loss of pitch

[Joe & Penny Goss]

Mike ,
You are certainly on target with your assessment of the story,  as I do not
have documentation to back it up only memories of college days and bull
sessions with ye old professors. Yet I do believe it possible for the
scenario to have taken place. To play hearing a fourth away would possibly
be like playing bagpipes,  not symphony quality.
Joe

----------
> From: Mike Imbler <MIKE-IMBLER@worldnet.att.net>
> To: pianotech@ptg.org
> Subject: Re: loss of pitch
> Date: Friday, July 03, 1998 11:38 PM
> 
> Joe - do you think this story might be apocryphal?  If he heard
everything
> a fourth low, it would seem that he would be able to play fine with
others;
> it would be in tune, but transposed.
> 
>                                                                    
> Regards,  Mike
> 
> ----------
> > From: Joe & Penny Goss <imatunr@primenet.com>
> > To: pianotech@ptg.org
> > Subject: loss of pitch
> > Date: Friday, July 03, 1998 11:01 PM
> > 
> > 
> > Hi Susan,
> > Once heard about a world war 11 refugee who was a cellist. Seems that
> > during the war he had both ear drums severally damaged due to the 
> constant
> > bombardment and could not hear well enough to play. The doctors
operated
> on
> > his ears putting skin from the thigh area in place of the damaged drum
> > tissue. The operation was a success, he could hear fine. The only
problem
> > was that he now heard everything a fourth low and could not play with
> > anyone.
> > Joe
> > ----------
> > > From: Susan Kline <skline@proaxis.com>
> > > To: pianotech@ptg.org
> > > Subject: Breaking Strings and perfect pitch
> > > Date: Friday, July 03, 1998 2:06 PM
> > > 
> > > At 05:21 PM 7/3/98 -0300, John Ross wrote:
> > > >Hi List,
> > > >I haven't heard anyone mention the importance of having the piano up
> to
> > > >pitch, if a child is taking lessons or if it is being played with
> other
> > > >instruments.
> > > >If I run into a problem with broken strings, I always determine what
> the
> > > >piano is being used for. In the above two cases I feel it must be
> > > >brought up to pitch if at all possible. 
> > > 
> > > I might just add that it is particularly crucial if a young child,
even
> > one
> > > not taking lessons, has absolute pitch. Once set at a certain level,
it
> > > cannot be changed. In our tuning course, one of the students had
> perfect
> > > pitch, and grew up around a piano that was 1/4 tone flat. I asked if
it
> > had
> > > changed once he heard normal pitch being used. No, he said, he still
> > > remembered what he had grown up with. He hummed a note, and said,
"this
> > is
> > > what our piano was like," and then hummed another, 1/4 tone higher,
> "and
> > > this is standard pitch." He had the two scales coexisting in his
mind.
> > > While it is a remarkable demonstration of tonal memory and the
capacity
> > of
> > > people to adjust, I doubt he would have chosen to have to do this.
> > > 
> > > It's a remarkable capacity. I knew someone in his mid-sixties with
> > perfect
> > > pitch, who was having a lot of medical problems. His pitch sense had
> > > shifted a semitone low, and it was driving him nuts when he played,
> since
> > > he had learned a lot of the piano repertory by heart while "hearing"
it
> a
> > > semitone higher. Has anyone else come across someone whose absolute
> pitch
> > > has shifted?
> > > 
> > > (I hope that this mention of perfect pitch doesn't start another
round
> in
> > > the "it's not _perfect!!!_" discussion. Perfect pitch (absolute
pitch)
> is
> > a
> > > term that, like Topsy, "just growed." It means the power to remember
> and
> > > identify pitches without losing track of them or forgetting them. It
> has
> > > nothing to do with _exactitude_, which varies a lot with different
> people
> > > who have absolute pitch. Some string players with perfect pitch whom
I
> > have
> > > known had excellent, exact intonation, and others had a terrible time
> > with
> > > it. They knew it was F#, or whatever, but not how to place the F#
with
> > any
> > > precision.)
> > > 
> > > >I do
> > > >however point out the piano will sound better at the pitch it was
> > > >designed for, and eventually it should be brought up.
> > > 
> > > I agree. In fact, today I tuned an 1882 George Steck grand, and moved
> it
> > > from just below 440 down to 435. The bass in particular sounded much
> more
> > > comfortable. Rounder, fuller, less edgy. I don't, however, know what
> the
> > > pitch standard (if there was a single one) was in 1882. Can anyone
help
> > > with this? What sort of pitch would the people at George Steck have
> used
> > > when designing this piano? I can only guess that it would probably
have
> > > been below 440.
> > > 
> > > Does anyone else do this sort of thing, since so many pianos which we
> > tune
> > > were designed before A440 became standard? I tune them to A440 if
they
> > look
> > > strong and are going to be played with other instruments, but often
> tune
> > > them to A435 if they are going to be played alone. Sometimes they
even
> > have
> > > a decal on the plate, saying, "Standard pitch: A=435." Partly I do it
> > > because I'm interested in how they sound when they are at their
> original
> > > pitch. 
> > > 
> > > Sorry about the endless length. Just unwinding from a very long week
> when
> > I
> > > saw too many pianos. Looking forward to two days to catch up.
> > > 
> > > Susan
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > Susan Kline
> > > P.O. Box 1651
> > > Philomath, OR 97370
> > > skline@proaxis.com		
> > > 
> > >