Frequency: Difference between revisions

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By convention, frequency refers to the ''linear'' measure of how "high" or "low" a sound is. That is, a sound that is twice the frequency has twice as many oscillations per second.

Usually, absolute frequency in Hz is not of interest to musicians (even in xenharmony), because human ~~hearing perceives~~ [[ratio]]s of frequency instead of absolute frequencies. Because of this, a standard frequency is usually set (by convention, at 440 Hz, which corresponds to the A above middle C), and the frequencies of other notes in the scale are defined by multiplying that base frequency by ratios.

Usually, absolute frequency in Hz is not of interest to musicians (even in xenharmony), because human beings tend to perceive and memorize [[ratio]]s of frequency instead of absolute frequencies. Because of this, a standard frequency is usually set (by convention, at 440 Hz, which corresponds to the A above middle C), and the frequencies of other notes in the scale are defined by multiplying that base frequency by ratios.

Frequency is different from [[pitch]], which is the ''logarithmic'' measure of how "high" or "low" a sound is. Multiplications in frequency translate to additions in pitch; the notes in an equal tuning are equally spaced in pitch.

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 By convention, frequency refers to the ''linear'' measure of how "high" or "low" a sound is. That is, a sound that is twice the frequency has twice as many oscillations per second.
-Usually, absolute frequency in Hz is not of interest to musicians (even in xenharmony), because human hearing perceives [[ratio]]s of frequency instead of absolute frequencies. Because of this, a standard frequency is usually set (by convention, at 440 Hz, which corresponds to the A above middle C), and the frequencies of other notes in the scale are defined by multiplying that base frequency by ratios.
+Usually, absolute frequency in Hz is not of interest to musicians (even in xenharmony), because human beings tend to perceive and memorize [[ratio]]s of frequency instead of absolute frequencies. Because of this, a standard frequency is usually set (by convention, at 440 Hz, which corresponds to the A above middle C), and the frequencies of other notes in the scale are defined by multiplying that base frequency by ratios.
 Frequency is different from [[pitch]], which is the ''logarithmic'' measure of how "high" or "low" a sound is. Multiplications in frequency translate to additions in pitch; the notes in an equal tuning are equally spaced in pitch.