Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
An 88-key piano, with the octaves numbered and middle C (cyan) and A 4 (yellow) highlighted. A440 is widely used as concert pitch in the United Kingdom [8] and the United States. [9] In continental Europe the frequency of A 4 commonly varies between 440 Hz and 444 Hz. [8]
This is a list of the fundamental frequencies in hertz (cycles per second) of the keys of a modern 88-key standard or 108-key extended piano in twelve-tone equal temperament, with the 49th key, the fifth A (called A 4), tuned to 440 Hz (referred to as A440). [1] [2] Every octave is made of twelve steps called semitones.
The initial standard was A = 439 Hz ⓘ, but this was superseded by A = 440 Hz, possibly because 439 Hz was difficult to reproduce in a laboratory since 439 is a prime number. [22] In 1964, of 31 top professional U.S. orchestras, 19 were tuning at 440, the others at 441 or 442. [23]
For instance, the standard 440 Hz tuning pitch is named A 4 in scientific notation and instead named a′ in Helmholtz notation. Meanwhile, the electronic musical instrument standard called MIDI doesn't specifically designate pitch classes, but instead names pitches by counting from its lowest note: number 0 ( C −1 ≈ 8.1758 Hz) ; up ...
Likewise, if a string tuned to 220 Hz (with a harmonic at 440 Hz) is played together with a string tuned at 442 Hz, the same 2 Hz beat is heard. [4] Because pianos typically have multiple strings for each piano key, these strings must be tuned to the same frequency to eliminate beats.
In musical notation, the different vertical positions of notes indicate different pitches. Play top: Play bottom: Pitch is a perceptual property that allows sounds to be ordered on a frequency-related scale, [1] or more commonly, pitch is the quality that makes it possible to judge sounds as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies. [2]
For instance, 660 Hz / 440 Hz (a ratio of 3:2) constitutes a fifth, and 880 Hz / 440 Hz (2:1) an octave. Such intervals (termed "just") have a stability, or purity to their sound, when played simultaneously (assuming they are played using timbres with harmonic partials) because pure intervals do not waver or beat regularly.
A is a musical note equivalent to 440 Hz in typical A440 tuning. It is the sixth note of La and the tenth semitone of the fixed-do solfège. Its enharmonic equivalents are B ♭ ♭ (B double flat) which is a diatonic semitone above A ♭ and G (G double sharp) which is a diatonic semitone below A ♯. "A" is generally used as a standard for ...