Accu-Tuner ad

[Richard Brekne]

> Isaac sur Noos wrote:
> 
> I could never be  so used to the long muting strip, but I take it for
> time reasons on pitch changes or PR,  was never totally convinced with
> the global homogeneity , or character of the tuning when using a strip
> mute.
> > 
> ...... If one stick to the piano Ih, the instrument
> is toning very well, but the tuning/temperament can lack "personality"
> (as obtained with pure temperament tuning and the VT).
> 
> I believe that tuning with respect of the slower intervals color is
> giving a more warm tuning than respect of faster ones (more brillant
> or more "German type")
> 
> 


These three cuts, refer to and describe rather nicely a concept about
tuning I have run into over here in Europe that I dont remember from the
States. Tuning is viewed as a kind of voicing as much or more then it is
viewed as anything else. I hear tuners remark about another tuning... 
"she gets good tone" or "his tone is interesting" or the like.

Combined with David Andersens comments about Virgils tuning philosphy
and my own last couple posts on the subject I see an interesting point
of commonality and am brought to think of this comment we hear time and
time again about the effective zero measureable difference between the
best ETD tuning and the best ear tuning. 

This measureble difference arguement is really quite thin. The
measurements are note for note frequency measurements of 1 partial. I do
not believe that any real informative comparison study has been made on
the whole subject myself. And it would indeed be a difficult task, given
the resources required.

The tuneoffs, while entertaining perhaps, tell us at best no more then
what the vast majority of us those attending those couple events are
able to perceive with our present state of ear training/tuning
perception. Their implied purpose has been to demonstrate a <<no
difference state>> to begin with... as a scientific study the
information in that direction is worthless. And given the results of a
variant of the <<Tune off>>... the HT tuned piano that a group of piano
tuners can not discern as different from an ET tuned piano when
played.... I think the meaningfullness of these "tests" is fully
misunderstood.

In the end, lies the claim that high quality ear tunings can achieve a 
"global homogeneity , or character of the tuning" that an ETD is simply
not programed to take regard to, though unwittingly creates one of its
own, one which is all to often <<dry, cold, unintersting>>. 

For my part.... I believe this to be true... at least to some
significant degree. This is that area of "human creativity in musical
experience" I refered to as being at risk. We risk, if nothing else,
coralling what is "A Tuned Piano" into a very narrow variant of piano
"Tone" (as Issac puts it)

Anyone who does not believe the instrument can be given an overall
character that fits many of the descriptives that both David, Virgil,
and some of our European freinds often use should think again. Try for
example tuning an entire piano with Perfect 12ths just to see how it
sounds... Do your temperament as usual, and expand it to a full 12th
interval, and tune every note outside of that to a perfect 3:1 12th
outwards from this temperament. Be very very accurate, and then sit back
and listen to the instrument in play.

This whole idea is not at all far from the already admitted effects of
HT's. It just claims that there far more subtle effects to be had by
differing approaches to tuning then we are willing to recognize within
an ET perspective, and that ETD's are simply not set up to either
provide these, or measure them at all.

Just more musing on an interesting subject matter.

Cheers
RicB


-- 
Richard Brekne
RPT, N.P.T.F.
UiB, Bergen, Norway
mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no
http://home.broadpark.no/~rbrekne/ricmain.html
http://www.hf.uib.no/grieg/personer/cv_RB.html