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Beat Explorer

Move the slider right to sharpen. Watch the beats speed up. Slow them to zero for pure unison.

0.00 beats / sec

Press Play to hear the combined tone

Reference

Fixed pitch

Frequency 220.00 Hz

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Adjustable pitch

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Frequency 220.00 Hz

Preset Intervals

How to Hear This

When two slightly different pitches sound together, they interfere — creating a pulsing "beat." The beat rate (in BPS) equals the frequency difference between the two tones.

In equal temperament, intervals are deliberately slightly impure. A perfect fifth is narrowed by ~2 cents, producing slow, acceptable beats. A major third is widened by ~14 cents — faster, expressive beats.

Use the slider to explore these relationships by ear. This is how piano tuners measure precision — not with a meter, but with their ears.

88 Lessons

The world's first serialized audio curriculum for aural piano tuning. 88 daily episodes. 90 days. One lifetime skill.

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Learn to tune a piano by ear in 90 days.