A440 (pitch standard)
A440 (also known as Stuttgart pitch
History and use
Before standardization on 440 Hz, many countries and organizations followed the French standard since the 1860s of 435 Hz, which had also been the
The American music industry reached an informal standard of 440 Hz in 1926, and some began using it in instrument manufacturing.
In 1936, the
It is designated A4 in scientific pitch notation because it occurs in the octave that starts with the fourth C key on a standard 88-key piano keyboard. On MIDI, A440 is note 69 (0x45 hexadecimal).
Modern practices
A440 is widely used as concert pitch in the United Kingdom[8] and the United States.[9] In continental Europe the frequency of A4 commonly varies between 440 Hz and 444 Hz.[8] In the
A440 is often used as a tuning reference in just intonation regardless of the fundamental note or key.
The US time and frequency station WWV broadcasts a 440 Hz signal at two minutes past every hour, with WWVH broadcasting the same tone at the first minute past every hour. This was added in 1936 to aid orchestras in tuning their instruments.[11]
See also
- History of pitch standards in Western music
- Electronic tuner
References
- ISBN 9780674375017. Retrieved 2023-01-09 – via Google Books.
- ISBN 9780810106598. Retrieved 2023-01-09 – via Google Books.
- ISBN 978-0-387-98435-3. Retrieved 2023-01-09 – via Google Books.
- ^ von Helmholtz, Hermann (1863). Die Lehre von den Tonempfindungen als physiologische Grundlage für die Theorie der Musik [The Study of the Sensations of Tone as a Physiological Foundation for the Theory of Music (alt: The Sensation of Tones)] (in German). J. Vieweg. p. 29. Retrieved 2023-01-09 – via Google Books, (pre-ISBN); see article on book Sensations of Tone.
- ISBN 978-1-57467-168-1. Retrieved 2023-01-09 – via Google Books.
- ^ "ISO 16:1975(en) Acoustics — Standard tuning frequency (Standard musical pitch)". International Organization for Standardization. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
- ^ ISO 16:1975 Acoustics – Standard tuning frequency (Standard musical pitch). International Organization for Standardization. 1975. Retrieved 2023-01-09.
- ^ a b Nistl, Franz. "Europa E - SK". Klavierstimmung.
- ^ Nistl, Franz. "Afrika Amerika Asien Ozeanien". Klavierstimmung.
- ^ a b Oxford Composer Companion JS Bach, pp. 369–372. Oxford University Press, 1999
- NIST. September 16, 2015. Retrieved 2023-01-09.