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From: gints@prophet.sgi.com (Gints Klimanis)
Newsgroups: comp.music
Subject: Re: Perfect Pitch and Hertz
Message-ID: <1991Mar19.195901.6769@odin.corp.sgi.com>
Date: 19 Mar 91 19:59:01 GMT
References: <3719@ssc-bee.ssc-vax.UUCP> <1991Mar18.195507.25639@odin.corp.sgi.com>
Sender: news@odin.corp.sgi.com (Net News)
Reply-To: gints@prophet.sgi.com (Gints Klimanis)
Organization: Silicon Graphics Inc.
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In article <3719@ssc-bee.ssc-vax.UUCP>, carroll@ssc-vax (Jeff Carroll) writes:
>In article <1991Mar18.195507.25639@odin.corp.sgi.com>
gints@prophet.esd.sgi.com (Gints >Klimanis) writes:
>>

>>In any case, it is not a perfect ability.  You can handle pitches with
>>about the same accuracy as distinguishing flavors of vanilla ice cream. 
>>Sure, they're vanilla but HOW vanilla.  I doubt anyone was able to
>>recognize pitches in units of Hertz.  There is too much other evidence
>>that would discredit this type of account.

>	With the aid of my pocket calculator (for taking logarithms to
>the base 2^(1/12)), I can get within about 3-5 Hz. I'm sure that I could 
>get down to 1 Hz with a little practice.

My argument against measuring in Hertz, an absolute measure, is that a
unit of cycles per second is contrary our anatomy and both pitch and
amplitude perception.  Both pitch and amplitude perception are
calibrated on a non-linear scale.  We are less sensitive to small
variations in Hertz at high pitches.  Same story for loudness.

If you can perceive 5 Hz discrepencies at pitches near 10 kHz, you
should be able to perceive discrepencies near 100 Hz with a sensitivity
that is two orders of magnitude greater.  

-- 
Jeff Carroll
carroll@ssc-vax.boeing.com