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Etymology of word “Octaveâ€
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How come the etymology of the word octave is related to the number eight, when the numbers that you would associate with the meaning of the word are either two – doubling of the frequency – , or alternatively five, seven, or twelve, if we think about the number of notes within commonly used scales, starting from any note and stopping one octave higher?
Etymology dictionaries don't help as they simply point out the Latin root of the word - Related to the number eight – and also the Wikipedia article doesn't seem to mention anything about this.
My question is thus about why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which is itself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as the chromatic or pentatonic. Why, then, is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent for instance?
theory intervals
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
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up vote
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down vote
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How come the etymology of the word octave is related to the number eight, when the numbers that you would associate with the meaning of the word are either two – doubling of the frequency – , or alternatively five, seven, or twelve, if we think about the number of notes within commonly used scales, starting from any note and stopping one octave higher?
Etymology dictionaries don't help as they simply point out the Latin root of the word - Related to the number eight – and also the Wikipedia article doesn't seem to mention anything about this.
My question is thus about why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which is itself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as the chromatic or pentatonic. Why, then, is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent for instance?
theory intervals
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
1
The frequencies have very little to do with it.
– Neil Meyer
18 hours ago
"as they simply point out the Latin root" you mean "ocatvus" meaning the 8th as in it is the 8th note?
– eques
16 hours ago
Choose a scale, start on it's root, or 1st, note. Move one step up the scale 7 times. Those are the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh notes. The next one is called the eighth, or octave.
– AJFaraday
3 hours ago
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up vote
6
down vote
favorite
up vote
6
down vote
favorite
How come the etymology of the word octave is related to the number eight, when the numbers that you would associate with the meaning of the word are either two – doubling of the frequency – , or alternatively five, seven, or twelve, if we think about the number of notes within commonly used scales, starting from any note and stopping one octave higher?
Etymology dictionaries don't help as they simply point out the Latin root of the word - Related to the number eight – and also the Wikipedia article doesn't seem to mention anything about this.
My question is thus about why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which is itself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as the chromatic or pentatonic. Why, then, is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent for instance?
theory intervals
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
How come the etymology of the word octave is related to the number eight, when the numbers that you would associate with the meaning of the word are either two – doubling of the frequency – , or alternatively five, seven, or twelve, if we think about the number of notes within commonly used scales, starting from any note and stopping one octave higher?
Etymology dictionaries don't help as they simply point out the Latin root of the word - Related to the number eight – and also the Wikipedia article doesn't seem to mention anything about this.
My question is thus about why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which is itself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as the chromatic or pentatonic. Why, then, is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent for instance?
theory intervals
theory intervals
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
edited 13 mins ago
user45266
1,129221
1,129221
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
asked 18 hours ago
z8080
1525
1525
1
The frequencies have very little to do with it.
– Neil Meyer
18 hours ago
"as they simply point out the Latin root" you mean "ocatvus" meaning the 8th as in it is the 8th note?
– eques
16 hours ago
Choose a scale, start on it's root, or 1st, note. Move one step up the scale 7 times. Those are the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh notes. The next one is called the eighth, or octave.
– AJFaraday
3 hours ago
add a comment |Â
1
The frequencies have very little to do with it.
– Neil Meyer
18 hours ago
"as they simply point out the Latin root" you mean "ocatvus" meaning the 8th as in it is the 8th note?
– eques
16 hours ago
Choose a scale, start on it's root, or 1st, note. Move one step up the scale 7 times. Those are the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh notes. The next one is called the eighth, or octave.
– AJFaraday
3 hours ago
1
1
The frequencies have very little to do with it.
– Neil Meyer
18 hours ago
The frequencies have very little to do with it.
– Neil Meyer
18 hours ago
"as they simply point out the Latin root" you mean "ocatvus" meaning the 8th as in it is the 8th note?
– eques
16 hours ago
"as they simply point out the Latin root" you mean "ocatvus" meaning the 8th as in it is the 8th note?
– eques
16 hours ago
Choose a scale, start on it's root, or 1st, note. Move one step up the scale 7 times. Those are the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh notes. The next one is called the eighth, or octave.
– AJFaraday
3 hours ago
Choose a scale, start on it's root, or 1st, note. Move one step up the scale 7 times. Those are the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh notes. The next one is called the eighth, or octave.
