Engine 'Notes', (oddly musical but way OT)

[Dave Doremus]

I thought this was fun enough to send to the list, but they dont 
really talk about the temperament of choice......the intonation 
problems in choir would be staggering......

----Dave


-----------------------------
Dave Doremus RPT
New Orleans
algiers_piano@bellsouth.net
------------------------------

>
>  Formula 1 team programs engine to play music. Gohear at;-
>   http://astro.temple.edu/~kmr/Chauffe2.mp3
>
>  First you'll hear a 10-cylinder, 750 horsepower Asiatech F1 engine being
>  warmed up. Then it performs a rousing version of "When The Saints Come
>  Marching In", to the delight of assembled pit staff and
>  journalists.
>
>  Here's how the magic was achieved (technical/musical details via F1
>  Racing magazine):
>
>  "As we all know, a V10 engine produces five combustions per revolution
>  at a frequency per second of 60/(5 x revs per minute), which equals
>  12/rpm. Therefore, to work out the revs you need to hit a particular
>  Musical note, you multiply the note's frequency by 12. To play a 440Hz
>  'A', for example, you need 5,280rpm. For 'C', use 3,139rpm, for 'F'
>  4,191rpm, and so on.
>
>  Asiatech's French technicians (the engine, despite its name, is derived
>  from a Peugeot design) simply programmed their engine to run through the
>  various rev/note ranges in the correct sequence.
>  The result is delightful. And think of the possibilities - BMW's F1
>  engine, which howls all the way to 19,050rpm, could rip through the
>  entire Hendrix songbook.
>
>  Even better: imagine a massed NASCAR choir performing "The Star Spangled
>  Banner"! Being eight-cylinder engines, the frequency per second would be
>  60/(4 x revs), which means you'd multiply the note frequencies by 15
>  instead of 12: 'A' would arrive at 6,600rpm, 'C' at 3,923rpm, 'F' at
>  5,238rpm, etc."
>