ET...go home

[pianolover 88]

Ed,

Perhaps you could recommend, if any, recordings either for solo piano or 
otherwise, by ANY notable classical pianists, living or dead, who have had 
there pianos tuned to anything OTHER than ET for their recordings, so I can 
hear for myself just how wonderful these non-ET tunings sound; afterall, in 
the final analysis, that's all that counts.
As for "learning" to tune in less popular temperaments, my SAT III has built 
in non-equal temps which I can use anytime I have the inclination, but 
unless requested, and so far that has NOT happened, i will use ET.

Terry


>From: A440A@AOL.COM
>Reply-To: pianotech@ptg.org
>To: pianotech@ptg.org
>Subject: Re: ET...go home
>Date: Tue, 5 Mar 2002 22:01:06 EST
>
>Terry writes:
> >If "WT" or ANYthing other than ET is so much better, in your opinion, 
>than
> > why, I wonder, is ET so universally employed as the "standard?"
>
>Commercial appeal. It is the one size fits all.  But first, to consider the
>statement,
>" If "WT" or ANYthing other than ET is so much better, in your opinion"
>     It isn't necessarily MY opinion,  I don't pay myself to tune.  The
>greater attraction for WT pianos comes from the customers.  I now have many
>customers that have told me that they will never return to ET, and I'm 
>about
>the only source.  I like being in this position here.   That is the reason 
>I
>have been suggesting that techs learn to tune more than one way.  There is
>money, reputation, and job security out there for the more progressive 
>tech.
>
> >I'm more than open to hearing your thoughts. I only know that our 
>Steinway
>tech
> >tunes  ONLY ET and his results are glorious!
>
>Has he ever had to compete with a tuner that is offering a wider variety of
>tuning?  When the time comes, you may find that what is "glorious" loses 
>some
>of its luster.
>
> >Let's remember that ten tuners can
> > tune ET on the SAME piano, and each may sound different, depending on 
>the
> > accuracy, stability, and the amount of stretch of each tuning.
>
>      Yes, but those differences are neglible in comparison to the 
>differences
>between the clinical ET and even the mildest well-temperament.   Without
>discussing it beforehand, I am finding that only 1 out of about 10 pianist
>prefer the Et piano to the well-tempered one, so there is more to this than 
>a
>momentary infatuation with "new".
>     There is a growing movement in this country towards a wider approach 
>to
>temperaments and there will be more and more incidences of the WT tech 
>taking
>business away from those that can't offer it.  I have seen this happen in
>several places already and it shows no sign of letting up.
>     "You don't need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows".
>Regards,
>Ed Foote RPT
>


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