– AJFaraday
3 hours ago
add a comment |Â
7 Answers
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It's because in music, when you're talking about intervals, you count the first note, all notes in between, as well as the final note. For example, if you play two notes that are right next to each other, the interval is a second - even though the second note is just "one note" away from the first. In fact, if you play the same note at the same time, it's called a prime, even though there's no distance between those two notes. A third is only two whole notes apart, a fourth only three, and so on. And the same way, an octave is only seven whole notes apart.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
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+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
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The octave would be the eighth note. There are seven scale degrees and if you take an additional step, you will land on the octave.
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
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An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight. With seven intervals between. Take the octave C-C. C D E F G A B C eight notes later we're back on C.
You certainly wouldn't say 'octave of C is B', surely? The first C is not no. 0, like the start of a ruler, or a stopwatch. It's 1.
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
1
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
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Your argument is, then, why is is not a "hexave" instead of an octave in the case of, say, a pentatonic scale and not a diatonic scale?
That is because in the standard western system, a pentatonic scale is represented with note names that correspond with the idea of the diatonic scale. It is more correct to say that, calling it an octave and using diatonic names is an approximation applied unto other scale types, for the sake of keeping talk about music the same.
It would otherwise be chaotic if, say, you have a pentatonic scale written C-D-E-A-B-C and a diatonic scale C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, and the only notes on which people can agree on the sound on are then C, because they are at similar frequency intervals, but none of the degrees are agreeable.
It makes more sense to keep to a standard, if you will, so that music discussion is always on the same page. Given that the western standard of music revolves around the diatonic, when talking about music from a western perspective, it would make more sense to describe the pentatonic in terms of the diatonic, that is, assuming the Major Pentatonic scale, what would have been C-D-E-A-B-C in its own pentatonic format would be represented as C-D-E-G-A-C in the western standard, aligning the pitches of the diatonic and the pentatonic. Therefore, the "hexave" is the same as the octave, so for simplicity's sake, we refer to it as just the octave instead.
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
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The term "octave" originated in the west, so it should be no surprise that it's based on features of western music. And the diatonic scale really is central in western music, as evidenced by the fact that a piano has eight white keys in an octave, and the notes are named by eight letters, modified by sharps and flats. Other answers have made similar points with more sophistication, but I thought it would be good to have those two points up at the front of an answer.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
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Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
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I don't have a source for this, but it seems self-evident to me that the context in which this term was developed was not an environment in which "pent" was a contending alternative - nor "sept", twelve, or any other number of scale degrees.
You seem to want to deny the saliency of the Western system, and the relevancy of the diatonic scale. You do make the valid point that today chromatic and pentatonic scales could arguably be "strong competitors" against the diatonic, but for one thing that wasn't true in the time and place when the expression "octave" came about, and for another the competition developed within the Western system in a context in which the term "octave" had already long since been defined. With the possible exception of very early Greek musical analysis, I (again unsourced) just cannot imagine a time when anyone talking about a chromatic scale or a pentatonic scale would have seriously considered trying to ignore the traditional diatonic modes in describing those scales.
The answer to your question seems to be, the reason we use the term "octave" even when "it's not all about the notes of the diatonic" is, at the time the term was developed, it was - and it has not stopped being useful within more-recent developments which use scales of some number of degrees different from the diatonic. People know what it means, people know why it means what it means, it would be asking more of them to throw it away and make up a different term than it is to just ask them to keep talking about "octaves" in the context of non-diatonic scales.
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
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If you know some computer programming languages, note that in some of them the arrays begin with the index 0 and in others with 1. I'd say the way we count intervals is one-based, that's all :P If you count in one direction until you find the same note, you get the number 8.
