phd@speech2.cs.cmu.edu (Paul Dietz) (02/13/90)
My master's thesis: "Simulation of Trumpet Tones via Physical Modeling" is now available as a technical report from the Laboratory for Automated Systems and Information Processing. Here's the abstract: Music synthesis algorithms based upon physical models of orchestral instruments can theoretically provide realistic tones with an unlimited range of expression. However, they are considerably more complex than traditional methods. For a given instrument there are three major steps: modeling the dynamics of the instrument and the player, developing a simulation algorithm for this model, and controlling the simulation. In order to demonstrate the feasibility of physical model based synthesis algorithms, the modern Bb trumpet is examined. A detailed model of the instrument and the players interaction with it is developed from both intuitive and analytical arguments. From this model, a simulation program is created which generates simple tones. These sounds are remarkably similar to the efforts of beginning trumpet players, indicating both the success of the model and the difficulty in playing a simulated instrument with a multi-dimensional control space. Copies of this thesis may be obtained by sending email to: debbie@gauss.ece.cmu.edu and requesting a copy of: Report # LASIP-89-07, August 1989 Or, you can send US mail to LASIP at: Laboratory for Automated Systems and Information Processing Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890 Or by calling Debbie Scappatura at: (412) 268-2431 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- For those of you who are curious about why I am posting this here: I am no longer in the music synth. buisness, and the pressures of my PhD work do not afford me the time to write the journal paper on this work. Therefore, I am trying to distribute my thesis as widely as possible as a temporary, stop-gap measure. For those of you who went to see my talk at the Acoustical Society meeting (which I was unable to give due to circumstances beyond my control), I apologize, and I hope that this thesis will satisy your curiosities. For those of you who do read the thesis, I would appreciate your comments on its readability. I worked hard to not only make this work accessible to people with a wide variety of backgrounds, but also to make it relatively enjoyable reading. If you have questions or comments, please reply to me directly since I can no longer justify reading these news groups (unless people start posting about switched-capacitor implementations of synthesis algorithms... ;-) ) Thank-you! And happy reading!! Paul H. Dietz ____ ____ Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering / oo \ <_<\\\ Carnegie Mellon University /| \/ |\ \\ \\ -------------------------------------------- | | ( ) | | | ||\\ "If God had meant for penguins to fly, -->--<-- / / |\\\ / he would have given them wings." _________^__^_________/ / / \\\\-