Physics of Sound

Part 1

Sound waves
How they are generated and
travel
Sound Waves

Generation and Propagation

Sound wave = changes in pressure caused by
vibrating object
Compression = High pressure
Rarefaction = Low pressure
Sound needs a medium to vibrate
Usually air, but could be anything
Speed of sound depends upon the medium
Air = 1130 ft/sec Water = 5000 ft/sec Steel = 13000 ft/sec
Measuring sound waves
Sound waves are longitudinal waves

Vibrating object compresses the air around it.

Pushes air away leaving an area of low pressure
Vibrating object then compresses more air to create a
chain
Measuring methods
Cycle
A single push and pull of the vibrating object
One are of compression followed by one area of
rarefaction
An initial increase in atmospheric pressure from the
norm, followed by a drop below the norm and then a
return to normal
Mathematically displayed by a sine curve
Pressure on Y axis
Time on X axis
Measuring methods
Period (T) and Frequency (f)
Period - The time it takes to create one cycle
Frequency - The number of cycles in one second
1
f
T
Measured in Hertz (Hz) or cycles per second
Measuring methods
Example
It takes sec to create one cycle. What is
the sound waves frequency?

1
f 4 cycles per second
.25
Measuring methods
Frequency will determine pitch
High frequency = high pitch
Low frequency = low pitch
Octave a doubling of halving of the
frequency
Measuring methods
Human hearing range
Low range between 15 to 30 Hz
With enough power lower than 15 Hz can be felt, but
not heard as sound
High range varies with age and gender
Women - up to 20 kHz
Men between 15 to 18 kHz
High frequency range will lower with exposure to high
levels of sound and age
Tuning
Traditional orchestra would tune First Chair Violin A first.
Remaining instruments would tune relative to that
A above middle C was tuned to about 420 Hz
As halls grew larger it was found to be desirable to tune sharper
1939 A was established to be 440 Hz
Corresponds to the 49th key on a full size piano
Tuning is not a science. The relative frequency difference is
what is important
Measuring methods
Wavelength
The distance from one area of compression
to the next or one area of rarefaction to the
next v

l=wave length
f
V = velocity of sound in medium
usually 1130 ft/sec
f = frequency
Measuring methods
Amplitude
How high the pressure goes above and below
normal atmospheric pressure
Corresponds to how loud the sound is
loudness is relative to frequency and dependant
on the listener.
Timber and Harmonics
Harmonics multiples of a base frequency
Timber the characteristics of a particular sound or
instrument
Different harmonics combined in different levels
Physics of Sound
Part 2

Basic Acoustics
Inverse square law
Reinforcement/cancellation
Interference
Phase
measurement of where the amplitude of a wave is
relative to another wave
A cycle can start at any point in a waveform
Two waves with the same frequency can start at
different times
Measured as an angle in degrees
Related to the sine wave representation of the wave
Interference
Constructive of
destructive interference
Waveforms will add by
summing their signed
amplitude at each instant
in time
Beats
Happens when two
slightly different
frequencies interfere
Often used in tuning
Standing waves
When sound waves bounce off
of obstructions, they can
interfere with themselves
Tends to reinforce some
frequencies and attenuate
others
Prevented by using
Non- Parallel walls, ceilings
Convex surfaces
Multi-level ceiling sections
Reverberance (Reverb)
Consisting of multiple, blended sound images caused by
reflections from walls, ceilings and other structures which do not
absorb sound
NOT echo
Echo consists of individual, non-blended sound images
Reverb time is related to
The time it takes for a sound to reduce to an inaudible level
Loudness of sound relative to background noise
Ratio of loudness of reverberant to direct sound
Short reverb time (less than 1.5 sec) is better for speech or
drama
Long reverb time (more than 1.5 sec.) is better for music
Absorption
Controlling reflections can reduce or increase reverb
time
Air tends to absorb frequencies above 2K Hz
Sight line obstructions
Frequencies above 10 kHz tend to not bend around
corners well or other obstructions
l=1.3 inches for 10 kHz tone
Frequencies below 1kHz do very well
l=5.65 feet for 200 Hz tone

