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August 9, 2014 3:00 pm
I've heard "pear-shaped sound" ever since the 1950s, initially by a music teacher when I was in on elementary school. The dictionary says orotund, which means full and round.
Whether round or shaped like a Seckel, how does a sound have a geometric shape? On an oscilloscope, it's a line, not a closed loop. How long has this terminology been around, and where did it come from? Dictionaries don't seem to ever have etymologies except for the primary definition.
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August 9, 2014 11:36 pm
This reference dates it back to the bel canto school, which I take to be mid-1800s.
Pear-shaped tone