JI and "truth"

Hello -

I'll stick my head in the line of fire and give some
thoughts I've had regarding impressions which just
intonation performed music as contrasted with tempered
versions of the same score music has made on me. I've
listened to many comparisons of synthesized just and
equal tempered passages of music and also to quite a few
side by side contrasting tuning versions of fairly simple
pieces played on the piano. These are performed fairly
slowly and are in older more traditional styles.

I've listened to contrasting piano versions of pieces
in JI, 1/4 comma mean tone temperament, 1/6 comma mean tone
temperament, and equal temperament. I generally get a
subjective impression on listening to side by side
comparisons of the just version or the closer�to�just
1/4 comma MT version and the EQT version that the just
or in many cases also the 1/4 MT version sounds like the
"real thing" while the EQT version seems in comparison
to be somehow "attenuated" or heard through some kind of
filter. From the point of view of the emotional impression
made by the simultaneously sounding tones (as separated from
the quality of the performance, the rhythmic vitality, etc.),
The just or nearly just harmonies seem to make a more
powerful impression and bring more positive emotion than
do the equal tempered harmonies.

To me, the difference seems to be somewhat analogous to
the difference between listening to a recorded performance
and being at a live performance - but that is only an
analogy. Both a just tuned and an equal tempered piano
produce real sounds, of course.

I can think of one possible "evolutionary" thing which
might underlie JI's tending to give an impression of
genuineness in contrast with impressions given by
performances of multipart music which departs appreciably
from just. Birds and mammals among other animals, including
ourselves, have as the most basic form of sound communication
with one another calls made by voice, from bird songs to
the mooing of cows, barks and howls of dogs, to human cries,
shouts, and speech. Acoustically, these are sounds made by
horns and if I am not mistaken, their partials are aligned
harmonically. The sound of the voice of another person or
of another animal has a special emotive quality - warmth -
somehow a personal touch - which many of the other sounds of
nature, although pleasing and admirable - wind whistling in
trees, ocean waves crashing, objects falling to the ground,
etc., do not possess.

It seems to me not implausible to believe that the sounds
of just or nearly just harmonies performed by a choir or by
a carefully performing instrumental ensemble, although such
music never was heard before humans had evolved and probably was
heard rarely if at all more than several thousand years ago,
have, by virtue of their tones lining up nearly harmonically,
a special emotional intensity of appeal for many listeners
which somehow hooks into brain systems involved with emotional
response to the human voice.

Before and even well into the era of equal temperament,
many writers on music, including Handel, spoke of the
departures from just introduced by tempering as departures
from "the truth." While in an intellectual sense, a musical
performance cannot be judged literally as telling the truth
or not telling the truth, it is possible that for many of us
a just or nearly just performance of much of the music with
which we are familiar will indeed give an emotional impression
of greater truthfulness or sincerity than a highly tempered
version of that music.

My impression is that a piano sixth comma mean tone
performance has a slightly impressionistic vagueness similar
to that of equal temperament, but generally it conveys (to me)
a greater sense of warmth and musicality. In contrast with
this, a quarter comma MT version of the piece seems to have
almost a crystal clarity of harmony and, for slowly played
triadic harmonies, greater warmth and emotional intensity.
In some cases, a just version of the piece will seem about the
same as the 1/4 comma MT version as regards warmth, sometimes
it will seem less warm, and sometimes a JI version will sound
more "absolutely truthful and straightforward" than a 1/4 comma
MT version. The effects will be different depending on the
harmonies. Where a major whole tone is called for, to me it
will often sound much better in JI than in 1/4 comma MT.

But if some equal tempered music is associated in someone's
mind with fond, deeply rooted memories while other tuning
versions of the music "just don't quite sound right", this
will be a big factor in the kind of impression a musical
performance will make.

I did test the reactions of several hundred teen age and
college entrant students to contrasting equal tempered and
quarter comma mean tone versions of some piano pieces. The
reactions varied all over the place from those who vehemently
disliked the sound of mean tone music to those who really
liked it - in the words of one music school entrant "I appreciate
the sound of mean tone tuning. It's just different enough to
be almost exotic. I think it's just beautiful." Very
roughly, perhaps 45 percent preferred the equal tempered
versions on first hearing, 35 percent preferred the mean tone
versions, and 20 percent didn't show a strong preference.

Dave Hill La Mesa, CA