To all, Thought you might consider the yellow PTG written exam. Question: Which of the following statements is true? Answer: A. International Concert Pitch A-440 was established in 1917 by agreement between piano manufacturerers. C. The international treaty establishing A-440 as worldwide standard pitch was signed in 1939. Correct answer: C. Keith -----Original Message----- From: caut-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of Jeff Tanner Sent: Wednesday, April 27, 2005 7:33 AM To: College and University Technicians Subject: Re: [CAUT] International standard? Hey Alan, I think I asked a similar question about 4 or 5 years ago. I found some of this information difficult to obtain for some reason. What I did learn was that, NO, A440 is not an American introduction, nor does it involve any kind of American conceit. Apparently, it was the French Government in the mid 19th century which was the first to put its foot down about pitch. My recollection is that the year was about 1859, but, that is recollection. Apparently, there was about as much difference in an A as there is in a G and B and some standard was being requested by the industry. I'm sure the evolution and advances of the piano during the period may have had significant influence, but that is absolute speculation. It was not until sometime around 1920 that the US adopted this standard, again, to the best of my recollection. What the remainder of Europe did is beyond the scope of my knowledge. I suspect there is a lot of truth to Steve's explanation of the origination of 442. I have been asked to tune sharp so that the piano will stand out, and have been told by other techs that they do it as well. Problem arises, though, when you've got an instrument SCALED to be tuned at 440, the orchestra tunes to 442 and you're tuning sharp so that the piano will stand out. Then, you've got the cycle started. In 10 more years, we'll be tuning sharp to 446.... At what point does the plate and frame of the piano fail and kill the conductor asking for the higher pitch? Jeff On Tuesday, April 26, 2005, at 03:16 PM, Alan McCoy wrote: > Does anyone know where to find out about the history of the agreement > to > standardize pitch at A-440? Like who was present and under what > auspices was > the agreement reached? Just curious as to whether the current disparity > regarding this issue of an "international" standard is American > conceit, > European amnesia/intransigence or what. > > Along this line. Is it only the string section pushing for a higher > pitch? > If a string player wants more brilliance, is there a different way to > achieve it other than changing the pitch? Like changing wire gauge? > Does the > higher pitch actually give a more "brilliant" quality? > > I'm probably addressing the wrong group here, but I'm still curious > about > this issue. > > Alan > > > _______________________________________________ > caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives > _______________________________________________ caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
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