Abstract
The words ‘tone’ and ‘note’ reflect the subjective/objective nature of sound: a tone is a sound wave with a particular frequency, a note is its subjective impact, with a particular pitch. ‘Sounds in harmony’ looks at what makes a note. In addition to pitch, a note also has duration, loudness, and timbre. Unlike pitch, duration, and loudness, timbre is a dynamic quality that can change over time and it is the only thing unique to a particular instrument or person. Why do we like what we do? Auditory pleasantness—consonance—and harmony are explained along with octaves, the pentatonic scale, major and minor scales, melodies, tempo, and metre.