Broadwood Best

[Richard Moody]

----- Original Message -----
From: Jason Kanter <jkanter@rollingball.com>
To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2003 11:10 PM
Subject: Re: Broadwood Best


> After all, the Moore and the Broadwood Best, both courtesy of
Ellis' >research, are arguably the most frequently tuned
historical >temperaments these days.

I must ask again, what exactly what you are referring to? How can
I check this out?  What is the author, the work, and the page?
In Ellis' s translation of Helmholtz, "Sensations of Tone", the
only tuning by Moore I see, is that of an harmonium, (not a piano)
"tuned by  one of   Messrs. Moore & Moore tuners, kindly prepared
for my examination."   Ellis p 485. (line 7).  Why would a tuner
want to tune a historical tuning on a piano today that is derived
from a tuning on an harmonium in in 18??.

    Since cents is an additive quantity, lets add up the results
of Ellis's research in 1880.  Looking at p485  line 5   which
Ellis proclaims Broadwood's best.  Here the total cents deviation
from theoretical ET is 12 cents over 13 notes, or 12 intervals.
    For Moore it is 18  cents.  For Broadwoods worst (line 2) it
is over 50  cents.  This piano though Ellis says was "Let stand
unused for a fortnight ."    (two weeks).
    Line 3   is  close to 48 cents off.
    Line 4   is  14
    Line 5    again is 12 cents..... off.

    Now lets measure one of your tunings, or more importantly one
of my tunings in the same manor and see how close we
me....   ---rm