tuning narrow and wide

[Tony Caught]

Hi Ron,

Message in text.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ron Koval" <drwoodwind@hotmail.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2003 10:58 PM
Subject: tuning narrow and wide


> Tony wrote:
>
> <snip>
> Both narrow and wide measurements vary only below note 15 "B" and above =
> note 64 "C".
>
> >From this one would assume that the narrowing and widening of a piano =
> should only happen above and below those notes.
> <snip>
>
> Yes, that is one way to do it, though I think the way to a more blended or
> organic sounding tuning also involves the width of the temperament octave.

Agreed. The width of the tempered octave. I would assume that the temperment
of the octave where the scale was set (between F3 & F4) was blended
according to that paticular piano.

> Think about it, we use that octave as the foundation to work to both ends
of
> the keyboard, so small changes here are multiplied by the inharmonicity
> effect as we compare back and forth.
>

The blended set temperment octave should be the guide to both ends of the
keyboard and should not be influenced by the inharmonicity of the bass,
rather the bass should be influenced by the temperment.

> Most pianos will have a range in that first octave that is acceptable.
> Virgil Smith's article in the Journal covers this a little.  Some people
> make the 3rd-10th test beat the same, while he feels that the 10th must be
> faster than the 3rd for his "pure" octaves to work from one end of the
> keyboard to the other.  If the central octaves are narrower, then to get
the
> doubles and triple to work, the singles have to be stretched more than
that
> central octave would dictate, causing imbalances in the single octaves.
>
> The machines can help with this effect, but it takes a little more
fiddling
> than just calculating a tuning the way the manual suggests.

Then should we write a new manual.

How many people who can't tune aurally think they are doing a great job by
machine and it turns out wrong and they don't know it.
I was told by one tuner that it doesn't matter because the avarage Joe Blow
wouldn't know. But it does matter.


>
> Ron Koval
> Chicagoland
>
Regards

Tony Caught
Adelaide Australia
caute@bigpond.com.au