Being the music nut that I am, I would travel all the way back to the sixth century BCE when Pythagoras – the A2 + B2 = C2 guy – used his math skills to determine the intervals between notes and which ones made the most pleasing sounds.
While nature is filled with music of its own kind, early man had no way to replicate those sounds.
Pythagorean tuning was born and is known as the basis for the earliest system of creating music.
There is a story that Pythagoras used the sounds of blacksmith’s hammers for his theory; but it is believed to be just a legend. Wouldn’t it be cool to go back and find out???
I am a rare bird that really likes music theory and I think it would be really cool and interesting to learn how a “math guy” made it possible for the world to create music.
Algebra students the world over curse Pythagoras and his theory; but musicians owe him a great deal…their entire world. Who knows how long it would have been before someone figured out how to make music?
While the early composers and musicians found their creativity ruled by the church – there were just certain intervals and chords that were simply not allowed – the “devil chord” – but they still found ways to make some beautiful sounds! Sounds that are still with us today.