GREENSLEEVES: Please, listen! With lute & pan flute, I hope you enjoy my arrangement! With lyrics.

This arrangement was compiled from 1796 individually tuned notes, each recorded on a YAMAHA DGX 650 digital keyboard. It began with a study of the frequencies of the primary, secondary and tertiary colours of visible light. Although sound and light waves are entirely different kinds of waves, they share many common properties, such as the Harmonic Series (see Wikipedia).

It was seen that the frequencies of the primary colours of light (red, green and blue) possess the frequency ratios 4:5:6, corresponding to those of the major triad, perhaps the most beautiful and perfect sound in music. This is probably because both are functions of the Harmonic Series. Given A=440 Hz, these colours correspond to the A flat major triad. Using Baroque pitch standards (A=415 Hz), they correspond to the A major triad.

The primary, secondary and tertiary colour frequencies (12 colours) were then transposed downward by 40 octaves, so each colour could be identified with its resonant musical note.

The human eye cannot easily detect an entire octave of light frequencies (one complete spectrum of colour). It was once believed that magenta has no unique frequency of its own. However, this is now disproven with the introduction of lasers with a wavelength of 380 nm, being dark magenta. The eyes of most birds can more easily detect a full octave of colour, having 4 kinds of colour cones in their eyes, while humans have only three. The peak frequency detected by the bird's fourth colour cone jibes with the laser's frequency for magenta. The mantis shrimp can see at least three octaves of colour!

Just as musical notes repeat at every octave, so do colours. We now know that colours continue for a number of octaves on each side the visible spectrum.

The best green and blue lasers generate a frequency in the infrared range, one octave lower than the frequency of the desired colour. Harmonic 2, the octave, is then isolated, appearing as the desired colour in the visible range. Harmonics 3, 4, 5 and 6 can also be isolated. Thus a single infrared wavelength can yield all three primary colours of visible light. These can also be combined to form pure white light, all generated from one fundamental wavelength!

Since the colours of light are based on natural harmonics, their corresponding music notes are those of Just Intonation, rather than conveniental Equal Temperament.

It is understood that some degree of subjectivity is inherent in this work, due to variations in colour perception from person to person. In addition, the human eye generally cannot detect slight differences in hues of colour nearly as well as the ear can detect slight differences in musical pitch.

I hope you enjoy this arrangement! If you have any questions regarding the relation of colour and sound, please feel free to leave them in the Comments section.

Видео GREENSLEEVES: Please, listen! With lute & pan flute, I hope you enjoy my arrangement! With lyrics. канала Fredrick Pritchard