Author: Oboe Craig
Date: 2011-01-05 19:17
Howard,
You mentioned the string tuning. That really opens up a can of worms sometimes.
If they tune pure intervals on their open strings and then play with equal tempered instruments, some notes will always be out re: with the piano for instance.
They do get some benefit of a lot of them being a little out of tune differently, and that chorus effect can have a democratically beneficial impact to the sound, but in thin textures those open string notes can really go sour.
At some point in my education I got a lot of training in just intonation, and sometimes like to do that if all instruments are variable-pitched, but usually for reed testing I stick to equal temperament. Then everything is in the ball park and I can go with the flow up to a point. After the flutes decide to play 20 cents sharp in the 3rd octave, or the first horn goes into orbit up 50 cents, I no longer know what to do to play with them. The best made reeds don't deal well with that sort of crazy pitch demand where higher wins, and everyone else is wrong...
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