Why do some chords sounds pleasing while others do not?

[Nathew]

Does it have to do with how the wavelength and what beat frequencies are created?

 

[Simon Bridge]

Welcome to PF;
The aesthetic feel of a note depends on the structure of the ear, the structure of the sound, and the musical taste of the observer :)

In terms of beat frequencies - it is hard to answer without doing your homework for you.

What happens as:
you start out with two identical tones, and gradually change the frequency of one of them?

 

[Nathew]

Well when you increase ones frequency it just gets higher pitched. No? What I don't get is why a certain chord sounds good while others do not.

 

[berkeman]

Thread closed for Moderation...

 

[berkeman]

Thread is re-opened.

 

[Simon Bridge]

Well when you increase ones frequency it just gets higher pitched. No? What I don't get is why a certain chord sounds good while others do not.

Well yes - but what you hear is the mixture of the two tones.

What happens - in terms of beats?
If you have not seen/heard this done - there are demonstrations on youtube.

 

[haruspex]

I read this as a question of human preference rather than anything about the physics. I think I've heard of research showing that speakers in agreement tend to harmonise their pitches more than those in disagreement. But I can't find a reference to this, and it still leaves the chicken-and-egg question of which came first, the preference or the tendency.

 

[Simon Bridge]

Yes this could be read as a question of aesthetics and culture, and the evolution of the human auditory system.

However, I recognize the question from part of how beats are taught in some schools.
There is a crossover point between two ordered behaviors of the waveform where the wave appears disordered. The sound is really ugly at that point. Shallow, I know.

 

[turbo]

Some chords are "resolved" in character. Others are "suspended" or otherwise discordant. You might need a lot of music theory to sort this out.

Here is an example of a chord that is often used as a "turnaround" chord in some forms of music. It's not discordant in and of itself, but it can resolve easily to any number of more natural chords.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominant_seventh_sharp_ninth_chord

 

[Simon Bridge]

So we need more feedback from nathew to answer properly.

 

[Nathew]

From what I have read, the chords that sound good are comprised of notes with frequencies that align on a regular basis. Random notes will not usually do this and that is why they don't sound as nice

 

[haruspex]

From what I have read, the chords that sound good are comprised of notes with frequencies that align on a regular basis. Random notes will not usually do this and that is why they don't sound as nice

It explains why they sound different, but why they would not sound as nice to a human is a much tougher question. A cockroach might prefer them.

 

[Nathew]

That's true. Didnt really think about it like that