natural harmonic

English

Noun

natural harmonic (plural natural harmonics)

1. (music) a sound produced by lightly touching the string as opposed to pressing it against the fingerboard, usually with the actual pitch notated
2. (music) The series of pitches produced by a wind instrument without modulation by a mute, valves, or keys.
   • 1939, Adam Carse, Musical Wind Instruments, →ISBN, pages 235–236:

     Although stopping may have served to produce some chromatic sounds, and partially filled up some of the smaller gaps in the natural harmonic series, the characteristic clearness of trumpet-tone was largely lost when the instrument was thus muted by having the passage through the bell closed by the hand.

   • 1970, Thomas Scott Godfrey Burhrman, The American Organist - Volume 53, page 11:

     Desirably, a tuner gives the separate Larigot 1 1/3' rank the same perfect pitch as the natural harmonic.

   • 2009, Mark C. Ely, Amy E. Van Deuren, Wind Talk for Brass, →ISBN, page 65:

     Each valve or valve combination forms its own natural harmonic series; however, every valve instrument is by nature out of tune with the equal tempered scale. That is, certain pitches within the natural harmonic series are out of tune relative to the pitches used in equal temperament.