Noise is ...

... sound which doesn't sound very good. It is just random, disorganised sound.

Then there is speech and other sounds which sound good and make sense, so they are not noise, but they are also not music.

Music is the art of making sounds that are beautiful by putting wavelengths together into pleasing or interesting arrangements.

Most musical instruments are designed to produce the regular, evenly spaced waves that we hear as musical notes. The sound of waves at the beach, the roar of traffic or the sound of a crowd are called white noise - the term that scientists use for sounds which consist of a mixture of all the different wavelengths.

Think of white noise as similar to white light. White light consists of the combination of all the coloured wavelengths of light. White noise is a combination of all the different wavelengths of sound.

Music is a mixture of sound waves - a mixture of frequencies which have a clear mathematical relationship between them. Noise consists of a mixture of frequencies which have no orderly mathematical relationship.

Of course, music existed long before the study of the physics behind it! Learning about why it sounds good is valuable just because it is really interesting. Humans are curious creatures who love to understand why things are so. The study of the physics of music has other purposes. It has led to improved instruments and theatre design and the electronic enhancement of music.

To explore the concept of the difference between noise and music, you are going to see how close you can get to making a recognisable tune with the three very simple instruments:

* saucepan lids hit with a wooden or metal spoon.
* rubber bands stretched over a box.
* water in glasses.

The exercise only talks about the pitch of the note. Music is far more than that. If you can start to improve the quality of the note as well, then you are taking your instrument making another step. What is the 'quality' of the note? More of that in later tasks!

Guitar (for those with a very good imagination)

box

Take four rubber bands and stretch them over a box. You can use rubber bands of the same size or you can use thicker and thinner bands. It doesn't matter. Or you can twist items such as pencils or rulers in the ends to adjust the tension.

You can adjust the tension in the rubber bands using knots as shown in the photograph.

Keep adjusting until you can get the notes you need to play a tune which sounds nice to you. You may wish to add more rubber bands, or find better ways to adjust the tension. You may wish to change the shape of the box, or use a variety of boxes with a few rubber bands each. You are the instrument maker!

Metal Xylophone

The lids of saucepans produce different notes when struck with a wooden or metal spoon.

You may find other lids or other metal objects to add to the metal xylophone. Can you find a way to adjust the note played? Can you find lids or other items which enable you to make a pleasing tune?

Glass and Water Xylophone

Glasses or glass jars can be filled with water to different levels. The note struck will depend on the depth of water. The more water in the glass, the lower the note will sound.

Can you adjust the notes until they sound right for you to play a recognisable tune?

All of these simple instruments are the basis for much more sophisticated instruments which are used professionally today. The purpose of this task is to get you playing around with creating the notes you need to turn the noise of bashing lids and glasses, or and pulling on rubber bands - and turn them into music. How well can it be done on these instruments?

Your task is to create these musical instruments. You are then to generate a familiar tune on it so that someone listening can identify the tune.

Should you wish to get imaginative and greatly improve on these instrument - then go ahead!
Should you wish to get imaginative and create other instruments - then go ahead!

In your response, describe how you made each of the instruments.
How successful were you in getting people to recognise your tune?
Did you have any ideas for improving the instruments?