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A model of a single reed instrument is studied in which the reed is described as an Euler-Bernoulli beam, and the air flow through the instrument is calculated using the Navier-Stokes equations. The hypothetical instrument resembles a clarinet, but is smaller than a real clarinet to keep the numerical modeling feasible on available supercomputers. This article explores the conditions under which the frequency of the reed oscillations and the emitted sound are determined by the resonant frequency of the bore of the instrument. The effect of the contact between the reed and the player's lips is also studied, and quantitative results for the air density and pressure in the mouthpiece and throughout the instrument bore are also presented.

This study offers a metric to investigate transition times between articulated notes for reed instruments such as clarinets and bass clarinets. The method requires analysis of measurements of musician mouthpiece pressure. For this paper, the data were recorded using sensor-equipped mouthpieces made for the clarinet and bass clarinet. The method leads to a metric called the transition time (ΔT), which allows for comparing duration measured between notes for clarinets played in different musical contexts (dynamics, tempos, etc.) and playing regimes and between players.

International audience; Sound production on a " coaxial saxophone " is investigated experimentally. The coaxial saxophone is a variant of the cylindrical saxophone made up of two tubes mounted in parallel, which can be seen as a low-frequency analogy of a truncated conical resonator with a mouthpiece. Initially developed for the purposes of theoretical analysis, an experimental verification of the analogy between conical and cylindrical saxophones has never been reported. The present paper explains why the volume of the cylindrical saxophone mouthpiece limits the achievement of a good playability. To limit the mouthpiece volume, a coaxial alignment of pipes is proposed and a prototype of coaxial saxophone is built. An impedance model of coaxial resonator is proposed and validated by comparison with experimental data. Sound production is also studied through experiments with a blowing machine. The playability of the prototype is then assessed and proven for several values of the blowing pressure, of the embouchure parameter, and of the instrument's geometrical parameters.

International audience; An approach for the estimation of single reed parameters during playing, using an instrumented mouthpiece and an iterative method, is presented. Different physical models describing the reed tip movement are tested in the estimation method. The uncertainties of the sensors installed on the mouthpiece and the limits of the estimation method are studied. A tenor saxophone reed is mounted on this mouthpiece connected to a cylinder, played by a musician, and characterized at different dynamic levels. Results show that the method can be used to estimate the reed parameters with a small error for low and medium sound levels (piano and mezzoforte dynamic levels). The analysis reveals that the complexity of the physical model describing the reed behavior must increase with dynamic levels. For medium level dynamics, the most relevant physical model assumes that the reed is an oscillator with non-linear stiffness and damping, the effect of mass (inertia) being very small.

The mouthpiece is one of the key components in determining the sound and the playability of the saxophone. Assuming plane-wave propagation inside the mouthpiece, two different models are proposed for acoustic modeling of the saxophone mouthpiece. First, a Transfer Matrix (TM) model is derived from a finite element model and is then validated by comparing the calculated input impedance of a mouthpiece-cone structure with measurements. Then, by adapting a methodology traditionally used in modeling the human vocal tract, a Geometric Model (GM) is used to approximate the mouthpiece as a series of acoustic tubes of varying cross-sectional areas, and its accuracy is examined by comparing it with the TM mouthpiece model. We couple both models to a measured input impedance of an alto saxophone and provide a comparison of both methods and their impact on different fingering configurations. Finally, we discuss applications in sound synthesis and in mouthpiece design.

Articulation on woodwind instruments is achieved inside the player’s mouth, where the tongue interacts with the vibrating reed, while the player adjusts the blowing pressure, the lip force, and the vocal tract configuration. The performed articulation technique defines the characteristics of the attack and release transients and thus the transitions between tones. In this study, an artificial blowing machine with a built-in tonguing system is used to analyze different tonguing strategies in single-reed woodwinds. The tonguing system is controlled via an electronically monitored shaker, offering the possibility to reproduce tongue articulation, while assuring repeatability. To reproduce different playing techniques, parameters obtained from measurements with players are used to set up the pressure in the artificial mouth and the behaviour of the tonguing system. During the experiment, the artificial-mouth pressure, the mouthpiece pressure, the reed displacement, and the shaker acceleration are recorded. The recorded signals are then compared to real-playing clarinet and saxophone measurements. Different trajectories for the artificial tongue are tested as well as different tongue-reed-contact durations. The artificial blowing and tonguing set-up, along with the images obtained with a high-speed camera, provide an in-depth understanding of the processes taking place inside the player's mouth.Articulation on woodwind instruments is achieved inside the player’s mouth, where the tongue interacts with the vibrating reed, while the player adjusts the blowing pressure, the lip force, and the vocal tract configuration. The performed articulation technique defines the characteristics of the attack and release transients and thus the transitions between tones. In this study, an artificial blowing machine with a built-in tonguing system is used to analyze different tonguing strategies in single-reed woodwinds. The tonguing system is controlled via an electronically monitored shaker, offering the possibility to reproduce tongue articulation, while assuring repeatability. To reproduce different playing techniques, parameters obtained from measurements with players are used to set up the pressure in the artificial mouth and the behaviour of the tonguing system. During the experiment, the artificial-mouth pressure, the mouthpiece pressure, the reed displacement, and the shaker acceleration are recorded. Th...

Measuring air flow inside a clarinet mouthpiece is a difficult task but an important characterization step if the computational model of the instrument is to be as accurate as possible. Several studies have focused on solving this problem computationally, and some experimentally, using Schlieren imaging techniques. Though effective, the Schlieren technique is tricky and time consuming and does not offer the spatial resolution necessary to detect the small changes in flow. For the clarinet, there are two flow contributions in the clarinet mouthpiece (AC/DC flow and reed-induced flow) that need to be better understood experimentally in order to include them accurately in the computational models. Here, this flow characterization begins with a simpler, non-moving-reed instrument—an organ pipe. Building off of the previous presentation, this work details the physical measurements possible with the ESPI technique and will briefly discuss the implications of this discovery on one particular computational model.

We use the Navier-Stokes equations to model how air flows in the mouthpiece region of the recorder. Different geometrical designs for this region are investigated, and the effect of these modifications on the tonal properties are studied. We find that simple changes from the standard mouthpiece geometry can have large effects on the resulting spectra which we have traced to changes in the vortex patterns near the labium. Our modeling results have been tested by using 3D printing to make instruments suggested to be most promising. The modeling results also reveal how subtle changes in features like the sharpness of the labium can have a profound effect on the behavior. [Work supported by NSF grant PHY1513273.]

The functioning of musical instruments has been an active area of research since the beginning of the last century, using both theoretical approaches and experimental measurements. Regarding wind instruments, the subtleties of embouchure control are of particular interest, since the actions of the player's lips and tongue evade direct measurement. One approach towards analyzing such actions is by extracting relevant information from signals that allow non-intrusive measurements, such as the blowing pressure, the mouthpiece pressure and the reed bending [Pamies-Vila et al. (2018) Frontiers in Psychology 9: 617]. Alternatively, it is possible to formulate a physical model of the player-instrument interaction and estimate the actions of the player while resynthesizing the oscillations of the instrument [Chatziioannou et al. (2012) Acta Acustica united with Acustica 98(4): 629–639]. This work presents such an attempt based on measurements carried out on expert clarinet players. An excerpt of Weber's clarinet concerto No. 2 is performed by the players and resynthesized using a refined physical model taking embouchure effects into account. Using inverse modeling, the underlying model parameters are being tracked in order to extract information on the physical phenomena that take place at the excitation mechanism. The functioning of musical instruments has been an active area of research since the beginning of the last century, using both theoretical approaches and experimental measurements. Regarding wind instruments, the subtleties of embouchure control are of particular interest, since the actions of the player's lips and tongue evade direct measurement. One approach towards analyzing such actions is by extracting relevant information from signals that allow non-intrusive measurements, such as the blowing pressure, the mouthpiece pressure and the reed bending [Pamies-Vila et al. (2018) Frontiers in Psychology 9: 617]. Alternatively, it is possible to formulate a physical model of the player-instrument interaction and estimate the actions of the player while resynthesizing the oscillations of the instrument [Chatziioannou et al. (2012) Acta Acustica united with Acustica 98(4): 629–639]. This work presents such an attempt based on measurements carried out on expert clarinet players. An excerpt of Weber's clarinet ...

The resonances of the vocal tract are used by single-reed woodwind players for tuning purposes, timbre modification, and other musical effects. Using pressure or impedance measurements, the influence of the vocal tract on saxophone playing has been previously studied for steady tones. This study considers note transitions in which the players might perform vocal tract modifications (e.g., wide intervals) and combines pressure and reed bending measurements to analyze the effect of the vocal tract as well as its dependence on the articulation technique. The measurement setup consists on recording the acoustic pressure in the players' mouth and in the mouthpiece of the instrument. A strain gauge attached to the reed surface captures both the reed oscillations and the tongue-reed interaction due to articulation. Complementary details about the playing technique are obtained by recording the upper teeth force on the mouthpiece and the open-closed configuration of two selected keys. Preliminary results show tha...

Single-reed woodwind instruments have been traditionally used in marching bands, along with brass and percussion instruments. However their sound is often covered by louder instruments, making them less audible to the audience and the members of the band. Indeed, the saxophone has been designed in order to replace the clarinet in military bands, making the woodwind section of the band more prominent. This study discusses the sound generation mechanism of single-reed woodwind instruments in an attempt to investigate which reed and mouthpiece properties significantly affect the amplitude of the radiated sound. To this end, transfer function measurements and numerical investigations using physical modeling are employed. The former may indicate how the use of different mouthpiece geometries and various types of reeds may have an effect on the sound magnitude. The latter can be used to systematically vary reed and embouchure related parameters while observing how changes in these parameters affect the radiated...

