<HTML>In a message dated 1/27/02 10:35:33 AM Central Standard Time, piano@charlesneuman.net (Charles Neuman) writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">In the notes to one of his CD's, Ed warns not to try the meantone "at home" because it will destabilize the piano. He mentions that the piano used for the recording was restrung afterwards. What's the problem with it? Does it alter the overall tension too much? What would the consequences be? </BLOCKQUOTE> In one sense, this warning is way overblown but in another, I agree.  1/4 Comma Meantone is at the other end of the spectrum from ET.   Generally speaking, it would not be a good temperament for general use on the modern piano.  It will produce very adverse reactions from most people.  Yet, many people believe that if the temperament is not ET, then it must be Meantone.  It does not make sense at all to try to introduce alternatives to ET by tuning Meantone for the unsuspecting.  Hardly anyone would ever accept it who didn't know what they were getting into. One way of thinking about Meantone is that it is a series of 5ths, all tempered by 1/4 of the Syntonic Comma whose value is 21.5.  Divide 21.5 by 4 and you get 5.37.  Let's just consider that a Meantone 5th adjusted for Inharmonicity is 5 cents narrow. Any 5th on any ETD already has -2 cents built in, that leaves -3 cents.  Starting on A at 0, E would be -3, B -6, F# -9, C# -12 G#(Ab) -15  the 5th across Ab-Eb is not tuned, this is the "Wolf 5th" which is very wide and very dissonant.  Starting again at A at 0, D is +3, G is +6, C is +9, F is +12, Bb is +15 and finally, Eb is +18. Ed's point is that with a very expensive piano, this is hard on it.  However, in the climate where I live, seasonal pitch changes easily surpass these amounts of back & forth tuning that the piano must undergo every year.  Take it from me, you'll never get a piano which has been in Meantone *back* to ET in just one pass but whether it is really harmful to any particular piano to tune it that way is relative to the circumstances. Bill Bremmer RPT Madison, Wisconsin <A HREF="http://www.billbremmer.com/">Click here: -=w w w . b i l l b r e m m e r . c o m =-</A> </HTML>