Spectral Analysis of Musical Notes as a Source of Information About Musical Instruments

The integration of physics, music, and mathematics has long been used to increase students’ interest and motivation in these subjects. For example, previous articles in this journal have shown how to teach physical concepts in a musical context, use a smartphone to check the resonant frequencies of whistles, use a smartphone to examine the spectra of sounds, and apply Fourier analysis to the study of musical intervals. This article is devoted to the audio recordings analysis of saxophone sounds, violin, guitar, piano, hand bell, and ocarina in the Audacity editor. The purpose of this analysis is to determine the amplitude-frequency structures of musical notes and obtain information for the classroom about the physical characteristics of musical instruments and some playing techniques.