The tonal characteristics of five different types of mouthpieces for the tenor saxophone will be compared. The mouthpieces are all widely available and used by present-day musicians; some are designed and marketed for general use and others are intended for specific musical styles or performance situations. Frequency spectra will be presented for each mouthpiece, and results will be discussed relative to the design features of each. Analytical data are in turn compared to the results of a survey among listeners seeking descriptive terms for the tonal characteristics produced.

Skillful players of brass instruments and reed woodwinds are able to control the vocal tract effectively and perform with intended pitches and sound qualities. The player’s vocal tract is, to a first approximation, connected with the instrument bore acoustically in series. If the magnitude of the vocal tract impedance is comparable with the bore impedance, the acoustic pressure in the mouth can then exert influences with a vibrating reed. However, studies reliant enough to confirm the configuration of the vocal tract while playing are limited. In this study, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) device was used to scan the vocal tract in three dimensions. The participant was an amateur saxophone player and the instrument was made from reed, mouthpiece, and a short uniform tube. Image data revealed how the vocal tract was formed when she blew a number of different notes. They were also used to determine the cross-sectional area and the input impedance of the vocal tract. The results were compared with trumpet...

A vacuumed artificial mouth has been assembled and tested to measure reed velocity for a Bb clarinet along the width of the reed. Reed velocity measurements may be useful for better estimation of parameters in physical models, such as the relevant surface area of the vibrating reed. Use of a vacuum system instead of a pressurized mouth chamber allows straightforward observation and manipulation of the mouthpiece apparatus. Point measurements of reed velocity were obtained via a laser-Doppler vibrometer directed at the reed surface when artificially blown. Simultaneous high-speed exposures were recorded to visualize reed motion. Preliminary results indicate that the velocity amplitude of any torsional motion in the reed is negligible compared to an asymmetric reed velocity, likely caused by natural limitations of the clarinet ligature. Velocity measurements also indicate that the reed may sometimes rebound against the mouthpiece in its oscillatory period. High-speed exposures support this conclusion by vis...

This research investigates the modeling of harmonic generation occurring in trombone sound production at loud dynamic levels. The profile of a tenor trombone was approximated as a set of contiguous cylindrical tubes. A linear model of the trombone was obtained by requiring continuity of pressure and flow between adjacent tubes. The mouthpiece and radiated pressure spectra were measured in an anechoic chamber for several pitches played in first position at several dynamic levels. The measured mouthpiece spectra were processed by the model, taking into account harmonic generation due to wave‐front steepening. Results comparing the calculated radiated spectra with the measured radiated spectra will be reported, along with an overview of the algorithm.

Because brass instrument mouthpieces are considered by musicians to be the single most important component of the instrument, a comparative investigation was made of seven French horn mouthpieces widely used by professional musicians. Acoustic parameters were obtained from both measured and computed impedance curves for the mouthpieces attached to a cylindrical tube with an overall length approximating that of the horn in B-flat. Hypothesized psychoacoustic correlates to these parameters were used by professional musicians to evaluate the mouthpieces by means of comparative testing. It was discovered that the peak amplitudes and Q values of the impedance peaks, as well as their respective variability, correlated well to the musicians’ preference ratings. Based on the presented documented changes in the ratio of French horn mouthpiece cup length to throat plus backbore length throughout the twentieth century, the acoustical properties of modern designs to the older versions are compared. These results show that the average harmonics’ peak amplitude has increased, while variability has simultaneously decreased, resulting in a more even envelope. Also, the impedance peak’s average Q’s have increased, a probable explanation for musicians’ expressed preference for mouthpieces which facilitate greater pitch control.

It has been shown that a resonance of the reed contributes significantly to the playing behavior of the single‐reed woodwind [S. C. Thompson, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 66, 1299–1307 (1979)]. As an extended object, the reed is actually expected to possess many resonances, and these have been predicted in FEA calculations [D. Casadonte, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 94, 1807(A) (1993)] and observed in vibration spectra of isolated reeds [D. H. Keefe and S. Waeffler, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 94, 1833–1834(A) (1993)]. The current study used holographic interferometry to identify the vibration patterns of a clarinet reed mounted on a mouthpiece, as driven by an acoustic field internal to the mouthpiece. Without a player’s lips to shorten the vibrating section, the lowest frequency and most easily driven resonance is in the region 1500 to 2000 Hz and corresponds to the lowest mode of a rod clamped at one end. The second and third resonances are near 4000 Hz. The second mode displays twisting motion, but with a surprising degree of asymmetry, while the third mode is similar to the second mode of a rod clamped at one end.

