Instrument note onsets vary hugely across takes, players, and environments

Evidence

By way of a caveat it should be noted that these figures are presented to provide only examples of the general nature of the acoustics of the note onset phases for these instruments. Had these notes been played at a different loudness, by a different player, on a different instrument, in a different environment, or even just a second time by the same player on the same instrument in the same place while attempting to keep all details con­ stant, the waveforms and spectra would probably be noticeably different. — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1473

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to Schafer’s soundscape idea that every acoustic event is unrepeatable and unique — a key concept in the reader’s broader psychoacoustics project. — connects to: Notes lacking reinforced upper harmonics play wobbly and degraded; A note’s onset phase matters most for perceived timbre — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1469; Even identical notes vary measurably across every repeat performance (+4 more)
• QUESTION: If onset transients are irreproducible, how does timbre recognition survive at all? What perceptual mechanism tolerates this variance?
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1473

Broader Connections

• A steady-sounding note still has amplitude envelope variation within it #expands (0.80) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1464