Berimbau: A simple instrument for teaching basic concepts in the physics and psychoacoustics of music
Rui César Vilão, Santino Loruan Silvestre de Melo · American Journal of Physics · 2014
We address the production of musical tones by a simple musical instrument of the Brazilian tradition: the berimbau-de-barriga. The vibration physics of the string and of the air mass inside the gourd are reviewed. Straightforward measurements of an actual berimbau, which illustrate the basic physical phenomena, are performed using a PC-based “soundcard oscilloscope.” The inharmonicity of the string and the role of the gourd are discussed in the context of known results in the psychoacoustics of pitch definition.