Tuning (Owen Jorgenson)

·~~
TU§J?ERFECTION OF EIGHTEENTH,CENTURY TEMPERAMENT
IHE LOST ART OFNINETEENTH:-CENTURY TEMPERAMENT

AND
THE SCIENCE OF EQUAL TEMPERAMENT

yy~
THE PERFECTION OF EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY TEMPERAMENT
THE LOST ART OF NINETEENT:ltl:CliNTURY TEMPERAMENT
AND
THE SCIENCE OF EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
INSTRUCTIONS FOR AURAL AND liLECTRONIC TUNING
OWEN H. JORGENSEN
Michigan State University Press
East Lansing
1991
To my wife Barbara who made this book possible
CONTENTS
OF TABLES FOR ELECTRONIC TUNING .................................................. xv

Temperaments Used as Substitutes for Equal Temperament
Regular Meantone ·Temperaments
Modified Meantone Temperaments
Well Temperaments
Quasi-equal Temperaments
LIST OF TABLES SHOWING THE SIZES OF MAJOR THIRDS IN CENTS IN PERSPECTIVES xvii
Temperaments Used as Substitutes for Equal Temperament
Regular Meantone Temperaments
Modified Meantone Temperaments
Well Temperaments
Quasi-equal Temperaments
LIST OF MISCELLANEOUS TABLES .......................................................... xix
LIST OF FIGURES SHOWING THE FORMS OF TONALITY OR HARMONIC BALANCES ............ xx
PREFACE ........................................................... ·........................ xxi
HINTS ON HOW TO USE THIS BOOK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................ xxii
SECTIONS
1. Equal was notpracticed on pianos in 1885 ... , .............................. .
Why was not on before the
twentieth century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3. Nomenclature..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4. "These Half-tones whether be or 1t rn a in 1636 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5. "He that desires to know the true Proportions ... let him read ... Mersennus" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
6. The ratios of equal Marin Mersenne in 1636 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
7. Monsieur Boulliau' s fourteenth-century Pythagorean temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
8. Tuning the Boulliau tn'.lrestrictive irregular circulating Pythagorean temperament
of 1373 in the theoretically correct manner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
9. Tuning the Boulliau unrestrictive irregular circulating Pythagorean temperament
of 13 73 in the equal-beating manner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
10. Tuning the Boulliau unrestrictive irregular circulating Pythagorean temperament
in the style of Henricus Grammateus of 1518.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
11. Marin Mersenne and meantone temperament in 1636 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
12. Pietro Aaron's restrictive regular noncirculating one-fourth syntonic comma
meantone keyboard temperament of 1523 in the theoretically correct manner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
William Holder and meantone temperament 1694....................................... 37
14. An authentic way to tune seventeenth-century meantone temperament. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
15. and of the 'Characters
44
--,,.,,,urn•K meantone tPn'"!l'IP•r<nnPli'lt , •• , , •• , , , • • • , . , • 49
SECTIONS (continued)
17. The tuning rules by Gottfried Keller in 1707 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
18. Tuning the equal-beating restrictive regular noncirculating almost one-fifth ditonic
comma meantone temperament by using Gottfried Keller's tuning rules of 1707 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
19. Temperament conditions reported by Alexander Malcolm in 1721............................ 62
20. Well temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
21. An authentic way to tune late seventeenth- and early eighteenth-century well
temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
22. Tuning Francesco Antonio Vallotti's early eighteenth-century well temperament in
the equal-beating manner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
23. Roger North's attempt to write helpful and thorough tuning instructions in 1726 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
24. The amount that ''ye Ear will permit'' on wide major thirds in 1731 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
25. Tuning the unrestrictive circulating well temperament by using Peter Preulleur' s
rules of 1731 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
26. William Tans'ur's tuning rules of 1746 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
27. Tuning the unrestrictive circulating well temperament by using William Tans'ur's
rules of 1746 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
28. The older forms of meantone temperament revived by Robert Smith in 1749 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
29. Tuning Christiaan Huygens's meantone temperament of 1661 based on 31 tones
to the octave. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
30. Tuning Robert Smith's equal-beating meantone temperament meant for "equal
harmony" in 17 49 ..... . .................. ·. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
31. Robert Smith's beat frequency formulas of 1749 .......................................... 109
32. Nicolo Pasquali's tuning rules from around 1743-1757 ............................. .. ..... 112
33. Tuning Nicolo Pasquali's meantone temperament from around 1743-1757 ......... ... ......... 114
34. The most common tuning system after around 1759 ....................................... 116
35. The one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament by John Holden in 1770 ................. 118
36. Tuning John Holden's equal-beating meantone temperament of 1770 ......................... 120
37. Robert Falkener's tuning rules of 1774 .................................................. 129
38. Tuning well temperament by using Robert Falkener's rules of 1774 or before ... . .. . ... ... .. .. 131
39. Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Dictionnaire De Musique translated into English in 1771
and 1779 .................................................................. . ...... 134
40. Tuning Jean-Jacques Rousseau's well temperament of 1768 in the theoretically
correct manner ........................ ...... ......... . ..... . .. ... ............. .... 139
41. Tuning Jean-Jacques Rousseau's well temperament of 1768 in the equal-beating
manner ....... ·.................................... . ... .. ......................... 146
42. The philosophy of well temperament and key-coloring as described by Jean-Jacques
Rousseau in 1768 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
43. Chart of key characteristics ............... . ........................................... 155
44. Demonstrating the characters of the keys ................................ ...... .......... 157
45. George Frederick Handel's tuning rules ................................................. 158
46. The authentic way to tune George Frederick Handel's well temperament in around
1780 ........ ............................ .. .. ......... . .... ... .... ..... .......... 162
47. Tuning George Frederick Handel's well temperament in the theoretically correct
manner .......................................................................... 168
48. The writings of William Jones on temperament in 1781 .................................... 173
49. The authentic way to tune the Francesco Antonio Vallotti well temperament
in 1781 ....... . ...................... . ..... ......... ....... ...................... 176
50. Tuning Francesco Antonio Vallotti's well temperament of 1781 in the equal-
beating manner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
51. Francesco Antonio Vallotti's temperament tuned according to late eighteenth-century
theory ..... . .. ......... . ............... . ............................. ..... .... . .. 179
52. Tuning Francesco Antonio Vallotti's well temperament of 1781 in the
theoretically correct manner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
53. William Jones' s proposal that musicians ought to try equal temperament in 1781 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
54. Jean-Philippe Rameau 's equal temperament proposal of 1737 reintroduced in 1781 ............. 189
55. The ordinary temperament commonly practiced in early eighteenth-century France
introduced to the British in 1781 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Vlll
56. Tuning Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert's modified meantone temperament of 1752 in
the theoretically correct manner ......... . ... . ...... . ....... . ............ . ... .. ....... 196
57. The ordinary temperament commonly practiced in late eighteenth-century English-
speaking countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
58. Tuning the English equal-beating well temperament by using Jean-Le Rond
D'Alembert's rules of 1752 . . .. . ............................. .. . ........... . ........ 207
59. The Preceptor For the Piano-Forte, Organ, or Harpsichord . ............................... 214
60. Tuning Mr. Preston's well temperament of 1785 in the equal-beating manner .................. 216
61. Tuning Mr. Preston's well temperament of 1785 in the theoretically correct
manner ...... . .... . .... ... ........ .. . ... ........ ... . ... ......... ... .. .. ... ... .... 218
62. "This temperature of Mr. Huygens deserves to be introduced into the practice of
music" in 1786 ............................... .. .................................. 224
63. Tiberius Cavallo's equal temperament proposal in 1788 ..... . .. ............................ 226
64. The British rejection of equal temperament proposals in 1790 .............................. . 229
65. The modified equal-beating one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament
of 1797 . . . . ..... ........ . . ..... ... .. . ..... ..... . ..... . . .. .. . ........ . . ........ .. . 230
66. Tuning the modified equal-beating one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament
of 1797 .... . . . ..... .... . .... . ... . ...... ... . . ....... .. ...... . ..................... 233
67. The modified one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament by William Hawkes
in 1798 ........ . ....................................... . ............. . ..... . ..... 241
68. Tuning the William Hawkes modified meantone temperament of 1798 in the
theoretically correct manner ... . ............ . . .. ... .. .. . . . . . . .. . ... . .. . .. ..... ... .. .. 243
69. Thomas Young's representative eighteenth-century well temperament of 1799 .................. 251
70. Tuning the transposed Vallotti well temperament of 1781 according to Thomas
Young's rules of 1799 in the theoretically correct manner .... ........ . ................... 256
71. Tuning Thomas Young's representative well temperament of 1799 in the
theoretically correct manner ............. . .... . .. . ........ . . ......................... 260
72. The representative eighteenth-century temperament tuned by personal taste ........... . ........ 266
73. Instructions for tuning the representative eighteenth-century temperament according
to one' s own personal taste .. .... . .. .......... .. ..... . ..... .. ......... . ..... . . . ...... 269
74. John Robison's proposal that harpsichords and pianofortes should be tuned by beats
in 1801 . .. ......... . ... ... . ... . ..... . ... . . . ....... . .. . . .... . .... . . .. . ... .. . .. . ... 272
75. The Johann Philipp Kirnberger well temperament introduced to the British and
Americans in 1801 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
76. Tuning the easiest temperament to tune that was ever published, the one-half
syntonic comma temperament by Johann Philipp Kirnberger in 1771 . . ....... . ... . . . ..... .. 281
77. The improved Kirnberger well temperament by Charles Earl Stanhope in 1806 . ...... . . ... .... 284
78. Tuning the Kirnberger temperament as improved by Charles Earl Stanhope in the
theoretically correct manner .. . . . ............ .. .. . ...... . .... . . . . . ................... 287
79. Tuning the improved Kirnberger temperament according to Charles Earl Stanhope's
equal-beating bearing plan of 1806 ... . ..... . .................. .. . .. .... . . . . . . . . . ..... 290
80. "That ill contrived mode of tuning called the equal temperament" ..... .. .. .. . .... . ...... . .. . 293
81. The temperament controversies of 1806 to 1812 . .. . . . .. . . . ......................... . ..... 295
82. The modified meantone temperament improved in 1807 by William Hawkes ....... . . . ... ... ... 298
83. Tuning the William Hawkes improved modified meantone temperament of 1807
in the theoretically correct manner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
84. The distinction between equal-beating temperament and theoretically correct
temperament clarified in 1807 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
85. Tuning equal temperament by using just intonation techniques in 1807 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
86. Instructions from 1807 for tuning equal temperament through just intonation . .. . .............. 314
87. The Prinz, Kirnberger III, and Aron-Neidhardt well temperaments .. . .... ... ..... . . . .. . .. .. .. 319
88. Tuning the Prinz well temperament of 1808 in the theoretically correct manner .... . ... . . .. .... 321
89. Tuning the equal-beating Prinz well temperament of 1808 ... ... ... . . .. . .. ..... . .. .... .. . . . . 325
90. The Pythagorean temperaments by Anton Bemetzrieder used as substitutes for
equal temperament in 1808 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
91. Tuning the Henricus Grammateus Pythagorean temperament of 1518
(Anton Bemetzrieder Number One) in the theoretically correct manner .. . . . .......... .. . . ... 332
IX
92. Tuning the Vallotti-Young temperament transposed down one semitone according
to the rules of Anton Bemetzrieder's Temperament Number Two of 1808 in the
theoretically correct manner .. .. . .................................................... 336
93. The four twenty-fifths syntonic comma meantone temperament by John Marsh in 1809 ............ 341
94. The authentic way to tune John Marsh's meantone temperament of 1809 ...................... 344
95. Tuning the John Marsh regular meantone temperament of 1809 in the
96. The beat frequencies for equal temperament published by C. J. Smyth in 1810 ................ 352
97. Well temperament and meantone temperament called equal temperament in the
nineteenth century ............... . .... . .. . ................. . ....................... 353
98. The first workable instructions for tuning equal temperament on organs in 1810 .. .. .... ....... 356
99. Tuning quasi-equal temperament by using the melodic method without beats
in 1811 .......................................................................... 361
100. Tuning the Merrick quasi-equal temperament of 1811 ...................................... 364
101. The results of "nearly the equal" temperament tuned on a pianoforte analyzed
in 1811 . .... .............. ...... ................ . ... . ............................ 369
102. Building keyboard instruments with 25 or more pitches per octave as a solution for
avoiding equal temperament ......................................................... 371
103. Tuning the William Hawkes regular one-sixth Mercator comma meantone
temperament of 1808 (published in 1811) in the theoretically correct manner ................ 374
104. The successes of Hawkes, Loeschman, and Liston implying that equal temperament
"must be abolished" ............................................................... 380
105. The "Essay on Musical Temperament" by Alexander Metcalf Fisher in 1818 .. ............... 381
106. Tuning the Gioseffo Zarlino equal-beating meantone temperament of 1558
proposed for adoption in 1818 . ....................... .. ... . .................. ....... 384
107. Tuning the Alexander Metcalf Fisher modified meantone temperament of 1818 in
the theoretically correct manner ...................................................... 394
108. A "Plain Direction To Tune The Piano Forte" by Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner .......... 400
109. The authentic way to tune the Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner temperament
of 1819 .......................................................................... 403
110. The "Easy and Convenient" temperament by Johann Nepomuk Hummel in 1829 ............ .. 406
111. Tuning Hummel's temperament according to the rules of Viennese tuners in 1829 .............. 409
112. Hummel's easier bearing plan for the "unpracticed ear" in 1829 .... ... ..... .... ............ 411
113. Avoidance of the direct tuning of just intervals by organ tuners in 1830 ...................... 413
114. The tuning of Pietro Aaron's meantone temperament on organs in 1830 and later .............. 414
115. Strict mathematically correct equal temperament "cannot be obtained" in 1832 ........ . ....... 417
116. Tuning Jean Jousse's well temperament of 1832 in the authentic manner by using
his bearing plan number one . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420
117. The authentic way to attempt tuning equal temperament in 1832 by using Jean
Jousse' s bearing plan number two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423
118. The method of W. S. B. Woolhouse for tuning equal temperament by specific
numbers of beats in 1835 ..... . ........................ . ................... . ........ 425
119. Tuning equal temperament in 1835 according to the rules by W. S. B. Woolhouse ............. 427
120. "A good tuner can accommodate the temperament to the taste of those who play in
particular keys, which they wish to be more perfect than the rest" in 1840 .. .. ........ .. .... 430
121. Piano care in 1840 .................................................................. 434
122. Tuning The Tuner's Guide well temperament number one of 1840 in the
123. Tuning The Tuner's Guide well temperament number two of 1840 in the
theoretically correct manner ......................................................... 439
124. Tuning The Tuner's Guide well temperament number three of 1840 in the
theoretically correct manner .... . .................................................... 442
125. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1840 by using John Marsh's bearing plan ................. 445
126. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1840 by using the bearing plan of Becket and
Company ......................... .. .............................................. 447
127. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1840 according to the rules of the best factory
tuners ............................................... . . . ....... . ... .. ...... . ..... 452
x
128. Encyclopedists who advocated the practice of well temperament in 1842 through
1848 . . ... . ................. . ....... . .... .. ..................... . . . . .. . . . ... ..... 455
129. Tuning the Augustus De Morgan unequal temperament of 1843 in the
130. How one endeavoured to tune quasi-equal temperament in 1843 . ... ..... .... ........ .... .... 464
131. Rules for tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1843 ................................ . ....... 465
132. "There never was a man capable of tuning by ear a pianoforte or an organ" in
equal temperament before 1834 in Germany . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
133. Tuning equal temperament by using Johann Heinrich Scheibler 's metronome
method of 1836 introduced to the British before 1853 ....................... . ............ 469
134. "Equal temperament was equal nonsense" in 1858 ........ . .. . ............................ 472
135 . Tuning the Johann George Neidhardt Fifth Temperament Number Three of 1732
proposed for common practice in 1858 ........ .. ..... . .. . ..... .. . .... .. . .... . ........ . 475
136. Tuning the Neidhardt-Marpurg-De Morgan unequal temperament of 1858 in the
theoretically correct manner .... ....... .... . ........ .. . ........... .... ............... 479
137. Equal temperament had "never been attained" on pianos through the year 1864 . ....... ... ... . 484
138. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1869 according to the rules by William Geib ............... 487
139. A special warning in 1869 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492
140. "Strictly equal temperament is a thing unknown in practice" in 1875 ............ . ........... 493
141. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1875 according to the rules by Alexander
John Ellis ............. . ....................... .. .................... . . ........... 495
142. How the methods of the factory tuners changed in the thirty-six years since 1840 .......... ... . 499
143. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1876 according to the rules by A. Hemstock ............... 500
144. "There are few tuners who can produce a tolerable equal temperament" in 1876 ... .... .. .. ... 502
145. Tuning equal temperament in 1876 by the metronome method of Robert Halford
Macdowall Bosanquet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 504
146. Tuning unequal temperament in 1877 according to the rules by Edward
John Hopkins ..................................................................... 508
147. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1877 by using Edward John Hopkins's
bearing plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510
148. The methods of the best factory tuners of America in 1877 .. .... ......... . .... .. ...... . .... 512
149. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1877 according to the rules by Louis 0. Peltier ............ 513
150. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1879 according to the rules by Edgar Brinsmead ..... . ...... 515
151. " The key is in music what colour is in painting." Do the characters of the keys
still exist? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517
152. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1880 according to the rules by C. A. Edwards ... . ......... 519
153. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1880 according to the rules by H. T. Martin ............... 520
154. The H . T. Martin bearing plan number one . ..... . ... . . . .............. . .................. 521
155. The H . T. Martin bearing plan number two ...................... . ....................... 523
156. The H. T. Martin bearing plan number three . . ... ... ..................................... 525
157. The H. T . Martin bearing plan number four ............................................. 527
158. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1880 according to the rules by Charles
Babbington ....................................................................... 529
159. "Fine Tuning" by Charles Babbington in 1880 .......................................... . 530
160. The bearing plans of the English factory tuners in 1885 ........... . ........................ 533
161. The analyses by Alexander John Ellis showing that equal temperament was still not
possible on pianos in 1885 ..... .. . . ... .. .... . .......... ... .................... .. .. . 534
162 . Interpreting the Alexander John Ellis analyses of 1885 ........ ..... ............. .... .. ..... 536
163 . Tuning the representative Victorian (Moore and Moore Company) temperament
of 1885 ............ . .................................... . ............. . .......... 540
164. Tuning Victorian temperament in the manner of a "usual" Broadwood tuner in 1885 .... . ....... 547
165. Tuning Victorian temperament in the manner of a "best" Broadwood tuner in 1885 ............ 554
166. Quasi-equal temperament as tuned by a "best" Broadwood tuner in 1885 ................... .. 559
167. The new equal-beating method by Alexander John Ellis in 1885 . . . . ......................... 561
168. Tuning pianofortes in 1885 by using Alexander J. Eilis 's new equal-beating rules ........ . ..... 565
169. "Tuning .. . is an art" in 1887 .. . . . ... . . . . .. . .... . . .. ...... . .................... . .... 568
170. Tuning equal temperament in 1887 according to the rules by Edward Quincy Norton ............ 570
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171. The equal-beating rules by Mark Wicks in 1887 .............................. .. ...... .. .. 573
172. Tuning Organs in 1887 by using Mark Wicks's equal-beating rules .......................... 574
173. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1888 according to the new rules by W. S. B.
Woolhouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577
174. "There are . .. several shades or degrees of equal temperament" in 1889; or, the
philosophy of Victorian temperament in practice ........................................ 579
175. How key-coloring and the characters of the keys were used in the technique of
temperament setting ................................................................ 580
176. Examples of how the characters of the keys are preserved in the music itself when
played in equal temperament ............. . ........ . ............ . ................ . .... 582
177. "Beats ... are due to the presence of upper partials" in 1892 ....... . .... . .... .......... ... 583
178. Tuning equal temperament in 1892 according to the rules by Henry Fisher .................... 585
179. "The most expert and rapid tuners are men ... verging on the border of insanity" ........... . 588
180. Using the C tuning fork in tuning quasi -equal temperament according to Daniel
Spillane's rules of 1893 ............................................................. 590
181. Using the A tuning fork in tuning quasi-equal temperament according to Daniel
Spillane's rules of 1893 .......................... ........ .... .. ... . ............. .... 592
182. "Some piano tuners now have a hankering after the old system," in 1893 .................... 594
183 . Outlawing the equal-beating tempering techniques in 1893 .......... . ................. ... ... 595
184. Tuning equal temperament in 1893 by using the bearing plan of Becket and
Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 597
185. Tuning equal temperament in 1893 by using the bearing plan of Louis 0. Peltier ...... ·........ 602
186. Tuning equal temperament in 1893 by using Hermann Smith's circle of fourths and
octaves ................................ . ......................................... 605
187. Thomas Elliston may or may not have tuned the exact theoretical equal temperament
in 1894 .......................................................................... 610
188. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1894 according to the rules by Thomas Elliston ............ 612
189. "Not one percent of the professors of piano can tune their own instruments" in 1895 ...... ...... 615
190. Tuning pianos in 1895 by using Charles E. Moscow's equal-beating rules ..................... 616
191. The bearing plans by Frederick Ewart Robertson in 1897 ....... ......... . .. ..... .... ...... 617
192. "Try to find out what style of pieces the organist plays" ................................. . 620
193. The 'Temperella' of 1903 .... ........ ........... . ................................. ... . 622
194. Tuning quasi-equal temperament in 1905 according to the rules by Paul Nooncree
Hasluck ........................................................................... 623
195. Tuning equal temperament in 1905 according to the rules by George Ashdown
Audsley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 625
196. Tuning equal temperament in 1905 by using George Ashdown Audsley's circle of
fourths and octaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 627
197. The correspondence courses by Niles Bryant in 1906 ............... .. ..................... 631
198. The modern bearing plan published by Howard Willet Pyle in 1906 .......................... 632
199. The evolution of the modern bearing plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 634
200. The modern bearing plan as amended by William Braid White in 1906 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 636
201. The bearing plan published by The British College of Pianoforte Tuning in 1907 ............... 639
202. The bearing plans by Henry Spain in 1907 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 641
203. "Many good tuners" of 1907 tuned as well as the tuners of today ........................... 645
204. The first somewhat complete instructions for tuning equal temperament in 1907 by
Jerry Cree Fischer .......... . ...................................................... 649
205. Jerry Cree Fischer's revival of the most ancient bearing plans in 1907 ....................... 655
206. The Jerry Cree Fischer system of tuning written for amateur tuners .......................... 657
207. The bearing plan by James F. Cooke in 1908 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 661
208. William Braid White's explanation that beats exist at the nearly-coinciding harmonics ............ 662
209. William Braid White's bearing plan of 1909 .. .... ......... ....................... ..... .. 665
210. W. A. Butterfield's major third-major seventeenth 4:1 ratio double octave or
fifteenth test published in 1910 ...................................... .. . .............. 668
211. A bearing plan for equal-beating temperament by W. A. Butterfield in 1910 ................... 669
212. The bearing plan by Walter and Thomas Lewis in 1911 ..... _. . ............................ 674
213. The bearing plan by Leon 0. Underhill in 1911 ..... ..... ................................ 675
xii
214. The technique of using twelve contiguous major thirds for temperament setting
and also the tests for proving that fifths are narrow and that fourths are wide
published by Oliver Cromwell Faust in 1913 ...................... . ................. . .. 678
215. The bearing plan by Oliver Cromwell Faust in 1913 . . ....................... ...... .... .. . 680
216. Two bearing plans by Charles E. Ewing in 1913 ......................................... 682
217. The technique of using three contiguous major thirds for temperament setting and
also the tests for proving that fifths are narrow and that fourths are wide
published in Charles E. Ewing's second bearing plan of 1913 ............................. 685
218. William Braid White's bearing plan of 1915 ............................................. 689
219. The quality of piano tuning done during the years 1911 through 1917 ........................ 692
220. How the 'Classic Bearing Plan' might have been utilized by the best tuners of 1917 ............ 697
221. Tuning equal temperament by ear in 1917 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 698
222. Why the 'Classic Bearing Plan' was preferred ............................................ 712
223. Listing of historical developments ................... . ......................... . ........ 714
APPENDICES ... ......... ................. . ................. . ............................... 718