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
1
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
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7 Answers
7
active
oldest
votes
7 Answers
7
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
11
down vote
It's because in music, when you're talking about intervals, you count the first note, all notes in between, as well as the final note. For example, if you play two notes that are right next to each other, the interval is a second - even though the second note is just "one note" away from the first. In fact, if you play the same note at the same time, it's called a prime, even though there's no distance between those two notes. A third is only two whole notes apart, a fourth only three, and so on. And the same way, an octave is only seven whole notes apart.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
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2
+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
11
down vote
It's because in music, when you're talking about intervals, you count the first note, all notes in between, as well as the final note. For example, if you play two notes that are right next to each other, the interval is a second - even though the second note is just "one note" away from the first. In fact, if you play the same note at the same time, it's called a prime, even though there's no distance between those two notes. A third is only two whole notes apart, a fourth only three, and so on. And the same way, an octave is only seven whole notes apart.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
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trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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2
+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
11
down vote
up vote
11
down vote
It's because in music, when you're talking about intervals, you count the first note, all notes in between, as well as the final note. For example, if you play two notes that are right next to each other, the interval is a second - even though the second note is just "one note" away from the first. In fact, if you play the same note at the same time, it's called a prime, even though there's no distance between those two notes. A third is only two whole notes apart, a fourth only three, and so on. And the same way, an octave is only seven whole notes apart.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
New contributor
trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
It's because in music, when you're talking about intervals, you count the first note, all notes in between, as well as the final note. For example, if you play two notes that are right next to each other, the interval is a second - even though the second note is just "one note" away from the first. In fact, if you play the same note at the same time, it's called a prime, even though there's no distance between those two notes. A third is only two whole notes apart, a fourth only three, and so on. And the same way, an octave is only seven whole notes apart.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
New contributor
trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
New contributor
trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
answered 12 hours ago
trainman261
1112
1112
New contributor
trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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New contributor
trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
trainman261 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
2
+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
add a comment |Â
2
+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
2
2
+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
+1, this point was somehow missed in the other answers. The only thing that's new with the octave is that the English interval names suddenly drop from counting in English to counting in Latin: "... fifth, sixth, seventh, octave, ninth ..." But some other European language uses Latin names throughout for these intervals, eg. German: "... Quite, Sexte, Septime, Octave, None ..."
– Henning Makholm
12 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
10
down vote
The octave would be the eighth note. There are seven scale degrees and if you take an additional step, you will land on the octave.
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
10
down vote
The octave would be the eighth note. There are seven scale degrees and if you take an additional step, you will land on the octave.
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
10
down vote
up vote
10
down vote
The octave would be the eighth note. There are seven scale degrees and if you take an additional step, you will land on the octave.
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
The octave would be the eighth note. There are seven scale degrees and if you take an additional step, you will land on the octave.
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
edited 16 hours ago
anatolyg
1,23911434
1,23911434
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
answered 18 hours ago
Basstickler
5,8901032
5,8901032
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
Thanks for your answer! I noticed the other one first, which is similar, and replied to it in the comments.
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
1
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Even if you subscribe to 1-based ordinal counting (which you shouldn't, but this is ultimately an arbitrary convention) then there's still no good argument to be had for the way intervals are labelled, i.e. cardinal counting. It's just wrong, a historic mistake. Yes, you can label the octave's scale degree with the number Ⅷ, but there is no talking around that you needed only seven steps to get there.
– leftaroundabout
3 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
Excellent point, hadn't thought about it this way, thank you!
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight. With seven intervals between. Take the octave C-C. C D E F G A B C eight notes later we're back on C.
You certainly wouldn't say 'octave of C is B', surely? The first C is not no. 0, like the start of a ruler, or a stopwatch. It's 1.
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
1
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight. With seven intervals between. Take the octave C-C. C D E F G A B C eight notes later we're back on C.
You certainly wouldn't say 'octave of C is B', surely? The first C is not no. 0, like the start of a ruler, or a stopwatch. It's 1.
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
1
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
up vote
6
down vote
An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight. With seven intervals between. Take the octave C-C. C D E F G A B C eight notes later we're back on C.
You certainly wouldn't say 'octave of C is B', surely? The first C is not no. 0, like the start of a ruler, or a stopwatch. It's 1.
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight. With seven intervals between. Take the octave C-C. C D E F G A B C eight notes later we're back on C.
You certainly wouldn't say 'octave of C is B', surely? The first C is not no. 0, like the start of a ruler, or a stopwatch. It's 1.
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
answered 18 hours ago
Tim
91.5k1094230
91.5k1094230
1
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
1
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
1
1
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
Of course - but that still assumes that the diatonic scale, with its 7 - 8 if you count the same note reached again - is the only way to divide the doubling-of-frequency space, or at least the most salient, whereas I would suspect it wasn't at the time when the meaning of the word came into use, not even in the Western world!
– z8080
18 hours ago
1
1
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
It's my understanding that at the time of developing the scales, which were derived from simple ratios, there were 7 notes per octave, so the eighth was named based on the word for 8. There are plenty of ways to divide the octave but at the time the term was invented, there was really only the one approach.
– Basstickler
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
Well in that case this would be a very obvious explanation as to the link between the number 8 and the physical concept of octave. I didn't know this was the case – many thanks for your contribution
– z8080
17 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"[Counting in] music is not baseball." -- my MT teacher
– OldBunny2800
14 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
"An octave is the space, pitch wise, which can be divided into eight". I don't understand this explanation. As you said, there are seven intervals inbetween.
