Additive synthesis

Additive synthesis is like making music with blocks. Imagine you have a bunch of different blocks - some that are tall, some that are short, some that are red, some that are blue, and so on.

In additive synthesis, instead of using blocks, we use sound waves. Each sound wave can have a different pitch (like a high or low note) and a different volume (like loud or quiet).

To make a sound with additive synthesis, we start by choosing which sound waves we want to use. We might choose one sound wave that has a high pitch and another that has a low pitch. Then, we add these sound waves together to create a new sound wave.

Just like when we stack blocks, the new sound wave will have characteristics of each of the original sound waves. Maybe it will be a medium pitch and a medium volume.

We can keep adding more sound waves to create more complex sounds. With enough sound waves, we can make all kinds of different sounds - from a simple beep to a complicated song.

So, in short, additive synthesis is like building a sound out of different waves of sound, just like building a tower out of blocks.