224. An Experimental Bearing Plan . ................................. .. .. .... .............. . 719
225. Tuning Equal Temperament .................... . .......................... ... ...... ... 720
226. Tuning the Notes Below and Above the Bearing Section in Equal Temperament .......... . ..... 730
227. Various Tests ....................................................................... 736
228. Inharmonicity .... .... .. ... ...... ....... ...... ... . .......... .... .. ...... ...... .. ..... 739
229. The General Locations Where Various Sizes of Octaves are Tuned ........ .... .............. 746
230. Tests for Octaves .......................................................... . ......... 747
231. A Catalogue of Test Intervals through Eight Harmonics ................... ................. 752
232. The Frequencies and Beat Frequencies of Equal Temperament ................... . .......... 766
233. Metronome Speeds at A=440 Hz for Fifths and Fourths Between F and Fin Equal
Temperament ... ............. ....... ................ . . .... ... .. .. .... ............ . 768
GLOSSARY . . ................................. ... . .................. . ...... .... ............. 769
BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 780
INDEX . .... . .. . . ................................. ...... ........ . ........................... 796
xiii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Grateful acknowledgement is given to Hugh Boyle for help in locating rare tuning
manuals, to Jo Grandstaff for her excellent typing and invaluable arranging of materials,
Kristine Blakeslee for editing, Laurence W. Key for the music type, Penny Betcher
for the graphics, Lynne Brown for design, Julie L. Loehr for administrative work,
Richard E. Chapin and the Michigan State University College of Arts and Letters
for assistance in the form of a research grant.
xiv
TABLES FOR ELECTRONIC TUNING
TEMPERAMENTS USED AS SUBSTITUTES FOR EQUAL TEMPERAMENT

8-1. 14th-century Pythagorean temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
91-1. Henricus Grammateus Pythagorean temperament ............. 335
92-1. Anton Bemetzrieder Pythagorean temperament ............... 339
129-1. Augustus De Morgan unequal temperament ................. 463
135-1. Johann George Neidhardt Pythagorean temperament ....... ... 478
136-1. Neidhardt-Marpurg-De Morgan Pythagorean temperament ...... 483
190-1. Charles E. Moscow Pythagorean temperament ............... 616
REGULAR MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

12-1. Pietro Aaron (~ syntonic) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
18-1. Gottfried Keller ( Ys di tonic) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
29-1. Christiaan Huygens (31 tones) ............................ 102
30-1. Robert Smith (50 tones) ............................. . ... 108
36-1. John Holden (Ys syntonic, 5ths = 1.49627972) ................ 127
36-2. John Holden (Ys syntonic, 5ths= 1.49627787) ................ 128
95-1. John Marsh (% 5 syntonic) ................................ 351
103-1. William Hawkes (Yi; Mercator) ...... . ...... ............... 379
106-1. Gioseffo Zarlino (7/J syntonic) ......... . .................. 390
MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

16-1. 17th-century meantone temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
56-i. Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert ... ... ................... . ..... 202
66-1. 1799 meantone temperament (5ths = 1.49627972) ............. 240
66-2 . 1797 meantone temperament (5ths=l.49627787) ........ . .... 240
68-1. William Hawkes (5ths = 1.49627787) . . .. ........ .... .... ... 250
83-1. Improved William Hawkes (5ths = 1.49627787) .............. 309
107-1. Alexander Metcalf Fisher ............................. ... 399
WELL TEMPERAMENTS
22-1. Early 18th-century well temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
25-1. Peter Prelleur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
27-1. William Tans'ur........................................ 89
40-1. Theoretical Jean-Jacques Rousseau ........................ 143
41-1. Equal-beating Jean-Jacques Rousseau ...................... 150
47-1. George Frederick Handel . .................. . ............ 172
52-1. Francesco Antonio Vallotti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
58-1. Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert ............................... 213
60-1. Equal-beating John Preston ............ . .................. 217
61-1. Theoretical John Preston ................ .............. ... 223
70-1. Vallotti-Young . .. .... .. ..... ........ .... .......... .... . 259
71-1 . Representative 18th-century temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
76-1. Johann Philipp Kimberger .............................. . 283
78-1. Theoretical Charles Earl Stanhope ......... .......... .. .... 289
79-1. Equal-beating Charles Earl Stanhope .....· . ................. 291
xv
WELL TEMPERAMENTS (continued)
88-1 . Theoretical Prinz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
89-1. Equal-beating Prinz ..................................... 326
116-1. Jean Jousse . ..... .... .......... .. ................ .. .... 422
122-1. Tuner's Guide well temperament number one ............... 437
123-1. Tuner's Guide well temperament number two ............ ... 441
124-1. Tuner's Guide well temperament number three .............. 444
163-1. Representative Victorian temperament ...................... 544
164-1. The Ellis tuner number two ..................... . .. . .. ... 551
165-1. The Ellis tuner number four .............................. 558
QUASI-EQUAL TEMPERAMENTS
85-1. Quasi-equal temperament tuned through just intonation ........ 312
101-1. A. Merrick ............. .... ........................... 370
109-1. Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
111-1. Viennese temperament. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410
112-1. Johann Nepomuk Hummel ............................... 412
117-1. Jean Jousse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424
125-1. Tuner's Guide (Marsh plan) . . ..... .. .. ... ......... ... .... 446
126-1. Tuner's Guide (Becket plan) .............................. 450
127-1. Factory tuners of 1840 .................................. 454
141-1. Alexander John Ellis in 1875 ............................. 498
166-3. The Ellis tuner number five .............................. 560
168-1. Alexander John Ellis in 1885 ............................. 566
172-1. Mark Wicks ........................................... 575
198-1. Howard Willet Pyle .. ................ .... .... . ........ .. 633
xvi
- - -- - -
TABLES SHOWING THE SIZES OF MAJOR THIRDS

IN CENTS IN PERSPECTIVES
TEMPERAMENTS USED AS SUBSTITUTES FOR EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
7-2. 14th-century Pythagorean temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
90-1. Henricus Grammateus Pythagorean temperament ............. 331
92-2. Anton Bemetzrieder Pythagorean temperament ............... 339
128-2. Augustus De Morgan unequal temperament ......... . ....... 457
REGULAR MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

11-1. Pietro Aaron (% syntonic) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
17-1. Gottfried Keller (Ys ditonic) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
28-2. Christiaan Huygens (31 tones) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
30-2. Robert Smith (50 tones) ..... ... .. . ........... ... ... ..... 108
35-1. John Holden ( Ys syn tonic, 5ths = 1.49627972) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
35-2. John Holden (Ys syntonic, 5ths= 1.49627787) ......... . ...... 119
94-1. John Marsh (% 5 syn tonic) ................................ 345
102-1. William Hawkes (~ Mercator) ........ . ................... 372
105-1. Gioseffo Zarlino (Y., syntonic) ............................ 383
MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

