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ELI5 Yahaaa

The same note, a different mix

Why Does a Piano Not Sound Like a Violin?

A flute and a violin can play exactly the same note, and nobody would ever confuse them.

A flute Almost pure — fewextrasA violin A rich stack of extrason top
Same note. Different company.

  1. Step 1 of 5

    Nothing plays only one note.

    The main notethe one you hearas the pitchHalf the lengthan octave up,quieterA thirdhigher andquieter stillAnd on upwardsfainter andfainter

    A vibrating string or air column shudders in halves, thirds and quarters at the same time as its whole length. So it sounds its main note plus a stack of quieter higher ones.

  2. Step 2 of 5

    The mix of extras is the instrument's voice.

    A flute's recipe Very few extras —smooth and pureA violin's recipe Many extras — brightand complex

    Every instrument emphasises a different set of those extras — its shape, material and how it is played all favour some over others. That recipe is what you recognise.

  3. Step 3 of 5

    The first moment matters most.

    1 The scrape orthump of thestart2 Then it settlesinto the note3 Your ear usesthat firstmoment most

    Cut off the first fraction of a second and even musicians struggle to tell a piano from a violin. The scrape, breath or thump at the start carries much of the identity.

  4. Step 4 of 5

    How it fades matters too.

    Plucked Loud at once, thenfadingBowed or blown Held as long as youlike

    A plucked string starts loud and dies away with no help. A bowed or blown note can be held steady forever and stopped instantly. That shape over time is as recognisable as the tone.

  5. Step 5 of 5

    It is why a recording is never quite the room.

    A very good recording Missing a little of whatyour ear checks

    Capturing the mix of extras, the first moment and the fade exactly is very demanding. What is lost is small and precisely the part your ear uses to recognise an instrument.

    Two singers with identical pitch are told apart the same way. The voice you recognise is the mix, not the note.

The short version

Instruments sound different because each adds its own mix of quieter higher notes, and starts and fades in its own way.

Try it yourself

Hum a note, then whistle the same one. Same pitch, completely different sound — the mix of extras changed.

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