Tales of Hope

I have no objections to utopia, and yes there are paradigm shifts in music.
I do intend to write for new instruments, new keyboards. So please don't
get me wrong. It's just that I also think composers shouldn't ignore those
who won't or can't, and write something for them too.

The more people we get playing music that's not in 12EDO, the better it
gets for new instruments that make the new music easier. I for one would
love to use a proper generalised keyboard - there is a harpsichord in 19
equal with a wilson/bosanquet keyboard that Patrick Ozzard-Low has a
photograph of that I for one would very much like to play. It's so
different with its hexagonal keys that a different technique is required, I
suspect. But it looks incredible (is there a pic on the web of it for all
to see?)

I just wish more musicians were 'open minded' enough to give these new
instruments a try. Some I meet from the colleges and from more mundane
circles look at you as if you're mad when the microtonality word is
mentioned - instantly they think of scales with 'millions of notes' in
them, and they imagine keyboards with millions of keys, and wind
instruments with millions of holes and keys. Even string players complain
of microtones. 'It's just fringe stuff,' they say, ' and you can't put it
with Beethoven, nobody'd go to the concert.'

Perhaps I'm just too pragmatic, too easy to make compromise. But it's
always nice to hear one of the aforesaid musicans come back to you later,
when you've shown them a way to microtones without the pain of a new
instrument or technique, and say 'I liked that. How can I do more?'

Mark

>there is a harpsichord in 19 equal with a wilson/bosanquet
>keyboard that Patrick Ozzard-Low has a photograph of that I for
>one would very much like to play. It's so different with its
>hexagonal keys that a different technique is required, I suspect.
>But it looks incredible (is there a pic on the web of it for all
>to see?)

Do you know where the instrument resides, or who built it?

>But it's always nice to hear one of the aforesaid musicans come
>back to you later, when you've shown them a way to microtones
>without the pain of a new instrument or technique, and say 'I
>liked that. How can I do more?'

For sure!

-Carl

--- In tuning@y..., "Carl Lumma" <clumma@y...> wrote:
> >there is a harpsichord in 19 equal with a wilson/bosanquet
> >keyboard that Patrick Ozzard-Low has a photograph of that I for
> >one would very much like to play. It's so different with its
> >hexagonal keys that a different technique is required, I suspect.
> >But it looks incredible (is there a pic on the web of it for all
> >to see?)
>
> Do you know where the instrument resides, or who built it?

It's probably the 19-tone clavichord that Scott Hackleman built back
in the 1970s. The picture was on the cover of Xenharmonikon 5. You
can see some details regarding its construction here (starting on
page 6):

http://www.anaphoria.com/xen456.PDF

Maybe Kraig Grady could tell us where it is now or if any more were
built.

--George

> From: "gdsecor" <gdsecor@yahoo.com>
> To: <tuning@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 12:14 PM
> Subject: [tuning] Re: Tales of Hope
>
>
> --- In tuning@y..., "Carl Lumma" <clumma@y...> wrote:
> > >there is a harpsichord in 19 equal with a wilson/bosanquet
> > >keyboard that Patrick Ozzard-Low has a photograph of that I for
> > >one would very much like to play. It's so different with its
> > >hexagonal keys that a different technique is required, I suspect.
> > >But it looks incredible (is there a pic on the web of it for all
> > >to see?)
> >
> > Do you know where the instrument resides, or who built it?
>
> It's probably the 19-tone clavichord that Scott Hackleman built back
> in the 1970s. The picture was on the cover of Xenharmonikon 5. You
> can see some details regarding its construction here (starting on
> page 6):
>
> http://www.anaphoria.com/xen456.PDF
>
> Maybe Kraig Grady could tell us where it is now or if any more were
> built.
>
> --George

i was also going to suggest that Patrick's photo was probably of
Scott's clavichord. Scott gave a couple of performances on it
last year -- at Microfest in Pomona, CA in April and at Microhoot
in El Paso, TX in November. so he's around ... i have his contact
info somewhere, but not handy...

-monz
"all roads lead to n^0"

>>there is a harpsichord in 19 equal with a wilson/bosanquet
>>keyboard that Patrick Ozzard-Low has a photograph of that I for
>>one would very much like to play. It's so different with its
>>hexagonal keys that a different technique is required, I suspect.
>>But it looks incredible (is there a pic on the web of it for all
>>to see?)
>>
>>Do you know where the instrument resides, or who built it?
>
>It's probably the 19-tone clavichord that Scott Hackleman built
>back in the 1970s.
//
>Maybe Kraig Grady could tell us where it is now or if any more
>were built.

As of the Microtonal festival in 2001 (Ponoma), only one had been
built. It was in pretty good shape, and I got to play it.

IIRC Patrick visited Michael Zarkey and his 19-tone _harpsichord_,
so the picture could be of that.

Those are the only two 19-tone keyboards I know of.

-Carl

My point exactly.

> From: tuning@yahoogroups.com
> Reply-To: tuning@yahoogroups.com
> Date: 11 Oct 2002 03:23:50 -0000
> To: tuning@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [tuning] Digest Number 2243
>
> True, we can't expect to re-educate generations of musicians, but we
> can educate a new generation, and we can re-educate those others who
> have enough of an interest to take the time and effort to learn
> something new.
>
> --George