ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the mechanics of musical instruments and how they create sound. Besides the construction and acoustic theory of how musical instruments work, their sound also depends greatly on how they’re played; there’s an intimate relationship between the instrument and the performer. The two basic types of musical instruments are percussive instruments and sustained instruments. Musical instruments radiate different frequencies in different directions, so what the player hears can be very different from what someone out in the audience hears. Various vibrational modes create different unrelated frequencies, with each having a different acoustic radiation pattern. As with loudspeakers, the vibrating wooden plates of a violin radiate more directionally at high frequencies. Playing off-pitch intentionally is easy with fretless instruments such as the violin or cello, and wind instrument players do that by varying their embouchure. Most instruments in the violin family are made using spruce wood for the front plate and maple for the back, sides, and neck.
