1What a note really is
A string wiggles β and pitch is how fast it wiggles
You only need two ideas. Watch each one move:
A plucked string shivers
Pull a string and let go β it swings side to side, over and over, before it settles. Each swing-and-back is one wiggle. That wiggling air is the sound you hear.
Pitch = wiggles per second
Lots of wiggles each second = a high note. Only a few wiggles each second = a low note. "High" and "low" are just fast and slow wiggling.
2Two kinds of string
The lazy swinger vs the snappy swinger
It's the same string both times β the only difference is how tightly it's pulled:
The lazy swinger
Pulled gently, so it flops back slowly β few wiggles each second. That's a low note.
The snappy swinger
Pulled hard, so it snaps back fast β lots of wiggles each second. That's a high note.
3Your turn β pluck a string
Pluck it and count its wiggles
Tap Pluck and watch this one string shiver. The harder-pluck slider only changes how big the swing is β keep an eye on how many wiggles it does each second while you slide.
4Now combine two changes
A gentle tight string or a strong loose string?
Use two strings with the same length and mass. Pull the top one with four times the tension, but pluck it softly. Pluck the looser bottom string strongly. Two things differ now: tension and pluck size.
Guess before you compare the strings
Which makes the higher note: the tight string with a gentle pluck, or the loose string with a strong pluck?