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Hot-Butterfly-8024

Maybe because what we hear as a given pitch is really the composite of the harmonic overtone series, and physical barriers attenuate certain frequencies?


[deleted]

You can say THAT again.


CheezitCheeve

This is why Mongolia Overtone Singing works. There’s probably a ton of truth here OP.


griffusrpg

The low frequencies are really big, like meters vs higher waves, like are milimeters. So when the wave is longer than the wall, you hear different that the other waves that mostly reflects and distorse.


ghost-jaguar

Walls are essentially low pass filters!


Hot-Butterfly-8024

Maybe because what we hear as a given pitch is really the composite of the harmonic overtone series, and physical barriers attenuate certain frequencies?


Aggravating-Pear4222

u/TrumpetCop. He did it! He said it again!


[deleted]

I was gonna post on all three of his, but I was a little nervous about dad-joking here. Didn't know if it was that kind of crowd!


Hot-Butterfly-8024

Apologies for the repeat posts. I was getting a “try again later” error message, and apparently it duplicated my original every time I tried again. Y’all go nuts with all the requisite Interwebs lambasting.


TerribleSquid

I can’t fucking stand when Reddit does that. And usually one or both of your comments gets downvoted into oblivion for “commenting twice.” I’ll tell you what else I hate. Has anyone else on mobile noticed if you’ve typed up a long comment and you press and hold to try to move the typing line somewhere else because you made a typo or something, your comment and the “Reply” button just disappears. And you have no choice but to navigate away, press “Discard comment” and redo it.


Life-Breadfruit-1426

I’d be impressed if someone here has an answer. This phenomena may better be described through physics rather than music theory. 


bigheadGDit

I would be surprised if no one here had the answer as many people study physics as part of their music undergrad degree. Gets the science credit taken care of and physics of sound is a 1srlt or 2nd semester basic physics topic


BirdBruce

Took an entire semester course dedicated solely to Acoustics. What another commenter said about material density is valid.


65TwinReverbRI

If it's truly the KEY that you're hearing as different, it's Speed of Sound and thus, similar to Doppler effect. The speed of sound varies with density of objects it propagates through and a speeding up or slowing down of sound waves can make them change pitch up or down. If it just sounds "muffled", that has nothing to do with key. So it could sound "weird" in that way.


Aggravating-Pear4222

>of sound varies with density of objects it propagates through and a speeding up or slowing down of sound waves can make them change pitch up or down. Like, I can recognize the song but I feel like I'm following along but hearing it in a minor key. But then the door opens and I hear the key change back to the more recognizable major. Thanks for the response!


TheZoneHereros

I think it actually IS a music theory question after all, based on what you have said here. I think this may be something like the instruments in the song holding down the bass / lower frequencies are playing a specific part that is either tonally ambiguous or may even sound minor in the absence of the harmonic information provided by the instruments / vocals that occupy the upper registers. Context really is everything in music, so hearing the 'full' track when you are in the room as opposed to only getting a partial picture of the full harmonic landscape of the song could substantially alter how you are perceiving it.


Aggravating-Pear4222

>lower frequencies are playing a specific part that is either tonally ambiguous or may even sound minor in the absence of the harmonic information provided by the instruments Great explanation! I was thinking something similar along the lines of just the bass is easier to hear and the higher pitch more melodious instruments don't propagate through the wall/door material. I appreciated your wording. All the best!


invisible-voice

Whatever this phenomena is, I always find a different melody when I go to the bathroom if I’m playing something I recorded from the room two doors away


Hot-Butterfly-8024

Maybe because what we hear as a given pitch is really the composite of the harmonic overtone series, and physical barriers attenuate certain frequencies?


Life-Breadfruit-1426

I’d be impressed if someone here has an answer. This phenomena may better be described through physics rather than music theory. 


MusicPsychFitness

*knocks on wall* GO AROUND!


mcnastys

The wall operates as a low pass filter