Klarinet Archive - Posting 000406.txt from 2003/08

From: Ray Montoro <rmontoro@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Perfect Pitch
Date: Fri, 15 Aug 2003 01:22:26 -0400

I don't have perfect anything, though I have acted the perfect fool on
occasion.

Mention of people with perfect pitch has noted that they can name a
note or a simultaneity of notes upon hearing. Apparently they name the
notes with reference to A=440.

I believe that A=440 is an artificial definition of recent
construction, so why do people with perfect pitch relate to it? Why not
some other frequency? What if they grew up with an old piano that had
to be tuned flat?

Would a European with perfect pitch agree that A=440? Or would she base
her ability on another definition? Would she go nuts if she came to the
USA? If my American friend with perfect pitch at A=440 went to Europe
to play at A=442 would he cringe?

Do we know how perfect pitch appears in an individual? An earlier
poster said that these individuals use no internal or external
reference, but I'm not so sure.

Please don't misunderstand, I'm not trying to deny the existence of the
phenomenon. I had a childhood friend who could name all the notes when
I just randomly hammered a piano. He didn't know how he did it either.

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