| Author |
Comment |
jengal
Registered User
Posts: 6
(8/23/01 12:23:50 pm)
Reply
|
physics question
re: mutes
Dumb question time: how exactly do mutes work? The situation that
causes me to ask is this: I live in an apartment building and,
although I do not have any upstairs neighbors now, I know from past
experience how annoying noisy upstairs neighbors can be, especially
when the noise involves music in low registers...so I use a heavy
practice mute anytime I'm practicing after a certain hour, or for
portions of longer practice sessions. Basically, I'm trying to be
nice to the couple below me (the building's floor plan means I have
stairwells between me and each of the neighbors on the side,
providing a degree of soundproofing there). But now I've started
wondering...
If I'm using the same bow pressure, and the big
mute on the bridge keeps the pressure from ringing with its full
force through the strings, doesn't that energy have to go
*somewhere*? Is it traveling downward to the endpin and, because the
endpin is basically on my neighbor's ceiling, actually making things
worse for them than if I just let the sound waves travel as they
please?
I'm probably showing my ignorance about many of the
factors involved here -- go easy on me please!
Thanks!
Jen
|
bridge
Registered
User
Posts: 164
(8/23/01 12:47:56
pm)
Reply
|
Sort of an
answer
OK. This isn't the gospel, just my application of general physical
knowledge to your question.
The body of your cello is an
amplifier. It takes the energy you put into the string, transfers it
through the bridge and through the soundpost. The soundpost vibrates
the back of your cello. It resonates off of the front (whick is also
vibrated by the bridge) and sound comes out of the
f-holes.
With the mute you're taking the ampifier (the body)
out of the equation. You could talk loudly in your apartment. You
could talk loudly into a non electric megaphone (like college
cheeleader stuff). You are expended the same energy, you just are no
longer amplifying it.
Edited by: bridge
at: 8/23/01 12:54:46 pm
|
Bobbie
Registered User
Posts: 611
(8/23/01 4:31:31 pm)
Reply
|
Re: Sort of an
answer
That's more or less true. What the mute is doing is absorbing the
energy instead of letting it transmit to the body of the instrument.
Mutes are either very heavy or made of rubber or some other soft
material so they don't vibrate in resonance with the string; they
just kill the vibration.
|
jengal
Registered User
Posts: 8
(8/25/01 6:54:18 am)
Reply
|
thanks
I figured it was an unreasoned panic...your answers are all in the
"ohhh, I *should* have known that/figured that out myself category,"
so I am very grateful to those of you who are willing to answer my
stupid questions!
Jen
|
Internet Cello Society
Forums
Email
This To a Friend
Topic Commands (Moderator only)