Perfect

[Arlie D. Rauch]

>I have a similar "problem" with perfect pitch.  If I tune an A to 440 and
>someone recognizes it as an A, fine.  But as I start to loosen the tension
>slowly, when does it become NOT an A?  When does it become officially an A
>flat?  I say there are people who have pitch MEMORY.  They recognize a pitch
>they have heard before and the name it was given, and anything close to that
>pitch qualifies as that note.
>
>I was unfortunate to start this argument about 14 years ago with a (now)
>friend who took the same tuning course I did.  She claimed that her "perfect
>pitch" interfered with her ability to tune because of having to temper the
>intervals.  However she also plays flute .. with other musicians.  It is also
>my contention (and I am a violinist) that all instrumentalists who play
>together are constantly adjusting their pitch to accomodate the other
>players.  I have no proof of this.

A great book my wife gave me for Christmas a while back is "My Life with
the Great Pianists" by Franz Mohr.  He claims there is no such thing as
perfect pitch even though some people claim to have it.  He says no one can
really tell whether A is 440 or 438.

Arlie D. Rauch
Glendive, MT