The Physics and Psychophysics of Music An Introduction [Paperback]

This book uses acoustics, psychophysics, and neurobiology to explore the physical systems and biological processes that intervene when we hear music. It incorporates the latest findings in brain science and tone generation in musical instruments.

Preface.- The Science of Music and the Music of Science: A Multidisciplinary Overview.- Sound Vibrations, Pure Tones, and the Perception of Pitch.- Sound Waves , Acoustic Energy, and the Perception of Loudness.- Generation of Musical Sounds, Complex Tones, and the Perception of Timbre.- Superposition and Succession of Complex Tones, and the Integral Perception of Music.- Appendix 1: Some Quantitative Aspects of the Bowing Mechanism.- Appendix II: Some Quantitative Aspects of Central Pitch Processor Models.- Appendix III: Some Renarks on Teaching of Physics and Psychophysics of Music.- References.- Index

From the reviews of the fourth edition:

This book deals with the physical systems and biological processes that interact with music, analyzing what objective, physical properties of sound patterns are associated with what subjective, psychological sensations of music. & Roederer is well known for promoting music as a multidisciplinary subject. & While there are plenty of good books on the physics of music & Roederers classic is the best. This book will be an asset to any scientific library. (Soubhik Chakraborty, ACM Computing Reviews, November, 2009)

This book & not only suitable for lay-readers, but can also act as a springboard for more technically minded readers wishing to pursue a thorough foray into the field. & open questions which makes the reader want to come back for more. Credit can only be given to the author for creating such an engaging read. & this fourth edition of the book incorporates a number of recent results supporting hypotheses posited in earlier versions & . (Matthew R. Foreman, Contemporary Physics, Vol. 52 (3), May-June, 2011)