The Physics of Sound and Music

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

The physics of sound and music, including musical acoustics and sound reproduction. The course will introduce basic Newtonian mechanics, oscillating systems, wave motion, sound, Fourier synthesis, psychoacoustics and hearing, and the musical acoustics of various instruments. It will also include a short introduction to electricity and magnetism, and the physics of microphones, loudspeakers, phonographs, digital recording, and electronic synthesizers. The course will make use of some algebra and trigonometry, but no other physics or mathematics background is necessary.