15-2. Equal-beating meantone temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
15-3 . Corrected 17th-century meantone temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
55-1. Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert ..... ...... .. ... . ....... . ...... 195
65-1. 1797 meantone temperament (5ths = 1.49627972) ............. 231
65~2. 1797 meantone temperament (5ths = 1.49627787) ............. 232
67-1. William Hawkes (5ths=l.49627787) ....................... 241
82-1. Improved William Hawkes (5ths = 1.49627787) ... ........... 299
106-3. Alexander Metcalf Fisher ................................ 392
106-5. Idealized Alexander Metcalf Fisher ........................ 392
WELL TEMPERAMENTS
20-1. Early 18th-century well temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
24-1. Peter Prelleur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
26-1. William Tans'ur. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
39-1. Theoretical Jean-Jacques Rousseau ........................ 137
40-2. Equal-beating Jean-Jacques Rousseau ......... . ............ 144
46-1. George Frederick Handel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
51-1. Francesco Antonio Vallotti .. ... .... . ... ..... ............. 180
57-1. Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert ............................... 205
59-1. Equal-beating John Preston .. .. . ..... . .................... 215
61-2. Theoretical John Preston . ... ........... .... . . . ... ........ 223
69-1. Vallotti-Y oung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
71-2. Representative 18th-century temperament ... . ............... 264
72-1 . Tuning by aesthetic taste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
75-1. Johann Philipp Kimberger ............................... 279
77-1. Theoretical Charles Earl Stanhope ......................... 285
79-2. Equal-beating Charles Earl Stanhope ....................... 292
xvii
~,,,,, f,.,;; ''" •• ' · ••,.:~ •. -~ '•,•,'• .,418',
,)~'.~n~, .,. , ........... . A31
lter' tW<J' . . • . • • • • • • . • . . • 441
, W~lf temp~t;inient numbet three . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 444
V!~foriafr temperament . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 539
"~''' ' 11~r;,
' \,1'1JU1 ''; f'!",'{):;,',:- . .;'. . . . . . . . . . . . . .,«' • • • • • • • 545
,
tuner, il\Ullbei;,JQut,.
;~f ~~,ffi''('' l ··rw vv .
7 ., .:. ,~·
·,'. ,,, 0
. . •. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
• ••
552
l_llf,j1j~~~. .
108:2. J() lDID'
'"'"' ""'""''"'''
, ,, , p~!lie~ Qrayp~er .
, . . ".. .. 402 , ,
............... 363
llfl*l. Vi¢l}ne$e,JentPerament. '. •..•............................. 408,
112-2. Johann,.,.,, ·· ulc.UJJmniel ..... ,.......................... 412
111<2'
' :· .: . .; J:an:10
, .e ·, .·:
C' ' '
:',r~'''::
' •
.,'''',' "'):"'·..,, ·
'5:'~~'~t'..: :::.·;.;>?.'. '1?'~\~~.)-~~~:~·,:";:: ~, ~
00' ~
<- ~ ~
•
424
'" "':' •• \ ' •• • '._ ._ • ,° •' 4" W. ";, 0. <i.' }' • ._ • :
125.:2. tuner's Gu '(Marsh plruiY ........ , ..................... 446

126-2. Tuner's Guide (Becket plan) ....•......................... 451
127-2. Factory tuners of 1840 ..........•..............•........ 454
1,40·1. AleXiam;ferJol)n Eltisdn 1875 ... , ......................... 494
167-1. Alexander J<>hn Ellis in 1885 ............................. 563
MISCELLANEOUS TABLES
6-1. The ratios of equal temperament by Marin Mersenne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

6-2. Theoretical string lengths for equaltemperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
6-3. String lengths for equal temperament by Marin Mersenne. . . . . . . . . . . 16
6-4. The ratios by Mersenne in modem form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 16
6-5. The factors of the ratios by Mersenne ........ •.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6-6. The ratios of equal temperament in the simplest modem forms . . . . . 17
7-1. The tempered Pythagorean ratios by Boulliau and corrections . . . . . . . 18
15-1. Sizes of fifths in equal-beating modified meantone temperament . . . . . . 44
28-1. The number of beats by a single amount of tempering . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
99-1. Sizes of semitones in A. Merrick's quasi-equal temperament ....... 362
99-2. Sizes of fifths in A. Merrick's quasi-equal temperament ........... 362
106~2. Sizes of fifths in Alexander Metcalf Fisher's modified
meantone temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
106-4. Idealized fifths of Alexander Metcalf Fisher's modified
meantone temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
108-L Sizes of fifths in Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner's
quasi-equal temperament. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
128-1. Sizes of fifths in Augustus De Morgan's unequal t,,..,,,.,,,.""
140-2. Beat frequencies in Alexander John Ellis's quasi-equal
temperament in 1875....................................... 494
16 I -1. The differences between seven Ellis tuners and equal
temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534
162- L The seven Ellis tuners averaged ............................... 536
!62-2. The five Ellis tuners ................. 537
162"3. The best tuners
and equal temperament ..................................... 537
162-4. The corrected five best Ellis tuners averaged ........•........... 538
The sizes of corrected and five best
Ellis tuners ............................................... 538
163-2. Sizes of fifths of the EHis tuner number two ..................... 545
164-2. Sizes of fifths of the Ellis tuner number four .................... 552
166-1. Sizes· of fifths of the Ellis tuner number five ..................... 559
166-2. Beat frequencies of the Ellis tuner number five. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 559
167-2. Beat frequencies in Alexander John Ellis's quasi-equal
temperament in 1885 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 563
219-L William Braid White's Table HI ............................... 694
~ING,'llm;.FORMS 0'.El TONALITY
'ORIURMONIC BALANCES
JS-l. ~h~ hf~lf:~~'1it¢f~r~f1!.M®1ftil~~t~d1lt~fattu~~t;tones;.;~•'•r.'';•:•;•.f ••.••••.. · 46
c:JS:-2 •. ;~jtl\::~~nfurl( ~odiffed meanfone temperament .• : .....•.. , . • . • • . . . 47
20- l .. Early J ~~'-c~~tury w~lltempe!ament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
,,244; P:e~rttteflenr wen tein~filmeiit:J; . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
26-l. Willi~'Tatts'~W'Yell.tem~r~ntent<c~ ·. ,; •. •'··:'•'· •• . . . .. . . 84
39- I. The&re!fcaf Jean-Jacques Rousseau well temperament~ ...•......... 138
40- I. Equal~f!eatins Jeaif;..Ja~qu~ Rousseau well temperament. . . . . . . . . . . . 145
4.6- l. qeorg~i:Ffed~~~tllait~~lwell temperament . ., .•.. , .•..• • . . • . . . . 167
51-l. Francesco Antonio Valtotti welt temperament •.......•..........• 180
35-1. Jeatt-Le0 RortU>·n~~lem,hert ntooified meatttone temperament •....... 195
57~ J. Jean-Le Rcutd l),'Atembert•weU tempetamenl .... ; ...•........... 205
65-1. 1797 mooified: meantone temperament ... ; .. , ........•........... 232
·61-1. WiUiam Hawkes modified; meantone temperament ......•......... 242
69- l. Valloti-:"'Voung well teinperament ...... , . . .. . .. . . . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . 254
11 - 1. Representative 18.th·ce~tuo/ w'?U te1llperament . . . . ... i • • • • • • • • • • • 265
15- J. Johann PhiHpp ItfJttbetgetr we111;· temperament .......•............ 280
71-1. 1'heoretical Cb~Jil.esEatl Stan~ope wen temperament ...... , .•..... 286
79.:i. Eqllafi':B~ali'Hj1.:t0:tafl~~Earl'S~~e weUtemperament ....... " ... 292
82- l. Improved Willi~in Hawkes in<)dified meantone temperament . . . . . . . . 300
81-l. 'fh@oJieti<.lal Pi:inz.well.temperament ......... , .. ·.•.•.•.......... 320
89... l. Equal-bearting Fl!id well temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
92-1. Anton Eeme~rieder.•l')!thagorean temperament ....•. ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . 340
106-1. Alexander Metcalf Fisher modified meantone temperament . . . . . . . . . 393
J 1$-l, 0Jean. Jousse•..welJ.,temiJ~'aJI.len\.•••"''"'"""'"••*'".J•.·• • .~12
in:,.,1. ;.~l!:. ~:::em1tCD1.m~t4Qrm;IWfitW otte .................... 438
128-1. Augustus De Morgan unequal temperament ...................... 458
162.-l. Representativ~ ¥ictonttn:·well:1temperament ...•............... ~· • . . . . 539
1634. Ellis tu•··nu~~~U·temp1mment . ; ............•... ·' .... 546
164-1. Ellis tuner number four well temperament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553
PREFACE
· usic composers of the past instinctively utilized the best qualities of the. temperaments practiced during their
times. Consequently, the characteristics of the temperaments in turn became the bases needed for the full ex-
pr~ssion of the music. Therefore, music sounds most effective when performed in the original temperament~.• ·
The portiQn of the title of this work, The Lost Art of Nineteenth-century Temperament, is based on the discovery
that ilie modern equal t~mperament taken for granted today as universally used on keyboard instruments did not exist
in common practice on pianos until the early twentieth century. During the nineteenth century, the philosophy of equal
temperament was approved by a majority of the theorists; however, in actual tuning practice various quasi-equal sys-
~~111s were applied that· served as substitutes for equal temperament.· These temperaments were a highly developed art
f()rm that contained key-coloring supporting the 'characters of the keys.' Both temperament and music were tonal.
As fate as 1889, a knowledgeable authority wrote that "some discrimination is commonly used in favor of certain
popular keys, yet not to such an extent as sensibly to injure the effect of keys less. favored." 1 This is the art of tempera-
me~ttliat is now forgotten in practice. It is hoped that this book will invite musicians to request various historical
temperaments for their performances of classical keyboard music. A restoration of these temperaments could break
the absolute tyranny over performance that equal temperament has held since the early years of this century.
Basically, this book is a history of temperaments with instructions on how to tune them in an authentic manner.
In the past, tempering techniques consisted of listening carefully to the colors or qualities of chords in order to make
aesthetic judgments for each tone. Twentieth-century tuners have lost this ability, but they are excellent judges con-
cerningbeats and their comparative frequencies among the upper harmonics. Modem technicians are capable of doing
theoretically exact mathematical tempering. Therefore, in addition to the original temperament instructions, many of
the instructions are with modern beat frequencies and testing intervals so that piano technicians can easily
the original temperaments as intended.
though this book concentrates on what the English--speaking tuners and musicians knew and the
· in Britain did not vary to any marked from that of France, and Germany.
behind that on On this writers
nn:1et~~entn-cer1tmry treatises of Smith and John Robison. Smith and
Robison published anachronistic temperament rules by choice. They worked to revive the older, seventeenth-century
te11npf~rament. Their efforts were successful to a degree for the organ, but not for the harpsichord and pianoforte.
is a on From this one can see that the events led to
developments generally took place within the same across the Continent. Throughout the years covered
in this book there was a constant influx of foreign traveling and to
of music such as London, thus assuring that the British remained an integral part European culture.
In order to preserve the historical documentation, quotations used in this book retain their original spellings, capitali-
za.tions, punctuation marks, printing errors, and other eccentricities. However, the first letter of a quotation is usually
capitalized.
NOTE
1. William Staunton, ''Temperament,'' in Johnson's Revised Universal Cyclopaedia: A Scientific And Popular Treasury of Use-
ful Knowledge (New York: A. J. Johnson & Co., 1889-1890), 7:743.
HINTS ON How To USE Tms BOOK
The basic value of the historical temperaments is the. phenomenon of key-coloring that supports the 'characters of
the keys.' For an understanding of this, see pages 44-47, 62-65, 74, 151-57, 188, 274, 293-94, 401, 456, 517-18,
579-82, 769, and 773.
In the historical temperaments there is a pleasing and orderly variety while modulating through the keys. In addition
to the pages outlined above, see pages 251-52 and 264-65 for an understanding of this quality.
Fo:r terminology, see Section 3 and the glossary on page 769.
Fo:r tuning the original Pythagorean temperament that was used as a substitute for equal temperament since the four-
teenth century, see Sections 8, 9, 10, and 91. Section 91 presents the best system. This was published in 1518 by
Heinrich Schreiber, alias Henricus Grammateus.
Fo:r tuning the classic textbook meantone temperament based on Pietro Aaron's book of 1523, see Section 12. This
temperament as published in textbooks was rarely achieved in common practice. For more authentic meantone tempera-
ment, see Sections 14 and 16.
For tuning an advanced form of regular meantone temperament that almost served as a well temperament, see Sec-
tion 95. This was published in 1809 by John Marsh.
For tuning the finest historical development of modified meantone temperament that almost served as a well temper-
ament, see Section 83. This was in 1807 by Hawkes.
For tuning the finest well temperament that was representative of practice during the whole eighteenth century, see
Section 71. This was described in 1799 by Thomas Young and was published in 1800.
For tuning Victori.an temperament as practiced by the Broadwood Factory tuners in 1885, see Sections 163, 164,
and 165. This is representative of how most piano tuners throughout the nineteenth century tempered when they thought
that they were tuning equal temperament.
For tern~~rrume:nt as by tuners, see Sections 221,
and 226. Sections 221 and the traditional, most commonly practiced, and best method for students
of tuning. This has been used since 1917. The method in Section 225 is for experienced piano technicians only.
easiest to tune that was ever is found in 76. This was in 1771 by Johann
Philipp Kirnberger, a student of J. S. Bach. Other easy-to-tune temperaments are found Sections 8, 9, 10, and 91.
In one tone needs to be '"'",.,'"'.."'n
The second easiest temperaments to tune are found in Sections 78, 79, 88, and 89. In these, three tones must
be tempered.
The third easiest temperaments to tune are found in Sections 52, 70, 92, 135, and 190. In these, five tones must
be tempered.
The fourth easiest temperament to tune is found in Section 22. In this, six tones must be t""''"'"''""'r1
The fifth easiest temperaments to tune are found in Sections 71, 73, 107, and 136. In these, seven tones must be tempered.
By using these easy to tune temperaments in the orders outlined above, they become a series of graded exercises
for beginning tuning students. They are excellent for preparing the student for the task of tempering the eleven tones
required in equal temperament.
uii
temperaments. in this work a.re outlined in chronological arder. The dates of all events
.m€~•·•.~!Oll~. ot c~Gnt,ents.
Therefore, for studying the development of temperament during any particular
totn~Hmou~ of fontents for these dates.
note Cis required formning most ()f the temperaments by ear in this book.
his:toi·k~U fenJlpe•rairnents outlined not only for the use by tuners who tune by ear but also for the use by
.. 1.,.f>trnn11C' tuning aids. Special tables are furnished for electronic tuners. As an example, in Section
•nctrnl'tt1-.n" for tuning the Boulliau Pythagorean temperament by ear. In Table 8-1 the same temperament
tuning. It is assumed that the pitch for A will be left unchanged from the standard 440 Hertz.
the "minus 4.95541" cents. This is rounded off to an even "-5" cents in the last column
ot)t>(>site (J..:sna1rp. In this case, the tuner is expected to turn his dial so that the tone for G-sharp will read 5 cents flat
flat) and then tune accordingly. The dial is set 5 cents flat because there is a minus sign in front
is a plus sign in front of a number, then the dial should be set to read sharp for the note to be tuned.
finished setting the temperament, the tone A will be at standard pitch, but all the other tones will
ch~,,.,.,,,,. than the same tones in equal temperament in most cases. If the tuner wishes to set a temperament
then all the figures in a table must be reduced accordingly by the arbitrarily chosen number
for electronic tuning are listed on pages xv-xvi.

