the other side of the fence

[Delwin D Fandrich]

Stephen Birkett wrote:

> ....Montal begins by discussing the tuning instructions in a number of
> *recent* books and describing the defect(s) of each. He states that there
> *are* two types of temperament: egal (moyen), which creates equality
> between the dozen half-steps of the scale, and inegale, in which some
> half-steps are a little different and which favors the purity [justesse]
> of certain keys to the detriment of others. In effect, he writes, the true
> purpose of temperament *ought* to be to apportion the alteration among the
> largest number of intervals possible in order to make it less perceptible.
> Today our pianists play unconcernedly in all the keys, thus equal
> temperament *ought* to be an absolute necessity. ...Montal acknowledges
> that he is happy to have made a special study of mathematics and of music
> before devoting himself to the art of tuning pianos, "for it is from the
> alliance of these three types of knowledge that I have deduced the
> reliable, straighforward, and easy method that I offer to the public
> today". He goes on to describe his "new" method.
>
> Montal is encouraging the adoption of ET and providing what he says is a
> new easy method for achieving this.  He states twice in the short excerpt
> that pianists *ought* to be using ET; that there *are* [i.e. in 1836] two
> different methods in use, egal and inegale; and criticizes the tuning
> instructions in a number of *recent* books. His expertise is not in doubt,
> as he is knowledgeble in music, mathematics and the art of tuning pianos.
> This all implies that the use of temperament egale was clearly in no way
> standard in 1836 Paris.  By extrapolation it is unlikely that temperament
> egale was in common use in Parisian circles in the pre-Montal generations
> either. In particular this all applies to Chopin....and we know tuning was
> critically important to Chopin from reading his letters.
>
> Stepping lightly back onto the fence...
>
> Stephen

------------------------------------------------------------

Stephen,

Are we now to understand that ET is actually HT?

ddf