AUDIO RECORDING OF ACTUAL TUNING

[Larry J. Messerly]

Tom, 
I have an associate working for me who also seems to have a hard time
weaning himself from the visual aid.  My suggestion to him, and it might
work for you, is to go through the temperment process without the visual
aid, and get a "feel" for how the intervals sound with their beats alone,
without a metronome intruding. In other words, get a visceral feel for
the intervals.

I don't think that I've "counted" beats for years.  There is a feel for
speed and the progression.  The piano sings to us when it is tuned
correctly.  (Is this too close to metaphysical california touchie-feelie
language?)

Larry Messerly, RPT
Prescott/Phoenix

On Wed, 19 Apr 2000 21:29:55 -0400 Tom Robinson <tomnjan@bellsouth.net>
writes:
> As a matter of pride and self satisfaction I have a strong desire to 
> be
> able to tune a piano competently using only aural techniques.  
> However,
> after two years, I am still struggling with aural temperament 
> setting,
> so I continue to be dependent on Tunelab to set a really good (for 
> me)
> temperament.  I recently had a hearing test, and as I suspected, 
> I've
> lost substantial acuity in certain frequencies.  In spite of this, I
> have very little trouble accurately tuning octaves and unisons 
> aurally
> in a quiet setting, but counting beats gives me extreme trouble.  I
> have tried and retried all the suggestions that the list has offered 
> in
> the past, but I am still frustrated at my shortcoming in this area.  
> I
> have begun to think that there is something beyond my control which 
> has
> kept me from reaching the goal I have set.
> 
> Recently I endured the annual appointment with my neurologist.  
> After 10
> years, it has become a social visit, so during our conversation I 
> told
> him of my current interest in pianos and tuning.  When I described 
> some
> of the basic tuning procedures,  I told him of having trouble 
> counting
> beats using a metronome as a reference.  He was not surprised that I 
> had
> this trouble.    He said that people with my condition have trouble
> focusing collectively on dissimilar stimuli........(OK, hold the
> jokes.......) and in this case, my brain focuses in on the metronome
> (the louder of the two stimuli), rather than on the beats (OK, so I 
> have
> a one track mind.....).  I also have the same trouble using a 
> pendulum
> reference.
> 
> In between the two-dollar words he used to describe this condition, 
> he
> stated that I might be able to compare a good quality recording with 
> the
> actual sound coming from the interaction of two strings.  He 
> suggested
> listening to the recording for a couple of seconds, then switching 
> it
> off and comparing the interval beat to what my brain remembers.
> Question is, do recordings like this exist?  Any suggestions?
> 
> Tom Robinson
> East Tennessee - do spinets deserve a fine tuning?
>