Musical Fidelity
From Musical Thought to Acoustic Reality
The theoretical framework of Isophonia: the bow as acoustic encoder, at the centre of musical performance.
Rethinking the role of the bow
Musical Fidelity investigates how musical intention is transformed into controlled movement, mechanical energy and acoustic information. At the heart of this chain stands the bow: an acoustic encoder, placed between the musician's movement and the sound the instrument radiates.
The paper brings together observations from acoustics, biomechanics, musical learning and bow design. It outlines a research framework for studying the relationships between musical intention, physical action, bow behaviour, acoustic signal and auditory perception.
Read the working paper
Current edition: July 2026.
The first Isophonia working paper sets out the framework on which the research notes build.
From Musical Thought to Acoustic Reality