Del Gittinger writes: >There seems to be a lot of discussion about who tunes better, etc. I = think >in truth we need to determine just what makes one tuning better than >another. > >Would someone define the perfect piano tuning? Andr=E9 Oorebeek answers: Dear colleagues, In answer to Del Gittingers question, I would like to respond. I have some thoughts about a perfect tuning. I do not "quite" believe = in a perfect tuning for several reasons. No 1. "beauty is in the ear = of the beholder", or as Jim Bryant sais : >Audiences don't hear the tuning in the same manner the performer does and >they all hear it differently anyway. >Jim Bryant (FL) No 2. A perfect tuning is as, we all know too well, the ultimate = compromise of giving and taking. No 3. The final outcome of "high performance tuning" depends totally = on the "voice quality" of the instrument. Again I quote Jim Bryant's brilliant remark: > The perfect tuning is one that satisfies all the artistic desires of the >person manipulating the keys, insofar as they can be satisfied with tuning >alone. No 4. As "our" modern tempered tuning is but an agreement for the = time being, it might very well be possible that in another time other = hearing preferences might change. This may sound silly to some or "new agy" to others (I stand = reasonably firm in the Dutch mud with my two feet and I get light = headed from "new age"), but we should not overlook the different = scales used on this globe by different peoples. Some people feel a slight nausea when they are confronted with Middle = Eastern music because they probably have no musical listening = experience, no musical ear for it, and thus, because their listening = capacity is not tolerant enough, reject Middle Eastern scales. If we travel on a bit, past the Arab countries, we are then = encountered by centuries old Indian music. According to what I know = and understand about the Indian musical culture ( I have had no = chance to study Musicology, mind you), we can experience a multitude = of scales, each applied to different compositions, for different = times of the day. Indian music is of course the cradle of scale = developments and based on oceans of time. Again, it might be possible that the traveler opens up his luggage to = get out the walkman and a tape of House "music" or "Rap". (which is = fine with me, as long as I don't have to endure it) We now take a flight to the far East. Amazing! more different scales, changing from Thailand to China, and = from Indonesia to the Phillipines. In other words; scales differ from time to time and from region to = region, like it or not. In this perspective we might anticipate an eventual slight change in = the future. It also appears, and we have had major discussions about this, that = even an un-perfect or near perfect tuning can be tolerated on = condition that the remaining playing qualities are very good or good = enough to overcome a tuning deficiency. And lastly, we have to take into considderation the acoustics of the = space where we listen to the instrument, the immediate changes = through humidity and temperature and finally, the general state of = perception of the audience: do they like the performer? is the = concert hall pleasant? Taking all these facts into account, I come to the conclusion (for = the time being) that a perfect tuning is something we aim for...we = must and we should, if we want to improve our skills and personal = possibillities. At a later stadium, when we have gained a awful lot of experience, we = come closer to perfectness and at the same time excellence becomes = relative, and not as crucial as before. In addition to giving our artistic and technical utmost, a direct and = pleasant contact with the performing pianist does wonders too, which = shows that we have to be diplomats as well. What an impossible profession! Friendly Greetings from: CONCERT PIANO SERVICE Andr=E9 Oorebeek Amsterdam, the Netherlands email address: oorebeek@euronet.nl =89 Where Music is no harm can be =89
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