On 8 Feb 2006 at 13:53, Christopher Smith wrote: > You DO know that not all languages, and not even all Western > languages, use the same alphabet as English, don't you? And some > cultures don't even use a 12-semitone chromatic scale?
I've had students from non-Western cultures in my class who have no concept of musical high and low. In my opinion, nearly everything about music is culturally based, not just the note names! > (Still, I suppose to some movable do versus fixed do IS akin to a > religion.) It's a case of two systems that share the same components that are designed for two completely different purposes. Me, I have always felt grateful that I like perfect pitch -- it has always forced me to hear relationship, and since music is primarily about relationships and not absolutes, that seems a much better base for comprehending it. I was convinced of this after having a student in the remedial ear training class I was teaching (a piano major, in fact) who had perfect pitch but could not identify the quality of a triad without spelling it out and analyzing the intervals. I was completely flummoxed by this, as the difference between major and diminished and minor and augmented has always seemed visceral and immediate to me. But all she heard was three equal tones played simultaneously, not four distinct basic sonorities. I've also observed that those with absolute pitch have a hard time teaching those who lack it. Me, well, I had to struggle, too, so it makes it easier for me to help students gain the skills they need. -- David W. Fenton http://dfenton.com David Fenton Associates http://dfenton.com/DFA/ _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
