Academy of Wisdom
Harmony0/12
From the basics of sound to scales, chords, progressions, and song analysis — the complete course in harmony
Lesson 1/12Sound and Pitch
Beginner
From vibration to musical pitch: how sound waves carry frequency, how our ears interpret pitch, and how the overtone series shapes the color of every instrument.
Objectives
- Understand the physics of sound waves
- Relate frequency to pitch
- Discover the overtone series
Step 1/3The Nature of Sound
All sound begins with vibration. When a guitar string is plucked, it oscillates back and forth, pushing and pulling the surrounding air molecules. These compressions and rarefactions travel outward as a sound wave. The speed of sound in air is roughly 343 meters per second at room temperature.
Two properties define every sound wave:
- *Frequency — the number of complete cycles per second, measured in Hertz (Hz). A higher frequency produces a higher pitch. Concert A is standardized at 440 Hz.
- *Amplitude — the magnitude of displacement, which determines loudness.