A basic and well‐recognized problem in clarinet and saxophone (single‐reed) performance is maintaining consistency in high‐quality generation and manipulation of tones. This generative process, involving reed, mouthpiece, and the player’s embouchure, produces the instrumental ‘‘voice’’ of the performer and is fundamental to artistic communication. Playing skill and a well‐designed mouthpiece cannot overcome the liability of poorly vibrating arundo donax, the natural material used in reed manufacture. Inconsis‐ tency in quality leads professionals to spend as much as $2500 per year on reeds and to perform on relatively few of those purchased. Highly skilled performers agree that the identification of fine performance reeds cannot be accomplished by visual inspection. Trial by playing is the customary means of determining quality and one must purchase reeds before these trials can be made. Even these carefully selected reeds degrade and become unplayable after approximately 10–20 h of performance. Computerized light transmission analysis (TRACOR) has proven to be of value in determining performance characteristics of clarinet reeds.

Trumpet sound simulation is carried out with a two‐dimensional lip vibration model, where the lips execute both swinging and stretching motions. This model allows lips to operate on both the lower and higher frequency sides of the air‐column resonance frequencies. Oscillations generated by the total sound production system are on both the lower and higher frequency sides in the first through third resonance modes, while in the fourth and higher modes they are realized only on the lower side. From each resonance mode, an oscillation having the least frequency deviation against a change in lip eigenfrequency and also having sufficient amplitude is selected as the optimum oscillation of the resonance mode. It is found that these oscillations in the lower modes have positive phase differences between lip vibration and mouthpiece pressure, whereas those in the higher modes have negative ones. This result closely matches the transition of lip vibration states from the one modeled by the outward‐striking valve at the second mode (i.e., the lowest mode among those used musically) to that modeled by the laterally striking valve at the higher modes, which is observed in the simultaneous measurement of mouthpiece pressure and lip vibration.

Reed instruments have been categorized into two families since Helmholtz: the ‘‘striking inward’’ and the ‘‘striking outward’’ reeds. In an attempt to clarify the question to which family the lips of the brass player belong, a Helmholtz resonator with active feedback was used as a single‐mode brass instrument and the playing frequencies generated by three trumpet players were measured. By adjusting the gain and the phase in the feedback loop, the resonant frequency and the quality factor of the resonator can be varied. The acoustic impedance at the mouthpiece is measured by a novel method without removing the player’s lips. The results show that with extreme efforts the players can generate playing frequencies both lower and higher than the corresponding air column resonance, but that the playing frequency under normal playing conditions (the ‘‘most comfortable note’’) is almost always higher than the corresponding air column resonance. This supports the view that human lips function as ‘‘striking outward’’ reeds.

The purpose of the present study was to obtain detailed photographic sequences and lip motion data on which lip models for brass instruments may be more accurately based. The study expands upon an earlier study by Martin [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 13, 305–307 (1942)] by using advanced fiber‐optic stroboscopy, a real instrument mouthpiece, and by studying two dynamic levels. The trombone was selected as representative of the brass family because its relatively large mouthpiece permitted the use of an optic probe. Lip motion was observed from the front and side for six notes (Bflat2, F3, Bflat3, D4, F4, Aflat4) played at loud and soft dynamic levels. The video sequences were used to obtain information on lip opening area, lip motion perpendicular to airflow, and lip motion parallel to airflow. The data are tabulated and represented in graphic form.

Using a force-sensing French horn mouthpiece developed by the present authors, lip pressing force was examined during pre-attack and post-attack phases of 2-sec sustained tone production at varied pitches (87, 174, 349, 466, and 698 Hz) and dynamics (95, 100, 105, 110, and 115 dB) performed by 12 highly trained horn players. Dependent variables examined were: force at the onset of sound, a peak of the force rate before the sound onset, and mean and SD forces during steady state tone production. All of these force variables increased nearly linearly with pitch. They also increased lightly with louder dynamics. The pitch-related and dynamic-related increase of the force varied largely among the players. These findings indicate that skilled horn performances are supported by pre-attacking the mouthpiece pressure properly to prepare for a target pitch at target dynamics. The notable inter-player difference in force production in skilled players suggests a proper level of mouthpiece pressures witch differs amo...

The length of an uncoiled trumpet horn is more than 2 m, whereas the length of a human supraglottal airway is about 17 cm. The vibrating lips and the vibrating vocal folds can produce similar pitch ranges, but the resonators have vastly different natural frequencies due to the more than 10:1 ratio in airway length. Humans rarely attempt to tune more than one resonance to a harmonic because of the disparity between harmonic spacing and airway resonances spacing, but the brass-like timbre of a human “call” or “belt” can mimic that of a trumpet. A one-dimensional Navier-Stokes solution of non-steady compressible flow in soft-walled airways is used to show the similarities and differences in time-domain wave propagation and resulting flow and pressure frequency spectra along the airways. One striking structural similarity between the human instrument and the brass instrument is the shape of the airway directly above the sound source, known as the mouthpiece for brass and the epilarynx tube for the human airwa...

