Re: Handel's organ/Werckmeister

Paul, great to track this all down. So, Ellis (who's real name was Sharpe),
determined that the Foundling Hospital organ had "16 notes" in the Helmholtz
appendix. This is 10 years after Bosanquet brought it up in his book, but
without specificty. Perhaps Ellis knew something more that Bosanquet did
not. Regardless, I found that PITCH I:4 bibliography listed "14" for Handel
based solely on Bosanquet. Perhaps that was a subconscious reason for my
making a fuss.

As for relying on editions of Handel or any other composer, I guess I am less
trusting than others on the list. My Ives readings, replete with passionate
cries against editors changing his notation, makes me a tad suspicous. And
Ives was alive and could be consulted!

BTW, Could someone recommend a stellar recording of Handel in extended
meantone? What piece would be a good one to present in that regard? Hmn?

I just turned up that Werckmeister was virulent against Handel's split-key
extended meantone philosophy. He wrote in his 1691 treatise - Musical
Temperament - that "One may make 100 or 1000 subsemitones on a keyboard so
the togetherness of the harmony still is and remains weak," probably because
he didn't like the meantone model for its regularly flat fifths.

Later in the same work, Werckmeister wrote in conclusion at the top of
Chapter 28 (Concerning the temperament as a whole) that "all major thirds
have to be tempered upwards from their fundamental pitch." This is exactly
how Marpurg quoted Kirnberger pertaining to J.S. Bach. And here,
specifically in the context of Werckmeister temperament by the Author himself.

Werckmeister concludes Chapter 26 with "Those who dare to make subsemitones
on organs, instruments, lutes, etc. are stuck in a big mistake, act against
nature, and want to be smarter than God. The 1/4 tones are a lot of
imperfect work and only make weak sounds etc." (ouch!)

Johnny Reinhard
AFMM