Doren Garcia's inquiry about Mozart

I'd like to contribute information regarding Mozart which might be relevan=
t to
an understanding of his music. First, there is a CD containing Mozart's
String Quartet in G, K. 387 and his String Quartet in B-flat, K. 458 "The
Hunt" performed
by the Classical Quartet with intonation closer to just intonation than is
generally heard - a delightful recording. It's Titanic Records Ti-154 and=
I
obtained it by ordering through Tower Records ordering service
1=96800=96ASK=96TOWER.

There are two copies of an 1854 Encyclopedia of Music, reprinted in the 19=
70s,
at the UC San Diego music library. It contains a fairly long biographical
entry
on Mozart, and mentions that when he was a child: "His greatest delight wa=
s to
endeavor to find out thirds on the harpsichord, and nothing could equal hi=
s
pleasure when he discovered that harmonious concord." Later, in the artic=
le -
"Each succeding day discovered fresh proofs of this extraordinary child. =
He
could distinguish and point out the slightest variation of sound; and ever=
y
false,
or even harsh tone, not softened by some harmony, was torture to him."

In "On the Sensations of Tone" by Helmholtz (1954 Dover edition of the 188=
5
translation of Helmholtz' work by Ellis) Helmholtz writes in the course of=
a
discussion about tempered intonation (p. 327 of Dover Edition) - "Finally,=
we
cannot, I think, fail to recognize the influence of tempered intonation up=
on
the
style of composition. The first effect of this influence was favorable. =
It
allowed composers as well as players to move freely and easily into all ke=
ys
and
thus opened up a new wealth of modulation. On the other hand, we likewise=

cannot fail to recognize that the alteration of intonation also compelled
composers to have recourse to some such wealth of modulation. For when th=
e
intonation of consonant chords ceased to be perfect, and the differences
between
their various inversions and positions were, as a consequence, nearly
obliterated,
it was necessary to use more powerful means, to have recourse to a frequen=
t
employment of harsh dissonances, and to endeavor by less usual modulations=
to
replace the characteristic expression, which the harmonies proper to the k=
ey
itself had ceased to possess. Hence in many modern compositions dissonant=

chords of the dominant seventh form the majority, and consonant chords a
minority, yet no one can doubt that this is the reverse of what ought to b=
e
the
case; and continual bold modulational leaps threaten entirely to destroy t=
he
feeling for tonality. These are unpleasant symptoms for the
further development of art. The mechanism of instruments and attention t=
o
their convenience, threaten to lord it over the natural requirements of th=
e
ear, and to destroy once more the principle upon which modern musical art
is founded, the steady predominance of the tonic tone and tonic chord.
Among our great composers, Mozart and Beethoven were yet at the
commencement of the reign of equal temperament. Mozart had still an
opportunity of making extensive studies in the composition of song. He
is master of the sweetest possible harmoniousness, where he desires it,
but he is almost the last of such masters. Beethoven eagerly and boldly
seized the wealth offered by instrumental music, and in his powerful
hands it became the appropriate and ready tool for producing effects
which none had hitherto attempted. But he used the human voice as a
mere handmaid, and consequently she has also not lavished on him the
highest magic of her beauty.

Although the piano is at present usually tuned to equal temperament, it
can be tuned flexibly and practically any temperament may be tuned
on any ordinary piano. It is possible to tune a piano to sound triads
in just intonation in six major keys and six minor keys. Non-trivial
music can be performed on a piano in these tunings, although
with a just intonation tuning and only twelve notes per octave, there
are considerable limitations. With quarter comma mean tone
temperament, which has just major thirds and fifths flat by 5.4
cents - an amount discernible, but not too detrimental to much
music, music may be performed in eight contiguous major keys
and eight contiguous minor keys, affording a great deal of
flexibility. Contrary to what many of us have been led to believe,
temperament makes a very big difference to the harmoniousness
of music performed in it and most people find the differences in
sound between music on a piano in equal temperament and
music on a piano in quarter comma mean tone temperament or
just intonation to be appreciable, even striking. I believe that
the experience of actually listening to music fairly accurately
performed in different tuning than equal temperament can
give fuller meaning to the assertions of Helmholtz and other
earlier writers, whose statements presently often appear
quaint and based on outdated theories.