Musically "SENSIBLE" tuning demo

Please hear my latest demo, Bach Chaccone:

http://artists.mp3s.com/artist_song/885/885499.html

Understandably, not all the four open strings can always be
in tune throughout every melody or inside every chord.
Through the Bach Chaccone, the D and E strings are in tune,
the G and A are OUT. A, 220/440/880Hz is either too sharp,
or else too flat! However in the passages the music goes
into the major, both the A and the E strings are out of tune.
To play this Chaccone in tune (such as one would SING it
in tune) requires a strong resistance to these flawed open
notes.

Some players do try to conform to all open strings at all
times. Listen for the difference if you might.

"In tune" here means our in-born natural ability to scrutinize
whether the intonation makes "MUSICAL SENSE" to the ear.
Why else is music practiced? Too often, this ability is not
being treasured and paid the UTMOST CARE to protect.

Linus Liu.

>
> "Jonathan M. Szanto" wrote:
>
> > But I'm of a notion that you can put forth pretty much any system, any
> > theory, any meta-method of applying these tunings to music, past, present,
> > or future. You can do this, but that piece of music is completely unable to
> > validate what you do unless it meets one undeniable condition:
> >
> > It would have to be a good piece of music.

--- In tuning@egroups.com, Linus Liu <linusliu@p...> wrote:
> Understandably, not all the four open strings can always be
> in tune throughout every melody or inside every chord.
> Through the Bach Chaccone, the D and E strings are in tune,
> the G and A are OUT. A, 220/440/880Hz is either too sharp,
> or else too flat! However in the passages the music goes
> into the major, both the A and the E strings are out of tune.
> To play this Chaccone in tune (such as one would SING it
> in tune) requires a strong resistance to these flawed open
> notes.

During my brief flirtation with the cello, I had begun to wonder
about the open notes as I joined this list and started reading the
postings. Because adjacent strings are tuned to pure fifths, not 12t-
ET fifths, I figured quite a few open string notes would be out of
tune if I tried to play with a pianist. In practicing my C, D, and G
major scales from the first position -all of which use the open
string notes extensively - I too have heard open string notes to be
slightly out of tune with respect to the original fundamental.

I've pondered the same issues with my fretless guitar and, soon,
fretless bass guitar. If I just tune one of the strings to A=440
then tune the other strings to beatless harmonics, then the
instrument being tuned would be in tune only for music with A=440 as
the fundamental. So I've "relapsed" into tuning the open strings to
12t-ET notes as I haven't settled on a specific scale to use on the
instrument.

Paolo

Paolo wrote,

>I've pondered the same issues with my fretless guitar and, soon,
>fretless bass guitar. If I just tune one of the strings to A=440
>then tune the other strings to beatless harmonics, then the
>instrument being tuned would be in tune only for music with A=440 as
>the fundamental. So I've "relapsed" into tuning the open strings to
>12t-ET notes as I haven't settled on a specific scale to use on the
>instrument.

There is an inherent comma problem in trying to tune the open strings of a
guitar to JI (I went over this recently). Have you tried meantone? It should
allow you to get near-JI harmonies in all keys without restrictions on the
use of open strings.

--- In tuning@egroups.com, "Paul H. Erlich" <PERLICH@A...> wrote:
> Paolo wrote,
>
> >I've pondered the same issues with my fretless guitar and, soon,
> >fretless bass guitar. If I just tune one of the strings to A=440
> >then tune the other strings to beatless harmonics, then the
> >instrument being tuned would be in tune only for music with A=440
as
> >the fundamental. So I've "relapsed" into tuning the open strings
to
> >12t-ET notes as I haven't settled on a specific scale to use on
the
> >instrument.
>
> There is an inherent comma problem in trying to tune the open
strings of a
> guitar to JI (I went over this recently). Have you tried meantone?

I did a search of the archives and sure enough, I found your recent
post, which somehow got by me. Sorry about that. Anyway, upon
rereading it, I have a much better understanding of the comma problem.

I have to admit I know very little about meantone and in the process
of reviewing the material on Kyle Gann's and Graham Breed's
websites. I suppose after I am done I will have to decide on a
reference pitch to use and on some mapping issues (the material
appears to be piano-oriented with discussion centering on C-reference
pitch scales). Who knows, maybe I'll just end up using the E, A, D,
and G pitches as tuned to 1/4 comma meantone on C reference. I'll
figure out what to do with that B string... At least my fretless
bass will be covered.

Thanks for the suggestion of meantone, Paul. I'm looking into it.

Paolo