An experimental investigation designed to quantify the effects of individuals on the tonal quality of a given saxophone, mouthpiece and reed combination, as well as a clarinet, mouthpiece, and reed combination has been performed. Several musicians, using the same instrument of each configuration, played a single note from each of these instruments which was digitally recorded. A Fourier transform of the recorded waveforms was used to compare the frequency spectrum from each musician. The results of the comparison will be reported and discussed.

The majority of Organ pipes are typical tone-generator/resonator systems, where the tone is either produced by an air jet or reed. My previous work on free reeds in pipe organs has raised my interest in how different sound generators affect timbre in terms of spectral balance and attack phase. Most recently, I have started to explore different tone generators with the soprano saxophone using custom adapters, including a brass mouthpiece from a cornetto, a bassoon reed and a free reed from the Chinese Bawu. Since the resonator remains the same, the role of the sound generator can be easily determined using a fast Fourier transformation and onset analysis of partial tones. With the brass mouthpiece, the soprano saxophone becomes an outward striking mechanism instead of a reed-based, inward striking mechanism. As a consequence, the instrument vibrates above the natural frequency of the conical resonator, and the B-flat instrument becomes a B instrument. It is important not to underestimate the range of the embouchure. In the case of the cornetto mouthpiece, it took some practice to attain the higher harmonics. Naturally, the spectrum with the cornetto mouthpiece is very similar to that of a regular soprano saxophone. [Work supported by NSF #1002851.]

In our introductory musical acoustics course for non-science majors, a major goal of the course is to introduce students to the principles of scientific thinking and investigation. Many students have preconceived ideas or beliefs about factors influencing the sounds produced by musical instruments. It is the role of the instructor to help students frame their ideas into scientifically testable experiments, which can be conducted in the laboratory. In our course, we have designed a laboratory activity to challenge students to explore the role of the mouthpiece of brass musical instruments. A parametric model of a trumpet mouthpiece is customized by students in order to investigate the effects of changing mouthpiece geometry on the trumpet acoustics. The models are manufactured on a 3D printer and used in the laboratory to make input impedance measurements. Students compare their quantitative results to the qualitative conceptions they held before completing the laboratory investigation.

The presentation will review the computational simulation of two clarinet-like models. The Stewart and Strong model (J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 68, July 1980) consisted of a uniform cylindrical tube with an attached clarinet mouthpiece and reed. The tube was represented by 0.25-cm sections of lumped element transmission line. The tapered mouthpiece was similarly represented with 0.1-cm sections. The reed was represented as a non-uniform bar clamped at one end. The simulation was carried out on a DEC PDP-15 computer and had a running time of roughly 250,000 times real time. The Sommerfeldt and Strong model (J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 83, May 1988) was similar to the Stewart model, but included seven toneholes. The impedance of the tube with mouthpiece was calculated and used to calculate the impulse response. This was used to determine the interaction between pressure and flow at the reed opening. A player's airway was also included in the model because, at the time, there was some interest in its effect on tone product...

In this work, saxophone instrument frequency responses are estimated at both the mouthpiece corresponding to the input impedance and outside the bell, using acoustic measurement and post signal processing. The measurement technique is based on one previously developed for measuring the acoustic properties of instrument bells but is adapted to account for the fact that the saxophone bell does not easily separate from the instrument bore and must be measured as a single unit. Furthermore, measurements are taken of the instrument configured with all possible fingerings covering the playable range of the B-flat tenor saxophone, and instrument reflection and transmission functions are estimated for, and applied to a waveguide model of, each tone-hole configuration. Having the instrument frequency responses at both the mouthpiece and the bell for every possible fingering allows for an improved parametric synthesis, but also allows for saxophone system identification, inverse modeling, and estimation of player-instrument control parameters during real-time performance.

Since bone-conducted sound is conveyed to cochlea directly, without passing through eardrum, it is audible even for hard-of-hearing people whose inner ears are still normal. In this study, we utilize bone-conducted sound via teeth so as to support sound communication. We implemented a bone-conducted actuator on teeth, while actuators of prevalent hearing aids are attached to mastoid, forehead or jaw in general. Teeth convey sound excitation more easily, because they are bare bones, not covered with skin. Our communication aid is made in the form of mouthpiece with a dental material, and it can be readily put on and taken off from a tooth. Using this actuator, we attempted to record vibrations of teeth when a subject produces a sound. In addition, we carried out experiments regarding sound lateralization of bone-conducted sound via teeth with this actuator. The result shows that examinees can perceive right and left using bone-conducted sound via teeth. The aim of this study is to suggest a new communication aid system not only for hard-of-hearing people but also for the robust.

The dynamics of the air flow within the mouthpiece of single-reed wind instruments makes an important contribution to the acoustic behavior of this type of system, particularly during transient regimes. In this work, a two-dimensional numerical model of the mouthpiece-reed system is used to evaluate the behavior of the flow within the mouthpiece at three different frequencies within the playing range of the clarinet. The relationship between volume flow and blowing pressure, as well as the behavior of the vena contracta during one duty cycle are compared with the available analytical models and with recent experimental observations.

