When is a structure a musical instrument? Adventures in tuned percussion
by Professor Jim Woodhouse (Clare Fellow)
Many things make a noise when you hit them, but not many are commonly used to play music — why is that? This talk will explore the science underlying tuned percussion instruments, and the ingenious ways in which different cultures have created them, ranging from church bells through Indian drums to Caribbean steel pans.
After a first degree in mathematics at Cambridge, Professor Woodhouse did a PhD on the acoustics of the violin, in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at Cambridge (this work being inspired by a hobby interest in building instruments). He then worked for an engineering consultancy firm for a few years, on a variety of problems in structural vibration, before joining the Engineering Department of the University (in 1985) as Lecturer, then later Reader and Professor. His research interests all involve vibration, and musical instruments have continued to form a major part.
Unfortunately, some of the sounds in this lecture cannot be heard in this recording. You can find a demonstration of the sound that should have been there at Jim's website:
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