HT and ET

[Howard S. Rosen]

I have been reading about this topic with great interest and will reserve
my personal comments until I think I have all the facts. I may have missed
this point so I am asking Bill Bremmer to please explain again his meaning
of "cycle of 5ths based HT's ". How does a "cycle of 5ths based HT" differ
from one that is not "cycle of 5ths" based? Does "cycle of 5ths" mean
*anything* else but a succession of 5ths that leads back after 12 steps to
the initial tone thereby being capable of arranging in a circle?

I ask these questions in order to fully understand the HT devotees. I
recently bought and listened to Ed Foote's recording of Beethoven's sonatas
performed with HT. I don't have all the facts re: HT  to put my 2 cents in
yet, but I must say that the pianist is very good and Ed's notes that came
with the disk are outstanding. I'm tempted to disagree with a few of his
ideas but that will have to wait. His explanation of string vibrations,
partials etc. is superbly organized and clear. I daresay that many
technicians who learned their skills by rote, would do well to read this
booklet.

It would be interesting to hear a movement of one of these sonatas
performed back to back with HT and ET on the same recording with the same
piano. That, I think, would be most revealing because any reaction to the
sound of the piano would be point directly to the temperament and not the
piano or the recording.


Howard S. Rosen, RPT
Boynton Beach, Florida