– Eric Duminil
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
3
down vote
Your argument is, then, why is is not a "hexave" instead of an octave in the case of, say, a pentatonic scale and not a diatonic scale?
That is because in the standard western system, a pentatonic scale is represented with note names that correspond with the idea of the diatonic scale. It is more correct to say that, calling it an octave and using diatonic names is an approximation applied unto other scale types, for the sake of keeping talk about music the same.
It would otherwise be chaotic if, say, you have a pentatonic scale written C-D-E-A-B-C and a diatonic scale C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, and the only notes on which people can agree on the sound on are then C, because they are at similar frequency intervals, but none of the degrees are agreeable.
It makes more sense to keep to a standard, if you will, so that music discussion is always on the same page. Given that the western standard of music revolves around the diatonic, when talking about music from a western perspective, it would make more sense to describe the pentatonic in terms of the diatonic, that is, assuming the Major Pentatonic scale, what would have been C-D-E-A-B-C in its own pentatonic format would be represented as C-D-E-G-A-C in the western standard, aligning the pitches of the diatonic and the pentatonic. Therefore, the "hexave" is the same as the octave, so for simplicity's sake, we refer to it as just the octave instead.
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
3
down vote
Your argument is, then, why is is not a "hexave" instead of an octave in the case of, say, a pentatonic scale and not a diatonic scale?
That is because in the standard western system, a pentatonic scale is represented with note names that correspond with the idea of the diatonic scale. It is more correct to say that, calling it an octave and using diatonic names is an approximation applied unto other scale types, for the sake of keeping talk about music the same.
It would otherwise be chaotic if, say, you have a pentatonic scale written C-D-E-A-B-C and a diatonic scale C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, and the only notes on which people can agree on the sound on are then C, because they are at similar frequency intervals, but none of the degrees are agreeable.
It makes more sense to keep to a standard, if you will, so that music discussion is always on the same page. Given that the western standard of music revolves around the diatonic, when talking about music from a western perspective, it would make more sense to describe the pentatonic in terms of the diatonic, that is, assuming the Major Pentatonic scale, what would have been C-D-E-A-B-C in its own pentatonic format would be represented as C-D-E-G-A-C in the western standard, aligning the pitches of the diatonic and the pentatonic. Therefore, the "hexave" is the same as the octave, so for simplicity's sake, we refer to it as just the octave instead.
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
3
down vote
up vote
3
down vote
Your argument is, then, why is is not a "hexave" instead of an octave in the case of, say, a pentatonic scale and not a diatonic scale?
That is because in the standard western system, a pentatonic scale is represented with note names that correspond with the idea of the diatonic scale. It is more correct to say that, calling it an octave and using diatonic names is an approximation applied unto other scale types, for the sake of keeping talk about music the same.
It would otherwise be chaotic if, say, you have a pentatonic scale written C-D-E-A-B-C and a diatonic scale C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, and the only notes on which people can agree on the sound on are then C, because they are at similar frequency intervals, but none of the degrees are agreeable.
It makes more sense to keep to a standard, if you will, so that music discussion is always on the same page. Given that the western standard of music revolves around the diatonic, when talking about music from a western perspective, it would make more sense to describe the pentatonic in terms of the diatonic, that is, assuming the Major Pentatonic scale, what would have been C-D-E-A-B-C in its own pentatonic format would be represented as C-D-E-G-A-C in the western standard, aligning the pitches of the diatonic and the pentatonic. Therefore, the "hexave" is the same as the octave, so for simplicity's sake, we refer to it as just the octave instead.
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
Your argument is, then, why is is not a "hexave" instead of an octave in the case of, say, a pentatonic scale and not a diatonic scale?
That is because in the standard western system, a pentatonic scale is represented with note names that correspond with the idea of the diatonic scale. It is more correct to say that, calling it an octave and using diatonic names is an approximation applied unto other scale types, for the sake of keeping talk about music the same.
It would otherwise be chaotic if, say, you have a pentatonic scale written C-D-E-A-B-C and a diatonic scale C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, and the only notes on which people can agree on the sound on are then C, because they are at similar frequency intervals, but none of the degrees are agreeable.
