About the Harmonic Series

The harmonic series is the foundation of musical tone and timbre. When any object vibrates (like a guitar string or air in a flute), it doesn’t just vibrate at one frequency. It vibrates at many frequencies simultaneously.

These frequencies are integer multiples of the fundamental frequency:

• 1st Harmonic (Fundamental): The pitch you hear (e.g., 220 Hz)
• 2nd Harmonic: 2x freq (440 Hz) - One octave up
• 3rd Harmonic: 3x freq (660 Hz) - Perfect 5th above that
• 4th Harmonic: 4x freq (880 Hz) - Two octaves up

How to Use

1. Play: Click the Play button to start the sound engine.
2. Toggle Harmonics: Click the numbered buttons (1-16) to turn specific harmonics on or off.
3. Adjust Levels: Use the sliders to change the volume of the fundamental or individual harmonics.
4. Visualize: Watch how the waveform shape changes as you add more complex harmonics.

Why It Matters

The relative volume of these harmonics is what gives each instrument its unique “color” or timbre. A clarinet has strong odd harmonics, while a violin has a rich set of all harmonics. By adjusting these levels, you are performing additive synthesis—building complex sounds from simple sine waves.