timbre

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In music, the tone colour, or quality of tone, of a particular sound. Different instruments playing a note at the same pitch have different sound qualities, and it is the timbre that enables the listener to distinguish the sound of, for example, a trumpet from that of a violin. The tone quality of a sound depends on several things, including its waveform, the strength of its harmonics, and its attack and decay – the ‘shape’ of the sound. The study of the elements of sound quality is part of the science of acoustics.

Sound production
The characteristic tone quality of any instrument or voice is dependent on a number of factors: the various means of producing sound – for example, vibrating strings or reeds; their methods of excitation – such as plucking, bowing, or blowing; and means of amplification – either mechanical, such as a soundboard, or electrical. These differences have their effect on the waveform, the mixture of harmonics, and the envelope shape of the sound.

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