Most theoretical descriptions of the brass instrument lip-reed consider the acoustical condition at the lips to be a closed, rigid termination, corresponding to a unitary reflectance. This assumption is carried through to many computational models as well. In reality, the protrusion of the player's lips into the mouthpiece causes a periodic shortening/extension of the acoustical tube downstream, an effect sometimes but not always incorporated into such models. Of interest here is the absorption properties of the lip termination, the so-called “soft source impedance.” This provides a further modification to the boundary condition at the lips, since the soft, deformable nature of the lips are likely to cause some extra damping of the acoustic standing wave. Measurements are presented to demonstrate this damping effect using an artificial mouth. This is achieved through measurements of the lip reflectance from downstream of the lips, from where it is shown that the reflectance shows a dip at the peak absorba...

In this work, a method is presented for estimating the reflection off the clarinet mouthpiece, using a priori measurement of the bell, and post processing of the instrument's produced sound. A previously introduced measurement technique is used to obtain measurement of clarinet bell and transmission filters. In addition to these elements, however, the round-trip propagation loss in the clarinet bore and bell also includes wall loss and mouthpiece reflection. Though the former is accurately modeled theoretically, assuming the clarinet bell is close to cylindrical, the mouthpiece is more difficult to measure, both because of a supposed oscillating reed, and because the required placement of a measurement device would obstruct the mouthpiece's characteristic reflection. The lumped round-trip loss filter in the bore is estimated from the clarinet signal by first considering the signal's periodic structure. After taking the signal's autocorrelation, which preserves its periodicity and naturally provides the be...

A musical instrument playing actuator, includes an elastic diaphragm which has a through hole, wherein an annular projection portion is provided on the elastic diaphragm so as to project toward the diaphragm member, a diaphragm member which is arranged to oppose to the elastic diaphragm and is formed movably toward the elastic diaphragm, a wall structure body which forms an enclosed space together with the elastic diaphragm, the diaphragm member, and the projection portion when the diaphragm member is moved toward the elastic diaphragm to contact the projection portion, and an air inlet which communicates the enclosed space with an outside.

Previous measurements showed a substantial difference between two trombone players, call them player A and player B, in the degree to which the radiated spectrum changed with changes of bell alloy. [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 125, 2597 (2009).] Player A maintained a much more consistent timbre across changes of bell alloy than did player B. It is hypothesized that player A altered his embouchure to offset the effects of changes in the instrument to a much greater extent than did player B. This will be tested by simultaneous measurement of sound pressure internally within the mouthpiece and externally on the bell axis. If the hypothesis is true, changing the bell alloy should be reflected by a greater change in the signal within the mouthpiece cup for player A than for player B. Additional tests are planned with instrument‐to‐player feedback disturbed by shielding the player’s ears and introducing masking noise.

PVC pipe is an ideal material for the construction of wind instruments, both “woodwind” (using a reed) or “brass” (using the lips). Instruments can be made using a combination of PVC construction along with parts of actual musical instruments, such as a clarinet mouthpiece and reed or a trumpet mouthpiece, or they can be manufactured entirely from PVC and other materials. For panpipes, the lengths of the tubes are easily determined by choosing a standard pitch frequency and the basic interval between tones (e.g., 440 Hz and equal temperament) and then using basic physics to calculate the required tube lengths. For instruments using side holes, the locations of the holes can be determined by choosing a standard pitch frequency and interval and then calculating the required distances of the holes from the driven end of the pipe. The basic theory will be reviewed, and several different instruments will be demonstrated.

A musical instrument training device, system, and method are provided for teaching a plurality of wind instrument embouchures. The instrument includes an elongate body having first end and a second end opposite the first end and defining an internal bore extending longitudinally between the first and second ends. A single-reed instrument mouthpiece is coupled to the first end and a brass instrument mouthpiece is coupled to the second end. In a preferred, more limited aspect, a lateral flute embouchure tone hole is formed in the wall of the elongate body.

When sounding a note on a brass instrument, a strong coupling is established between the vibrating lips of the player and the air column resonance. In moving between notes as smoothly as possible, or “slurring,” there is a transition from one strongly coupled, steady‐state, regime of the lip/air column to a different steady‐state coupling of the lip/air column. To the listener, there are sometimes subtle differences in the sound of the transition between notes depending on how this transition is achieved: by lip slur, valve slurs, and, in the case of the trombone, slide slurs. This paper uses data collected from high speed video capture of the players’ lips, synchronized with microphones in the mouthpiece and the bell of the instrument, to investigate and compare the motion of the brass players’ lips for different types of slurred internote transients.

