energy similar to the waves of the ocean.  Now the speed of these 'movements' can be measured just like we measure the speed of a moving vehicle in miles per hour (mph), however we measure sound waves by frequency, which can determine a note's pitch.  Pitch is how high or low a note sounds.

    

    Frequency can be measured in hertz, or cycles per second.  When a sound vibrates at 440 hertz it produces the pitch 'A' above middle 'C,' known as 'pitch standard' (see picture).  Using this 'pitch standard', musicians tune instruments so the frequency for 'A' is 440 hertz, that way everybody agrees on the same note.  Higher pitches sound at faster frequencies and lower pitches sound at slower frequencies.

 

    If you ever listen to an orchestra before the concert, you will hear 440 hertz.  Listen carefully to the oboe player amidst the chaotic sound of many instruments tuning, practicing, and warming up for the show. The pitch 'A' cuts it's way across the stage and every other instrument group will take a turn to tune for the concert.

 

    The next time you see a band or orchestra concert study carefully the size of each instrument.  How does size affect pitch and frequency?