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|Music Theory Basics#Sharps and Flats|{{s}}s and {{b}}s
|Music Theory Basics#The Major Scale|Major Scale}}
''Timbre'' is the quality of a particular sound. It is why a horn sounds like a horn and a violin a violin, even when playing the same notes. Musical instruments tend to focus on sounding particular frequencies, but not necessarily. For example, drums are not designed to focus as much on frequency as the general sound they create. Some instruments are noisier than others. Some have more overtones than others. Some can have a soft attack or even swell slowly louder until reaching full volume, while others might have a very noticeable, percussive attack. Some may sustain forever (synth). Some may decay immediately (sitar). Some have more overtones than others. <u>Overtones</u> are frequencies above the fundamental at an integer multiple of the fundamental (2x, 3x, 4x ...). Like harmony, the fundamental and overtones combine to make a distinct waveform; however, since the overtone frequencies are extremely harmonic, they are often perceived as a single pitch - the pitch of the fundamental frequency. Thus, we call these overtones part of the instrument's timbre, worrying only about the fundamental frequency for harmonic and melodic purposes.
Timbre factors mainly into arrangement choices more than fundamental composition; however, at some level, composition is determined by timbre, and timbre determines what we actually hear and how it is percieved. For example, a melody designed for flute cannot be played on drums, and a drum beat cannot be played on flute. It may technically be possible, but it will lose its meaning. Similarly, each instrument has a range. A composer desiring the use of a certain instrument for a certain part will compose that part within the range of the instrument.