Pianotech

  • 1.  A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Posted 12-25-2022 15:55
    Christmas day this year was interesting with my son asking Artificial Intelligence to comment about what his dad does. 

    The result was a T-shirt to wear
    and upon the nature of my temperament it responded:

    "It was a hot summer day in the year 2023, and the air was filled with the sound of music. But this wasn't just any kind of music - it was the sound of a new era, one where the traditional rules of music theory had been completely rewritten.
     
    The source of this revolution was a new type of musical instrument, one that was capable of producing a vast array of sounds and tones unlike anything that had ever been heard before. This instrument, known as the Unequal Temperament Tuner, had been developed by a group of brilliant musicians and scientists who were determined to break free from the constraints of traditional equal temperament tuning.
     
    As word of the Unequal Temperament Tuner spread, more and more musicians began to adopt it, and it wasn't long before it became the new standard in the music industry. With the ability to create and explore new harmonies and melodies that had never been possible before, the Unequal Temperament Tuner sparked a musical renaissance that would change the course of history.
     
    But the impact of the Unequal Temperament Tuner wasn't limited to just music. As people began to experiment with this new way of creating and expressing themselves, it had a ripple effect on society as a whole.
     
    Artists of all kinds - painters, writers, actors, and dancers - began to embrace the creative freedom that the Unequal Temperament Tuner had brought, and their work reflected this newfound sense of liberation. People began to see the world in a different way, and this shift in perspective led to a greater understanding and appreciation of diversity and individuality.
     
    The Unequal Temperament Tuner had opened up a whole new world of possibility, and as a result, society became more open-minded, accepting, and inclusive. It was a small change that had made a huge difference, and the world was a better place for it."
    Christmas greetings and wishes for an exciting new year!

    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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  • 2.  RE: A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-25-2022 22:51
    David, I have to say that nearly all the instruments and vocal music in the world are played and performed using unequal tunings save for pianos which are usually tuned equally for reasons that are not irrational. Even pianos, if they haven't been tuned in recent memory, are usually a far cry from the equal temperament.
    No need to wait because as far as music in the world is concerned, the messiah never left.

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    Steven Rosenthal RPT
    Honolulu HI
    (808) 521-7129
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  • 3.  RE: A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Posted 12-26-2022 05:32
    Haha! Of course the AI has presented nonsense and that, is possibly the good news of this Christmas - it can't take over yet. It's still at a stage where we can laugh at it.

    Best wishes

    David P

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    David Pinnegar, B.Sc., A.R.C.S.
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    +44 1342 850594





  • 4.  RE: A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-26-2022 11:12
    Well, we certainly don’t lack different preferences about tuning. For an interesting stance, see Ross Duffin’s HOW EQUAL TEMPERAMENT RUINED HARMONY.
    My own hope for the New Year is that I become more open-minded, accepting, and inclusive.

    Hapy New Year, everyone.

    Bob Anderson, RPT
    Tucson,AZ




  • 5.  RE: A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-26-2022 11:31
    For an even more interesting stance, keep an eye out for my review (or rather, re-review) of Duffin's book in an upcoming Journal…

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    Scott Cole, RPT
    rvpianotuner.com
    Talent, OR
    (541-601-9033
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  • 6.  RE: A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Posted 12-26-2022 17:46
    It's great to hear that Ross Duffin is going to be grabbing the headlines as so much of his inspiration was right. 

    But sadly there are authors who have a really great idea and then write too much . . . One of the books that's inspired me most was written by George Hersey https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262580892/the-lost-meaning-of-classical-architecture/ whose inspiration was stellar but who wrote three times too much.

    Duffin erred in the same way having been seduced by Bradley Lehman and his temperament which turned Bach's squiggle upside down - and getting the wrong answer. Charles Francis re-assessed the squiggle and came up with results compatible with historic precedents . . . and in that accordance as far as I'm concerned, he's more likely to be on the right track with his research. The language of keys is relevant - those which are "home" and those which are "remote". Lehman's scheme came up with the strongest coloured keys being in the middle with three and four accidentals rather than properly in Db major and Bb minor. 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2h_VXV0vSmA was a concert last month at Hammerwood the recording of which gives me particular pleasure when I revisit it. 

    What I've found particularly interesting is that so many people have come to similar conclusions independently without knowing about others until subsequently. Starting my quest in around 2005 I was unaware of both Ed Foote and Eben Goresko who I've come to regard as heroes.

    My son plugged in another request for creativity from AI and it came back with a hilarious ditty, sadly which was overwritten but which concluded:
    "If you have a piano which needs a bit of love
    Give me a bell and I'll give it a shove"

    ChatGPT and https://chat.openai.com/chat can give no end of entertainment. I think he asked it
    "Please write an extensive humorous 10 verse song in the style of Flanders and Swann about" . . . "tuning a piano in unequal temperament"

    Flanders and Swann were a wonderful tradition on this side of the pond who might not be so known by many readers of this forum. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPgo6s1lBbw and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjnOj9O16_I were a couple of their most famous songs. 

    No doubt others can plug in other song subjects in the style of F&S and look forward to merriment resulting in this festive season.

    The danger of AI will be when it can do something about which we don't have cause to laugh . . . 

    Greetings and best wishes

    David P


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    David Pinnegar, B.Sc., A.R.C.S.
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    +44 1342 850594





  • 7.  RE: A piano tuner's Christmas Present

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-26-2022 17:10
    If it may be of interest,  while 90% of my customers are now using well-tempered pianos, there are also two commercial recording studios in Nashville that have switched to using my version of the Coleman 11 temperament.  More and more musicians are learning that ET is not an imperative!  I began my offering of this 'crusade' n 1993...
    regards, 

    Ed Foote RPT