Tempo Tuning

What's it all about?

Introduction

At its core, Tempo Tuning unifies tempo, pitch and key: the beat transforms from mere rhythm into a harmonic drone underpinning the melody.

My Journey with Tempo Tuning

When I first sketched the idea circa 2018, I was tinkering with sine‐wave generators and automated pulses in my DAW—a far cry from the common listener's taste. In the early stages I was unsure how utilize the concept but by late 2020 I started applying tempo tuning to my original recordings.

That experimentation resulted in an album for which I wrote the title track "Tune to the Beat" slipping my thesis statement into the bridge (which I find hilarious!).

If you've come this far in the reading, give it a listen—it represents the concept in fun, engaging way. Otherwise, feel free to read on.

Core Principle: "All Is Vibration"

To me, music—and indeed all matter—is vibration. Guided bby both feeling and formula, I find it simple to see that tempo, tone—and even light waves—share the same underlying nature: they're all pulses of energy (whether you hear them as sound, see them as light, or feel them as rhythm).

Why We Don’t Notice the Discrepancy

A slight offset between two tones is noticeably dissonant. But as those tones are pushed octaves away from one another the dissonance lessens. So, because a tempo of 153.8 BPM (roughly 8 octaves and 10cents below 660Hz) sits outside the usual pitch range, its drift from standard tuning is almost imperceptible.

How to Tempo-Tune

  1. Formula: Frequency = Tempo ÷ 60 × 2x

  2. Key-first: Start with your tuning pitch (e.g. A 440 Hz), choose an octave below, then set BPM = (440 Hz ÷ 2³) × 60 = 103.125 BPM.

Intonation Choices

  • Just Intonation: I originally locked the drone/beat to a just ratio against the root and tuned accordingly to that pitch, however, this presents some extra steps that get a little cumbersome as we use mostly equal-tempered instruments.
  • Equal Temperament: I now calculate against 12-TET since this is the more common tuning for guitar and keyboards. It simplifies the process quite a bit.

Conclusion

Tempo Tuning extends our sense of "in tune" beyond pitch to time itself. I've found recordings feel more cohesive—and my vocals lock in more easily—but your ears decide. Try it yourself: