PARAMETER

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Acoustics / Electroacoustics / Music

A dimension of a sound. Some acoustic parameters are continuously variable in a single dimension, as with FREQUENCY, INTENSITY, and duration, while others, such as TIMBRE or VOLUME, are multi-dimensional. The former may be placed on a scale or continuum and may be compared quantitatively. The latter may be scaled only subjectively, and must be compared on a qualitative basis.

See: FOURIER ANALYSIS, LINEAR, RANGE, SOUND OBJECT, SOUND EVENT.

SOUND SYNTHESIS methods usually require the specification of various parameters with which to control the resultant sound, as in FOURIER SYNTHESIS or MODULATION. Such techniques, being ELECTROACOUSTIC, often assume that each parameter may be varied independently, whereas with acoustic sounds, parameters are linked, e.g. one cannot change the LOUDNESS of a sound without changing its SPECTRUM.

See: SOUND SYNTHESIZER.

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