~h~l2(kJ1lethods outlined in this book are categorized under the following classifications. The numbers refer to
the.sections containing tuning instructions. The instructions for electronic tuning follow the instructions for aural tun-
~rig in most cases.
Topic Sections with Tuning Instructions
Substitutes for Equal Temperament ............ 8, 9, 10, 91, 92, 129, 135, 136, 190
Regular Meantone Temperaments ............. 11, 12, 14, 18, 29, 30, 33, 36, 94, 95,
103, 106, 114, 146
Modified Meantone Temperaments ............. 16, 56, 66, 68, 71, 83, 107
Weil Temperaments .......................... 22, 25, 27, 38, 40, 41, 46, 47, 49, 50,
52,58,60,61, 70, 71, 73, 75, 76, 78,
79, 88, 89, 116, 122, 123, 124, 163,
164, 165
.... 86, 100, 109, 111,

127, 131, 137, 138, 141, 143,
147, 149, 150, 154, 155, 156, 157,
159, 168, 172, 173, 180, 181, 188,
methods, 194, 199,
201, 206, 207, 209, 211, 212, 216
Equal Temperament. ......................... 98, 119, 133, 145, 170, 178, 184, 185,
186, 195, 196, 202, 204, 213, 215,
217, 221, 225
1.;' .·; ~· .;~ ;.'~fore.1~85,
'({···:·· •. ·u·e·n~ies
th.e.. fteq··. anai;;·~.··· usi~~;t~d~us
...()·t· to·.ne. s were by sirens and electr·o·W;tgnetic devic.es ..T.he
. ·/ tuning.fork tonometer.was inventedin 1834.by Johann Heinrich Scheibler. This consisted of 52 tuning forks
.·... f~~!~n~.Clc~\{e, ..A tQ ·A, For. anal.ysis,. dlis pr()ved s¥peri.or tQ the other deyices .. The acoqstician Alexander John Ellis
·· · used. a bighfy. refln.ed tono1lleter. col).sis'tj,ng...o:(.•W~.•NnbtgfQtlcs ranging f:rom; A below middle C to· a rattJer flat D,
i1,~j~.ninth abo'{e D!l<ldle C.< Frequem;ies coqld be calcull).ted with an accuracy of up to two decimal places. 1 With
t1!1¥!fovke, Ellis analy~edte1llperaruents as they were actually tuned on. pianos, organs, and other instruments in 1885.
fhedtequency ratios. of the intervals were converted int(); cents and then rounded off to the nearest whole cents.
•· lSHis. invented the measure1llent called• a. ce1,1t, and he was skilled at converting the ratios of intervals into cents.
~Yi using logarithm tables, he often calculated conunas and ratios out to seven decimal places. Using a Texas TI-55
calcQlat():1k ttJe presentauthor bas nClt\:(()und.errQ.rs JnJmis's calc11lations. Ellis's temperament analyses in cents are
~()nsi<lete4 accutate~ l:Us line 1'UJ1lbe~ ~igl\t from Qlle. Qf gi,s cl}arts verifies this, 2. It is an analy:sis of an equal-tempered
l}aW)onfom.: used. as a stand4f~ of li(cn;: · i
. ",. .6.tQ1ll ..EUis~s table:t.: .weiimus•c:QU.~lud.e1:.thate~1Jlll temperament as we. tmqwit was no( tuned. on. pianos during the
ninet.eenth centuty,3' oA, study ot the instr\{ctians, for tunin~l given ill the present book for the years through J 885 verifies
that essential ac{)µstical infottnation for tuning equal temperament was lacking. This was one reason for the nineteenth-
c~ntuty tuneJ;s' inabil1'Y:t(); tune equattem:Pera1llent by ear. Other deviation was due to the basic concepts of tuning
thenin:VOgUe.N.itt~teenth-century,tuningby .ear.was a highly developed art based on aesthetic judgments for every
t9ne; and test chQtds were u.Sed more :than. test intervals. By .contrast, twentieth-century tuning is a mathematical skill.
The <.lnly art left in twentieth-century tuning is in the quality of the unisons and octaves, especially octaves in the low
~ass. Voicjl,lg is .stilla.U att. ... , "
· · · ··~~~'1'tf~''.ftmf\ll:~.®tt~'t1Y;'~i'~rate:mm,tem·Tegistereu eraftsmen members of the Piano Teehnicians'Ouild on the middle
s~ctio~~ of pianos of the same malce, model, ager and,ge~~ral condition usually match each other extremely well when
·:'~8~Wii~·~i1e·~1~I}a~i~J~:,~J~riiHt~~rc~a~~i;fvE~~·~!n~:£!i~T!11~~e~?YJ! r;:!~t:::;; fsr~~;

so few of them find it necessary; to Q;~nsport their persoQITT piano technicians with them. .
Even though nineteenth-century tutting was not precisely ~qual, it was not int'etior to today's temperament. For
every; gain in temperamenthistoi)! there has l;>e~n # G~0.'~ponding loss. As an example, when keyboard instruments
with only .thi~'1!~~ key Jeve~$1 tofthe o<:tave are tuned inj~stintonation, half of the chords and harmony are in the finest
in-tune cortdition'ac0µstically possible while the other half of the chords and harmony are so out-of-tune they can't
be used. in music performance. Thus, when perfection is desired, only fifty percent of the keyboard resources can be
used. The modemequal temperament is a complete compromise between the in-tune and out-of-tune chords from just
intonation. Only th~Jip,l~~n~ ~<;lo<:~Yes~Je,·. §5:\Jl. PJju~t into11at~~n.. Tb,e,gain,in equal temperatneJ]t is that all the har-
mony or keyboard resources can be .used, but there is a loss in the quality and harmoniousness of the most conunonly
U$ed chords. Also, there is a complete loss of key-coloration. 4
It should. be understood that when the various tuners analyzed by Alexander John Ellis. tempered some intervals
. J:!!9!e,JbJm.r.s~qke,4.fgI e,qyfil.te,mpe,t~me11! .vvhi!e.temperj11g.gt1Je,rs less, ..tliis ..dicLnot. re.ncier. t.Jie.ir . te,mpe,rllJ1le,nts inferior
to equal temperament. Some equality was lost, but the gain was a remnant of the key-coloration that existed to a stronger
.~~g!~ ciuring t}ie .eigh!e,~nth century:.
l
/'l~~f
. it1o~~ey~e*l~ts
iliat has eiiisted iJ\ < . .. . . . a
for the serious c~ticefrmus:iticomposed during the twentieth century.
J\1 s~i~tl.~flc eql:I~. tel1}~~F'ament was tt()t needed or practiced much before the twentieth century, it is not a
· · · wartr '?fit in the twenty-seventh centuryB.C.; and they studied it in later centuries.
· .~ tell) e°'t have been applied to most fretted instruments such as lutes
.· . . . . . ... . · ·. . ... ·. . ...· ... #~11$'.IX~for~ .J. ~· .Ua~h :w.a~. horn .
• ibeol?ist& since. the seyeriteetith centuty peti&dtc8lty;pt~»~~t~d?tth~8.d9pti.~n of equal temperament
~ept$. It was Yet¥ simple to discuss; the chromatic tone.s were to be arranged in sequences accord-
ing to the twel root of two while each fifth was to be narrowed by exactly one-twelfth di tonic comma. Basically,
thesewertt the .onJ~(U~inginsuuctionsUiey ~rnishect. Mathematicians worke<toQf Uiefretting distances for lutes with
gtMt aecuraG.y>on•·J'aJ;ter: . .. . . . . . ;JJ~'.:r;~ . . . . . .. . . < ,,·; • ; , '
.Andreas Werckmeistet• and Jean-~hilipl'e Rameau w~re typical seventeenth..;•at!d eighteent11-"century theo.rists. Early
inilieit li\tesattd wfi~in~s, they fa,v·oroo simpl~ ~ado harmonies, especially iMhe coruntonly used· natural diatonic keys
(thewhit~keys.~f:~et1Up:deJll J>l~o). ,!J'~~y t)rlfnt()fedthela'ccepted tempetan,tellts'as·usedihy'i~eyboard musiciatts. Later
iii tfitif 1iVes,:theylfo'1ame'Utofeplli.Jbsl>pftic at!d, ilsmafitre old men, they promoted the avant~garde notion that equal
teffffterttm:ent'slt()uld b~'applied;, oh keyhoorct~instrumefits •..
ItiS''iiffipbttantmtOOii:tefhat th'e• ltm~ingpro}'.fMentsdfeqoal'tempei'ament such·as:' Metsettne;. Werckmeister, Neidhardt,
Ra)'neau, and· Marpurg, were• sirilplyia\tant;,garde theorists who were proposing a phllos~phk ideal. They furnished
rttf ttining iflstroctiofis containittgifh'e'{leces~aty.'informanorl on wh:ere to listen; for bearing fimong the nearly-coinciding
harmonics; how fast eaclH:i.eatill1' fr~ttency s~outa. t>e, o,r the' fact that any intewal. when pfayed chromatically up the
1<eyboard1mttst'increase•gradua11y··anii·eventyinbel\tfng;fr&111ellcies. In oth~t words., these theorists could hot tune
equal temperament by ear, but they cou}a tQile crude apProximations of it on keyb&rds by C<Jpyingtones ftom monochords.
Vta~t~dtt~ musfoians rebeUed stron · is~ 'Jill\tlyituf1ed. by ear! a.!l~ !J!~Y .gWno.!Wat!~ to sacrifice key-coloring.
Tfli!y··voicM'sfr8n~·ii15Jecti<l' •. . .·.· •............•...........'' tlt'~ ii~fufai diatonic keys in these approJdmations of equaI temperament.
1,!fhe abcsvec;nanted· theorists publisfl'M several boorts: Jnfluenced by these, nllleteenthc; antt twentieth,.century histo-
1 1
rians.; (who had n0:1experience 0v,~Q\\'l~g~:~E)ncernittg ·th~ aural requirements fo~ ·tuning equal temperament by ear
and therefore could fiotldi$tinguish betw~J1ipbi•~~ophic tJle()ry, temperatnefit prnpagattda1. and a'ctual practice by musi-
citlls) published·thefalsQ1·Statemelltth1:1t0J.i1'~·"'''Bach··inttddUeed equal'temperamentm keybqard·practite in 1722 and
that most musicians have 'been using it ever since. Even today, some uninformed writers state that J. S. Bach invented
equal temperament,.':Fhis< erron~~,info . · . . tedhy~1 t~~:t*s·~fiili~i~i@S'.i'1·&';.• "· 4 , ••. ,.,.,,
~ered,tha~themlitmtllY'·e:Yf'act·equaltemperament was
temperament is what
.,\.Vf.il• •·•••;lK••''··
1
Miters" at;flt~ 1ftselft tray t~ritt$~1m1i~~'itlrml~lfslfi1W~:'C)f!~ffletri affsoJUfeJY 1stfoc~ed i'il so. doing•5
Yery few ears .could be ti;ustt;d ~o tu.n¢ a sµcc¢ssiqn of perfect Fifths and Fou®s.6
',>, ,' ' ' ' , ,<, '. •'~',, ,' , ' '< <,,,:j,, •'''."',A!)·'\,,;,;,~:,,} '
For major Thirds and mi1mr SiJ<tM tMr¢1Js Jl.4lf.•ch!lit.c¢.l\11~ (¢x<;ept l}y.a real pi~¢ of haphazard luck) to get even
91J~}ntei;v~ ~~t)d w,J!'l.1;(~~s9!~ · . • . · . . ·· .. . r~ilJ.P01l <,>f: elJ.r, , ..• ;,\11 atl¢fflP!S; tn ~€!by ear mu~t have
.,g~~~ou~Jy;fail¢;f:l ~ . ;r even w~ ·~. ru;t. i ¢~e,. .. training of modem. tuners for obtaining qte very slightly altered
. f1@ls . ru;td Fourths of (:qualtt:nt nt ¢311 ~nty lead then:Uo absoirite correctness by accident. 7
It. takes a qufok man three years. to learn how to tune a piano welHn equal temperament by estimation of ear. s
The dnty. sati~~~~rocy way, ~ci~e",er. ;of 'roil.~~~ ;.~eife,ct filtd t~mpered i!Jtervals. is by a fork fonometer. 9
A~outtheso-called<Jerman eq~alt~m!M'ra,meqt, Ellis wrote·thatthere was variety among the chords, and ''Of course
th~ te,Ili rament neyer".Vas iliorqu$hly, ~ual,''10
;f~£h~i.':~.~~A!f!~~. !~S:~:·!!!~.l.<!n~:!ntroo1t¢OO J~e fde.a. Qf equal temperament to. the Broadwood fac-
t the tuners then working for Jlroadwood, Ellis wrote,
•.~~~a §JcjlJ".4:~A.i~.p.~~. 11~~~ .~~ ';1.tiiY.efSIJ.lb:.~~~~P!~P- ~at)!e~IJ.!k{ll J?rin,ci~l~s,}tnd profes-
With. similart~sults. Ther~ is Hftle individualicy; and the temperament sections of pianos
a~ch 11ot~ f()f: note when. conipared ..
. !fa~.an .a~ ba.s~. On a kee~ S~llS'f OI C()}Or awarene~S for each, i~divid"\lal interval Or chord
~~· tftat
~~s~ct~y~Joped thtough en\lironlitental C()ndidoning by listening to tunings and piano
. ~e11ajry .i~ ·n9w 1()§~~1 Wise {lesth'* qeci~~ons based on classical traditions are no longer
judg1lle,~ts ?Te cqntralY' to. twenti~tl\~c~µtpry ·ato11al philosophy.
NOTES
J;terdina~d. V<)tt.l:felniholtzr ()n tbe Sensations Of Tone as a physiological basis for the Theory Of Music.
n of1871.} The $ecwul. 11nglish Edition, Translgted, thoroughly Revised and Corrected • ·. . with numerous
iJ"it lf!t:w a<,td(!t<>"'a~ ;f.ppent,lix ~ringing doll!~ info~ation to 1885 ... by Alexander J. Ellis (reprint, New
!§atio~s. Inc,., ~ 9:5;4). 446~
tli~~ng qfjcey-coloration .and the c~at~cters ?f th~· keys, read Section 15.
. 'IJ,th~ S,~nsqtiotis ~Tone ... Seco'tfil English EditiOn, 431.
~xm~em••meaningo:t'.•tl'fecterm ·'~uaf1 t~mperament,1 •if any intewal is.incorrectly tempered by a cent or more,
~ann6t be classed as eqoal tempetlfiltenfeven thC>ugh tuners of previous centuries considered deviations much more
normal. As an el(atnple, if any major third or major sixth were tempered one cent too wide, they would beat
•n.., ........ n ...
·•f.····••v,..,,~~~··""·
the intervals one semifone higher, and these discrepancies can clearly be heard as inaccuracies by modem piano
,· t~hniciru,is. 1 A centis one one-hundredth of an eqt1altemperedsemitone. There are twelve hundred cents in a just intonation octave.
1l~"·"~·~J~,S~ .~B;epfytoMr.~M/s :Qemru;k!>on.Mr. Smyth's. Comparative Table in vol. XXXV, page 448," The Philosophical
, •·•11:1·1~'1ftt!0.1J.fl!.1.in (July~December 1810}; 435.
· •11~·•.C.. ,{.SJ.l))J.th,"<:'omparative Tables of the Beats. ofthe Tempered Consonances in M. Kirnberger's and the Isotonic or Equal
. ..'.Tf'W er~J11ent~yst~It1S of'(uning; with Remarks on the common System used by Organ Tuners, compared with that of M.
··:t~!"'''tl,~;r • ~!~er~·· 1h.e Philosophical Magazine 35 (January-June 1810): 452.
~~ge~ 4:-7, 14. 464, 1 467-68, 472~ 484~'~Ild 502:-3.
~;1~:.~\ .'Kist()~ .. ~iif:c:;:::J;~~:::\~~s.· .s€ls·~~:riiJ:~P~~~gf~~e~;1~:~::~i~ t~~!::::e:~~~
·th,e .world 9f Jt1U:Sic ~ 17~2, Other t>ootcsstaKtliat A1fl'~.1an\es Hi~JUffs intf()dtic~e~wdlemper~nHo tli~ Broadwood
·· · · · ·· · · · · ·· · t'Jt1~rl!Jtl~nt ~as · ~.S~~(!le~~ ~¥ l ~s~. 'fhe .following para-
't~~k:iruts liftd o... . . \vhti4ltlv~afbm4i~·understan<ling Qfacoustics.
• .. . ..•••.. ·• . • 11 ~~raJt1eht cQJ\ttdnfn'twelve equal~s~ed semitones within the
QtU.:ve~ No y~tiety fr9Jt1 .· .· .......... · .· . reper~tte(,l. Even . . hljpiiµ't<Js contain a degree of 'inhar-
trtonicity' whic~ in.tum ~auses m9$t ~f tlie Qcqtves to~e !tJned slightly diffe ·. yby tflicro-amounts from exact two
(Q one ratios; .the iwel\te setfli.ton's ~itlti~~acli of these octaves must neverdi:ele$S be tempered. equally according to
tl1c.lm9vvn a.ural tests u:se4 (9rYe · · · 9f tliis «tUa}i~. Thus~ equal. tetn~fl!Jtlent on pianos. must be judged by
tlt~·~·AA'd;not llY el((lqon!t~atys · ·: 1 1t~4~oncies.· No deviationdtomth~~ prmcip~es are allowed.· Western
.Wl\lsi4} fi()w ·~~$ts ~*1d~ti.:)14';Elf~ta .i.• ()~~lfi~~C1-efiized temMt~. . . .... ~fo,~·~~ t"r,~1!~¢thst11l~ry~ when
=~;;in~~~sh:~~~~~hi::.f~ ~~tJ~t. ~tvar,ieties of it w~r~ vqs~t e. Fgr tf1isteason, tenwerlng prac-
there wen~ three appi:oa~~es ~<> .· · .i~ tlie past'. The fir~t tt).ett)aj w~s ·t() ip:liUi!e the tones from
~ string matliematic~ly .di;:~ride~ 911.~. n~elve tµ'1}illi fQrl(s. Of$ ~~t~~ ~iPe·. ~.1.'his metho<J. was used
. b~ ~ipei;im.e11tets~ ffi~themi\tiC:lruJ&~0tfle .~t. musicians..·TJie. results ofthis practice were QJ;Ude. and un-
t:~J~~ble .. ln JSOl. J<.l.Wl A;Ql;>.l!lgiJ. wfot~ ~o monochord that .
. .the .mo~~~Jm~e.io ~eJd;,i;.and:.sQ..accurate in

