Harmonograph: A Visual Guide to the Mathematics of Music (Wooden Books) [Hardcover]

Anthony Ashton (Author)

Book Description

Series: Wooden Books | Publication Date: April 1, 2003

During the nineteenth century, a remarkable scientific instrument known as a harmonograph revealed the beautiful patterns found in music. Harmonograph is an introduction to the evolution of simple harmonic theory, from the discoveries of Pythagoras to diatonic tuning and equal temperament. Beautiful drawings show the octave as triangle, the fifth as pentagram; diagrams show the principles of harmonics, overtones, and the monochord. Anthony Ashton examines the phenomenon of resonance in Chladni patterns, describes how to build a harmonograph of your own, and provides tables of world tuning systems. This inspiring book will appeal to musicians, mathematicians, designers, and artists alike.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Anthony Ashton is an economist and journalist.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Walker & Company (April 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802714099
• ISBN-13: 978-0802714091
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #94,842 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #7 in Books > Science & Math > Experiments, Instruments & Measurement > Scientific Instruments
  • #46 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Physics > Acoustics & Sound

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, August 17, 2006

By 

Sean Boyle (Italy) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Harmonograph: A Visual Guide to the Mathematics of Music (Wooden Books) (Hardcover)

I found this book to be extremely helpful. I'm a music teacher and have been interested in the physics of music for years, but I've never seen the physics of frequency explained so clearly and concisely. I'm really impressed with how well the Pythagorean Comma was handled.
This book, in a format where chapters are almost always one page long, gets into some pretty difficult concepts and explains them better than I thought possible.
This is the book I loan high school kids who are thinking about doing a science project with music. They love it.

62 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars hints of the mystical, April 25, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Harmonograph: A Visual Guide to the Mathematics of Music (Wooden Books) (Hardcover)

This is an excellent little book on harmonics and sound, encompassing science and music. It is a much needed counter weight to the effervessence of other recent titles on temperament and harmonics. It is such a beautifully visual book, with graphic depictions of sound waves, you will simply want to look at the illustrations for hours. It hints at the mystical without falling off the edge into either New Age or Cultural Supremacy.

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At last I understand this stuff !, January 16, 2006

By 

Mark Samuels (Scotland & New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Harmonograph: A Visual Guide to the Mathematics of Music (Wooden Books) (Hardcover)

This is a great book - not only is it absolutely beautiful, but it actually does the job. After years of struggling with Pythagorean Commas and Syntonic Commas and all the other tricky little bits in music I was given a copy of Anthony Ashton's little book and the pieces finally fell into place. A simply delightful book with truly awesome images and clear concise mathematics. I have given copies to every musician friend I have and they all love it too. Well done Wooden Books - clarity, brevity and beauty combined. More please.