another difference you may have noticed between sounds is that some sounds are pleasant while others are unpleasant . A beginning violin player sounds very different than a violin player in a symphony, even if they are playing the same note. A violin also sounds different than a flute playing the same pitch. This is because they have a different tone, or sound quality. When a source vibrates, it actually vibrates with many frequencies at the same time. Each of those frequencies produces a wave. Sound quality depends on the combination of different frequencies of sound waves.