The Music of the Fibonacci Sequence

The Fibonacci sequence is one of the most fascinating mathematical patterns we can find. Its rules are simple: each new term is the sum of the two previous ones. But once we start exploring its close relationship with nature, the sequence leaves us speechless. On the A Song Scout YouTube channel, they decided to try to set the Fibonacci sequence to music. The process requires a certain arbitrariness and a pinch of creative freedom, yet I admit it doesn't sound bad at all…

No one expects to find one of the most powerful examples of mathematical beauty in an artichoke, but there it is. The same happens with the tropical pineapple (read: ananá) or the pinecone.

Leonardo applied it to solve a curious rabbit breeding problem. Its relationship with the golden ratio and Pascal's triangle is fascinating, but it's even more fascinating to find it 'in the wild', hidden inside sunflowers and nautilus shells. What's next on the list? Turning it into music.

The Music of Fibonacci

On the A Song Scout YouTube channel they are used to sharing piano covers of famous songs and other musical experiments, and one of the most recent focuses on the Fibonacci sequence. Now the question is: how do we deploy the sequence's numbers on a piano?

The truth is we can't... or at least, not without modifications. Basically, the video teaches us a numbering from 1 to 8 in the major scale of E (I apologize if I'm wrong, my piano lessons are nonexistent), added 0 and 9 at the ends, and accompanied harmonizing with the left hand. From there, the pianist just followed the sequence and improvised a bit.

And it sounds pretty good, which is to be expected when someone has some practice at the piano, but there are doubts about how related the result is to the sequence. The video shows that he played the equivalent of each digit of each number in the correct order, however, everything becomes more flexible (maybe too much) starting with the number 8, because "1 and 3" are not 13, "2 and 1" are not 21, and so on. Do you think it's a good substitution? Could it be done differently? Do you know how to play the piano and would you like to share your vision? Don't hesitate! The comments are open.