The Technical Committee on Musical Acoustics: Integral part of the interdisciplinary nature of acoustics

Abstract

The Technical Committee on Musical Acoustics (TCMU) of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) is concerned with the application of science and technology to the field of music. Traditionally, the areas of interest for those doing musical acoustics have included: the physics of musical sound production, questions of music perception and cognition, and the analysis and synthesis of musical sounds and composition. It is clear that many of the technical committees of the ASA are highly interdisciplinary and TCMU is no exception. The TCMU organizes special sessions often featuring a family of musical instruments, a style of music, or a technique of musical performance. Additionally, sessions have featured innovative techniques for studying acoustics which have broad application across the other technical committees. TCMU also regularly hosts musical performances at ASA meetings and visits to local music venues or musical instrument factories in order to connect researchers to practitioners. The TCMU encourages all members of the ASA to engage with us in the pursuit of understanding the production, radiation, perception, and cognition of musical sounds.