[CAUT] Fwd: liszt temp

[Ed Sutton]

Good thoughts, Fred, and I'll try to nudge someone.
Ed S.
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Fred Sturm 
  To: caut at ptg.org 
  Sent: Monday, January 25, 2010 9:08 PM
  Subject: Re: [CAUT] Fwd: liszt temp


  On Jan 25, 2010, at 12:34 PM, reggaepass at aol.com wrote:


    If anyone is motivated enough to pursue the matter with Liszt specialists, below are where/whom to ask (references by a Liszt-o-phile friend of mine whom I've been keeping abreast of this thread).


  Actually, a far more fruitful question to ask is what kind of piano would be appropriate. Liszt's career spanned the time from late Beethoven to the early modern piano, quite an amazing period of time for the development of the instrument. He would have played on straight strung all wood instruments to start with, and with light hammers covered in layers of felt/cloth and/or leather, accelerated at a very high ratio. The timbre would have varied considerably from top to bottom. He played on Viennese actions as well as early "English" and later double escapement. 
  These differences from the modern concert grand would be far more significant to both performer and audience than a very subtle change of temperament from ET, should one choose to go that route. I doubt many people have heard Liszt on an older design piano - I know I haven't - and it would probably be a revelation. OTOH, much easier said than done. The instrument has to be available, while a change in tuning is next to nothing.

  Regards,
  Fred Sturm
  University of New Mexico
  fssturm at unm.edu









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