Hi there I have to write an essay about the acoustic properties about an instrument...we were told to have the following at least...how a scale is produced and how a note is produced...and any other special things about it..I chose the piano (surprise surprise Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! ) well I know how A note is produced but as for a scale, is it basically the same as a note but with the strings tuned at different frequencies/tensions hence different sounding notes...something along those lines???...also if I write about the soundboard, frame, tuning, are all these things considered "acoustic properties"...also the "Action" of a piano is just how a notes is produced right...the hammer thrown against the strings etc etc?? Thanks physics_06er
Either your instructor didn't prepare you for this essay, or you weren't paying attention, or you're in an AP course and expected to roll up your sleeves and do some real, if basic, research. First you need to understand the concept of a "scale." I'll give you a basic definition to get you started: An ordered series of notes whose frequencies are in a defined ratio, which when arranged in a sequence ("melody") or played simuitaneously ("chord") sound pleasant to the human ear ("harmony"). You should look up the words in quotes to keep going. Since you have a piano handy you should actually play the notes in the examples you will find, in order to correlate the non-verbal effect of what you hear with the verbal information you are reading, and thus organize your thoughts to prepare for discussion. The acoustic properties of an instrument are the relation among the particular physical attributes of the particular instrument, and the resulting musical attributes of the sounds we hear. Look up words like "pitch," "timbre," "overtones," "range," and "sustain." The action of a piano, or any hand-operated musical instrument, is the entire set of movements that start with the deliberate movement of some part of the instrument by the musician's hand, finger, etc., continuing through the functioning of the internal apparatus, if any, and resulting in the organized vibration of air that is a musical note. In a piano that starts with the pressing of a key (and possibly the simultaneous press or release of a pedal) and ends with the hammer hitting one string or a course of strings and causing them to vibrate. In a piano that series of motions is quite complicated and delicate; you have not chosen an easy instrument to study for this purpose. The term is not used with academic precision by all musicians. Guitarists tend to use "action" to mean the difficulty of pressing the strings against the fretboard with the fingers of the left hand, not including the actual plucking of the strings with the right hand. You can probably accomplish a lot of your initial search with Wikipedia and Freedictionary. You're not getting into anything controversial and you can trust the sources. A live conversation with a caring music teacher--even an amateur--in the presence of a musical instrument would be immensely helpful. Good luck.
Hi there Thanks for the help...yeah will definately be looking up those words-umm yeah I do pay attention in class lol sometimes kinda hard to when its the last class of the day at 5pm and you've just had 3hrs straight b4 that with other classes Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! ...anyway unfortunately I do not have access to a piano (by surprise surprise I just mean it seemed to be the "easiest" so thought it would be the obvious choice to write about as it requires approx. 1500 words)..I am def. not a musican (soo regret taking this paper-thought my 10yrs of piano accordion playing would mean something but then I didn't do much of the theory side of things)....but yeah thanks for you post...better get onto that essay!
