Beethoven in the Temperaments

[Anne Beetem]

  What kind of
>success have you had in converting other pianists to consider
>other-than-Equal tuning? 
>     Also,  would you tell us what differences you are tuning between the mid
>and late Victorian temperaments?   It is an area I have yet to really
>investigate. 
>Thanks, 
>Ed Foote
>

Ah, here we are, bright and early in the morning!  Here are the beginnings
of the reply for you, one which cannot be satisfactorily completed on a busy
morning.  I'll get back to the Victorian issues in a later post.  First to
some random comments on conversion.  I apologize for the randomness.  I have
a full schedule today.

   The conversion approach is a gradual process.  My strongest conversions
have been the local piano teachers organization beginning with harpsichord
tuning.  I am asked, generally yearly, to give talks to them and sometimes
to their students.  They also have me move and tune the harpsichord which
they own as a group. First they noticed, as they said, "How beautiful!"  the
harpsichord sounded for the talks and when I'd tune for a concert.  Before
tuning, I always solicit what is being played, and specifically say why.  It
had an impact.  On the other hand, I have yet to have the time to convince
many instrumentalists who play in ensemble with it to actually listen to the
instrument.  Of course, these people don't play in tune with each other
either.  Ghastly.  For such cases, I generally give them a Handelian tuning,
close enough to ET that they sound less awful, but the harpsichord is at
least lovely sounding.  
    Then, the intellectual teacher approach when I address the group. If the
talk is about the harpsichord itself, whether care and maintenance, history,
or how to teach students, I always directly address tuning, and they humbly
write down everything, and do their best.  I noticed last time I moved it
that they'd acquired a KORG MT1200, with its multiple temperaments.  Aha!
They're now doing it even when I'm not there.  Perhaps not by ear, but, it's
a great start.  
    I try to host meetings here from time to time.  They use my pianos and
remark how beautiful they sound.  Then I tell them.  They are impressed but
still afraid to try such things themselves.  It takes time, especially with
piano teachers.  
    I also have produced a couple recordings using appropriate tunings, most
notably one of  myself and a tenor doing 19th century American song where I
tuned the piano in a Victorian temperament.  It's selling reasonably well
for a small label without a reasonable marketing budget.  The Smithsonian
and the Kennedy Center sell them, and the buyers only notice the wonderful
"character" of the music. 

    I believe the piano tuners are the necessary evangelists. I have only a
little influence here as I only tune pianos for a few friends and in special
circumstances where my skills are necessary.  There are many excellent RPTs
for general tuning.  
    The average home would benefit from 19th century tunings, those which
purport to be ET, but which were tuned by ear, favoring the diatonic keys.
Most popular music sounds wonderful on pianos tuned so, based as it is on
the top of the circle of fifths, just as Mozart's work is. We mustn't
frighten them with too much talk, just let their ears choose how they want
their instrument to sound.  Note that we are probably not talking about
people who tune their pianos every 30 yrs only whether they need it or not.
However, people who know and trust me let me put "whatever you think
appropriate" on their pianos, and they've been very happy.
   We do have a tremendous problem though, facing the public schools
teaching all of our children to tune and play to the electronic ET boxes,
instead of listening to each other.  Faced with ensemble playing, and
without the time to reeducate the children, how can we tune anything but ET
for the masses?  

   Enough for now.  There's work to be done and an impatient client waiting
to take it to NY with him.  

    Best regards,  Anne