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Re: Physics of the Ocarina



How does a globular flute work? You, perhaps, have seen an ocarina. It
has, so far as I can tell, a single, central cavity with holes arranged
around
and yet, somehow, those holes act to produce different notes.

I had never heard of the ocarina, but a websearch showed a variety of
shapes and styles:

There is still a role for books in physics! I have owned ocarinas, but
I can't find one just now. The physics is simple; the mode is that of a
Helmholtz oscillator. The variation on the Helmholtz oscillator is that
what would usually be considered to be the "neck" of the oscillator is
varied in size by having several necks in parallel and stopping those
one does not wish to have oscillate. The placement of the holes is not
terribly critical, so they are placed for convenience in fingering. It
is the sizes of the holes that is critical.

Oh yes, the book! I've recommended it several times in this group:
"Music, Physics, and Engineering" by Harry F. Olson, 2 ed. (Dover).
I have four books here in the office (and several more at home) but
I couldn't find "ocarina" in the other four indices I looked at.

Leigh