a funny one [Gardner Read]

At the end of Chapter IV on 31-tET and fifth-tones, Gardner Read
writes the following:

"It is reasonable to expect, nonetheless, that a broadly based
consensus will eventually be reached on the simplest and most
pragmatic ways in which to notate all microtonal intervals..."

Nice. And now why is that so funny?

Well, it contradicts practically *every* other statement in the book,
where he states that no consensus is being established, and there is
no real reason to expect that such is *going* to happen.

I'm not going to type them all up... alright, I'll type *one* up,
from page 3, "Prelude":

"Agreement on a standardized system of microtonal notation thus
becomes an imperative for all composers working with fractional
pitches. yet the prognosis for such a notational utopia is not
encouraging; as music editor, composer, and musicologist Rudolf
Rasch lamented in a letter to this researcher: "Experience up to now
has taught me that most composers prefer to stick to their own
systems of notation and are not willing to adopt anything proposed by
somebody else.' The present study surely verifies Rasch's
conclusion."

So, basically, what was Read on when he wrote Chapter IV?? Ecstasy??
or something stronger...?

J. Pehrson