tags: music mus-305 ece-402 spectral-analysis mus-407
Harmonic Series
The harmonic series is the sequence of [frequencies] where each frequency in the [spectrum] is an integer multiple of the [fundamental], or lowest, tone.
A sound is harmonic if its [spectrum] exhibits characteristics of the harmonic series; that is, if all its [partial]s are integer multiples of each other (i.e. they are all [harmonic]s)
- a sound is quasi-harmonic if it is almost or mostly harmonic
- some instruments are harmonically rich and produce harmonic spectra
- others are [inharmonic] and produce [noise]-like spectra, or produce both at the same time
The first 16 harmonics of the harmonic series can be closely approximated with standard musical notation:
