Bach and E.T. or W.T.

[A440A@AOL.COM]

<<  Historic temperaments have the same problems today as they did in the 
Dark Ages (before E.T.)  when pianos had to be re-tuned to the different keys 
favoured by various composers. >>

Greetings, 
    This is indicative a misunderstanding of what the variety of temperaments 
preceding ET actually were and how they were used.  Pianos don't have to be 
retuned to a "favored" key.  This was marginally true of the restrictive 
meantone tuning, if a composer really wanted an Ab instead of a G#,  but in 
the well tempered era between Bach and 1900, the age accepted graduation of 
dissonance in the keys was used to the composers choice of effects.  
    Tuning for "favored" keys might have been the manner of a tuner that 
wanted the consonance of say, the key of C,  to be found in another key, but 
there is little evidence that was commonly done.  
    Equal temperament only produces one size of thirds,  and they are all 
13.7 cents out of tune.  If this particular width is taken as the ideal of 
harmonic beauty, no other tuning makes sense. However,  there is a lot more 
harmonic resources in an unequal temperment, since you have a choice of third 
size, just select the proper key to use it.  Why else did composers use the 
various keys?  There had to be a reason to select the key of piece when 
writing it, what more compelling reason that to take advantage of the 
different character of the keys? (which doesn't exist in ET like it does in 
other temperaments).
    Unequal temperaments are more complex than ET, and the harmony that comes 
out of them, likewise. If one has only listed to Mozart or Beethoven in ET,  
there are still some things that haven't been heard.   
REgards, 
Ed Foote RPT