The alphorns built and sold by the late Joseph Littleton of Hammondsport, NY are used in this study. His dimensions of bore as a function of position are used in solution of the Webster equation for impedance solved numerically earlier [F. J. Young, Acustica, 10, 91–97 (1960)]. The musical notation for the frequencies of the impedance peaks are given below. Here the subscripts refer to the harmonic number. The fundamental, rarely used, is 13 cents flat from A at 55 Hz. The intonations errors for. C1, C2, G3, C4, E5, G6, B7b, C8, D9, E10, F11, G12, A13, B14b, B15, C16, C17#, and D18 are 287, 58, 195, 28, 1.5, 0.83, ‐28, ‐0.85, ‐2.63, 1.5, 40, 14, ‐49, 1, ‐3, 16, 24 and 28 cents.

Important results were obtained by artificial blowings of the reed woodwind instruments: Many states of air column vibrations can be excited under a fixed fingering and a fixed embouchure; these states have their respective regions of blowing pressure in which frequency and waveform of the air column vibration change slightly and continuously as the blowing pressure is varied; a sudden transition from one state to another takes place irreversibly at a blowing pressure, the upper (or lower) boundary of the state, when blowing pressure is increased (or decreased) gradually. It will be presented that the above‐described results are not necessarily valid for a conical brass pipe (0.63 m long), which has the same apex angle as that of the bassoon, blown by the mouthpiece of the soprano saxophone. One of the vibratory states excited has changed to another state without transition. When a cylindrical brass pipe, which has about the same length as that of the clarinet, has been artificially blown with the clarinet mouthpiece, the reed has been easily broken, which has rarely been observed for the clarinet.

Woodwinds are not much different from brass instruments in how intonation is determined by air column resonances. Nevertheless, it is easier to measure input impedance of brasses because the input cross‐section at the mouthpiece rim is circular, plane and big enough to be easily coupled to standard measuring heads. In reed instruments the input cross‐section is neither flat nor circular nor well defined. Flute instruments not even have any definable input cross‐section as this is controlled by the player's lower lip. On top of that, flutes are played at an open end where some coupled impedance considerably influenced by the nearby environment like lips, mouth, and face of the player has to be taken into account. Existing approaches to measure input impedance of woodwind instruments usually require custom made adaptors optimised to yield nearly accurate intonation results for a specific instrument and playing range only. The proposed new approach is to separate instrument head or mouthpiece from the body and measure both parts from their cylindrical ends. During the measurement a natural playing condition can be simulated at the now available end. Both measurements can be assembled computationally yielding useful intonation results as will be demonstrated for flutes and saxophones.

In reed and brass instruments, sound is produced by self‐sustained mechanical oscillations driven by an airflow coming from a pressure supply such as the player's lungs. Most of the time, the fundamental frequency of a periodic oscillation is close to, and mainly controlled by one given acoustic mode. Even though, these oscillations are the result of a complex non‐linear coupling between all the acoustic modes and the mechanical valve. The pedal note, which is the lowest note that can be sounded on a brass instrument, is well‐known as a counter‐example. Eighty years ago, Bouasse did an experiment by replacing the brass mouthpiece by a reed mouthpiece on a brass instrument, and obtained a pedal note a fifth below! An elementary model dedicated to both cane‐reed and lip‐reed instruments can be used. In order to investigate the sound production of pedal notes, a simulation method based on modal decomposition of bore and reed dynamics has been carried out. Then, the periodic solutions of this model are obtain...

While sound propagation in a trombone can be generally quite properly described by linear models, it is commonly acknowledged that the "brassiness" of sound produced at high amplitudes is associated to nonlinear effects. Whether these effects are due principally to propagation inside a long, narrow pipe, or to the production of sound at the mouthpiece is still unclear. We present experimental measurements taken both from a long, narrow tube, and an actual slide trombone from which it is observed that the scale of nonlinear effects seems to be greater for outgoing pulses than for the reflected pulses at the open end of the trombone or tube. A theoretical model is also proposed, based on weakly nonlinear perturbations of linear theory, and is validated both by experimental results and by numerical simulations. The results indicate that both the amplitude and the shape of the initial perturbation produced at the trombone mouthpiece have an effect on the scale of propagation nonlinearity present inside the tr...

It is widely accepted that the starting transient is an extremely significant perceptual feature of musical sound. For players, the ease with which a note can be started on a particular instrument is also of great importance. However, until recently research has concentrated on the analysis of steady state sounds rather than the study of the starting behaviour of the instrument. The work reported here uses a high speed camera to capture the motion of lip reeds during the starting transient. Simultaneous recordings are made of the pressure signals generated in the mouthpiece of the instrument and radiated from the bell. Preliminary results on human players, already presented, have been extended and supplemented by measurements using an artificial mouth in order to separate effects due to the instrument from those dependent on the expertise of a particular human player. Computational simulations have been compared to these experimental findings.

