A Hard Day's Chord

"You have to get obsessed and stay obsessed."
John Irving, Hotel New Hampshire

Every now and then a story comes along that makes me smile. Not much I can do with it, but smile.

The press release came in from Dalhousie University in Halifax, "Sherlock of Rock": A mathematician has cracked the chord that launches the classic Beatles film, A Hard Day's Night.



What was that sound? As the release describes, "It’s the most famous chord in rock 'n' roll, an instantly recognizable twang rolling through the open strings on George Harrison’s 12-string Rickenbacker." Math professor and musician Jason Brown wasn't satisfied.

Jason Brown. Photo by Danny Abriel

In more than 40 years, no guitarist had ever been able to replicate the mysterious, compelling chord. Using computer software to reduce the chord to its component frequencies, Brown now theorizes that the reason is the chord contains one hitherto secret ingredient: a piano, specifically an F note that would have been impossible to play with the other notes already in use for the chord on George's, John's, and Paul's guitars.

As a teacher, Brown sees the larger issue in his research:

“Music and math are not really that far apart,” he says. “They’ve found that children that listen to music do better at math, because math and music both use the brain in similar ways. The best music is analytical and pattern-filled and mathematics has a lot of aesthetics to it. They complement each other well.”

Alrighty, then. Professors with lifelong obsessions get research grants. I'm pleased.

I love A Hard Day's Night, and it became a kind of office obsession at The Futurist a few years back when the editors amused themselves by randomly throwing lines out at each other. One even sneaked a line from George's famous "grotty shirt" scene into an article.

"An early clue to the new direction?"


I love that scene for many reasons. It pokes fun at professional trend setters with their complex mathematical formulas, who attempt not just to predict fads but to create them. George would have none of that, and when told he could be replaced, said simply, "I don't care."

"I don't care" truly launched the youth revolution in the Sixties that began in the Fifties. It empowered youth to question authority and to defy it.

I would love to have used Professor Brown's musical math story for the magazine, but just couldn't quite see the future angle in it. Education: use of music to improve math education? Technology: use of computers to aid audio analysis, possible application in forensics? Social: importance of pop culture as reference points in history?

Nah, it would be a stretch. The story made me smile. Maybe it makes you smile too.

Love, hosaa
questioning authority and staying obsessed