The Science of Sound

This book is exceptionally clear in its writing and careful attention to definitions and summaries of key facts. I wish all of my technical books were this clear.

CONTENTS: PART 1 - MOTION, ENERGY, WAVES, AND OTHER PHYSICAL PRINCIPLES 1 - Motion, Force, and Energy * Distance * Speed and velocity * Graphical representation of motion * Acceleration * Force, mass and Newton's Laws * pressure * Work and Energy * Power * Units 2 - Vibrating Systems * Simple harmonic motion * Energy and damping * Simple vibrating systems * Systems with 2 or 3 masses * Systems with many modes of vibration * Vibrations in musical instruments * Complex vibrations: vibrations spectra 3 - Waves * What is a wave? * Progressive waves * Impulsive waves: reflection * Superposition and interference * Sound waves * Wave propagation in 2 and 3 dimensions * The Doppler effect * Reflection * Refraction * Diffraction * Interference 4 - Resonance * Resonance of a mass-spring vibrator * Phase of driven vibrations * Standing waves on a string * Partials, harmonics, and overtones * Open and closed pipes * Acoustic impendance * Helmholtz resonator * Sympathetic vibrations: soundborads PART II - PERCEPTION AND MEASUREMENT OF SOUND 5 - Hearing * The hearing function * Structure of the ear * Binaural hearing and localization * Measuring sensations: psychophysics * Logarithms and powers of tens * Subjective attributes of sound 6 - Sound Pressure, Power, and Loudness * Sound pressure level * Sound power and intensity levels * Multiple sources * Loudness levels * Loudness of pure tones: sones * Loudness of complex tones: critical bands * Loudness of combined sounds * Musical dynamics and loudness * Masking * Loudness and duration: impulsive sounds 7 - Pitch and Timbre * Seebeck's siren and Ohm's Law: a historical note * Theories of pitch: place pitch vs. periodicity itch * Pitch scaling and discrimination * Pitch and duration * Pitch and sound level * Pitch of complex tones: dependence on spectrum * Absolute pitch * Pitch standard * Timbre or tone quality * Fourier analysis of complex tones * Timbre and dynamic effects: envelope and duration * Vibrato * Blend of complex tones 8 - Combination Tones and Harmony * Linear superposition * Phase angles * Combination of two simple harmonic motions * Pure tones with slightly different harmonic motions * The musical staff: musician's graph paper * Combination tones * Modulation of one tone by another * Other nonlinear effects: aural harmonics and summation tones * Consonance and dissonance: musical intervals * The effect of phase on timbre * Beats of mistuned consonances * The central nervous system: autocorrelation and cross-correlation * Cerebral dominance PART III - ACOUSTICS OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS 9 - Musical Scales and Temperament * The scale of just intonation * The Pythagorean scale * Meantone temperament * Equal temperament * Tuning to equal temperament * Electronic tuners * Intonation 10 - String Instruments * Construction of the violin * Vibrations of a plucked string * Vibrations of a bowed string * Vibrations of the violin body * Tuning the top and back plates * Other

This book is very informational and thorough for a college student. Best of all, for a decently thick book, it's very lightweight! Great for a student like me with a bad back. Highly suggested for anyone who wants to learn more about the world's sounds.

I have used this book as the primary textbook for an introductory course in the physics of music. It is at a somewhat higher level than some of its competitors (e.g. "The Acoustical Foundations of Music" by Backus) but still suitable for non-science majors with weak math backgrounds. It is the most thorough and informative book I have seen at this level. However, the students complained that it was somewhat dull. Also, the section on electronic reproduction of music is out of date--relatively little on CD's etc., and nothing on mp3 and related technologies. Still, I plan to use it again.

I have taught a course entitled "Acoustics for Musicians and Recording Engineers" to Engineering, Music, and Film majors using Rossing's THE SCIENCE OF SOUND. He has toned down the equations enough that the students aren't groaning, yet he's remained true to the interdisciplinary nature of acoustics as a pursuit of physics, psychology, math, and engineering. The structure of the book provides a wonderful outline for the course and it has been an invaluable resource for both me and the students who have wished to continue with their study of acoustics.