In a message dated 98-03-23 12:34:06 EST, you write: << Oh, well. Back to what passes for reality, and no, Bill, I wouldn't think of using that Viotti temperament for Beethoven 5, Marpurg I is a much more appropriate choice. Further (just to keep things really rolling), the instrument is tuned to 444, with the top streched to beat the band (literally), and the bass almost-but-not-quite collapsed for the same reason. (Beethoven uses way too much first inversion writing to trust an orchestra that plays _really_ wide thirds.) Best to all. Horace >> Your choice of temperament seems quite odd to me. Why would you choose a Quasi-Equal Temperament with 9 pure 5ths only to have 2 of those which are noticeably tempered be the very ones which the piece has written more than any others? Wouldn't a regular ET have sounded better? Wouldn't the very wide broken chords and 10ths in B major in the slow movement in the Valotti temperament have better suited this orchestra that you say plays such wide 3rds? When the piano plays in close harmony in Eb & Bb, it is mostly solo work. How could this conflict with the orchestra? Why would they play wider 3rds than what they hear from the piano? The Marpurg I 3rds are only a little wider than the Eb & Bb in the Valotti. Why is this such a better temperament and why would you "not think" of using the Valotti or any other WT? Why is it that, as you say, only 3 artists you have ever met could tell which temperament was on the piano even worthy of posting on the List as a comment? Is that any reason to make any decision about any temperament whatsoever? What does this imply? Should ET be the only choice because in your experience, very few could identify which temperament you tuned by name? Why did you challenge Tom Cole to identify which temperament you tuned? What would that prove or demonstrate either way? He obviously knows ET as his working temperament and is interested but inexperienced in the HT's. Why would you challenge someone to identify something that you would expect him not to be able to do? Previously, you made a point of saying that your temperament would definitely not be Victorian. Would you please explain to the List why a Marpurg I is such a superior choice to Victorian? Would not the cleaner sounding Victorian 5ths of all the keys played in the Beethoven 5th have been suitable to the music? Why is the atonality of the Marpurg I superior to the historically precedented tonal qualities of the Victorian in your opinion? Did you ask the artist if she wanted ET or a Marpurg I? If not, do you think you imposed your judgment upon the artist without asking what she preferred? If you did not ask, were you afraid that she would say, "no" to what you personally thought would be a better temperament? Was it unethical of you to not tune the piano in ET if you did not get explicit instructions or permission to do otherwise? Did you consider the Marpurg I to be the equivilent of ET? If so, can an RPT Tuning Exam Examinee use it instead of ET to take the RPT Tuning Exam? Can anyone freely substitute the Marpurg I for an ET at any time without disclosure of the fact? Will all artists accept it? Will recording studio engineers accept it as an equivilent to ET? Can you find any historical precedent whatsoever in any publication that supports your choice of the Marpurg I as being more appropriate to the Beethoven 5th than either any Victorian or any WT such as the Valotti? Is your method of tuning based mostly on makeing the piano sound "smooth" to you as you test intervals chromatically rather than what the tuning would sound like when actual music is played? Does the Marpurg I represent to you the ultimate in the evolution of tuning and temperament? Why was the pitch at 444? Wouldn't it have been better to tune at A440 and use a temperament which permits wide octave stretching such as a WT? If you start with your pitch that high, don't you simply create a "contest" with the orchestra and have to stretch your treble and high treble octaves even higher? Does this high pitch really result in making the music sound better? If so, do you advocate doing this on every piano so that they will all sound better? Should PTG and the music industry be looking at changing the international standard to 444? I'd really like to know the answers to these questions and I'm sure some others on the List would too. Bill Bremmer RPT Madison, Wisconsin
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