Musical Instruments A (VS1) (U02681)

? Credit Points : 10 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : PHY-3-VMusInstA

The course reviews the current understanding of the physics of musical instruments and explores the relationship between theory and practice in musical instrument construction and performance. Four lectures on the acoustics of strings, brass, woodwind, and percussion are followed by a series of seminars in which students present the results of their research on prescribed topics in musical instrument acoustics.

Entry Requirements

? This course is only available to part year visiting students.

? This course is a variant of the following course : U01373

? Pre-requisites : Year 1 Musical Acoustics, or equivalent.

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Undergraduate (School of Physics), (School of Physics, Schedule Q)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Semester 1 (Blocks 1-2)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 11 weeks

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Monday	11:10	13:00	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course it is intended that a student will be able to:
1)understand and explain the basic operating principles of stringed instruments, review current theories of the bow-string interaction, and explain the significance of modes of vibration of the body of a stringed instrument
2)understand and explain the basic operating principles of brass instruments, review current theories of the nature of the lip reed, and explain the influence of bore profile on the modes of vibration of the air column of a wind instrument
3)understand and explain the basic operating principles of woodwind instruments, describe the sound generating mechanisms of the flute, clarinet and oboe, and explain the frequency-dependent behaviour of open side holes on a wind instrument
4)understand and explain the basic operating principles of percussion instruments, give qualitative descriptions of the modes of vibration of an air-loaded drumskin, a tubular bell and a cymbal, and discuss the perception of pitch in the sound of percussion instruments
5)understand and explain the basic operating principles of electroacoustic, electromechanical and electronic instruments
6)review current theories of the operation of the larynx in singing, explain the relationship between vocal tract resonances and vowel formants, and outline the physical principles underlying advanced singing techniques
7)carry out a study of research literature in a prescribed topic in musical instrument acoustics, and present the results as a seminar paper