.Wehll!e$.~U;:.~9!fle..v~~ n.ice anclco!\tly mou~bords1
. ridt .· . . ... .i .. ··. . .. ·... ·... ·. .· . .. . fa comma. 2 Even if perfect, they give but momentary sounds
.~~ ..Pfilchin~. The bow cailtiot be ttus!e<J1 bel?llVSe its. pt,e~s?re ~hanges the .te,ns,i()p. Mr •. Wa~ 's3 experiments. with his
mo~~~or~ 0£ .•...e.\\!\~·ll s.ljg,\... ,,. P!'.o~s.~ gre;t,test accuracy; :~
.'but·.·wer;afie •· n the pistoif tiannot· be ea by any mathematical rule.
n must be pushc:q !lJ()fe than. half "'1~ q.Q\;Y,n tciprodl.lce the octave, more than on.ecthird to prQduce the Vth, &c. and
this without any1.rule·yetdl~overetJ,..t, . 1
" ".~:: c
Pi:af4 ional tuners cons~ .~tll~'h!lii'tt).~~'::ffo~"this:·fitsf approach to be impractkabler and they never used them.
·n~ wtQte~ ••n (un~f WQQl:d or could giye the time to work by a set of fork&. "s
!fie:seco .. approach w~s tlJat krtowl1 as 'tuning by ear.• Today, in the lat~ twentieth century, the term 'tuning by
ear' means thatorieJ!r nat·usfngafiy el~roni~ tuni:n~raids or devises. nmeaJ1s th;tt on,e is using his ears to count
and compare the beat frequencies Qf ~a,rio.ll~ . . . ~· int~rva,ls. Dut,j~g the ~~n.~tee~th sentt,I~ and before, the term
'ttining l:)y ear' meant the opposite;. that.1~. one .·. . not count or. compar~ beat frequencies. In fact, one did not listen
t'l.beats at all. As late as.t8S7 ~ Augustus. De Morgan . wrote, "the tuners have nothing to do with beats except to get
perf~t.9'!.taves.··~ (~ee the tQnin& ~Pstt'll~~ions written in 1880 in Section 153.)
I)l tft~ pa~t. tqning hy ear meanfthat ol1ejudged the relationships between the two notes of an interval by listening
... (Q:JliefwQ. iioiiS. iliilOdicllI1y aruy:·rrJie first note was never sustained while the second note was being played. There-
fore,. no bea~s could be· fieard. In other words, tuners tuned in the manner that singers sing. The art of singing was
·~(jft!J1tter:ed a: vll!lia5:1i'5asis for this'~~~que. '.,flfts metrliiifwas (:unsidereifstipedor to that of using monochords, and
jt~l,,Jii9m!!!Ql!b,,&l~~~d.J~~. .tll.~..~~UiUl!ill~~~,.~. .tb.~iru~n.h~i~hQ~ds ..Q£.~QfQ~ •..
,,, · ••'•'', '>?;'i\\\,if;,"'}!1/Jf,\c'':f},;'S.&fp:.Y,·>!J."I·;''·; '·,<' "'' • '·•,'';'.'·:"' :'Y''?'l't''f~<'~y\'>HY•'.""'011 '"''! "'~ '• "'-' '" '' ·'
temperament
a piano to strings on a to be considerably flat between
above Middle C. Next, the technician should. insert a temperament strip and set middle C to
Th~n asseml:lle a group qf experienced musicians and ask them to judge how sharp or flat each note
--a~···"'=~•"''" should be tuned except for middle C. The tuner should get a consensus of opinions from
The tuner himself should offer no opinions. He should only tune the notes according
1m,rrms:1cu111s• ~urt)ler, .the tuner miJSt never play two notes together at the same time. The tempering
,.,..., ......,, ...... C0Jmplet1e!y melodic means. The musicians mm;t beJnstructed that the fifths are to be tempered on the
srniaUest comprehensible amounts, and the octaves are to be injust intonation. Follow the bearing
"""''' ,,.,,., of the bearing plans commonly used for setting temperament from 1835 to around 1880.
tµne theJollowing quarter notes in the order written.
Proof
u~,,~~ ;J-) J#J #J#filiJJwtJWJfJ Itpjl

The same tone
finished, the temperament may be refined after listening to the chromatic scale. Also, all intervals
crn'1mtssn01um be for further refinement. It is essential for this demonstration that all the intervals and chords
More they should be played in staccato. arpeggiated form.
mt1s1c:iar1s that all the possible the bearing section
assume that the piano has been tuned 'by ear' in equal temperament according to nineteenth-century
re10.u1cre1ne1nts even though the musicians used for this test would have had a life time of environmental conditioning
temperament. The results are revealed when the piano technician next plays the octaves and all the
u,. ....,,.,.,,1"'"' •.n.,, major thirds, and major sixths in vertical harmonic chordal fashion (both notes of each interval played
so that the beats or lack of beats may be heard. There may be 'wolf' -like beatings on some fourths
seciuence of evenly beat will be nonexistent, and the will be
cannot be classed as ,,,...,,..,,,. ..,,._
done in 1811, see Sections 99
by the professional organ and piano tuners. sounded
could be tuners were called 'beat counters'
highly trained ears. did not on melodic
beat frequencies of fourths and fifths that were known from
the second hands of docks. 8 The late nn1et~:entll-ce11tmry
of equal temperament than any previous tuners, but the following
why still cannot be called
an~rpro:l'es~;irnrialpiano technician of today to tune by ear (the 'by ear' definition) the middle
temperament or bearing section of a piano according to nineteenth-century instructions. Specifically,
he must not play any third or sixth even for a split second. The tempering is to be done by
fifths.
for the above role is that nineteenth-century tuners believed that the beats of thirds and sixths were too
to count, compare, or use for tests. Also, the beatings of thirds and sixths were to be unreliable. These
unaware of tests such as the minor third-major third test for and the sixth test
latter was unknown and unpublished until 1913. By most tuners ""''"'"""'
was possible to hear and control the beatings of thirds and sixths. This technical fact "'"~"',,'"u'°"
nr;'CP1ru ''•>m••no~,~~°'"fr· k= 1 •nno~ common around
of thirds and sixths is "'"'""""''

