Re: Shall tubas have their own scale systems


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Posted by Jay Bertolet on March 11, 2003 at 22:28:35:

In Reply to: Shall tubas have their own scale systems posted by Klaus on March 11, 2003 at 21:18:10:

One of the major misconceptions about achieving good ensemble intonation is the whole concept of a rigid, exactly precise scale. It would be wonderful if all the ensembles I play in would play this way, always. It simply isn't the case. Let's establish a simple truth: if two people are playing a note and they aren't in tune, until the frequencies match, the notes will continue to sound out of tune.

The obvious result of that little truth is that intonation is about matching pitch. It isn't about playing perfect pitches, it is about matching the actual pitches around you. Some of the worst players I've ever worked with are the ones that pull out a tuner every time there is a pitch discrepancy. People are not machines. As much as we aspire to the ideals of perfect pitch, we always face playing with players who cannot play with perfect intonation.

I for one, have always been offended by players who play a note, hear that it is out of tune with others playing the same note, and refuse to move the note because they feel they are playing it correctly in tune. Such players destroy ensemble intonation. They also don't make friends very quickly. I continue to work towards better command of my own intonation on every instrument I play. But I don't delude myself into thinking that when I play every note exactly in tune, compared to A=440, that the job is finished. For me, intonation is an ongoing struggle that I assume will continue until the day I put the horn down for good.

For now, I'll continue to focus on the fact that there are a lot fewer audience members that can hear that a unison is 10 cents flatter than it should be (compared to A=440) than those that can hear that a unison isn't really.

My opinion for what it's worth...


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