Pitch in Paris ca. 1860

custos3@comcast.net custos3@comcast.net
Thu, 28 Apr 2005 21:09:12 +0000


---------------------- multipart/mixed attachment
I believe that the pitch situation in Paris around 1860 was a total mess. As far as I know, the Paris Grand Opera had its own pitch, the Opera Comique had its own pitch and a third opera house (whose name I do not remember) had yet another pitch. In addition, the military bands used their own pitch and the church had yet another pitch. That's a total of five "standards". I don't know what they were, but anyone who played a piano with an orchestra or instruments of fixed pitch  simply had to have the piano tuned to whatever pitch the wind instruments being used were at. Trying to duplicate mid 19th century pitch in Paris is most likely a hopeless task - whose pitch?

The Pleyels and the Erards had to build pianos that could go up and down in pitch as needed.  As did all piano builders of this era. As to what the range was - that I don't know... A good guess would be somewhere between 420 and 435 - though other  pitches (even above 440) are not unknown in this time...

It is probably foolish to think in terms of "standard pitch" (even for a locality) much before the late 19th century - it simply was not a realizable concept.

Israel Stein

 





---------------------- multipart/mixed attachment
An embedded message was scrubbed...
From: pianotech-request@ptg.org
Subject: pianotech Digest, Vol 964, Issue 3
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 2005 19:01:19 +0000
Size: 11356
Url: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/be/60/b7/f5/attachment.eml

---------------------- multipart/mixed attachment--

This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC