What is it that we do to change notes when we whistle?
In: Biology
If you’ve ever made a musical note by blowing across the top of a glass bottle, you might have noticed that the note is different depending on how much liquid is in the bottle. This is because the natural frequency of the bottle changes depending on how much room the air within it has to vibrate. The less room, the higher the note (similar to how, when playing a guitar, you place your fingers on a string to “shorten” them and play higher notes).
When you whistle, you move your tongue and jaw to create more or less room in your mouth for the air to vibrate. The bigger the space in your mouth, the lower the note, and vice versa. There are also some changes you can make with your lips. The smaller the hole you make with your mouth will also make the pitch rise as the air moves through the hole faster, creating a higher frequency.
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