Chords
Matthew Pelsma
I'm interested in learning the math behind the construction of chords
on the frequency level. If anyone could point me towards a website
with a chart, that would be great. I'm even lost on what to search
for. I've built something using the mtof box but I want to be able
to build chords between pitches. I'm ultimately trying to build 3+
voice chords. Any ideas?
~Matt
Steve Wilson
http://www.phy.mtu.edu/~suits/scales.html
The first link shows the frequencies of specific pitches.
The second link shows the ratios for the various intervals.
What do you mean by "build chords between pitches"? I'm not sure I
understand. Your patch seems to be doing the trick, but if you want
to avoid the mtof and work directly with frequency, just multiply the
frequency by the proper ratio to build chords.
For example - say you have a osc set to 440Hz (A) and you want a
minor third over that. Multiply by 1.2 (for Just intonation) or
1.18921 (for Equal temperament) and you've got 528Hz (just int.) or
523.2524Hz (equal temp.). Then if you go look on the frequency map,
sure enough C (a minor third above A 440) is 523.25hz.
The value you calculate using ratios is going to be a little
different than what you find on the frequency map. I don't know if
you've talked about tuning in theory class yet, but there are many
schools of thought on tuning. I'd get on google and do some research
if you're interested. Also, the Computer Music Tutorial should have
some info on this.
Anyway, those are just the two tuning methods they list on that
particular website. There are a variety of other strange tunings that
you could experiment with. Working in the frequency domain is a great
way to do microtonal stuff! You should try something microtonal. It's
definitely under-explored. Just think - when Harry Partch wanted to
make microtonal music, he had to invent new instruments or learn
difficult tunings on stringed instruments. All we have to do is punch
in a few numbers and we've got it.
In short, tuning is a rich area for exploration. I hope this helps.
--
Steve
> > <A_Minor.pd>