Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [resonance]

For questions about the resonance phenomenon in music.

A system is said to be "resonant" at a given frequency if, submitted periodically at this frequency, it produces a response which increasing with time, usually in an exponential manner if not dampened.

Resonances are everywhere in music instruments and acoustics in general: for strings instruments the sound produced will be a the resonance frequency of the string, for wind instruments it will be the resonance frequency of the air column in the instrument…

However, sometimes resonances are not desired. They are for instance responsible for the feedback effect.

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Why do guitarists put tape on their amplifiers?

I've never truly understood why so many guitarists put tape on their amplifiers. I have seen many YouTube videos where, before recording and placing a microphone towards their amp, they will put tape in certain places across the fabric of their…
John
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Why do certain rooms/vessels respond to specific frequencies?

Since I was a kid I was always wondering why is it that when I sing in a small room (i.e. bathroom!), whenever I touch a certain frequency, the whole room vibrates sympathetically. What are the parameters that make an acoustic body (be it a room,…
Shimmy Weitzhandler
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What gives the sitar its characteristic sound?

The sitar has an instantly recognisable sound: I've always assumed that the characteristic 'lush background drone' that I associate with the sitar came from its sympathetic strings resonating with the plucked string. But on Friday night when I…
dumbledad
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Does the lip really vibrate at the same frequency of a brass instrument?

The resonance of woodwind brass instruments can be modeled after a closed cylindrical pipe and calculated by the equation f = (nv)/(4L) where n denotes the number of harmonics, v the velocity of sound propagating in air, and L the length of the…
KMC
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Can old batter heads be used as resonant heads?

Is it possible to use old worn-out drum batter heads as resonant heads? I have a couple of heads that have dents in them, and are sounding pretty crap, and I'm wondering if it's worth using them as resonant heads, when those wear out. Will the dents…
naught101
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One note sounding louder than others - resonance? What to do?

When I play my guitar, the note A sounds annoyingly louder than other notes. This is most prominent with the open A string, though it happens in other octaves too. I guess this is because of resonance. In fact, when I lightly press on the soundboard…
anatolyg
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Acoustics of woodwinds with centered mouthpieces/openings

Common woodwind instruments, as you know, are blown into from one of the two ends; the acoustic studies for air columns mainly center around these. But I am attempting to understand the acoustics of a woodwind instrument in which one does not blow…
Sam
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Electric guitar is making a vibrating noise on hammer on

About 3 months ago I bought an Ibanez RG652FX. A few days ago I noticed a weird vibrating sound when I played a hammer-on on a G string. It is most noticeable when playing 9th to 11th fret hammer-on but it also happens on other adjacent frets in…
user1189571
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Does it matter if a digital piano has a large cabinet?

I am looking at purchasing a digital piano for a young student. We do not need it to be mobile. From pictures, many of the digital pianos in our budget (sub $3000) look like they have the same form-factor as a small upright piano (e.g. the Kawaii…
Village
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What is required in a hollow "tube" to resonate?

What is required in a hollow piece of tube of any shape to resonate and generate musical stable pitches and harmonics?
Lorthas
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Third resonant frequency when two notes are played

I have noticed that when two notes - relatively spaced apart, more than a tone and less than an octave - are played, there is a third frequency that can be heard, and this frequency lies between the two notes. I can't seem to find any information…
notsoscottishscot
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Digital home organ bass resonance

I got a home organ in my living room, and I get a lot of bass resonance. I'm looking for easiest ways how to get rid of these. The room is 350x590cm and 260cm high, the organ stands in the corner, about 8cm from each wall. Experimentally, the most…
yo'
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violin other string vibrates loudly when playing another string

When I play an A3 on my violin, the A5 string vibrates very loudly, to the point of the A5 string vibrating long after the A3 stops. I can even see the A5 open string vibrate. There is no problem for the E4 and E6 strings, or G3 and D4 strings, or…
phlaxyr
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Why do I hear tritone overtones when I play my G string very softly?

When I play the G string on my violin exceptionally softly, among the sympathetic overtones I hear is a diminished fifth. Why is this? Is this specific to my particular instrument? Out of curiosity, I tried this on another (cheap) violin and I…
dalearn
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When playing high notes on piano (above F6) lower notes can be heard. Why is this?

I can only hear this effect on F6 or above, but if I use the sustain pedal, i can hear it from G5. The higher the note the easier it is to hear the low notes.
elcocodrilotito
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