and
list~il~ qrllyt(). ~eitc9t<1r-9iit1Htie~ . Fm·lli~ s~k~ 9fticis·e~ferltnent,. thellio~etJ1 tunerj.therefor~, .·.n1list ·not· touch. any
t~itd; 9r•si{l.~~iev~t1. nl~me~~arjlYi?ec,a~se hise~rsafe so tr~i11ed.tfi.at t~is .wm~ld give him too great a clue for determining
~hrtfi~~9tiil?:~ ne1•i.~stilk~il,tfi~ ~~~ a~~oillY'perfedpatfi. This obstacle.is coun1,erbalanced by .the fact that nineteenth-
c~nt~~ p~~ll.$ •t\lt}er~. di.ctinoi ~~§.~eµt~'R~~tµl~~ arp9ng the nearly coinciding• harmonics. <They. believed that an beating
was at tll~{~ilP~n1~11taI.§. oJ tfi~f;tl;ftfis a11d ~9~tfP~· . . · .· . . . . .·.• ·. ·•
The moi.t.ernfuner llasthe ~av~ntage of great pre~isionfor beat frequencies because he listens among high hannonics.
1'Jeverthefoss, a£ter We inodern tuner in this experiment has completed thetemp¢rawentby means of only fourths and
fifths to the ~estof his abilit)'; it will be found that the progressive beat frequencies of the thirds and sixths are not
even. Often they are shock.inglyuneven. This shows that equal temperament was not tuned in the nineteenth century
ofbefore. A~ exc~ption was the tempering done on harmoniums and organs. These instruments had long, steady, dear
tOlles that ~owd be JI1anaged b~ liste11ing to the beats of fifths for as longas fifteen seconds or more. The beat frequen-
cies of egual"temp~red fifths are e~tremely slo\V. Unfortunately, the tones of fifths diminish too rapidly to be controlled
with precision on pianos. That is why the twentieth~cenrury methods of testing thirds and sixths are essential for equal
tert)perament ·on pianos.
The finest tuners of the nineteenth century utilized a combination of the two tuning methods outlined above. They
tuned the fourths and fifths by beats and then checked the color of the thirds, sixths, and complete triads with inversions
as soon as enough notes were tuned. They listened to the color-qualities and not the beats of the thirds and sixths.
Thus,. their musical experience, along with their aesthetic quality judgments of thirds, sixths, and triads, influenced
their tempering. The result was that the traditional characters of the keys were still preserved, and the chords in the
commonly used keys were slightly more harmonious than the others.
Even though the temperament was not quite even, it was erroneously called equal temperament, especially since
no one ever< had any problems modulating through all the keys. This type of tempering was held in the highest esteem
because it was based more on art than on science.
On technical grounds, it is established that equal temperament on pianos or harpsichords was impossible during
the nineteenth century and before. At best, the late nineteenth-century practice is called quasi-equal temperament, but
this is poor nomenclature because it implies that the nineteenth-century temperament was inferior compared to the twentieth-
centory theoretical ideal very nearly reached today. It can easily be shown by comparing the figures of the acoustical
analyses ofaH the temperaments in history from the eadiest times that there never was any temperament that was su-
perior or inferior to any other when thirteen keys to the octave was the standard limitation. The acoustical truth is
that in history as one 9uality \Vas. g~ined: a!lother quality or virtue was sacrificed and lost.
The gain for equal temperament is a homogenized neutral gray coloring that is completely dependable without any
changes while modulating through all the keys. No variety during modulation is the equal-tempered ideal. Equal tem-
perament therefore has no tonality, and it is appropriate for the atonal music. The qualities
sacrificed in order to make· equal. temperament.possible are hannoniousness in the commonly used keys, key-color
changes allowing when modulating, and the 'characters of the keys.'
The history of temperament is a of the ctumgmg ~w"v'"'µ''"'"" ~.~~'· 0 ~,..,,~.n which virtues or qualities should
prc1mo1tea at the all
keys octave {)fl keybOards. r""·""'·""'
""'"'"·F> more keys to the octave have been tried continuously since the sixteenth century, but ultimately they
have always judged to be . . ·.. History has demonstrated . . be satisfied with thirteen keys to
furnishing only twelve In die future, electronic keyboards may change this. The truth is that
temperament developed because of the mechanical impracticability of constructing instruments with more than thirteen
key~levers to the octave. which also caused increased performing difficulties. Tempering was easier.
Anyone who studies the writings of Heltnhol~ and Enis will be impressed by the acoustical knowledge in the nineteenth
century; and yet, something was lacking if shown in 1885 that it was still impossible to tune pianos in equal tem-
perament. deficiencies are summarized as follows: First, "the ordinary way of tuning entirely by estimations of
ear' ' 9 in nineteenth· century meant. that one did not count beats and that one judged intervals by listening to them
not vertically or harmonically. Beats are not noticeable when the two notes of an interval are played in sequence.
Second, although the beating .frequencies of an the equal temperament intervals were calculated by Reverend
C. J. Smyth in 1810, there was no mention that one should listen to where the harmonics coincide. Instead,
it was thoughtthat most beating was heard at the fundamentals where one was the interval. For this reason,
it was believed that the beatings of thirds and sixths could not be heard at all except on reed instruments. 10 the
fifth and sixth.harmonics on pianos·were considered too weak, so the equal-tempered beat frequencies of thirds and
sixths Were not used. fa the nineteenth century, the beatings of thirds and sixths must have sounded difficult in the
same manner that trit.ones and minor sevenths sound difficult to us
of the minor third-
"''';1'"''"'1 that it
the 4:2 ratio octave
2. WhJ Equa~ Temperament Wa.~ l'.Ji:>t. <fomrneJi.ly,\Practict;d On Pianos Before .The Twentieth Century
- ,_,
~~wnati.~ badhe,~n appliedsince)~Ol (see)ohn ~obison). However, without being instructed as to where to
·•. . tfiese,,te,s~s w~~e·. u_nrdiable. on··.pianos,
ttttff•<.~h~I1"1.<?~t ess~.~tial infmmation of all was never mentioned in early tuning manualsi that is, alt minor thirds,
r t)lirds, fl1ajdr sbt~)ls, majQr tenths, f!J1d major. seve11teent11s must grf}dually and. evenly increase in beating fre-
.~i~s 'IN~.~lf t9e,y ~~e played chroma~~cally.up the,~(o\ybol.lr?· RoBertSmith knew the principles ofthis phenomenon
•jn,t'749. J{owevet, at that time, tempering was Based entirely on the slow fifths, so these principles were never applied.
' k•·• • .• •T)lebook q,-gan Voicing and Tuning written by Charles A, Daniell and published in 1881, contains instructions
· :•. for tuning "equal tem.perament." These were typical of nineteenth-century instructions before 1885. No beat frequency
·:. uueyibers were given. The tempering instructions were written in the statement, ''To temper the fifths, first tune them
zP· ~e,de.2t, an~lth~n f1atte,n them so that a succession of slow beats or waves can be distinctly heard following each other.'' 12
J149 .test i~ter:yals were fllentioned, although the process of ''laying the bearings'' was to be ''occasionally interrupted
by a test. dwrdincluding only the notes tuned. " 13 Charles Daniell's bearing plan was the typical early nineteenth-
.. ,, ~entt1~ citc;:le of octaves and fifths. Fourths were not indude.d.
;.:·:, •. ;. ,,.§harl~~ Daniell was aware that octaves were just, major thirds were wide, minor thirds were narrow, fifths were
· .nartpw:, and fpurths were wide. His description of "equal temperament" was that "each sound comprised in the oc-
tave, maybe ¢mployed as the root of its own major or minor key, by which, again, every interval employed in har-
Plt,l.I)Y ismade t91erableto the ear." 14 This description,however, is equally valid for well temperament. 15
· :AIJ9f.D<tnien'stuning instructions were based on The Tuna's Guide, published in 1840. Daniell's bearing plan
w~s ~µblis)l~d by Be.cket and Company in 1809. This shows that the methods for attempting to tune equal temperament
h~~ 11otJfl1proyed since the beginning of the century.
F(.)ta c9n.ti11uing;.history of temperament practices in and after 1885, read Section 160 and the sections following
fo the end of this book.
NOTES
l; R,.qbert Smit~, Harmonics, Or The Philosophy Of Musical Sounds (Cambridge: W. Thurlboum and T. Merrill; London:
S. Austen and J. Whiston, 1749; reprint, New York: Da Capo Press, 1966), 236.
2.· ,One-eighth syntonic comma is 2.68829 cents .
. 3 . ;Jail1¢s.\Vatt, famous for steam engines.
4, J~pn Nopison, ''Temperament of the Scale of Music,'' in Supplement to the third edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica,
or;'! f)ictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Miscellaneous Literature (Edinburgh: Thomson Bonar, 1801), 2:662.
j\lfredJames Hipkins, . "in A Dictionary of Music And Musicians (London: Macmillan and 4: 190.
6..~ugustusDe Morgan, "On the Beats of Imperfect Consonances," Transactions of the Cambridge Philosophical Society 10
(1864): 129. Also read pages 141-42; this was written in 1857 and 1858.
rf.; A. M¢rrick, "Remarks on the Rev. C. J. Smyth's Letter on Systems of Tuning Musical Instruments, vol. XXXV, p. 448,"
'JJ•t:..Philosophical Magazine 36 (July-December 1810): 166.
~,<Robert Smith, Harmonics, 217.
~· J:leh:nhoitz, On the Sensations Of Tone . .. Second English Edition, 490.
Jo: 'JJ~t<l::; 492.
1l:,1biti,.,489.
g. Charles A. Daniell, Organ Voicing and Tuning (Cincinnati: John Church & Co., 1881), 36-37.
13. Ibid.
Ne tbid.
15'> f(il' an understanding of the term 'well temperament,' read Sections 3 and 20. Also see the Glossary.
e.~.~t~"iGU~~~~J6~4.wr~te '$;i'~~~~ . .· . ... . ·. ~~~e: 1~~~\1~~1t~~P!~·1ll"'(~~Q~y aiid spee4¥: instructio~
~ of$cll,{)';trs Jfi tuning; thenL " 2 Piaif<i. . 'ans · be hoM~ ifn()t¢' hafil~s wert invented solety for their
convenience in learning to tune them. However. a closer examination reveals that tuning in the seventeenth century
W~t 1ll~te hriJ.ll~ ~<,fj1JstiQJ! Jhe sbjJ.lg~ ~f ~ Vir~n.al .to be in tune. ~ni'1~ qu.tjng P!i.s J>eriod ()f history primarily
meant the s . '·~£ runes by using the proper intetval relatimtships ot ratfos. Aftet' one developed good intonation
through voi<;e training and practice,. one \Vas then ready to tune virginals. This is the basis of the. so-called 'tuning
by ear~ 11:1etffod l)fifctlced througfftlle· years until the begjtµiil)g. of the twentieth century. Tuning talent was based on
V()~al art ':f'~\l~· ~\tsi~iaifs lll'i~{lliJ.led th¢ir '-wet-to,n~d yliginals.' . . .. · ..... ·
· •· 'llie terms ~@ling~·mict ~tqDiltg f)y ...·~~~l(in~~es of lfow tf\e~omendattire~f tunin~ .and temJ>erament has changed.
Thls P.reviou~ly ~a\lseg mufhcon . ··..•..•... :h1•interpretatioh. As an example! .wtiat.-was •wel-tv1led' 3 in the early seven-
teenth century -would certainly be (t()fisidered inappropriate and unusable today.· The ·W~Il-tiltdng• of 1660: was a term
qeriv; ft~~.$11~t.A :~~~ · · · $t,l!.ipeaiitm~<;Jl.mor~1t~i\.. ~1'U{tytotun~· Itine~tthe basic
know ior W~nt. . .. .s1(;1lt performance on anY rti~nt of with the voice. The key-
t>eardw,n..tu~~·~ ··•.'t~~·teinperam,ent,··andiJne.wa$·testi:ieted·to·.Umited modulation
&ecause of.1'\}merous , : ys, StilUater in the seven!eenth century• in Oermany, and pre-
syllla~ly to soip~. ~~t~nt in· erirt' (well ( . ~~ftron~ t(): lllean tewperament that was
in f~v9i9F~()Qd s~~i • ..·. ·. . . . ... t i1e modulll .... eely thronifl'·aUthe keys (modi ficti) without
encql,il!~enng ~ilfl11tjn.91Ji . . l~!~tV41$. •. .· · · I teipp~¢ • at this tiwestiffdia ntit ltte;\J.l•'equal tempered' even though
one could petform in all the tonalities: ~1nfecent years, the term 'well tempered' develciped t& mclude al.so the meaning
of 'equal tempered.' Th · • ' as cha · he centuries to accommo-
date\.¥hatever :'• . a .. ftl n ·f . • . .•.•• .•• .. •. .
......Tfi~t~ftfi'l'fuw;tone h!'t!mthat was invente~ by theorists long after the era of mean-
t9.!le)~t11J;lef8IB~f.!t~J1Jl:t tl!~.ei~hteenth ce~t!I~· m~~~tone teippeta.me~t was simply called
'key 9. tuwug'- bY .· .·. temper~ent. Ju,. thi~•. thei~ wtu·e two wbole~tone scales: namely
JJ-flat, ; D, E, :F~sMtp, F, G, A, B, C-shatp. These tWo scales, when tempered in the
theoretically correct form of lll.~tone ~efu~erament, contain ten whoJeO:tone~ that are each exactly the same size. Be-
cause of these ten equartones, tfieatft<>jle rem ram~nt has been caUed~ an ~liltem{Yetament by some writers. T]ie
two whole-tones••. G-sha ..·..·. ~.~! ·. ffat~ are also equal but larger than the other ten tones. The original
name 'mean.:t-0ne' w·. .... · . ddftt . .·..·.· ·. . .... · .·. .tury philosophy that the major whole-tone and minor whole-tone from
Claudius. Ptolemy's "itttensi Dia:tontca .. scafe (the natural just intonation diatonic scale from the middle of the second
~entury)1 should be averl(lged to be tile same size. Thus, the new average size or. •mean' tone would become a neutral
whole-tone that is neither major nor mi.n?r. Ac9ustically, this meant that the frequency of a note such as D would
be im. exact geometricalmea~tietW'eeti !II~ fi'eqtiendes of C and E, thus creatin~ two tones such as CD and DE that
are exa~tlythe same Size:·Three'wijlffif!lis were corrected by this process. This philos'1phy of tempering was origi-
nally applied tcr the fcsrm nf meantone tefupe:rament that contained Claudius Ptolemy's just intonation major thirds.
lrt latetfonns of meantone tem:petament whereby the major thirds were not pure, the tones were still exact meantones,
. . 8'1dthe, t,w~~wllole~tone ~ca1esoutlintl4 above still contained equal-si~ed tones. The latter rules are also true for equal
·te11:1P~rrulieilt . .Eyery ft~uency ~ equ,al temperament is an exact geometrical mean between the two neighboring fre-
,qy~alti~s, .~~..;~((!t~,,~"Qt)" te~~l}tG~l,..~9lJ1lP:~;$$~~.t~~~e~t <:oµl<J,.l>,e.,G~led m.eantone temperament. In history,
the?reticl(ll eci~al temperamenfinrl,eed \Vas calle<f 'semi-llleantone' temperament and sometimes also 'i~~tonic' tempera-
· · ·······.';~m~~~~~:!~t,~!~t.l:~~;t~:.t~('~~'o;n~rni1:<lnes as:~tn~~ta:~tme~on~s;:'PLtfdiJ:r1rtoth:is confusion
3. Nomenclature
is the fact that the tempered Pythagorean system that fleinrich Schreiber (alias Henricus Grammateus) published in
1518 also fo:litained meantones, 8 All the chromatic notes were exact meantones between their two natural neighboring
notes, and the nat11rafnotesD, G; and A were also exact meantones between their two chromatic neighboring notes.
All the semitones in the Schreiber tempered Pythagorean were exactly the same size except for EF and BC which were
smaller. Therefore, the Schreiber Pythagorean Temp~raJI1ent has been called meantone temperament and also equal
temperament. It·is an example of the equal type of temperaments that were used on lutes and viols in the sixteenth
century. In conclusion, the terms 'Pythagorean tuning,' 'meantone temperament,' and 'equal temperament' have com-
monly been scrambled together in history.
Misleading information has been propagated by many nineteenth- and twentieth-century writers. They incorrectly
used the term 'equal temperamenf to include all the systems since the sixteenth century that allowed one to modulate
freely through all the tonalities without encountering wolf intervals. By today's requirements, a temperament such as
the well-known Correct Temperament No. l (often called Werckmeister Ill) by Andreas Werckmeister, 9 could never
pass as equal temperament or even a close variety of it. In the same manner, these writers also categorized the many
varieties of meantone temperament together as if there were only one variety. They called it "the old tuning," always
implying the one variety published by Pietro Aaron in 1523. 10 This explains why so many dictionaries, encyclopaedias,
and music history books state incorrectly and in an overly simplified manner that 'J. S. Bach proved the practicality
of equal temperament when he composed his Well-tempered Clavier in all the keys in 1722, and musicians have been
using equal temperament ever since.' Of course, except on a few harmoniums, equal temperament did not exist before
the twentieth century.
The above writing could be clarified when the history books are reprinted or reedited. In all varieties of the mean-
tone temperaments, one-third of the harmony (eight major and minor triads within each octave) contains wolf intervals
and is therefore too dissonant for normal usage. This means that meantone temperament is restrictive because in this
one cannot modulate through all the keys. Conversely. equal temperament, the unequal systems for the well-tempered
clavier published by W erckmeister in the seventeenth century, and other unequal systems that allow one to modulate
through all the keys freely without encountering wolf intervals, are all called unrestrictive temperaments. The newly
edited statement could then read, 'J. S. Bach proved the practicality of unrestrictive temperament when he composed
his Well-tempered Clavier in all the keys in 1722, and :most musicians have been using unrestrictive temperament ever
since.'
this chaos and confusion the following terminology has evolved in the late twentieth century. It is understood
that.the definitions are based on keyboards that have only twelve semi-tones per octave, created by thirteen key levers
determining the octave.
AH semitones in equal temperament are exactly the same size. It is an unrestrictive temperament because modulation
through an the keys is free from wolf intervals. It is a regular temperament because all the fifths are exactly the same
size. It is a circulating temperament because if one progresses through a series of twelve fifths from a starting note
and then transposes downwai;ds seven octaves, one arrives back at the beginning note. In circulating temperaments,
the chromatic notes C-sharp, G-sharp, and A-sharp are in unison with and are the same as D-flat,
A-flat, and B-flat. It
,,,,,,.....,..,,.., no and therefore cannot exisL There is no ..,.,,......"
Unequal temperament is any temperament wherein the semitones are not all the same size. Historically, it includes
everything practiced before the twentieth century. It includes all categories such as restrictive, unrestrictive, regular,
irregular, circulating, and non-circulating in various combinations. It contains various of that
support the 'characters of the keys.'
The systems published in the seventeenth by Andreas Werckmeister for the s1m1~
lar to equal temperament in that they are unrestrictive, circulating temperaments allowing modulation through all the
keys without encountering wolf intervals. These systems for the well-tempered clavier differ from equal temperament
in that the fifths are not all the same size. Therefore, they are classed as irregular temperaments. The different sizes
of fifths create different sizes of thirds and sixths. The varying sizes of major thirds are placed in a strict order whereby
they change regularly in from smallest to largest and back to smallest while modulating a series of
fourths or fifths around the circle. The form tonality in these irregular temperaments . The
adfantage of these temperaments for the well-tempered clavier is that they contain strong key-color contrasts that pro-
mote the 'characters of the keys.' They also promote tonality, and there is always a pleasing variety when one
These types of temperaments can no longer be classed as an early form of equal temperament because the
basic philosophy of twentieth-century equal temperament is to promote atonality with a neutral homogenized sound
has no color contrasts and no variety among the keys. Therefore, the last half of the twentieth ""~'""'"
,,,..,,.,,.,..,G, s1~ve:nte:en1txHceI!ttm-v '"'<>t"-m" for the clavier have come to be known as well ternp,erame:ms
9
}Yhetj any.·var~ety;()fregular l1teantonetetl1peramentis in its. theoretically COf'tectfo!tlJr . eleven of its fifths are ex-
actly the S:~l1l~'li>i:te. The,twelftb,fifth ,. usually (.l-shatp E~fl.at,, is a wolfinterval th;;tt is not· considered a fifth .because
itds. reajly.~ ditlJinished:si~~· There~ore, niea~tone temperament qualifie~ as being .a. regular. temperament. It is not
a circulatin~ te111pe~a1nefit tr~causettf!e, W()lfdiniinished sixth breaks the• circle. The .result is that the chromatic notes
C-s)laQJf l.)~shatp;<.E-~llarp; G-~fi,~f:P, ailB ~t~haw c;a~. n~yer bein ~pisonwith and can never be the sa:rne notes as
n-ffat,. E•flat, G·fllit, A.,.fla.t, and<B-flat~ 'thus, eriharmonk; equivalents do not exist in meantone temperament on stan-
dard keyboards with .thirteen keys to the octave. This causes meantone temperament to be restrictive. Only two-thirds
of the harmony is useful. Therefore, regular meantone temperament in its theoretically correct form is a restrictive,
regular, non-circulating temperament.
very few tuners tuned equal temperament before the discovery and application of all the twentieth-century
testingintervals, itis also true that few tuners tuned the theoretically correct version of meantone temperament because
of the lack of these same testing intervals. Organ tuning was an exception after 1749 when fairly accurate theoretically
correct organ tempering was possible. 12 Thus, in historical practice, most meantone temperament was actually restric-
tive, irregi:tlw, noncircuiating temperament. Finally, it can be said that all temperament was irregular before the twen-
tieth century with the possible exception of the temperaments on a few organs.
Just intonation tuning is more restrictive than is meantone temperament. Only half of the harmony in any variety
of just intonationis useful because ofthe many wolf intervals. The virtue of just intonation is that the good half of
the har:rnony is in the ultimate of perfection and harmoniousness. ·
A Summary of Late Twentieth-century Terminology:

Just intonation is a restrictive, irregular, nondrculating tuning system based on nature.
Regular meantone temperament in the theoretically correct ideal form that did not exist on harpsichords and pianos
until the twentieth century is a restrictive, regular, noncircuiating temperament that contains no color in the usable
keys. The historical meantone temperament in practice was a restrictive, irregular, noncirculating temperament con-
taining color variety that supported the characters of the keys. This latter form is classified as modified meantone
temperament.
Well temperament is an unrestrictive, irregular, circulating temperament containing key-color contrasts that sup-
ports the. characters of the
of well temperament practiced in the late nineteenth ,.,,.,.,.,,.."
color contrasts even it is the of than to the vwu"'"'"''"' in the
sev~nteenth century for the well-tempered clavier.
Equal temperament in the theoretically correct ideal form is unrestrictive, regular, circulating temperament that contains
no color contrasts.
temperament in the nonmteoret1ca11v correct (irregular temperament) by definition cannot exist.
important to realize that m0st the terminology above was invented and applied several centuries after the
phenomena that they describe existed (Also read pages 173-74 of book for further
NOTES
l. See also the .glossary on .page 769.
Butler, The Print;iples Buder, 12. Modern speHing is used in this q1:icmm1on.
3. This old spelling was taken from 1-f»rrm.k~a.u Sydenham's The Wel-Tvned Cymbal! (London: Humphrey Robinson,
4. Joseph Brookbank, Well-tuned 1660), 7.
5. Study Andreas Werckmeister's (Quedlinberg: Theodori 1691: Utrecht: The
Diapason Press, 1983).
6. Peter Scarlatti Press, 293-310.
7. Claudius Ptolemy, Harmonika ('Harmonics') (Alexandria: Ptolemy, the second Latin translation Harmonicorum Libri
Tres, edited by John Wallis (Oxford: E Theatro Sheldoniano, 1682), 172.
8. Henricus Grammateus Ayn new kunstlich Buech (Nurnberg: durch Johannem Stilchs fiir Lucas Alantsee
oucntu.rer vnd burger zu Wein, 1518).
9. Werckmeister ,. Musicalische 1.f!1nni?ratur
10. PietroAaron, De
Broude Brothers Limited, 1969).
11. For a history of the term 'well temperament,' see page 294, note 5, pages and Sections 20, 42, and 174.
12. See Sections 28 31.
''THESEHALF,.T()NES
WHETHER THEY BE EQUAL OR UNEQUAL,
IT IS A QUESTION'' IN 1636
Charls Butler wrote, "These Half-tones whether they be Equal or Unequal, it is a question. " 1 Indeed,
a question. Since the times of Aristoxenus in the fourth century B.C., philosophers have debated this
question is whether or not one should temper, spoil, or degrade some or all of the perfect intervals
intonation chromatic scale in order to improve some or all of the false intervals enough that they
music performance. In the just intonation scale, the various intervals are either completely in-tune
ate completely out-of-tune, and no intervals are in an in-between or tempered type condition. The intervals
bad, and the bad intervals are so out"of-tune that they are called 'wolf' intervals which cannot be
very harsh, nerve-irritating effects. No matter what arrangement of just intonation is chosen, only half
or harmony can be made to be in-tune when there are only thirteen keys to the octave. The sublime
of half of the harmonies or chords that are in the ultimate state of in-tuneness in the natural just intonation
ctu•onmnc scale thus coexists with the other half that are out-of-tune to the extreme.
intonation with only 50 percent of the harmony being fit for musical use, modulation or transposition into
(other than the key in which the keyboard instrument is tuned) is greatly restricted, and, depending on
is usually impossible. The chromatic scale ofthe just intonation system is excessively uneven from note
more even this natural chromatic scale is tempered to be, the less restrictive the system is for modulation.
_,. .,~.......~ is that it is not possible to make or temper any of the chromatic tones of the intonation scale to be
slli~ntest amount more even without at the same time spoiling a number of just intonation intervals.
n n v M n u , sixteenth, and seventeenth centuries, moderate amounts of tempering were applied to the
1nti[)fl2ttlon scale on keyboard instmments, whereas today, in the equal temperament, every interval is tempered
Thus, history has demonstrated that the done on the intonation inter-
a phiiosophk The is a of Unfor-
for every gain in utility or freer modulation that has developed, there was always an equivalent loss
Therefore, there never have been any improvements in temperament practices.
s1xtee1n.m , composers seldom demanded modulation that was very far from the central
keys of C major and A minor. Most musicians were satisfied with meantone temperament. In this, two-
na1·mcmv was very good and harmonious not as perfect as in while one-third
was ruined by wolf intervals. This type of temperament satisfied musicians throughout the fifteenth, sixteenth, and
seventeenth centuries. It died out gradually and did not completely disappear until the twentieth century. Meantone
rent1p1:~raiment in the common one-fourth syntonic comma variety was based on the philosophy that just intonation should
rC>cmn•t\n_,_·,m,""'"u to the smallest extent possible while allowing musicians the ability to modulate at least to a small
neighboring keys. Thus, compared to just intonation, meantone temperament was a less restrictive sys-
Although meantone temperament managed to even out the whole-tones, it nevertheless left the chromatic half-
tones close to their original very uneven state from just intonation.
To even out the half-tones, according to Charls Butler's question, implies the complete compromise applied in equal
The general philosophy of the seventeenth century opposed this ultimate compromise except for applica-
fretted instruments such as lutes and viols.
Butler's question. remained strong until the twentieth and then it tapered off
that a debate that lasted since the days of Aristoxenus in biblical times should """'u"'''"
·-· 0 • " ' ' - " ' " ' ' · ' ' " " '
co11s111ermg the tecords

.,~ tpqd~tp; S),l~Jl)»s Jl(~,,~,n:ftQm l?lilg~ 33 (}(~~aJ{$, ~qtf~r:s, l1i<..f'ri1t£iplt!S oj~usik.
.daj. thatJ1lstruwent ma]cer~ and others whadesired to}~arp the pr()per string or pipe
s~ foi: huil4ipg instrurn,entS) l,Uld al~o those who d.esired to l~arn the .correct ratios for
.• 1~+:~1ll4Y th~ ~~ft.a~()1licis Iiistruwentis.,'' This.was a par,t of ll,~pn9n[cory~ Li/Jn~.· pub-
full$IC theQris~ afid.acousticia11 Marin Merse11ne in 1635, The French version of Har-
.Upd~Ji the·tiPe "Jlarmonie qnfve,rselle (Paris: Sebastien Cramoisy, 1636-1637:).
.. ~\low~• that tli~ ~llglisb were. not culturally isolated because of th~ Channel. Within one
·~ ~() ~ · · .ire <,i()~~~s of Mers~llfle's sei;ies, study the1D• and finally mention them in his own
etWeen . .. ish and f9reign tb~orists and travelirigmusicil,Uls was constant. Even though the
l}'.. qf tetpperi~g ill Englan,d a,p.d Apierica,1~ will be found that these tempering prac-
t fr()p}.Ot~cti.:tes,.'?~,the ~ontin,ent. •. ~usicians and instrument makers have always
s~rong lrit~~~ommunjcation. . . ..
··c boQkqf 1636 iofonned.th.e Engllsh of the e:llistence of the encyclopaedic writings
• gi;e~iest:frelictt:mosr~·iliiQit~fsan~ auittoiitlis.:<.>i\~cpu$tics who ever lived. We can
t .~t the early seve.nteenth-century English were aware pf the f<)IIowing information or facts as
e" J)utler. and others.
''\" '' ' ,,
·
· ®!lllrttal string vibrations and frequencies.

at ihe fundamental pitches.
r overtone& except that their cauS&Wasstill unknown. and therefore was improperly explajned.
in(~t\l~.d\e~~. ~oP'lt\its•. im~ts~tdsma.
6reek enharmonic, chromatic, and diatonic scales .
•j,y§! intonation sys.t~~' especially for keJ[bOards constructed with m~rethan 13 kel' levers per octave.
the .wot;'<l. 't~pe..-ameQf .as. <l!stitlct. from tbe ..word.' 'tun.jng."
of the term. 'well-tempered.' (In 1636, a well-tempered fifth was tempered narrow bJ! 1/4 SJ[ntonic
of Pythagorean temperament.
of 114 syntonic cot.tnna. l}leillltone teillpe,rament.(}'lietro Aaron).
~:Jempe1ament IJearlng plan consisting of a circle of fifths and octaves.
(Jf experimental temperaments.
of equal temperament.
renients for the placing of frets on stringed instruments (lutes, viols, etc.) intended for use in equal tem-
'tor quasi-equal temperament.
fi.(~t that. keyboard instruments could not be tuned. in equal temperament bl' ear. (Thus, meantone temperament
j'i(ed instead).
tt) Mersenne, equal temperament was wen established on the fretted lutes and viols but not on keyboard
. e.explained that twelve equal semitQnes of the octave could nQt serve Qn the spinet because the string
bejudg~d by the ear. 3 This was another way of stating that equal temperament could not be tuned by
~~.l~yl>o~Q..in$ti:tlnlents •. ~e.rsenne had'th~e:Jlperience l,Uldk'nowledge to know this. Lutes and viols
emaintained in equal temperament because their tuning depended on the mathematically determined posi-
ftlc~;5~~~;~Jms;;~1t1 X!gm:~~~ip:~chl,UlfC~e'(MSttQCted in eqUat'teip::p~rament\\1th.OUfth~nfid of listen~
13
~~j;~lJn;:keyboard
·
0
• •.• gm-dies,
~··ttmpera:..
Ofiality attd
:~on major
tofPietro
the same in .Aaron.
temper .. 1~ id ..· . . . . . . . . . a .. es more•qissqnruit thatt Aaron's
this·~Mson alotte. there is little Wofider why objections to equaHemperamertt remained
··tw~nti.etll c¢IifUty.Wh¢n.~ttempting to tutte·equal te~perament·by ear'leither the old or contem-
Jfes here), a series Of efevertnotes mUSt b~ tempe~ed ~efore verification Catt be made
· tone tem~rament, aJeriC?.~ qf only tllt~e .notes m:ust be tern•
···~Ell~. ·· '.e~tjst¢cftnj'ca1Iy 3.7 times more
on·.~ 1lI~at1tdne, t(.}~ . ·. <•.. . . . . . .c;µnt by: .;•.,tell1pe!~~t !~.1llore dissonant. ~
.t1ir~.p;t:riers191e~ ~l the mformation listed on page 1. ' en couldn't they Nne equal tempera-
ment by liar 1 ey c1J(:)se to1T1te apswer lies .ill Jhe: l)~onic series. Tuners were aware that harmonics existed, but
they .d!9; noi~ki:l~\¥~f . .· • ·. pta~ti~~;US:~8e. "!l:rltft the t\y,.entj,et!lt~eJ)t0~1 ll·q~al telllperament cannot be
f1iil~~Y ~'1:filessJwe ......... · · •· .·....... ·. . .. .· >.. iustm~fand·il.(tl'llaffilOiff~ ~~~~'1i·s fl{t.i?gfeate~tt~ohlsed by twentieth-
ce~tll,ry tun:r~. 7.~h~ ~9:~e11i ~ner ~qes I!c;t .·. tep foi bea.tin~ at the }<)Catfon cm.'the piM<lwhere Jfois pfaying. Instead,
he liSteits for8eann atffie J?Oint·~Jtete't(fe !Wo b~~onic s~ries of the two notes of ru1 ifiterval coincide. As att exam-
pf~11~ . ··1 ~·. . • Jtg, ·th~ mt)(je~ tu~et ll$t~ris ~o th~ beati:rig o,tJtfe·nff~ }fll~()nic• t)f die lower nOte of the
irlte01 .. ·.·····. ·. . . •.. hafiiioiiiF61rn~·;tlp1fef~otb'(because the r~tio,of'a maj9r third is 5:4). The location of
tJie. 'lilt~ur .. .. ,()mcidi~~~ ~a~q11\c~ ~!~ ffittjor thMJ is tw() ~c. · ·· · b9v~ tJ1e upper note of the major third.
lt o S mtre~• . .. . tice ()r ~~i!li UtJ~et silpe/Visfott &~fore ohe C~ll . . . hear these harmo1dcs attd their beat-
ipg. ••. ·•....·. tf~s* otlI~r . . . . ~ng it(other harmonic locations wNle Ofi~ is playing. att interval, but
dii'imp 'tt . ' Ii modem . . . . .· . .. . .. . is taskitow the oite attd only'exact locatidti where he shouldHsten to
the ~~~t!n~ ()f e~(,!~}nt~i"((~· }fe ni~st i~qI~t~:~fs cdiJ,l~i<Jifig~h~rmonic location in his ears ~bile at the same time ignor-
ing alfthe other•mtscell!tleous harmontc treadhgs. Th~nnode~ tune~ knows hoyv fast ~ch i~t~rvaI. should beat accord-
m~J(). theq~~, .ru1dmore itt1Vo~t!y,, . ,~s. e~~fl· ilitertaI"to the •.'tlieocy of p1:<1gres$1ve•· belifs* for testifig. The
of . essive beats is based on t ti~al f~ct that any mterya.f of'Jtldttd ill; eq.)Jal teroperapient will increase
ev~iiltm· ff~H~!t.'fi . . .·.....·.· . . . . .· . '':iVlf'is:played upwards ofrtne ·cli'toffiatic scale.. This test, along with
for
.· J ••.•. ·
the other test~ iiitervat patterns not try ·aevelciptm. ofitil. t 917, is indispensable tuning equal •temperament.
In conclusion, even though Mersenne furnished rul the correct ratios ft>r equal temperament, lle did not mention
the theo~ of progressive beats, the loc~tions of the coinciding harmonics, the beat frequencies of all the intervals,
or the application of atty of the indispensable test-interval patterns. Therefore, it was impossible to tune equal tempera-
ment by ear in Mersenne's time. The equal temperament ratios were intended for the pro~r placements of frets on
lutes, and viols. .. .,,....J..s;s.:J....... : • 1'·•·+.;·: ·
NOTES
1. See Section 223.
2. Maiifi Meiisenile, .''Liure•S}ilesm0aeg!Orifi'~s;~{•eatino11M Universe/le (Pads: S'etlastien ctam.oisy, 1636-1637), 366.
3. Mersenne, "Liure Troisiesme des Instrumens a chordes," Harmonie Universelle, 163.
·on :Xl:V of '•tirtri Premier des lnstrumens,' • a part of flarinonie Universelle, Mersenne revealed
(pr equal; temperament in his upper ch~rt on page 38. He. furnished equal temperament figures
· · · · ··. ~d ioo,()OO.)OQ,000 fO 100,000 is the. ratio of a just octave. There are no errors in
r~s;~ ilte fret pl~~~mentdisfartces in ¥~rse11ne' s lower di~rt on page 38 were calculated.
g · nt for these calculations· to Monsieur Beau;-grattd, a secretary attd counselor for the Crown
~gpfiy of eq\}al temperament, Merse011e g~ve credit to Aristoxenus of the fourth century B.C.
tI.lnd and Ftancis<;o de Salinas.of the. sixteenth century. Mersenne must not have been aware
.... . ~efifury B.C. Chine~e C()nttilmtion of Ling-Lun. According to Mersenne, the musicians who
· perament were called 'Arfstoxeniens.• The ratio calculations of Mersenne's upper chart are as follows.
Table 6-i~ Th~ Rati(Js of Equ~ Temperam~nt by Marin Mersenne.

100000
2000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
2000000000000000000000000000000
200000000000000000000
.2000000000000000
32000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
20000000000
128000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
.40000QQOOOOOQQOO
800000000000000000000
32000000000000000000000000000000
2048000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
.100000
TI-55 Texas Instruments Electronic Calculator, the following figures were calculated from Mersenne' s chart.
Table 6-2: Theoretical String L~ngths for Equal Temperament.

