How do the waves of musical notes affect sound?

Question

How do the waves of musical notes affect sound? Hence Can “good music” be made by predicting notes that will sound good together using trig functions.

Answer 1

To answer this question, one should know how human brain works.



As other people quoted, music is a combination of frequencies.



I think these are the key factors that makes a piece of music.



1) Frequency (note)

2) Amplitude (volume)

3) Noise or wave structure (instrument/source of the wave)

4) Pattern (what comes next after a particular note)

5) Repetition (keeps the listener in the same mood)

6) Timing/Beat (gives predictability to the flow)



As you can see it is pretty complex. Yet I think the last three are the major contributors to the " quality" of the music.



Is there a mathematical relation between these that makes a "good" music ? I think it works the other way around. ie: if you find good music, you can find a math relationship. But as far as I know there is no equation for good music.



I have learned Indian music which I think has more "flow". What I have noticed is that #4 in the above list is the biggest contributor. By changing just one note in a pattern you can generate a completely different piece of music.



In short.. ask your brain :)

Answer 2

Their frequency determines the pitch (which note) and their harmonics determine the richness of the sound. The amplitude of the waves determines the loudness.



What notes sound good together is a matter of taste and cultural background. Western music tends to be grouped in octaves (eights) and half note intervals (e.g., sharp and flat). But Asians (Indian and Chinese for example) group their music in larger numbers and in smaller frequency intervals.



One can take courses in music that teach all about "good music" including the equations for calculating the next half step up or down. They are not trig equation but they are logarithmic as I recall. It's been years (no decades) since I took music in HS.

Answer 3

Sound IS a wave, not something 'affected' by waves.

I'm sure there's a way to do what you're suggesting - the link between math and music is well known - but I'm not sure of any specifics.