Hi Martin, I can't answer all your questions but I'll put in my $.02 I started out trying to tune a fourths / fifths sequence. I usually got frustrated in that the thirds and sixths in particular usually turned out more wild than I liked and without apparent rhyme or reason. I'm sure there are those who have worked out systems of tuning in fourths / fifths style that do cause the other intervals to line up. I've never been able to do it to my satisfaction, which is why I tune mainly thirds and sixths to establish my temperament. I might say that if you're trying to establish an ET (equal temperament), most of the successful systems I've seen are using mostly thirds and sixths to do that. If you are tuning in an unequal temperament / historic temperament, you might find that the fourths / fifths methods might be better, I don't know for sure not having done it myself. If you are using TuneLab to establish your temperament, you are probably coming pretty close to where you're intending to be. It might be helpful for you to do a lot of listening to what you've tuned after you've tuned it to try to learn what those intervals you desire to become second nature to you sound like. You ask if what you tune on one piano will be the same on another piano. In most cases, no. Different pianos will display different characteristics. One may require much more stretch than another to sound good. One may have many more inconsistencies particularly in the low tenor and upper bass region where the lower end of a lot of temperaments are. Each piano is pretty much a new ballgame. The principles are the same but the tunings will likely be unique. There are a number of good temperaments out there, both ET and unequal and there are some good methods to achieve them. If you're shooting for an ET, consider trying to learn the Baldasin-Sanderson temperament (I think that's the name) or something similar. If you're wanting to learn the EBVT, check in with Bill Bremmer. If you're interested in a number of other historic temperaments, check with Ed Foote. I think those guys can point you in directions which will put you on the right track. But I know it's frustrating trying to tune a short series of notes, expecting it to come out right and it never doing so. Been there, done that, got the tee shirt. Good luck, Brian Trout Slidell, LA trouts_place@hotmail.com _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com
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