Specialists are often hired to tune a space

acoustically
Acoustic attributes
Defined by Leo Beranek after a 6 year study
of 54 concert halls
Used to define acoustic properties in terms
that other trained professionals can
understand
Acoustic attributes
Intimacy Indicates the size of a room
How it sounds to the listener, not actual size
Determined by the initial-time-delay-gap (ITDG)
Interval between the sound that arrives directly at the
ear and the first reflection
Usually considered to be the most important
attribute
Acoustic attributes
Liveness
Related to Reverberance
Room size is related
More reflections is live. Less reflections is dry or
dead
Warmth
More low frequency sound relative to mid
frequency
Too much low frequency sound is said to be
Boomy
Acoustic attributes
Loudness of direct sound
Inverse square law
Loudness of sound will decrease by one quarter
every time the distance from the source is
doubled
Definition or Clarity
Good definition when sound is clear.
Related to intimacy, liveness, loudness of direct
and reverberant sound
Acoustic attributes
Brilliance
A hall that has liveness, clarity and intimacy
Diffusion
Relates to the orientation of reverberant sound
Where is the reflected sound coming from
It is preferable to have reverb sound coming from
all directions
Intensity
Like pitch, loudness is a sensation in the
consciousness of a listener
To produce a sound twice as loud requires 10
times the power
Inverse square law
Sound level is reduced by a factor of the square
of the distance away from the source
If you move double the distance from the source, the
sound intensity will by one quarter
Intensity
Intensity is a measurable quantity
SPL Sound Pressure Level
dB deciBel
A system of measuring a ratio between two powers
1dB change Imperceptible change
3dB change Barely perceptible
5dB change Clearly noticeable
10dB change About twice as loud
20dB change About four times as loud
dB SPL Sound
150 dB Jet engine at 1m
140 dB Rock and Roll stack at 1m
130 dB Thunderclap, Air Raid Siren 1 Meter
120 dB Jet takeoff (200 ft)
110 dB Rock Concert
100 dB Train passing up close
90 dB Heavy traffic
80 dB Hair Dryer
70 dB City street
60 dB Noisy bar or restaurant
50 dB Open plan office environment
40 dB Normal conversation level
30 dB Library, Soft Whisper (5 Meter)
20 dB Quiet domestic environment
10 dB Broadcasting Studio, Rustling Leaves
0 dB Threshold of hearing in young adult
Sound Envelope
Listener does not hear individual cycles of sound waves
Attack Time it takes for sound to rise from nothing to its
greatest intensity. Usually short.
Decay Time it takes for a sound to fall from its attack level to its
sustaining level. Decay time is usually short
Sustain The time during which the initial vibrating source
continues to supply energy to the sound. Usually perceived as
the duration and intensity of the sound
Release Time it takes for the sound to drop from its sustain
level to inaudibility after vibrating object stops supplying energy
Sound Design
How, what and why of a show
Interaction of Sound
with other Show Elements

Script
Identification of motivational cues - sounds listed in
the script (cues that actors react to)
Identification of environmental cue opportunities

locations, time of day, season, era,

Identification of emotional cue opportunities What
do you want to say about actor, situation. . .
Interaction of Sound
with other Show Elements

Acting
Collaborate on what is heard on stage - Actors
need to understand what sounds are part of the
physical environment shared with the set and props.
Some sounds are there for them to react to (Motivational)
Some sounds need to be originated by a performers
action (ring a bell, turn on a radio, etc...)
Monitoringof stage action to off-stage locations
Placement of wireless mics and stage monitoring /
fold back
Interaction of Sound
with other Show Elements

Costumes
Musicals
wireless mics that need to be
accommodated within costumes and hair
Scenic
Location of on-stage devices (speakers, mics)
Collaboration on scene shifts (needs/opportunities to
cover transitions using sound cues Functional
sound cues)
Identification of cues that support each other (sound
used to reinforce scenic element that would normally
make noise (car, train station, rain, etc. . .)
Interaction of Sound
with other Show Elements

Props
Active on-stage devices that may be props
Lights
Identification of cues that support each other
Thunder and lightning,
Day time or night time,
Lights used to represent outdoors and other items/times
that would normally have a recognizable sound associated
with it.
Identification of transitions where cues should go
together
Interaction of Sound
with other Show Elements

Music direction
Vocal reinforcement (micing)
Music reinforcement (micing, direct feeds and
mixing)
Vocal/music monitoring for performers and/or band

Choreography
Music cues
Reinforcement of foot fall (Mic cues for tap dancing)

Music monitoring for dancers

Interaction of Sound
with Other Show Elements

Stage Management
Cueing

Monitoring of stage action to booth

Intercom systems
Use of Sound in the Theatre
What Audience Hears Company Hears

Elements that are part of the show

What an audience hears.
Cues, Aural Reinforcement

Support for the Overall Production

What the company hears
Monitoring, Communications
Recording
Use of Sound in the Theatre
What Audience Hears Company Hears

Sound Cues - created sounds that

advance the story
Sound effects, music transitions and underscoring.
Produced / reproduced through mechanical or
electronic means
Mechanical real sounds (sheet metal for thunder, crash
box for breaking glass, coconuts for horse galloping,
actors making bird calls)
Also called practical
Electronic reproduction
Sounds stored as signals on CDs, Minidisks,
computer files
Use of Sound in the Theatre
What Audience Hears Company Hears

Reinforcement of aural elements of

production
Mic cues for vocal and musical performance
Orchestra Mics

Instrument direct feeds

Use of Sound in the Theatre
What Audience Hears Company Hears

Monitoring Providing performers and members of the

company a portion of the sound from the performance to assist
with their performance.
Stage monitors for singers to hear the band and
themselves Fold back
Pit monitors for band to hear vocals and themselves

House monitoring for crew positions, back stage and

dressing rooms so company can hear whats going on
Use of Sound in the Theatre
What Audience Hears Company Hears

Communications
Intercoms for cueing and communications among the
company
Recording
Live
feeds of performance for film, video and audio
recording
Paper work, paper work, paper
work.
Paper work, paper work, paper
work.
Paper work, paper work, paper
work.
For Next Class
Read
The Spaghetti Factor!, Coleman
Patches and Facility Panels, Coleman
Soldering and Soldering 2 PDF

Study for Quiz 1