ClassicalCode

Edit: Most of the explanation I came up with for this turns out to be wrong. I will update when I understand more thoroughly.

I recently had a conversation with my dad regarding “overtones” (a note that can be heard in a chord that is not acutally being sung). He informed me that what we in the barbershop community call overtones can be more accurately called sum tones, or as wikipedia calls them combination tones. The explination is that all tones, or sounds that we percieve as a single note, are actually comprised of that note, and an infinite number of notes above it (overtones). These notes are arranged according to the harmonic series: the root and octave above, the fifth above that, the root above that, the third above that, and so on with the intervals between these notes getting smaller as we Read More…