Jon Catler, Harmonic Series guitar demonstration of Difference Tones, 12/17/10

Jon Catler plays 'Return of the Prince' in Just Intonation using Difference Tones. Difference Tones are bass notes that are not actually played, but are clearly heard when two purely-tuned pitches are played together.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Jon Catler
• just intonation
• harmonic
• overtones
• microtonal
• microtones
• microtonal tuning
• guitar instruction
• Jimi Hendrix
• Harry Partch
• Jeff Beck
• La Monte Young
• FreeNote Music
• microtonal guitar
• difference tones

[awfulguitarplucker]

those "difference tones" are those "unplayed" notes that the are the ACTUAL source of teh emotional effect Human mind perceives when hearing a chord (just like what it happens when one hears a Emaj7/9 on an equal tempered tuning: that crepuscularily melancholic feeling is given by the ringing of that 1Hz subsonic (unheard) interval created between the root (E) and the major seventh (Eb) and also by the 9th interval between the Root and the 9..i know you understand what i just said

[FreeNoteMusic]

@awfulguitarplucker

PT I - Difference tones do have an impact on the perception of consonance or dissonance perceived by the listener. When two Harmonic pitches are sounded simultaneously, a small movement of one of the pitches results in a larger movement of the difference tone. (cont......)

[FreeNoteMusic]

@awfulguitarplucker

PT II - (cont.....) Because 12-Tone Equal Temperament contains no Harmonic intervals except the octave, all the difference tones are out of tune, and not useable. In a 12TET chord like Emaj7/9, the beating between the mistuned intervals is so great that the difference tones are not clear.

[EricJacksonArts]

hmmm...if the harmonic series pitches are present in every note that can be played (like the color spectrum in white light) could the fundamental be a difference tone in itself? the result of 2/1, 3/2, 5/4, 7/4, 9/8, 11/8, etc.. all together?

Jon, please put more videos up! This stuff needs to be out there more! Looking forward to a great show tomorrow in NYC!

[vibratingstring]

Difference tones are part of what makes a good violinist, or a great quartet, sound so good. It is also part of the vibrato equation: vibrato disrupts the clean difference tone and applies a pulsing (say 1.5hz or so) amplitude modulation to the signal. Without vibrato, you can hear the difference tone.

viz play E660 and A440 together and the sum tone is 1100, diff tone is 220 which is of course the same note as the A--this is what makes a perfect 5th "perfect".

[awfulguitarplucker]

a funk-rock played using two microtonally adjusted notes on the melody line and USING THE DIFFERENCE TONE AS A BASSLINE resulting three guitars lines into JUST A BICORD

this is

JOHN CATLER

THE GREATEST MUSICAL GENIOUS EVER EXISTED

MOZART,BERNSTEIN,GERSHWIN,BEET­HOVEN

only noobs....

[JEROMEDESIGAUD]

Thankyou for sharing this knowledge with your guitar!!!!

I play the double flute and i use difference tones to pitch my instruments in a perfect way; Of course JI is helpful!!!!

We need to let people know important this phenomenon is...

and you're doing it well.

[Eiende]

stranger than fiction

[7648DEAN]

That is incredible!