In other words, try the music with other instruments.
If it sounds bad, try another.
You can usually find some tunes where the discord isn't enough for most
people to tell. After all, many people listen to equal temperament and then
pretty well every note is "off" and you can always ask them to play quieter.
There isn't a perfect way to play with instruments that can't be altered but
you can always experiment. Sometimes it's just certain notes that sound
really bad - avoid them or hold them for a shorter time (without altering
the timing to the next note, of course).
It all adds to experience.
Think how many people have to play along with a piano that hasn't been tuned
for years (but still in tune but not to concert pitch) at a church hall or
similar (try retuning your autoharp to match with little warning - now
that's fun!).
Colin Hill
----- Original Message -----
From: "Simon Wascher" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, April 17, 2008 2:36 PM
Subject: Re: [HG] temperament question
Hello,
Am 17.04.2008 um 11:58 schrieb Augusto de Ornellas Abreu:
What about when playing with other instruments
the same as always. compromises are only needed in cases where one of the
stiff 12-pitches-per-octav instruments like church organ, akkordeon,
hurdy gurdy or piano are involved. Those are the handycaped ones. And
some of them use equal temperament but not by far all of them. Church
organs, harpsichords, hurdy gurdies and some accordeons are not equally
tempered for example.
all the others usually just do intonate in demand. Most brass (trombones,
horns, trumpets...) do, all fretless strings (violins, cellos and
doublebass, harps,...), all strings with moveable frets (viola da gambas,
luths,...), vocalists, many woodwinds - they have alternative fingerings
for more than 12 pitches per octave, even electronic keyboards usually do
have just intonation as one of their presets,...
Classical orchestral music is not equal tempered.
(acoustic guitar,
guitar players can bend the string for pitching up. Historical guitars
have moveable frets.
violin
as said above is completely free in intonation.
silver flute
has alternative fingerings and can be intonated by embouchure.
... Is there a compromise in terms of temperament, somewhere in between
equal and just?
Many compromises have been worked out for any musical situation involving
stiff pitched instruments, during all periodes of music, documented as
far back as documentation goes. But in general, 90% of all music made is
not in equal temperament. If a free intonating instrument meets a
handycaped stiff intonating one it will just follow the limited
possibilities of that.
Equal temperament is a solution for a small group of handicaped
instruments used to play all keys like all the free intonating
instruments do. Out of what ever funny reason these handfull of stiff
intonaters today occupy the position of opinion leaders.
That most basic musical education declares equal temperament as standard
does just tell about the inferior quality of todays basic musical
education, but nothing about music.
kind regards
Simon Wascher - Vienna, Austria
---
have a look at:
http://hurdygurdywiki.wiki-site.com
http://drehleierwiki.wiki-site.com
---
my site:
http://simonwascher.info
