Dear Colleagues
It's a great delight to learn that Tim Foster has written an extensive exploration on the merits and techniques of tuning unequal temperament, shortly to be published.
Following 20 years research and encouragement from UK musician Sir Richard Stilgoe whose Model C I tune, Kirnberger III has become my standard go-to tuning for concert instruments and discerning musicians. At the weekend at Hammerwood Park we had rather a seminal performance of Schubert, Rachmaninoff and Rameau which perhaps you might enjoy
Madeleine Brown Schubert & Rachmaninoff moments musicaux Rameau unequal temperament
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| Madeleine Brown Schubert & Rachmaninoff moments musicaux Rameau unequal temperament |
| A magical performance at Hammerwood by Madeleine Brown playing Schubert, Rachmaninoff and Rameau. |
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and from which perhaps the techniques and emotion that the tuning opens up might be apparent. There are places where octaves are repeated across the range of the instrument which are always a delight to me and although in Kellner rather than Kirnberger III another Schubert recital recording is also, I believe, special
Schoenberg, Schubert, Kreisler, and Lily Boulanger in unequal temperament at Sonnenlink
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| Schoenberg, Schubert, Kreisler, and Lily Boulanger in unequal temperament at Sonnenlink |
| 00:00 Introduction 05:05 Schoenberg Phantasy, Op. 47 for Violin and piano 18:08 Schubert Fantasy in C Major 46:50 Fritz Kreisler 50:32 Lily Boulanger The Festival at https://mani-sonnenlink.com/ is legendary in the Peloponnese in Greece and the unequal temperament tuning both adds musically to the tuning as well as creating resonance for the Yamaha C3 piano to carry in this open air amphitheatre. |
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Similar is heard also particularly with duets as here
Sonnenlink Viennese dances & Brahms Hungarian dances and Dvorak Piano unequal temperament
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| Sonnenlink Viennese dances & Brahms Hungarian dances and Dvorak Piano unequal temperament |
| An evening of music at the Sonnenlink Bio Hotel https://mani-sonnenlink.com/ at Pyrgos near Stoupa in the Mani. The piano is tuned to unequal temperament which brings music to life more and projects in the amphitheatre. |
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with Brahms.
Rachmaninoff is particularly interesting as we wouldn't necessarily expect him to be working with unequal temperament effects but there are moments in Madeleine Brown's performance which colour-shifts are discerned in lyrical passages and there is one section with chromatic (yes Chromatic=Colour - not a staircase) repetitions.
Accordingly I commend to colleagues serious attention to Tim Foster's forthcoming publications.
These recordings, of course, as samples are the effects on only an antique Bechstein of 1885 and a Yamaha C3 and upon which a transformation of sound, I believe, is heard. Just imagine what the tuning does for a Steinway D. . .
Best wishes
David P
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David Pinnegar BSc ARCS
Hammerwood Park, East Grinstead, Sussex, UK
+44 1342 850594
"High Definition" Tuning
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