The physics of Overtone

Harmonic in Music
Johnson Fan - Aug ,1, 2023

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 Introduction
Music, at its core, is a tangible manifestation of physics. From the vibrations that
produce sound waves to the impact those waves have on our auditory system, physics is
an integral part of understanding how we create and perceive music. The science of
acoustics, in particular, plays a critical role in analyzing the physical properties of music.
One key concept in acoustics is the idea of harmonic overtones, a fundamental element
that shapes our perception of music. This paper explores the physics of overtone
harmonics in music, explaining how they generate musical sounds and how they
in uence our experience of music.

Understanding Sound, Frequency, and Harmonics

To understand overtone harmonics, we must rst grasp the fundamentals of sound

and frequency. Sound is a type of mechanical wave produced by the vibration of an object.
These vibrations create pressure waves in the surrounding medium (such as air), which
our ears detect and interpret as sound. The frequency of a sound wave, measured in Hertz
(Hz), refers to the number of these pressure waves (or cycles) that occur per second.
Frequency is directly related to our perception of pitch; higher frequencies are interpreted
as higher pitches, and vice versa.
Harmonics are integral components of musical sound. They are multiple frequencies
of a fundamental frequency, also known as the rst harmonic. The second harmonic, or
rst overtone, is twice the frequency of the fundamental, the third harmonic (second
overtone) is three times the frequency, and so on. These overtones create a series of pitches
that accompany the fundamental frequency, known as a harmonic series. In music, the
presence and balance of these overtones contribute signi cantly to the timbre, or "color,"
of a sound.

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 The Physical Generation of Harmonics

When we pluck a string on a guitar or strike a tuning fork, the object vibrates and
produces sound waves. The simplest vibration, the fundamental frequency, generates a
sound wave with a single frequency. But, in reality, the object doesn't vibrate uniformly;
different parts of the object vibrate at different speeds, producing different frequencies.
The modes of vibration are often represented by standing waves - patterns of wave
motion with speci c areas of maximum and minimum displacements, known as
antinodes and nodes respectively. The simplest mode is the fundamental frequency or rst
harmonic, with one antinode in the middle and nodes at the ends. This produces a wave
with a single frequency, the pitch that we associate with that note. However, the string can
also vibrate in more complex patterns, producing additional, higher frequency sounds -
these are the overtones or harmonic series.

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 Overtones and Perception of Music

The unique combination of the fundamental frequency and its overtones (harmonic
series) results in the speci c timbre or tone color of a musical sound. Different musical
instruments, while playing the same pitch, have distinctive sound qualities because they
produce different overtone patterns due to their physical properties like size, shape, and
material.
Interestingly, not only the presence but also the relative intensity of the overtones
plays a signi cant role in the character of a sound. Instruments or voices can emphasize or
de-emphasize certain harmonics through various techniques, signi cantly altering their
timbre.
Furthermore, our auditory system is designed to pick up on these overtones. The
human ear can hear frequencies from about 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. It's worth noting that the
harmonic series of any fundamental tone in the musical range will have overtones that fall
within this range, which means we are capable of detecting these overtones.

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 Calculating the Overtone Series

The harmonic series is a mathematical progression that forms the basis for much of
the sound we hear, particularly in music. When an object vibrates, it does not only vibrate
at a single frequency. Instead, it vibrates at multiple frequencies simultaneously, each
frequency being an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency, forming what is known
as the harmonic series.
Let's consider a guitar string as an example. If the fundamental frequency (f) of a
guitar string is 110 Hz (which corresponds to the note 'A'), the frequencies of the harmonic
series are simply integer multiples of this frequency.
1st harmonic (fundamental frequency): f = 110 Hz
2nd harmonic ( rst overtone): 2f = 2110 Hz = 220 Hz
3rd harmonic (second overtone): 3f = 3110 Hz = 330 Hz
4th harmonic (third overtone): 4f = 4110 Hz = 440 Hz
5th harmonic (fourth overtone): 5f = 5110 Hz = 550 Hz
And so on...

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 Each of these frequencies corresponds to a mode of vibration of the string. For
example, the fundamental frequency corresponds to the string vibrating as a whole,
whereas the second harmonic corresponds to the string vibrating in two sections with a
node in the middle, and the third harmonic corresponds to the string vibrating in three
sections with two nodes, etc.
The presence and relative amplitudes of these harmonics are what give a musical
instrument its characteristic sound or timbre.

Examining Harmonic Amplitudes and Timbre

The way that different instruments play these harmonics — how loud the overtones
are in relation to the fundamental — contributes to the unique sound of instruments, a
quality known as timbre. For instance, a ute and a violin playing the same note will
sound different due to the different balance of harmonics they produce.
To demonstrate this, let's consider a simpli ed scenario where we have an
instrument that only plays the fundamental frequency and the rst three overtones. We'll
denote the amplitude of the fundamental frequency as A, and the amplitudes of the rst,
second, and third overtones as A1, A2, and A3 respectively.
For instance, a ute might have relative amplitudes something like this: A=1,
A1=0.1, A2=0.05, A3=0.01, while a violin might have amplitudes more like A=1, A1=0.8,
A2=0.4, A3=0.2.
Even though both instruments are playing the same note (they have the same
fundamental frequency), they will sound different due to these differences in harmonic
amplitude.
This is a simpli ed example, but real-world instruments can produce many more
overtones, and the pattern of these overtones' amplitudes can be quite complex.
Analyzing these patterns is a major part of the study of acoustics and helps us understand
why different instruments and voices sound the way they do.

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 Conclusion

The physics of overtone harmonics serves as a pivotal factor in our understanding of

music. The harmonic series resulting from fundamental frequencies creates the distinct
tonal color of musical instruments, giving richness to our auditory experiences. The study
of overtone harmonics not only enhances our appreciation of music but also serves as a
powerful tool for composers and musicians, providing them a broader palette of sounds
to express their creativity. As we continue to explore the fascinating eld of music
acoustics, our knowledge about overtone harmonics will undoubtedly continue to grow,
revealing new dimensions of the musical soundscape.

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References:

1. Rossing, Thomas D., et al. The Science of Sound. 3rd ed., Addison Wesley, 2002.

2. Helmholtz, Hermann. On the Sensations of Tone as a Physiological Basis for the Theory
of Music. Dover Publications, 1954.

3. Sethares, William A. Tuning, Timbre, Spectrum, Scale. 2nd ed., Springer, 2005.

4. Levin, Theodore C., and Michael E. Edgerton. "The Throat Singers of Tuva." Scienti c
American, vol. 281, no. 3, 1999, pp. 80-87.

5. Backus, John. The Acoustical Foundations of Music. 2nd ed., W. W. Norton & Company,
1977.

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Fludd, Robert. “Temple Of Music.” Architecture as a Mnemonic Device: Robert Fludd’s Temple of
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IRN’S WORLD KNOWN INTERACTIVE FREQUENCY CHART, Darkboywonder, 22 May 2012,

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