March 1 2204- New research challenges traditional Western music theory, suggesting that slight deviations from perfect mathematical ratios in the tuning of musical instruments may enhance our appreciation of harmony. While Ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras and subsequent scholars emphasized the importance of ‘consonance’ derived from specific numerical relationships, the study from the University of Cambridge, Princeton, and the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics reveals that listeners prefer slight deviations, finding them attractive and adding life to the sounds. Additionally, the study highlights that the significance of these mathematical relationships diminishes when considering instruments less familiar to Western audiences, such as certain types of bells, gongs, xylophones, and pitched percussion instruments like the ‘bonang’ from the Javanese gamelan.
https://phys.org/news/2024-02-pythagoras-wrong-universal-musical-harmonies.html
