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Because it seems to be difficult to understand what the free tuning is, I wrote the following text hoping this can clarify some questions.

"It is not the pitch that matters at the Hang" (my imperfect English translation), Felix Rohner told me when we discussed the free tuning. It is not the pitch you hear if you listen to a Hang.

Pitch is a sort of artefact created by our brain. Two examples:

1) If you analyse the modes of a xylophone tone you will find that there is a week fundamental combined with one or two much stronger higher harmonics. But these higher harmonics are not in a correct integer ratio. Experiments were made with electronic sounds simulating a xylophone tone shifting the harmonics up and down and the test persons had to describe whether they heard a pitch ore several tones and where they locate the pitch (higher or lower compared to a mathematical correct test tone). The results shows very clear that people hear pitches although there isn't a integer ratio.

2) Perhaps you know the stretched tuning on a piano. The ideal string is very long and has a thickness = 0. This theoretical ideal string oscillates in modes with integer ratios (1:1 fundamental, 1:2 octave, 1:3 compound fifth and so on). But real strings have not a thickness = 0. If a string has a thickness > 0 the ratios of the modes shift away from integer ratios. This doesn't matter if the string is very long compared to its thickness. But if you have very short strings like in the highest octave of a piano this shifting of the harmonics becomes quite noticable. But if you listen to such a piano tone you will hear a pitch. But this pitch your brain analizes from the frequencies is lower than the fundamental of this string. Therfore making a stretched tuning, the piano tuner tunes the fundamental higher than correct. And now you have a piano tone with an incorrect fundamental and harmonics with incorrect not integer ratios. Your brain however hears a correct pitch. Isn't that strange?

Now - what means free tuning on the Free Integral Hang? The Hang makers found out that they got a stronger sound with more "substance" and more resonance to what a human experiences when listening when they free themselves from the dictatorship of the strobo tuner and listened to their inner resonance. They let their body and brain decide how to place the modes in interaction with the metal and in an intuitive way. And this includes inharmonic aspects. You will hear a lot of beat frequencies in the Free Hang sounds that shows you that there must be a lot of not integer ratios. If you try to analize the tones you will be confused, you will think it is out of tune. Listen to a Free Integral Hang means to free yourself from your "inner strobo tuner" and let your body and brain do their work for you, in a similar way the Hang makers are working when tuning the Free Hang. You will not be able so describe what you hear then. Are these tones with distinct pitches? Is this a bunch of frequencies oszillating in a sort of virtual room around you? It is "as well as" and "neither nor" in the same time.

And another aspect is: Because what you hear is the result of the interaction of your brain, your hands, your lap, the room you are in and the Hang, what you hear will be different at different times. The Hang remains constant but your brain, your hands, your lap and the room (and your position in the room) vary. So you get varying results. This is a basic aspect to recognize: Because this is such a complex process you cannot control Hang playing.

Michael

Michael,

does it mean that in a note on the Hang wich is tuned in a stretched manner with no integer ration you should here no beatings?

is`nt it that the octave is tuned higher not the fundamental?

If you tune a piano string you shift all harmonics up and down. So the fundamental and the octave and all the other higher harmonics are sharper on stretched tuning.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stretched_tuning

Hang tuning has nothing to do with stretched tuning. This was only an example to explain that a piano tone can sound correct although the fundamental is too high and the overtones are not in integer ratios but slightly drifted.

Free tuning on the Hang means that the three modes of each tone field are tuned 1:2:3 but not controlled by strobo tuner but by the "inner resonance" of the tuner. This can give a better tuning result because the strobo tuner doesn't detect the whole sound of the Hang. It can only tell you whether the three modes of a single tone field are exact 1:2:3 but nothing else.

But the Hang is not a side by side of 8 isolated notes. There is a lot of energy transfer between the modes within a tone field and and between the tone fields. The dynamics of each mode influence the others. While the amplitude of one mode is flourishing the other is fading down and so on, a complex network of oscillations, that cannot be displayed by a strobo tuner. But body, ear and brain of the tuner can.

