![Abstract: This lecture aims at introducing a general audience to the beautiful relationship between maths, physics and music. We will explore the evolution of ideas that led to the equal temperament tuning, the 12-note system which prevails in much music worldwide. The main characters in this story are the wave equation in a string and its pure solutions, which are given by waves with integral periods; the relations between them which are rational numbers; and finally, a twist in the plot where equal-tempe](/sites/prod.maths.sca-lws06.anu.edu.au/files/AdobeStock_5860039_Preview.jpeg)
Harmony, rational and irrational numbers, and their relationships in music
On rational and irrational numbers, strings and harmony
Date & time
Date/time
20 Aug 2024 6:00pm - 20 Aug 2024 8:00pm
Speaker
Speakers
Uri Onn (ANU)
Contact
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Abstract
This lecture aims at introducing a general audience to the beautiful relationship between maths, physics and music. We will explore the evolution of ideas that led to the equal temperament tuning, the 12-note system which prevails in much music worldwide. The main characters in this story are the wave equation in a string and its pure solutions, which are given by waves with integral periods; the relations between them which are rational numbers; and finally, a twist in the plot where equal-tempered tuning is actually done with irrational numbers to achieve symmetry.
Location
Llewellyn Hall, Building 100, William Herbert Pl, Canberra ACT 2601
-35.280538344104, 149.12325739861