What it changes in the music
An envelope can define a soft entrance, a percussive decay or a long release. It need not be an amplitude control: the same general idea can move a filter or pitch parameter. Many instruments use attack, decay, sustain and release stages, but other designs exist. Identify the destination before interpreting what each control is doing.
A small experiment
Use one short phrase and change only the amplitude envelope, then restore it and change a filter envelope. Compare note volume shape with spectral movement.
Keep this distinction clear
An envelope is not itself the audible oscillator tone. It controls another property, and one patch can contain several envelopes with different destinations.
Related sound terms
Technical background
- Ableton Learning Synths — Interactive synthesis fundamentals.
- MDN: OscillatorNode — Waveform and oscillator behavior in Web Audio.
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