Articles techniques et présentations

This paper investigates the potential for a multidisciplinary approach using COMSOL Multiphysics for the evaluation of the tonal colouring of the Japanese koto (13-stringed zither). It uses Ando’s classic acoustic studies (1986; 1996) as a benchmark for the analysis of the natural resonant frequencies and design of the sounding body of the koto. It reports on the development of the model and initial results of simulations. It concludes that COMSOL Multiphysics and finite element analysis can contribute to a multidisciplinary approach to an investigation of the tonal colouring of the koto and that further development of the model is warranted.