Let me throw out one more opinion regarding authenticity, which is a huge subject. There are separate issues between ultimately leaving something for personal aesthetic judgment today and what may or may not be "authentic". Liking or not liking something does not change it's historical relevance. That much should be clear. Even though we don't have a recording of exactly what tuning was typically on Beethoven's or Haydn's or Mozart's pianos, there is a clear and not that complicated trend of what was going on. Tunings "with color" were the language of keys that composers of the period worked with. Evidence of this is all over the music. If you use a temperament with color (more or less) you are within a general style (more or less) that is appropriate. I tend to choose my particular temperament based on what works best (IMO) for a particular instrument. That is another subject. I make the case that this language of relationship between keys and intervals is closer to the heart of the music than the actual instrument. Instruments were changing so fast at the time it was usual for keyboard composers of the time not to even specify that clearly what should be used. The instruments were very expensive, they were played very hard, and hung onto. Which do you think Beethoven would have jumped at first- the modern Steinway or equal temperament? The authentic instruments shead much light and put us even closer to the original experience, but what is closer to the essence of that music? This a serious question. If we translate a Shakespeare play from English can we still understand what was going on? Of course. Did we miss something? I think so. If years from now, due to who knows what, all recordings of a movie like Star Wars lost their color and could only be seen in black and white- would those people of the future get a sense of that movie and be able to appreciate it? Probably. Would they miss something? Definitely. What if King lear was performed in English but put in a simple and rustic Greek set- as the Guthrie did here a few years ago? Was something lost or gained? This is art. From my experience, the more one learns about art, the less easy is to make quick judgments about you like and don't like. The few recorded measurements of tunings we do have from the late 19th century, thanks to A. Ellis, show some actual evidence. What does that mean? Please remember there was a huge revolution going on in music and art around the time tuners first were able to produce a real ET. This was driven by many factors. Not the least of which was a natural desire to accomplish something new and scientific. For me, the difference between tuners who were doing a failed ET and those who tuned with a sense for the past depends on if the inequalities tend to be random. Same thing today, and there's a big difference. That's probably long enough. I believe that I am doing the right thing and my customers seem to agree. If whatever you are doing seems to work for you and your customers are happy too, good for you. Don't you love this country- most the time anyway. Dennis Johnson St. Olaf College
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC