UNIV 213
Science and Engineering of Music and Sound

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Bucknell University Course Catalog Description

"Exploration of how musical instruments work, including timbre and pitch control and related concepts such as scales and temperament. Fundamental concepts of acoustics, such as frequency, wavelength, resonance, sound pressure level, the decibel unit, and human perception of sound. Fundamentals of sound recording and reproduction systems."

Detailed Description

The primary objective of this course is to explore the mathematical, scientific, and engineering foundations of sound and music. Broad topic areas include the basic concepts of acoustics, the human perception of sound, how various types of musical instruments work, the fundamentals of sound recording and reproduction systems, and the acoustics of performance spaces.

Specific topics that are likely to be covered include:

• Wave nature of sound
• Vibrating systems
• Sound pressure level and the decibel unit
• Structure of the human inner ear
• String instruments
• Woodwind instruments
• Brass instruments
• Percussion instruments
• Scales and temperament
• Absorption, reflection, refraction, and diffraction and room acoustics
• Basic operation of loudspeakers and microphones

The course is intended for students who are serious about exploring the mathematical nature of music and sound. The mathematical content is mostly at the pre-calculus level, but students should nevertheless enjoy mathematics to some degree and should have a good understanding of and affinity for algebra, trigonometry, and fundamental concepts such as functions, exponents, logarithms, graphs, and summations. Students should also be fascinated with how things work and open to enhancing their knowledge of the basic scientific and engineering principles that underlie vibrations, hearing, and acoustics in general.

Lectures are typically interspersed with interactive discussions and in-class examples of problem solving. Some class meetings include visits by local musicians who demonstrate their instruments and explain how they work. There is also at least one field trip to the university auditorium to gain first-hand experience with a variety of acoustics principles.

The course is open to all majors. The first time the course was offered, the distribution of majors was roughly 60% from the College of Engineering and 40% from the College of Arts & Sciences and College of Management.

Prerequisites

None.

Class Meetings

The lecture section meets 12:00-12:52 pm Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in Breakiron 166. There are no lab or recitation sections.