Re: fixed vs NOT fixed pitch scale

I agree. Just a cursory glance at Japanese shakuhachi music reveals that the
pentatonic is much more complex than 5 fixed pitches. The musics'
expressiveness lies in the many variations of each degree.

A 72t-ET analysis of "Kyo No Yoru" ("The Art of the Japanese Bamboo Flute" CD
306; Legacy International) shows a basic pentatonic scale of Bb(-17�);
Cb(-17�); Eb; F; Gb(-17�). However Gb appears at concert pitch; (-67�); (-50�)
and (+17�); the F at (-17�) and (+17�); the Eb glides up to +17� and later to
+50�; appears at -17� and +33�; the Cb (+17�); (-50�); (-33�); and even the
home pitch Bb appears at (+17�) and at concert pitch. At the end a sixth pitch
is added, the lowered leading tone or Ab (-17�).

Can Akkoc wrote:

<snip>

> Dear Mr. Annis,
>
> In my humble judgement, per my research based on direct measurements made
> on performances by master musicians, the so called 'scales' in Turkish music
> are NOT deterministic/fixed sequences, as in western music. Instead, they
> are distributions or 'smears' along the pitch axis, where a certain 'note'
> on the scale associated with the underlying maqam may present itself in a
> multitude of pitches depending upon where the music is 'coming from' within
> the past few sounds. Therefore, I do not believe a fixed tuning, no matter
> how intricate, is the answer for Turkish music and possibly other musics.
> The concept of 'tuning' has to be viewed in a revolutionary manner with a
> fluid and dynamic structure.
> Dr. Can Akkoc
> Alabama School of Mathematics and Science
> 1255 Dauphin Street
> Mobile, AL 36604
> USA