Highlights from ISMA 2017
Posted: Thu Jun 22, 2017 6:58 pm
The 2017 International Symposium on Musical Acoustics wrapped up today in Montreal. Lots of good stuff about wind instruments on Monday, some of which may be of interest to the flute, whistle and pipe communities of C&F. For example ...
Henri Boutin, Sandie Le Conte, Jean-Loïc Le Carrou and Benoit Fabre, How Do Wood Polishing and Oiling Affect Acoustic Dissipation in the Bore of Wind Instruments?
The researchers asked recorder maker Philippe Bolton to make them tubes of maple, pear, boxwood and ABW, all cut with the grain, plus another of maple cut at an angle to the grain. They measured the rate of attenuation of sound in each tube at frequencies up to 2500 Hz, first in the raw tubes, then after the bore was polished, then after the bore was oiled and dried according to Bolton's recommendations.
The attenuation in the raw tubes depended significantly on wood species: inclined maple tube >> maple > boxwood > pear. Even before polishing, the ABW tube attenuation was only slightly more than would be expected from an ideal pipe.
After polishing, the attenuation in the maple, boxwood and pear was lower and much closer together, although they still ranked in the same order and not quite ideal. The inclined maple tube had improved, but was still worse than the other tubes had been before polishing.
After they were oiled and dried, all four with-the-grain tubes had essentially ideal attenuation. The inclined maple tube had improved greatly, but still attenuated more than an ideal pipe above about 500 Hz.
Henri Boutin, Sandie Le Conte, Jean-Loïc Le Carrou and Benoit Fabre, How Do Wood Polishing and Oiling Affect Acoustic Dissipation in the Bore of Wind Instruments?
The researchers asked recorder maker Philippe Bolton to make them tubes of maple, pear, boxwood and ABW, all cut with the grain, plus another of maple cut at an angle to the grain. They measured the rate of attenuation of sound in each tube at frequencies up to 2500 Hz, first in the raw tubes, then after the bore was polished, then after the bore was oiled and dried according to Bolton's recommendations.
The attenuation in the raw tubes depended significantly on wood species: inclined maple tube >> maple > boxwood > pear. Even before polishing, the ABW tube attenuation was only slightly more than would be expected from an ideal pipe.
After polishing, the attenuation in the maple, boxwood and pear was lower and much closer together, although they still ranked in the same order and not quite ideal. The inclined maple tube had improved, but was still worse than the other tubes had been before polishing.
After they were oiled and dried, all four with-the-grain tubes had essentially ideal attenuation. The inclined maple tube had improved greatly, but still attenuated more than an ideal pipe above about 500 Hz.