The PANArt tuners found out that they could add even more Lebendigkeit (I didn't find an English translation I'm sure of that it transports the same meaning), when they add something to the tuning they formerly thought about as "dirt". These inharmonic aspects add beat frequencies and perhaps other fluctuations of energy transfer between the modes to the sound. It is a bit as if you play a violin and you don't have to add vibrato to the tone actively by your hand because it is just built in (what is most likely not possible because of the physical properties of the violin).

So we can say: Even the free tuning is a harmonic tuning based on the 1:2:3 ratio of the modes but made by listening to the whole sound of the Hang and not only to the single tone field (as it is done if the tuner use a strobo tuner) and by adding a sort of "dirt" to the sound whereby additional fluctuations make the sound richer.

To profit from this possibilities the player must turn off his "inner strobo tuner" that let him isolate the single tones but concentrate his awareness to the whole sound of the sound sculpture (in the meaning of sculpture made of sounds). If he do so he will find that he cannot say whether he hear a single tone or a bunch of frequencies.

If you look at the development stages 1st generation -> 2nd generation -> Integral Hang -> Free Hang you will see increasing possibilities for the player to shape the sound. The sound became more flexible. It can be more dry or more resonant.

Because we are trained - especially if we have a musical education - to concentrate to correct pitch of a sequence of isolated notes, the free tuning can confuse us in the beginning very much. Our ears seem not to find something to hang on. We also have to learn how to hold the Hang, how to integrate Gu and Ding and how to activate the vibrations of the Hang to get the best out of the new sound possiblities - even if we have played older Hanghang before. The Free Hang is a new challenge.

Michael

Here are some interesting thoughts by Werner posted in the discussion about the free tuning at handpan.org: http://www.handpan.org/forum/viewtopic. ... ead#p27220

Michael, do you know if the undesired resonance wich happened to dirt the low C and high G(on earlier Hanghang wich had this note)in most Hanghang is now the part of the sound sculpture?

or is it avoided by moving the tuning off 440Hz?

thank you for the information you provide!

is there any research done by Panart concerning this "body" issues, like 499-505Hz and 780-800Hz?

Since 2008 no G is part of the tone circle.
I never detected a problem with the C or G. Therefor I cannot say anything to your question.
On my 2nd generation Hang and my Free Integral Hang the "C" hasn't any problem.

I don't think that moving off 440 Hz has anything to do with avoiding problems of tones with certain frequencies because moving off 440 Hz doesn't mean that certain frequencies are avoided. Free tuning doesn't mean "moving off". It means that 440 Hz ist not standard. But there can be Free Hanghang who are nearly 440 Hz.

Michael

well, most of the Hanghang i have seen have this problem with 2nd overtone of C, and yes i believe that was the reason the high G is not there anymore.

Bells have the same problem as it is a copy of a Hang. Halo's have this problem with high F and low Bb, and i have them at F# and low B.

are you shure your low C has no 2nd overtone problem. i have seen a few that did'nt, while most do...even Integral hang, for ex. my friends Integral one came to him with a problem like that.

what about B resonance? the one that affected high Bb and high C, have you heard anything about it? it also affects high A but not as much, though on some FIH where "high A" is closer to Bb it can also be heard as an interval called "second".

it seems to me that you know a lot about how the hang is made and Panart`s researches - i am sure you must have heard something about it!

