Physics 103 /MUS 103 Acoustical
Foundations of Music
Text: Musical Acoustics, Donald E.
Hall, 3rd edition
Instructor: Dr. Matt Marone Room 243,
Science and Engineering building
Phone 301-2597, e-mail: marone_mj@mercer.edu
Office Hours: by appointment
Lecture: TR 10:50-12:05 Room 144
Science and Engineering Building
Laboratory: TR 1:40-2:55 Room 214
Prerequisite: SCI 105
General:
Physics and music, a strange mixture? We will examine music and sound from a
scientific point of view. Our
discussion will be one of waves and frequencies, as well as notes and
scales. By the end of the class you
will think of music in a different way.
You will be familiar with sound waves, propagation of sound, frequency,
harmonics, waves on strings and in tubes, effects dues to the listening
environment, perception and synthesis
of music. This is not an intensely
mathematical course, but some algebra is required. We shall encounter logarithms, for example, in our study of
loudness. You should have a calculator
capable of calculating logarithms (log, ln) and raising numbers to a power (Yx).
Grades:
Your Final class grade will be derived from the following percentages
Average of 2 Tests (45%)
In-class Quiz (15%)
Laboratory Experiments (25%)
Final Exam (15%)
You will not be graded on a “curve”.
Electronic Submission of Assignments: No e-mail with attachments will be accepted.
Students bear sole responsibility for ensuring that papers or assignments submitted electronically to a professor are received in a timely manner and in the electronic format(s) specified by the professor. Students are therefore obliged to have their e-mail client issue a receipt verifying that the document has been received. Students are also strongly advised to retain a copy of the dated submission on a separate disk. Faculty members are encouraged, but not required, to acknowledge receipt of the assignment
Tests: Make-up exams will only be given to students with valid excuses as defined by the university handbook (illness, emergency, class trips with prior notification). The make-up exam may be harder or easier than the regular in-class exam. Any disputes concerning a test grade must be resolved within one week from the time the tests are returned or from the time the grades are made known to the class. Partial credit will be awarded depending how many steps were done correctly in a multi-step problem. The amount of credit will be at the discretion of the instructor. No equation sheets are permitted. A list of useful equations and constant will be provided with the test. This list will be drawn.
Quizzes: There will be a 5-10 minute quiz every week. This quiz will cover any material discussed in class up to that
point of time. Make-up quizzes are
subject to the same conditions as make-up tests. The Quiz will usually be on Thursday. It may be necessary to change the day and the change will be
announced.
Final Exam: The final exam may include any material discussed in class.
Make-up exams will be subject to the same conditions as make-up tests.
Homework: Homework will not be graded, but it is suggested that students
work all the homework problems.
Laboratory Reports: Laboratory reports are to be the individual work of the student. You may work together with your lab. partner or other students, but the report must be written by you, and you alone. The format of the reports will be explained in the laboratory class.
Honor
code: You are bound by the Mercer honor
code. The College’s academic misconduct policy will be followed. All work, for which a grade is received,
must be the original work of the student without aid or assistance of
another party, or any printed and or electronic data/information. Academic
misconduct cases will be referred to the honor council and the student will
automatically receive a grade of incomplete (IC) pending a ruling by the honor
council.
Cell Phone and
Pager Usage: Out of courtesy
for all those participating in the learning experience, all cell phones and
pagers must be turned off before entering any classroom, lab, or formal
academic or performance event.
Eating in
class: Please do not eat in class. I do not mind if you drink, without drawing
attention to yourself.
Sleeping in
class: Please do not sleep in
class, you will be asked to leave.
Classroom etiquette: You are expected to conduct yourself as a mature student, respectful of your classmates and instructor. You may be asked to leave the room if your behavior is disturbing the instructor or your fellow students.
Documented
Disability Statement:
Students with a documented disability should inform
the instructor at the close of the first class meeting. The instructor will refer you to the office
of Student Support Services (SSS) for consultation regarding evaluation,
documentation of your disability, and recommendations for accommodation, if
needed. Students will receive from SSS
the Faculty Accommodation Form.
On this form SSS will identify reasonable accommodations for this
class. The form must be given to the
course instructor for signature and then returned to SSS.
To take full advantage of disability services, it is recommended that students contact the Office of Student Support Services, immediately. The office is located on the third floor of the Connell Student Center.
Material To
Be Covered (Tentative)
Ch. 1 The Nature of Sound
Ch. 2 Waves and Vibrations
Ch. 3 Sources of Sound
Ch. 4 Sound Propagation
******************Test 1******************
Ch. 5 Sound Intensity and Its Measurement
Ch. 6 The Human Ear and its Response
Ch. 8 Sound Spectra and Electronic Synthesis
Ch. 10 Piano and Guitar Strings
Ch. 11 The Bowed String
****************Test 2*******************
Ch.
14 The Human Voice
Ch.
15 Room Acoustics
***********Final
Exam Last day of class includes Chapters 12, 14, 15 *************
Note: We will not cover every section of these chapters. You will be advised about which sections we
will skip during class.
Important Dates:
Final exam will be last day of class
2/26 section 101 and 4/24 section 202
Last day to drop 2/11 section 101, 4/9 section 202
Experiments
1)
Sounds
of Music
2)
How
Loud is it?
3)
Ripples
4)
Waves
on a String
5)
Waves
in Tubes
6)
Seeing
Sound
7)
Seeing
Nodes-Chladni Plates