It makes more sense to keep to a standard, if you will, so that music discussion is always on the same page. Given that the western standard of music revolves around the diatonic, when talking about music from a western perspective, it would make more sense to describe the pentatonic in terms of the diatonic, that is, assuming the Major Pentatonic scale, what would have been C-D-E-A-B-C in its own pentatonic format would be represented as C-D-E-G-A-C in the western standard, aligning the pitches of the diatonic and the pentatonic. Therefore, the "hexave" is the same as the octave, so for simplicity's sake, we refer to it as just the octave instead.
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
answered 12 hours ago
psosuna
43317
43317
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
Very well put, thanks for you answer
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
3
down vote
The term "octave" originated in the west, so it should be no surprise that it's based on features of western music. And the diatonic scale really is central in western music, as evidenced by the fact that a piano has eight white keys in an octave, and the notes are named by eight letters, modified by sharps and flats. Other answers have made similar points with more sophistication, but I thought it would be good to have those two points up at the front of an answer.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
3
down vote
The term "octave" originated in the west, so it should be no surprise that it's based on features of western music. And the diatonic scale really is central in western music, as evidenced by the fact that a piano has eight white keys in an octave, and the notes are named by eight letters, modified by sharps and flats. Other answers have made similar points with more sophistication, but I thought it would be good to have those two points up at the front of an answer.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
3
down vote
up vote
3
down vote
The term "octave" originated in the west, so it should be no surprise that it's based on features of western music. And the diatonic scale really is central in western music, as evidenced by the fact that a piano has eight white keys in an octave, and the notes are named by eight letters, modified by sharps and flats. Other answers have made similar points with more sophistication, but I thought it would be good to have those two points up at the front of an answer.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
The term "octave" originated in the west, so it should be no surprise that it's based on features of western music. And the diatonic scale really is central in western music, as evidenced by the fact that a piano has eight white keys in an octave, and the notes are named by eight letters, modified by sharps and flats. Other answers have made similar points with more sophistication, but I thought it would be good to have those two points up at the front of an answer.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
answered 7 hours ago
Mark Foskey
1312
1312
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Mark Foskey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
add a comment |Â
Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
Exactly this. OP seems surprised that the word would be based on Western musical conventions, but it's a Western word so why not!
– Lightness Races in Orbit
51 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
I don't have a source for this, but it seems self-evident to me that the context in which this term was developed was not an environment in which "pent" was a contending alternative - nor "sept", twelve, or any other number of scale degrees.
You seem to want to deny the saliency of the Western system, and the relevancy of the diatonic scale. You do make the valid point that today chromatic and pentatonic scales could arguably be "strong competitors" against the diatonic, but for one thing that wasn't true in the time and place when the expression "octave" came about, and for another the competition developed within the Western system in a context in which the term "octave" had already long since been defined. With the possible exception of very early Greek musical analysis, I (again unsourced) just cannot imagine a time when anyone talking about a chromatic scale or a pentatonic scale would have seriously considered trying to ignore the traditional diatonic modes in describing those scales.
The answer to your question seems to be, the reason we use the term "octave" even when "it's not all about the notes of the diatonic" is, at the time the term was developed, it was - and it has not stopped being useful within more-recent developments which use scales of some number of degrees different from the diatonic. People know what it means, people know why it means what it means, it would be asking more of them to throw it away and make up a different term than it is to just ask them to keep talking about "octaves" in the context of non-diatonic scales.
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
I don't have a source for this, but it seems self-evident to me that the context in which this term was developed was not an environment in which "pent" was a contending alternative - nor "sept", twelve, or any other number of scale degrees.
You seem to want to deny the saliency of the Western system, and the relevancy of the diatonic scale. You do make the valid point that today chromatic and pentatonic scales could arguably be "strong competitors" against the diatonic, but for one thing that wasn't true in the time and place when the expression "octave" came about, and for another the competition developed within the Western system in a context in which the term "octave" had already long since been defined. With the possible exception of very early Greek musical analysis, I (again unsourced) just cannot imagine a time when anyone talking about a chromatic scale or a pentatonic scale would have seriously considered trying to ignore the traditional diatonic modes in describing those scales.
The answer to your question seems to be, the reason we use the term "octave" even when "it's not all about the notes of the diatonic" is, at the time the term was developed, it was - and it has not stopped being useful within more-recent developments which use scales of some number of degrees different from the diatonic. People know what it means, people know why it means what it means, it would be asking more of them to throw it away and make up a different term than it is to just ask them to keep talking about "octaves" in the context of non-diatonic scales.
