Note-onset timbre differs measurably across instruments and lasts tens to 160 milliseconds.
Evidence
The tristimulus diagram enables the dynamic relationship between high, mid and f0 to be plotted as a line, and several are shown in the figure for the note onset phases of notes from a selection of instruments (data from Pollard and Jansson, 1982). The time course is not even and is not calibrated here for clarity. The approximate steady-state position of each note is represented by the open circle, and the start of the note is at the other end of the line. The note onsets in these examples lasted as follows: gedackt (10–60 ms), trumpet (10–100 ms), clarinet (30–160 ms), principal (10–150 ms) and viola (10–65 ms). — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1489
Categorization
- CANDY: Specific onset times for gedackt, trumpet, clarinet, principal and viola — a neat party fact about how fast an instrument’s tone ‘settles’.
- XREF: connects to: A note’s onset, not its steady state or decay, most strongly determines perceived timbre. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1444; Instrument onset timbre varies so much that any single recording is only an example — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1447; Instrument timbre develops over time as higher harmonics fade in after the fundamental. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1452 (+12 more)
Broader Connections
- Note onsets have staggered harmonic entry times that define each instrument’s timbre
#expands(0.95) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1449 - A note’s onset phase matters most for perceived timbre
#expands(0.95) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1469 - Timbre depends on sound order over time, not just spectral content.
#expands(0.90) - An instrument’s opening attack largely determines its perceived timbre
#expands(0.90) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2245 - An instrument’s normal attack transient is essential to its characteristic timbre
#expands(0.90) - Attack and release phases lasting milliseconds largely determine a note’s timbre
#complicates(0.85) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1454 - Timbre comprises spectral content and how frequencies and amplitudes shift over a note
#complicates(0.85) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1427 - Timbre is defined as the residual difference once loudness, pitch, and duration are matched
#expands(0.85) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1451 - Delays under 100 ms are heard as timbre change rather than distinct echo
#expands(0.85) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2551 - Instrument timbre identity persists across notes via a stable tristimulus position
#complicates(0.75) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 1489 - Instrument note onsets vary hugely across takes, players, and environments
#complicates(0.70) — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1473 - String stiffness makes higher frequencies travel faster, changing timbre
#complicates(0.70) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 103