Qualities of 17-tET (for Mary)

Hello, there, Mary, and everyone.

In response to the question about 17-tET, I would say that this
tuning can have many different qualities, depending in part on the
timbre as well as, of course, the musical style.
One factor, it seems to me, may be the complexity of the regular
major and minor thirds. For "generic" Gothic or neo-Gothic music of a
kind I might play in usual 12-note Pythagorean, a milder timbre can
help to give these thirds (especially the major ones, ~423.53 cents)
a "relatively concordant" although unstable quality, as in
Pythagorean.
In this kind of timbre, I can just sit back and play in a usual
medieval style, for example something reminding me of Guillaume de
Machaut, a 14th-century composer.
Here I really wouldn't speak of such a "generic" piece being specifically "in 17,"
since I might also play it or improvise it in 12-note Pythagorean, or
in 29-tET, or in a tuning with pure 14:11 major thirds (very close to
46-tET), etc.
However, 17 also has distinctive features such as the circle of 17
notes, and the precisely equal neutral thirds.
One friend remarked that these neutral thirds had a "mysterious"
sound, and I agree.
There are also intervals such as "neutral sevenths" or augmented
sixths (e.g. Eb-C#) which can have the same "mysterious" or maybe
"Impressionistic" quality.
It can be fun to take a usual 13th-14th century European progression,
and substitute one or more of these "different" intervals.
It's a bit like one of those "alternative history" novels where
making a change results in a different line of history; the contrast
between "neutral" intervals and the usual "Pythagorean-like" ones can
add lots of creative possibilities.
One lesson I've learned from your beautiful music, Mary, is that a
tuning itself is only one part of a musician's total vision of a
piece, a vision which emerges in part through the process of
composition or improvisation itself.

Most appreciatively, with peace and love to all,

Margo Schulter
mschulter@...

Hi Margo

Thanks for your input. I have found the notes you wrote to me about
Pythagorean tuning and medieval music extremely helpful, and I have
spent a lot of time listening to them in FTS. I also have started
doing vocal exercises with the Pythagorean aug4 and dim5. My voice
teacher, after he got over the horrer of the wolf which he found
immediately, began to feel that there was a quality of openess and
freshness with the microtunings you suggested.

Here is a question for you. Do you think the the shift from 81/64 to
5/4 had anything to do with the mindset shift from Medieval to
Renaissance. Has anyone ever discussed that?

You may want to answer over in spiritual tuning because I think Jeff
wants to keep this relatively focused on actual music.

Hi

Perusing the big tuning list today I discovered at least two musical
pieces, one by Margo and another by Herman Miller. there are
probably more (over the last two weeks) but it takes a bit of a
concerted effort to find them in the deluge.

Do you think it would be appropriate XJ, to ask people who are
sharing musical works to "double post". If they gave a little notice
here in this group it would make it easier for those of us who want
to hear everyone's music to find their stuff, and it certainly would
make it easier to discuss .

I don't want to start any list wars or prompt an outpouring of
letters pro or con list multiplicity. I just want to make it easier
to find microtonal music :-)

Any thoughts?

Mary