<HTML> <HEAD> <TITLE>Now OT: Non-ETs</TITLE> </HEAD> <BODY> I have absolutely no disagreement that the historical trappings are extreme= ly relevant, important and valuable, and from that point of view the tempera= ment is but one of the elements. My focus, however, is on the musical qualities in the various HTs, and thes= e musical qualities are what a handful of excellent tuners and their cliente= le are currently exploring. I thought that was what the discussion was about= , which was expressed as "what Mozart was hearing". In that contex= t, the other historical trappings are not relevant. I felt the tangent into = coal lamps and powdered wigs was a teasing diversion. (Of course, the older = instruments also were strung at lower tensions, went out of tune more quickl= y, and presented a different inharmonic mix and shorter sustain than our pia= nos, and those differences may be very important to the feel of the temperam= ent.) Takes a declaimer to know a declaimer. Thanks for calling me on that. /jaso= n <BLOCKQUOTE> From: Phillip Ford <fordpiano@earthlink.net> Reply-To: Phillip Ford <fordpiano@earthlink.net>, Pianotech &l= t;pianotech@ptg.org> Date: Mon, 5 Apr 2004 12:34:34 -0700 (GMT-07:00) To: pianotech@ptg.org Subject: Re: Non-ETs </BLOCKQUOTE> <BLOCKQUOTE><TT>>Jason Kantor writes: >Another silly argument. My specialty. >  Mozart was acutely aware of "color" differences >between different keys, and used these contrasts consciously. I'm not sure how you're aware of what Mozart was acutely aware of, or of <B= R> what he did either consciously or unconsciously, but I can believe that <BR= > this statement is true. >  It is the key >color that Mozart worked with as part of his palette, which we cannot<B= R> >discern in ET and which can emerge in a WT. I have no argument with this, silly or otherwise. >  The period instruments, halls >etc are incidental and rather trivial; the quality of the harmony is th= e >essential. That's rather sweeping.  Weren't you the one cautioning someone else a= bout 'declaiming like this'? There is a growing community of instrument makers <= BR> and restorers, performers, orchestras, and patrons that consider these things anything but trivial.  Some of them would say that performing a= Mozart concerto on a Steinway D is a joke, an offence, or heresy.  A M= ozart concerto played by Seth Carlin on a Walter fortepiano with the Philharmonia= Baroque in Herbst Theater is a completely different thing than the same <BR= > concerto played on a Steinway D by Andre Watts with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center.  The differences made by instruments, = performers, orchestral size, and venue are so large as to render any differences in choice of temperament incidental or trivial, in my view. >  It's not "experience what Mozart did" -- it's "ex= perience the key >color that Mozart did". The original quote was: 'However, if one wants to hear what Mozart was hearing, you can't use ET.' = - David Porritt My interpretation of that was 'experience what Mozart did', not 'experience= the key color that Mozart did'. Perhaps I'm misinterpreting. Phil Ford >----- Original Message ----- >From: "Phillip Ford" <fordpiano@earthlink.net> >To: <pianotech@ptg.org> >Sent: Monday, April 05, 2004 9:48 AM >Subject: RE: Non-ETs > > > > > > --- big snip --- > > > > > > > > Engineers (who are not always the most artistic lot) te= nd to > > > > think that if a temperament can be constructed with a r= ational > > > > number it must be right.  However, if one wants to= hear what > > > > Mozart was hearing you can't use ET.  Of course he= aring what > > > > Mozart heard might not be important to you, but if it<B= R> >is................ > > > > > > > > > > > > >...then one must play it only on the same instruments (or the= ir exact > > >replicas) Mozart played on. Anything else would just not be t= he same. > > > > > >Del > > > > And one should probably play said instrument in a rather smallish= hall or > > room having lots of wood and plaster.  Also, one might be ad= vised to play > > by candlelight and wear a frock coat and a powdered wig. > > > > There are reasons for non-ET temperaments.  But to say that = you're going >to > > put an historical temperament on a Steinway D that's going to be = played in > > Carnegie Hall so that you can experience what Mozart did is a bit= like > > saying that you're going to put sails on the Queen Mary so that y= ou can > > experience what Columbus did when he crossed the Atlantic. > > > > Phil Ford _______________________________________________ pianotech list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives </TT></BLOCKQUOTE><TT> </TT> </BODY> </HTML>