Why do we like music? A mathematical answer

Authors

  • Tomás Sanz-Perela

Keywords:

wave equation, harmonic spectrum, Fourier series, musical scales, dissonance

Abstract

Why do we like music? Why do we feel that the sound produced by one or more piano keys is music and yet we call the sound that a glass makes when falling to the ground noise? Why do we hear the same note played by a flute or a clarinet differently? And why, without having studied music, are we able to distinguish a person who has just started studying the violin and plays out of tune from an experienced one?

In this article, we give answers to these questions using mathematics as the main tool. To do so, our starting point will be the wave equation, which will allow us to understand the main properties of the sound produced by musical instruments. Based on this knowledge we will be able to understand the ideas which, throughout history, have been behind the construction of musical scales, which form the basis of most of the music we are acquainted with nowadays. Finally, we will study the concepts of dissonance and consonance from a mathematical perspective, and we will gain a better understanding about why some sounds are more pleasant than others.

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Published

2023-10-10

How to Cite

Sanz-Perela, T. (2023). Why do we like music? A mathematical answer. Butlletí De La Societat Catalana De Matemàtiques, 37(2), 173–204. Retrieved from https://revistes.iec.cat/index.php/BSCM/article/view/150655

Issue

Vol. 37 No. 2 (2022)

Section

Articles

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