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
up vote
2
down vote
I don't have a source for this, but it seems self-evident to me that the context in which this term was developed was not an environment in which "pent" was a contending alternative - nor "sept", twelve, or any other number of scale degrees.
You seem to want to deny the saliency of the Western system, and the relevancy of the diatonic scale. You do make the valid point that today chromatic and pentatonic scales could arguably be "strong competitors" against the diatonic, but for one thing that wasn't true in the time and place when the expression "octave" came about, and for another the competition developed within the Western system in a context in which the term "octave" had already long since been defined. With the possible exception of very early Greek musical analysis, I (again unsourced) just cannot imagine a time when anyone talking about a chromatic scale or a pentatonic scale would have seriously considered trying to ignore the traditional diatonic modes in describing those scales.
The answer to your question seems to be, the reason we use the term "octave" even when "it's not all about the notes of the diatonic" is, at the time the term was developed, it was - and it has not stopped being useful within more-recent developments which use scales of some number of degrees different from the diatonic. People know what it means, people know why it means what it means, it would be asking more of them to throw it away and make up a different term than it is to just ask them to keep talking about "octaves" in the context of non-diatonic scales.
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
I don't have a source for this, but it seems self-evident to me that the context in which this term was developed was not an environment in which "pent" was a contending alternative - nor "sept", twelve, or any other number of scale degrees.
You seem to want to deny the saliency of the Western system, and the relevancy of the diatonic scale. You do make the valid point that today chromatic and pentatonic scales could arguably be "strong competitors" against the diatonic, but for one thing that wasn't true in the time and place when the expression "octave" came about, and for another the competition developed within the Western system in a context in which the term "octave" had already long since been defined. With the possible exception of very early Greek musical analysis, I (again unsourced) just cannot imagine a time when anyone talking about a chromatic scale or a pentatonic scale would have seriously considered trying to ignore the traditional diatonic modes in describing those scales.
The answer to your question seems to be, the reason we use the term "octave" even when "it's not all about the notes of the diatonic" is, at the time the term was developed, it was - and it has not stopped being useful within more-recent developments which use scales of some number of degrees different from the diatonic. People know what it means, people know why it means what it means, it would be asking more of them to throw it away and make up a different term than it is to just ask them to keep talking about "octaves" in the context of non-diatonic scales.
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
answered 13 hours ago
Beanluc
1874
1874
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
Good point, these points certainly became clearer to me while reading some of the excellent answers in here
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
If you know some computer programming languages, note that in some of them the arrays begin with the index 0 and in others with 1. I'd say the way we count intervals is one-based, that's all :P If you count in one direction until you find the same note, you get the number 8.
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
1
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
If you know some computer programming languages, note that in some of them the arrays begin with the index 0 and in others with 1. I'd say the way we count intervals is one-based, that's all :P If you count in one direction until you find the same note, you get the number 8.
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
1
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
up vote
1
down vote
If you know some computer programming languages, note that in some of them the arrays begin with the index 0 and in others with 1. I'd say the way we count intervals is one-based, that's all :P If you count in one direction until you find the same note, you get the number 8.
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
If you know some computer programming languages, note that in some of them the arrays begin with the index 0 and in others with 1. I'd say the way we count intervals is one-based, that's all :P If you count in one direction until you find the same note, you get the number 8.
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
answered 15 hours ago
Allan Felipe
411214
411214
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
1
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
1
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
You might want to read the other comments on here. My question was precisely why the number eight is anything special in dividing up one cycle of unique pitches , since it ("8") is only relevant for the diatonic scale , which isitself salient only in western cultures, and even there with strong competition from other scale types such as pentatonic. Why then is the interval that doubles the pitch not called a pent?
– z8080
15 hours ago
1
1
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
Oh, ok! It's a music history question then, if I understood it correctly. "Why diatonic scales became so important throughout history?" Because you could make the same question with all intervals: Why the interval of 5th is equal to such distance, why the word "3rd" is allowed to such and such distances, etc.
– Allan Felipe
11 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
You're right -that this was the essence of my question became clearer to me only once the discussion here got rolling! :)
– z8080
2 hours ago
add a comment |Â
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1
The frequencies have very little to do with it.
– Neil Meyer
18 hours ago
"as they simply point out the Latin root" you mean "ocatvus" meaning the 8th as in it is the 8th note?
– eques
16 hours ago
Choose a scale, start on it's root, or 1st, note. Move one step up the scale 7 times. Those are the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh notes. The next one is called the eighth, or octave.
– AJFaraday
3 hours ago