Tuning, like beauty, seems to be in the ear of the beholder. The definition of tuning perfection is subject to change like a fashion. Appreciation of tuning and temperament seems to be a learned skill. Most people do not have trained ears, but hear the aggregate effect of a particular temperament or tuning style. We have had so much synthesized digital music tuned to strict ET that people tend to like that. However, I believe the lack of character in ET tuning between key signatures is leading to a resurgence of experimentation with historical temperaments. Maybe the ultimate tuning perfection is not a single solution, but whatever temperament the composer used to create his work. If fact, take that thought to the limit, and you could have a composer creating works for a variety of temperaments. So, along with the key signature in the music, you would need to add temperament type. George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Richard Rodgers and Jerome Kern all sound really great on a strict ET piano - because that is the temperament the composers thought in. Ludwig Beethoven, on the other hand, may sound best in something like Thomas Young's Well Temperament, because that is roughly the tuning system Beethoven had available to him. So, my suggestion is that the definition of tuning perfection will always be subject to change. And guess what? Piano technicians are the folks that will be on the forefront of any tuning/temperament change. Composers can't do it without us. Happy New Year! Doug Knabe mailto:dknabe@airmail.net piano guy in learning..
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC