temperament

[Richard Brekne]

Richard Moody wrote:

>
>
> My point is  one cannot tell the difference by  listening to a piece being
> played. If there were such people they
> would be volunteering by the dozens to assist Don Rose in identifying the
> temperament on an old recording.

Hmmm... methinks this is more a matter of training than anything else. There
has never been a need to develope such a skill, certainly not in this century
in any case. We cant really be sure how clever musicians and tuners were at
such 150 years ago... but recent reading in Owens book would lead me to
hesitate in drawing any conclusions without a bit of real research.

> No one has demonstrated they can tell a
> particular piano is not tuned to ET.  It has been pointed out that  in a
> seminar of piano tuners, not one realized a piano was tuned different from
> ET.  For those who might be skeptical simply try a blind test.

Blind tests will simply demonstrate present level of skill / awareness... not
what is or is not possible. People are capable of developing the strangest
skills to the millionth degree when they first put their minds to it.

Witness the wide reciever.... one of the strangest things I have ever seen...
here you have some guy who practices and practices and developes the most
unbelievable ability to run down the field, manuviour (sp) himself into the
most fantasic acrobatic positions, often leaping high into the air, or
throwing himself laterally reaching out with his fingertips to tip this
incomming missle from its present trajectory, making it juggle momentarily in
mid air, then miracurously somehow gathering this missile into his hands
whilst being assaulted by another player desperatly trying to disrupt the
whole process....

and for WHAT ???? grin... I say if a human can develope and refine what are
essentially ridiculous skills like these, then another human could quite
likely do the same for hearing just about any temperament in any situation..

Heck... when you come to think of it... what we do for a living isnt really
all that far removed from the ability  you describe

>
>
> >Ziz iz ol obot ze Zubconziusnez
>
> Is what the emperor's taylors said,  or do you mean its only
> subliminal?    ---ric

--
Richard Brekne
RPT, N.P.T.F.
Bergen, Norway