Unequal Temperaments

[Richard Moody]

>If a room full of technicians can mistakenly identify a
> Victorian tuning for ET, ( documented by Jim Coleman), then the
differences
> between a machine HT and an aural HT mean absolutely nothing at all to a
> practical musician.
>     As far as practical goes,  Murry Barbour put out all the info needed
to
> aurally tune the temperaments, and nothing happened. No growing interest,
no
> recordings, no dialogue in the Guild, no factory interest, etc.  That was
the
> state of temperament awareness for 50 years prior to Al Sanderson and his
> magic blue box.
>      Since the publication of Jorgensen's offsets, and the development of
the
> programmable machines, there has been a large resurgence of interest in
the
> temperaments.  This is the wave of the future, and it is very gratifying
to
> see so many more people now taking an interest in the subject.
>      I submit that the temperament revival would not have happened without
> the machines, and I see no evidence in the past or present to contradict
> that.
> Regards,
> Ed Foote RPT

    I am glad to see an intererst in tuning methods, especially historic.
But here I sit without a tuning machine.  However I don't think aural tuners
should dispair because after all there were no machines in historic times.
And never mind that professional tuners did not start showing up until near
the end Chopin's time.
    It is OK for the tuner to advocate historic tunings, but in the end the
choice must come from the player.  If he/she needs to make a temperament
choice it should come through education and experience.    The reality of
getting this experience is very limited.  Where do they get to hear Meantone
from which all temperaments seem to have been developed?    Or do they need
to hear meantone at all?    How do they decide that they want to hear Bach
in a Werckmeister, or a Marpug, or a Prince?  If they have the luxery of
various pianos tuned to various temperaments they might reach an informed
opinion.
    And what is an informend opinion?  It is one thing for the tuner to set
his machine and give a tuning. It is quite another to understand what the
intervals are doing and how they relate in that  temperament.  This would be
the task of the player, and this can only be accomplished aurally.  So the
need is to know which intervals are pure, which are sharp or flat, and which
ones are the "wolves". and what is the starting point. Certain key
signatures have certain sounds in certain      temperaments, or this notion
of "key color" wouldn't float.  And what if the player after learning about
three or four temps and plays in them comes to the point where he doesn't
care what he is playing in?  Is it possible he might say, "I don't care?"
"I really don't hear that much of a difference execpt here and there and
here"   And given that  "a room full of technicians can mistakenly identify
a
Victorian tuning for ET," what is to be done when the player asks, "If piano
tuners can't tell the difference, why should it make a difference to me?"
    And indeed what difference does it really make?   And who can  make that
decision?  Go ahead, play Bach in ET, then what ever "well" you want, then
try it in Meantone. Now what do you think? Or some how listen to Bach in
those different temps.   Do you get the same experience I get?  I forget I
am playing (or listening) in "different" temperament.
    There is perhaps a group of  musical minded people that might be
temperament sensitive, like those with pitch recognition, or claim "perfect
pitch".
Unfortunatly I am not one.
    The point of this post is not to disparage research or experimentation,
or playing in the historical temperaments.  It is my point of view formed
from experiences as a tuner and rank (as in stinks) amature player.  These
experience do not bear out the intellectual expectations of historical
temperaments. The intellectual understanding of temperaments is far and away
"better" than actually playing or listening to them.  IMHO.  Temperament
simply doesn't matter until you come to certain keys or intervals, execpt
for ET.  Yes there is a "charm" of playing Christmas carols in Meantone.
Yes there is the odd experience of playing anything in a strict Pythagorean
tuning.   Yes there is the satisfaction of knowing you have played and heard
pieces in Meantone, Marpurg III,  Werckmeister, Valotti, Pythagorean, etc
etc. Yes there is the satisfaction of knowing the theory of the intervals in
the Marpurg, Valotti,  Meantone, Young.   Yes there is the satisfaction of
reading how the great scientists studied and reported on temperaments, like
Rosseau, Gallileo, (the father) Newton, Huygens, Pythagorus, Aristoxenes,
and Didymus.  Don't forget Guido and Ptolomy.  All of it is facinating
study. Much more facinating than  playing or listening to them. ---to me
anyhow. Ok I do enjoy tuning the HT's aurally, or trying to.     ---ric