The Science of Musical Sound ― Stringed Instruments, Pipe Organs, and the Human Voice

This textbook is a product of William Bennett’s work in developing and teaching a course on the physics of music at Yale University to a diverse audience of musicians and science students in the same class. The book is a culmination of over a decade of teaching the course and weaves together historical descriptions of the physical phenomena with the author’s clear interpretations of the most important aspects of the science of music and musical instruments. Many of the historical examples are not found in any other textbook available on the market. As the co-inventor of the Helium-Neon laser, Prof. Bennett’s knowledge of physics was world-class. As a professor at one of the most prestigious liberal-arts universities in the world, his appreciation for culture and humanities shines through. The book covers the basics of oscillations, waves and the analysis techniques necessary for understanding how musical instruments work. All types of stringed instruments, pipe organs, and the human voice are covered in this volume. A second volume covers the remaining families of musical instruments as well as selected other topics. Readers without a background in acoustics will enjoy learning the physics of the Science of Musical Sound from a preeminent scientist of the 20^th century. Those well versed in acoustics will discover wonderful illustrations and photographs depicting familiar concepts in new and enlightening ways.

William R. Bennett, Jr. (1930-2008) was a renowned physicist and professor at Yale University. Prof. Bennett is best known as co-inventor of the Helium-Neon laser. For over ten years, Prof. Bennett taught a widely popular undergraduate course on the physics of music at Yale, upon which this two-volume text is based. Prof. Bennett completed his B.A. at Princeton and received his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1957. Over the course of his long career, Prof. Bennett was the recipient of numerous awards and honors, and served as master of Yale's Silliman College from 1981-1987.