Just Intervals?

Susan Kline sckline@attbi.com
Thu, 09 May 2002 18:08:45 -0700


At 08:45 PM 5/9/2002 -0400, Jon wrote:
>Is it possible to have a violinist play and read his note placement on an 
>ETD and record their deviation from ET and select
>a suitable temperament to accompany his playing?. . . Or would that be too 
>large an undertaking, bearing in mind playing
>in different key signatures.   Just a thought

Jon, I think that would be a very interesting exercise. Of course, the 
violinist would have to have very good and very stable intonation, and the 
pieces to be played would have to be compatible with the temperament 
chosen. I suspect that the best fit would be something fairly close to a 
Pythagorean. Whatever it was, the fourths and fifths would have to be very 
pure in the chosen keys, and leading tones would do better if quite high.

It might quite spoil a string player with good intonation to have a piano 
compatible with their natural sense of interval size.

Susan 



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