Can you describe exactly what the problem is? I haven't any clue what you mean with "problem".

undesirable resonance that every Hanghang has at the frequency of around 499-505Hz and another around 780-805Hz different from Hang to Hang.

i know that you have a Pygmy 1st gen hang, if you listen closely to your high Bb and high C notes - you will hear that they are not as "clear" as others: you will hear another tone rising wich is a halfstep interval.

for ex. any Hang having E ding has no clear 2nd harmonic. also in Integral( and i am sure on FIH) id you isolate Bb's octave you will hear that it is not as clear as others.

it is also possible to determine it by help of any spectrum analyzer when any near note(A, Bb, C) is struck.

but if you have no clue about it, let's just leave this conversation. it means probably that you have no information on this issue, so you don't know the answer to my question.

just trying my luck here, since this problem has not been solved by anyone yet. except as a way to avoid near fequencies...

Do you integrate Gu and Ding while detecting these problems?
The high Bb and C on the Pygmy have thirds as second overtones and not quints. This make the tones sound a bit strange.

I think you have an approach to the sound that leads you to problems and not to solutions. If you isolate single frequencies you will detect problems on many modes. But Hang playing is not playing single modes but playing a whole Hang. The whole Hang must sound good not the single mode.

As Hang player I'm not searching for the purest tone but for the most touching sound.
There is a basic advice for Hang playing: Don't isolate!

If you isolate the modes of a Free Integral Hang you will find that every single mode is a problem. But playing the whole Hang the sound is more touching than any other Hang version I ever played.

You are mistaken - this is not true Bb on the Hang is tuned with F - quint. We talked about it via email with you, and you confirmed me that it has same overtone as in the last note Db. Remember? That was a couple of years ago.

This issue is not due to the third tuned in the note, as Db, D, Eb, E and F notes are tuned with no fifth but they sound clear though not as harmonic as notes beyond Bb.

The B issue is there always and noticeable if you pay attention. Ofcourse the mind concentrates on harmonics and it is possible not to hear it, but if you listen carefully it is always there. I am sure Panart will be honest and will tell you that the problem has been and still is there. It doesn't take away a lot of beauty but I am sure that the instrument and player can benefit from solvingg it. For example my friend who has an Integral hang and he didnt play low C because it didnt sound right no matter how you play it! The note is in tune! But there is something inside interfering with 2nd overtone! After installing a soft object of 1 liter volume inside the problem disappeared. and most Hanghang I know that behave in that way.

Believe me it has nothing to do with Integrating the Gu and Ding! I am doing a 2 year long research on this and believe me there are many thing I have tried!

The question is what is it? And how to solve it?

Perhaps I understand what you mean. Is it a beat frequency that can be heard when playing the second overtone of the C4 on a 2nd generation or a Pygmy with Ding in F?

Hello.
Victor, you are mistake, because never i have problems with G note. (you can see your BElls Mixolydian, have G note).
Blessing...

sorry, Bells have the problem with high B note. though on Bells i have tried low C has 2nd overtone slightly wobbling aswell not as much as Hang does though, My low C on Bells was not as good as other, remember? you have tried to fix it and said to me you can do nothing about it... it was back when i visited you.

i am not trying to bring anyones creation down here, the problem is unsolved for any Hang follower instrument.

the undesirable resonance is still there in the Bells but a little higher than on Hang it is not free of the problem. if you tune your high G +10 or +20 cents you will have it.

these are to different issues wich have the same root i believe but different frequencies.

C4's second overtone beats with resonance at around 780-800Hz

and C5 - the overtone of F ding beats with resonance at abot 490-505Hz.

but usually the most suiffering hote is high Bb4

Yes, if you to see my scales web site, you can see that not use B high note, because B high note have this problem for me. this is a problem of geometry BElls.
earlier also had problems with A # high note but i can't resolved this problem, because i am a little change my geometry.
At this moment I'm working on a new geometry, and maybe this problem is resolved. (Well, i hope this!!)or can also come other different problems. everything is trial and error, trial and new error until you find the best geometry

Blessing.

Thanks guys, this is a great thread to read.

I wrote about beating as a sound improvement. You wrote about only as a problem. Where is the relationship? You remember - the topic is titled "The free tuning of the Free Integral Hang".

Ok. sorry.
how i can deleted all my comments?.
Blessing.