The mouthpiece on a brass instrument is generally removable but constitutes an important part of the whole instrument. In the frequency domain, it can be considered to provide a frequency dependent equivalent length that increases with frequency up to the Helmholtz resonance frequency fpop of the mouthpiece itself. Geometrical changes that affect the total volume or the fpop of the mouthpiece will affect the harmonicity of the nearly harmonic normal modes of the instrument. Using heterodyne filter analysis, the development of the frequency components and their amplitudes were measured for low trumpet notes, both for repeated attacks of short notes and for sustained note crescendos from pianissimo to fortissimo. The measurements were repeated after the mouthpiece was modified to improve the harmonicity of the normal modes. During both attack and crescendo tests, the modified mouthpiece was associated generally with more stable frequencies of the partials and more even development of the amplitudes of the p...

Wall vibration of a musical wind instrument can be clearly noticed and measured in playing configuration. However, the problem of quantifying its effect on the emitted sound remains a subject of debate. Wall vibrations are generated by two mechanisms: (1) a mechanical source corresponding to the impacts of a reed (or musicians lips) on the mouthpiece and (2) an acoustical source due to the internal sound field. In this paper, we present an investigation of mechanism (2) using an experimental approach and a theoretical model of a generic simplified instrument (cylindrical vibrating shell, with a slightly distorted circular cross section). Analysis leads to the conclusion that, overall, vibroacoustic couplings are very small and do not induce any audible contribution. However, the wall vibration can play a significant role for some particular choices of material and geometry, which lead to coincidences between structural and acoustical modes. In these configurations, model and experiments show that the inpu...

A review of the current state of knowledge concerning the influence of wall vibrations on the sound of brass wind instruments, flue pipes, and woodwind instruments is given. The question of whether this influence is strong enough to be objectively observable is still a controversial issue. While instrument makers and musicians make a strong claim that wall thickness, material, and conditioning are crucial factors for sound quality and response of wind instruments, acousticians tended—at least in the past—to attribute all acoustical characteristics to the actual bore profile. Recently this seems to be changing. First, there is growing experimental evidence favoring the hypothesis that wall vibrations do matter; second, theoretical models are starting to be developed which deal with the interaction between the air column sound field and its oscillating boundary conditions. Another suggested theory is that wall vibrations are propagated back to the mouthpiece interacting with the player’s lips affecting the delicate and strongly nonlinear mechanism of sound generation. Even the question of whether vibrating bells can radiate a significant amount of sound does not seem to have reached a final answer. New experiments have been conducted to help answer these open questions. a)R. A. Smith, ‘‘It’s all in the bore!,’’ International Trumpet Guild Journal, 12(4) (1988).

A hybrid saxophone is a combination of an acoustic saxophone and an electronic system, and the electronic system includes key sensors for monitoring the keys and a tonguing sensor for detecting the position of the tongue together with a breath sensor and a lip sensor, and the pieces of playing data are brought to an electronic tone generator for producing electric tones; the mouthpiece of the acoustic saxophone is replaced with another mouthpiece, which does not supply the breath to the reed, and a rotary type air-flow regulator is provided in the mouthpiece so that the player feels the blowing same as that in the acoustic saxophone.

Mouthpieces for brass wind musical instruments are shaped so the physical length of a mouthpiece body ( 40, 50, 60, 70 , & 80 ) is inversely-proportional to the volumetric size of a corresponding cup-chamber ( 42, 52, 62, 72 , & 82 ). Methods for constructing separate sets of such mouthpieces for each kind of brass wind instrument are disclosed. Other embodiments include variations like multi-section components and alternative backbore shapes.

Mouthpieces with flat windows are used to examine the lip reed’s motion during the steady parts of notes played on brass instruments. Magnified stroboscopic images show different parts of the upper lip moving out of phase with each other. Sighting directly along the channel between the lips, one can observe a Rayleigh wave propagating downstream in the flesh of the upper lip. Downward crests of this disturbance reach maximum amplitude at the downstream end of the channel, where they provide most of the valving action on the air flow. The lower lip moves more as a lumped element, and mostly in the longitudinal direction. A computer model for this behavior will be complicated and may not show much improvement over the two‐dimensional model of Adachi and Sato [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 99, 1200–1209 (1996)]. Of potentially greater value is a more accurate mental image for performers. Muscles controlling the embouchure just establish the boundary conditions for the motion of a thin, passive layer of flesh. This knowledge may help beginners to avoid such practices as jamming the mouthpiece against the lips and tensing muscles against each other unnecessarily.

Examples of flutes from different cultures around the world will be demonstrated, including European flutes, Persian ney, Egyptian kawala, traditional Indian bansuri, custom King bansuri, Japanese shakuhachi, Chinese di, South American kena, and Polynesian nose flutes. The differences among these may in large part be classified according to the details of their sound production mechanism at the mouthpiece, and of the bore and toneholes that form the resonator. These features are closely linked with the sound of the instrument as well as the notes and music played on it, and the playing techniques and styles developed for it. A cross‐cultural problem arises when a musician needs to play with the sound and style of a non‐Western flute tradition in the context of Western instruments and music. Various solutions to this problem, involving adaptation of either the mouthpiece or the resonator, have been developed.