RW Data by request from Conrad

[Billbrpt@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 10/23/00 10:47:44 PM Central Daylight Time, 
drose@dlcwest.com (Don) writes:

<< You, of course, know exactly what the humidity was at the previous tuning?
 And, of course, it had not changed? And you used the same measuring device
 on both occasions? The flat treble can easily be accounted for by lower
 humidity.>>

I think David was right this time. It was the use of a fork.
 
 <<Your analysis is flawed by your *own* words <snip> "I used my own aural ET
 as a reference tuning.  It does not look 
 >entirely numerically regular but I have seen "Master Tunings" for Exams 
that 
 >didn't either." >>

If you would be so diligent as to find an old Kawai Grand, tune these 3 sets 
of figures on it and tell me that I have no idea what I am talking about, I'd 
be interested to hear your report and read your data.  Humidity may explain 
general loss of pitch and yes, possibly in the high treble and may well skew 
the low notes on the tenor bridge.

But I did not examine anything but the temperament octave: F3-F4.  I only 
noted that the high treble was excessively flat, with only one explanation 
being offered, the one gratuitously offered as fact, not opinion, recently 
here on this List.  What goes unexplained is the rather consistent mimicking 
that I have observed of a backwards Well-Tempered Tuning.  Neither time nor 
humidity changes can account for that.

As I said in my original post, "Believe it, or stuff it".  I'm not about to 
set up elaborate tests that measure how bad the average tuner's work really 
is.  There has to be a reason for such a consistent observation, however, and 
I think it is important to know of this, especially in light of what the 
recent new contributor had to say.  How many of these pianos that he has had 
experience with and which did not exactly appeal to him as really being in 
the best of tune were actually in Reverse Well?  Don't you think that if 
people were aware of the effect this common error has on the *music* that 
they might want to change the way they tune?

And do I dare say, so the tuning and the *music* will sound *better*?

Bill Bremmer RPT
Madison, Wisconsin