100,000.00
105,946.31
112,246.20
ll8,920.71
·.125,992.10
133,483.99
141,421.36
149,830.71
158,740.11
168:179.28
178,179.74
18'8';11:.f4: !f6
2Q:Q,Q9{).00
15
~1~~{ji(~
. 112:246
118,921
125,993
133,481
141.422
149,830
.l~~t!li~
168,179
178,172
188,771
7oq~~~
The errors in Mersenne's fow~r chart .~e apparent, but these errors ate. very smaU. It is doubtful that they would
h~V~Jn~~~ ~1 !19~~~,I?Je ~iff~f~~g~~ ,t? ~~.~e ~~s, ~~~~t ~anf~f\~~~~ '¥~ts~A~~1 ftl"Pt~ci11te how well Monsieur
~~u::gr~Iidr m 1636, ~afculaf~a Ui~se, fWg; cofurt1J1s of figqres from the dtffkult upper chart without the use of a modem
~alc;ul(l.toi, . . . . : ........· ... · .; . ..· . · . ·......·· . . . .. . ·. . . . . . . . .. . .. . .
n('
lfMef$~n11~1 We(e ~ifip~ tajay, wo;&.i~@.n9Ao»l:tt futl:tisb simpl~t fi~l}t~s .t'!)?<>k at. Afigure such as Mersenne's
2Q48~000000oodo~OUOOQOOCJOO~containing sixty zeros can be represented
as 2048x.lqll°'.. 'rtier~fo:te, his l1PPer.cha~ on. P,a&e 38 c.ould be writt~n as follows:
Table 64t. 'tbe. :Qati0$ by· Mersenne in M.C1<1ern )$'orm.
''':'' '; '\' ,, ,' ',,'', '! ' ,, ,', '\, ' ', ;
100,000
1 ~2x1060
~2x1030
t'2·x102°
~
-tf32 x 106()
1
······~·········~
'V128xl060
tt4xtois
~
~32xJQ3t>
1 ~2048x 1060
200,000
From the previous, a further simplification follows:
Table 6-5~ The Fadors or the Ratios by Mersenne.

l x rns
2x1 xl05
2!4xI05
2'4x105
,Wx~Q5
2~»x 105
continued
that th~ most basic and simplest forms for the thirteen ratios of equal temperament
;r_fail;t4.4. u: 1'he .Ratios ofgquM Telnileranient iii tile Siinplt§f MC.dem Forms.
1 or 1 or 1
2M• or 2M• or ltfi
2" or 2~· ot ·~·
2~ or 2lf· or ':fl.
2~ or 2%• or {ff
.+lf·or 2*• or I~
2% or 2%• or ../2
2~· or 2'*• or lt'ffi
2* or 2%· or ?Ji.
2~ or. 2~« or ~
2% or 2''11', or ~
•
2'M• or 2% or tt2048
1
2 or 2'*• or 2
11
I. n column IX on page 3$5 of .. Litire Si~ies~e:des Or~ues"" ~part of Harmonie>Universelle, Marin Mersenne listed
.• fret place.m,ep.t measurements calculated by~onsieurBoulliau, an astronomer. There is confusion concerning these
figures. Mersenne ekplained that they repres~nt the theory of Pythagoras which was in use until the time of Henricus
Glareanuswli~ Jiv~d frqlll l~S~ t()}~(j3. A~ M'.erse~e}~orre~tly explained,. the Pythagorean tuning system makes use
df the semitone cliJfed 'tlpritt>nie, ratfo• '.ll8'?;2t1~'Si fiowe'ver, there is no ~potome am6ng the figures listed in column
an
lX . Either Mers~nnemade e@r by .m,en~opin~the ap0tomeor he did riot reruize that Boulliau's ctllculations represented
a telllper~ent.~dnot tll~Jntdent ~tlli:tg()tean.(Uning system. ... ·.
· tfoulliau'.s cakulations reflected an ol~ $yst~lll t11at had. been applied. on organs in Enghmd since around 1373 . 1 No
doubt the history df this developed in th~ foltowingwaf: Since biblical times,. moriochords had been constructed using
the ratios ofPytfiagot'as; thatis, t11e~atio~ 1:~ o~tave, 2:3 fifth,and 3:4 fourth. Monochords were used for acoustical
study and ruS<Jas ~ ~uide for tunint:J'.mu~foa1'M~ftum¢nt~. this establispedthe so-called Pythagorean intonation or tun-
ing as c()~on.practi~e on keyboatc:fJUstru~el).f~.E:Ye117thingwas tuned by means of just.intonation octaves and fifths.
A§ iJ,lVerted tlftl!~, the fQ.urths W~!~ ~SQ ~((!;)~ m~,cfevelQpme~tof the CQl)lplete mQdem chromatic. keyboard around
t32V'Qt befm·e;2!··rrwas noticed thafU,:s ...•.. Was:'a(fifferefil tone from A~llat, and E-flat was a different tone from
D-sharp. These results were true for all the chrc:>matic keys. the interval between ·a sharp and a flat meant to be played
on the same key is called an enharmonic. diesis•. This diesis can vary in size depending on the tuning or temperament
sYst~m ~n.,~riJnst~.m,ent.. , ... · ·<•·,, .·· < < •>•
In. ... . .gQ~ean ~ning.~ .ilie ·enJi~imqi:'li.ec di~~s. is Ui.e ditonic;: or Pythagoreau c9mllla. ·For the purpose of expanding
trans}iosition possi6ilities; it was deciae<lt:hat the enharmonic dieses should be eiiinfua~e(f · Monochords were constructed
and.. C1rgans .were.tuned,.sQ. that.Ute,,. . · :A>:'an4 ~flat::~~•&;Alh~~tlll:l80tean·tuning·according to the
.. ~edl$ Of]uaCJntotiatimi;..fl~' ~::11.&·;··anlf AE. ltiiliif.:ililililo ~ontinue iliis series of fifths for
creating the remaining chrQmatic tones, it was deciqed to form the remaining chromatic tones plus the diatonic tone
B.by.finding the.midpointsb.etween1theJlajts Qfdiat?nic neighboring to~eson the monochord. On organs,. this was
accomplished· by finding the aveJ'tJg~·.l)j~;l~~th:·~tWeen the pi~ lengths of. the· diatonic neighboring tones. On the
monochord string, they found the point exactly halfway between C and D. This created the sound of the combined
tQne. for both C-shaJll and D-flat. The cQmbined sounds for the remaining thre:;e ~h.t()matic keys plus Ute diatonic B
were created in this sam~ way. The originaj'; ~=:ffat \\l~S 8Jl exception. By this procedure, the enharmonic dieses were
eliminated almost complet~ly, ~~ . $ifiC!ti had.few restrictions .. The new chromatic tones created nearly equal
setl1itones in pairs that ruternated'b~ een ratio 16:11 and ratfo 17:18 semitones. This was the Boulliau method that
Ma~n Mersenne reported in 1636, It was rumost three centuries old at that time. It is now over six centuries old.
Monsieur Boulliau made six errors in his computations that are easy to analyze and attribute to carelessness in the
column number IX. The first col~nt~b~lew is a duplicatlon of Mersenn~~s column number IX. The second column
below contains the figures after c~rrectfons. · · ·
Table 7-1:: The Tempered Pythagorean Rates by Boulliau and Corrections.

F 500 F 500
E E 526 18 ~ 43
.Ja.,ijai ·· · 559 16%+3
D 5~2 1 ~2.
con(ifin~d
Monsieur1Joullitlu 's. /?ourtr:entli"Century PythagoMin Tettipetament
··Table 7-l:Continued.
C·sharp 629 'M1
1
c 6()6%
708 :4. B 708Y>
750 B~flat 750
790 2%09 A 790 1%1
839 23 %21 G-sharp 839 4 ~1
888% G 888%
944% F-sharp 944%
1000 F 1000
""'"rPr·rPr1 column on the right that the figures for all the chromatic tones except for B-flat are exact
figures for the neighboring diatonic tones. There were no irrational numbers in this
technically a just intonation system. As a just intonation it was the most amazing system in
l\i:~to.rY.1lfi~•ca11$e ~~·,. ~"''" modulate through all twenty-four major and minor keys in it without encountering wolf inter-
two very harsh fifths. Musically, it served as a substitute for equal temperament. By compari-
:'''""''"'t.11,.,...,..~. tetJnpc~rame:nt, it was extremely easy to calculate on paper and transfer to the frets of lutes and viols.
we call this just intonation system a temperament? The usual definition for tuning just intonation
• ·~rv!'l.t<".t\ri!';i~ "'""<"''-' in that it does not include the tuning of any intervals by ear which contain numbers beyond the num-
ratios. The ear does not hear harmonics beyond the eighth very easily, and musicians have never
by direct means any just intervals defined by harmonics above the eighth. Thus, the ratio 17: 16
intonation on paper, but it can not be tuned with precision by the ear. Another example is the ditone
ot:.l:'yth~lgo,re~m major third, ratio 81:64. The ear refuses to accept the just intonation ditone. Instead, it hears only
"' .tn.:uu tenmerea major third with many beats at the fifth and fourth harmonics because a just major third has a ratio
recognizes or respects only the just intonation intervals that have simple ratio numbers such as the
.~'·"'<:!..,'''' 2:1 octave, 3:1 twelfth, 3:2 fifth, 4:1 fifteenth, 5: 1 major seventeenth, 4:3 fourth, 5:2 major tenth, 5:3
5:4 major third, 7:3 minor tenth, 6:5 minor third, etc. Intervals with more complicated ratio numbers
J~~e itxte:q>ret,ed the ear as being just intervals are tempered or out-of-tune. Di tones can be tuned by ear
one tunes a series of four just fifths upwards and then two octaves downward. The result between the
1JeJgmnrn1g note and the ending note is a ditone. However, there is no such method for creating a 17: 16 semitone. There-
wishes to tune the Boulliau system by ear on a harpsichord, one must temper at least one note (which
intervals to become tempered) by listening and adjusting to a specified number of beats. Thus, on harp-
BouUiau system was a temperament and not a tuning. Two tempered fifths shared the ditonic comma
The highly tempered fifth EB was certainly at the outer limits of tolerability, but this was masked
···./··.• somewbat this fifth was as a member of full triads or Since the
the Boulliau type of temperament allowed one to modulate through all the keys since the fourteenth
th(l compositions from these earlier centuries did not require that one modulate so extensively; there-
type of temperament was rarely practiced on organs and harpsichords after musicians gradually discovered
how to tune the various forms of mean tone temperament in the fifteenth century. Any meantone type of t"''""'"''"
was incomparably more harmonious, and musicians in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries considered it no ..,,.~,,~,.,>~
that modulation became limited. In any meantone temperament, one-third of the harmony was intolerable. The Boulliau
t:We.oftuning was on the fretted instruments like lutes and viols, however, until the various makers of these
iI1~truments discovered how to construct closer approximations of equal temperament for their fret distances. Thus,
frettedinstruments ultimately became known as equal temperament instruments, and keyboard instruments became
as meantone temperament instruments. The two classes of instruments were generally incompatible.
purpose in furnishing instructions for tuning the Boulliau temperament on harpsichords or pianos is to have
""''""!-'",of an easy type of theoretical temperament to tune by ear that requires the twentieth-century ability to listen
spe~cn1eel numbers of beats among the upper harmonics. This is valuable practice for beginners or amateurs. Miracu-
temperament one can modulate freely through all the keys even though only one note needs to be tem-
for this reason the Boulliau is eleven times easier to tune than equal temperament. For the amateur
true because he only needs to worry about tempering one tone all remaining tones are tuned by means
fourths. the it is another matter. The intonation demands
- - -. . . .~w in perfection without the at the comc:101mg
tlt,~~e s~dents should prac-
iliree notes wlile laying:. tlte bearings.
.. • . .. · ... ·• . ··.·. ....... . . > . Antonio :Vallotti which requires the
t~m~ting•of11il~h.~~e~~i~~!!l~Y.fth~ )iad~m ij'.¢~ept•1 tfr~;tllt~tfl1!t~l
. . . iJ:tlie•'..,~~ven notes required
for equal tempera1tte1!t• ·JU:. tlt.i~'t}Vay, stm:len!~1 .~.llll leam the techniques ()f fill!i1'g equal ~tn,.perament more rapidly than
by ttying to practice equal t~tn,.~rament directly at the beginning as is unfortunately done in most courses of instruction
t(,)Qa~. '.to l'lttentpUtmrning. ~q.~~ temper~c;nt in the first lessons is equivalent to learning a difficult Beethoven piano
sona!l'ld~riltg·o~e~s.~~i; · · · ·· . ~l~s§~il~, ~iano teachers would never tolerate this method of instruction, so why
should tea¢htirs of tUiiing1 on:e e:liplllllation of why the rate of failure among beginning stUdents of tUning has
~lways be¢1! 'Very high.
~:-";;;~;,~·.:;,'.:{'' '"'.\:'J:'.J.•~.j:''",~/"j','' )'.~·· ',,,, , ..,,
c. Taftt~1;;.fi*The·Boulltau ~hagorean TemperaDlenfTuned In the TheoreticaJIY Correct Mariner•

. . l\l!t.19i~.™~~···
11
' ~k~. ~1 .~~ij~. C~n~ ~i'1~.From Just
·es ..•.•• ··· 4t»,s2000 .l)1,socs19 .·.
QB· · 393.Q8959 6•.17588
l)f~11ha,rp ~9~.08959 6.71588
tfii~~~~ ..
~~~ 0&~$:9 . 'i'.f11~~3:.
E, 393.0$~59 6. 77588
4Q7.82QOO 21.5()629
"F•sfi~ Nsh~ . ~99.09(}41 12.77669
11:;flat F 399:09041 12.11669
A..z:ttite $~09041 12.17669
E-flat a 399!®t)U 12.71661)
B~tTtit't>' 461:8:2000 21:5o629
:e~: .407:82000 21.506:19
NOTES
1. Stan}ey Sadf~. ed., Tlte New (;rove fJ.i<:tionary of Music. and Musidans (London: Macmillan Publishers, Ltd., 1980), I 8: 663.
2, Thid•.; lQ.;9. .
8
.... ..,..rrlll,..,,,,._, THE BOULLIAU UNRESTRICTIVEIRREGULAR CIRCULATING
PYTHAGOREAN TEMPERAMENT OF 1373
IN THE THEORETICALLY CORRECT MANNER
;ru~e the foflowing quarter notes one from the other in the order written. Tune them in just intonation (per-
. fe<;:t without any beatings).
Test
(Figures denote
beats per second)
,---·---i
14.5 16.4
L_____________________ J
Check
(ditones)
B. First, tune B pure to G. Second, sharpen B until the wide major third beats almost as fast
narrow fifth EB. This is known as the theoretically correct method; that strive to temper GB so
beats 3.847 beats per second, and EB so that it beats 4.208 beats per second.
Tuned
i
before
,,r ,:,. Check

(Figures denote
~:2
iru-~~-t=~~f=--t~
i i Wide Na."Tow
Tune the following notes in just intonation from B. This completes the bearing section between E below
middle C and E above middle C.
Just' intervals
'F . . ·~·. ·~·· '~ ~f' l Tf bF ~F' , If f

Tempered intervals
Wide major thirds
• 4.2····.·~· ~
!l~f f .· !': ~t
T<:impered. intervals
Wli:te major sixths Narrow minor thirds
.,· .
''>''·""'"·""')'~h''!· ,,,,,,,,,,
The crescendos denote increasmg: beat frequencies.

Table 8-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of Theoreticfl}ly Correct Boulliau
Pythagore~ Temperrunent and Equal Temperrunent.
Equal Temperament Theoretical Boulliau Rounded Figures
A zero difference 0 cents
o~sharp minus 4.95541 - 5
G minus 3.91000 4
F::shaiiJ mfous 8.86541 9
F minus 7.82000 8
E phi~··~· t.95500M +2
E-flat minus 3.00041 3
conUnued
T here is an easier way to tUne the IJoulUau (emperarnent. this is know11 as the ~equal-b"~lting' method. The equal-
beating method is a musical improvemenfl)ecause the rapid beating fourth BE is slowed down from 8.416 beats
per second to 8.176. Also, the differences between the.18:17 ratio and the 17:16 ratio semitones are reduced a little.
Following are the instructions.
Tune the following· quarter notes in just intonation.
Tune C to Tuned Test

the tuning fork. before Check (Figures denote
~ 1 ~ ~
beats per second)
TIF,. . w r II
1
l 14.5 l6.4
Temper B. ·Fjl'St~ tUne B tru,~t<'t' ~· S:e~qUdt'Slt~n· B until the wide majof tlritd 0D beats at exactly the
same· sf>eed iis·me narrow·~ EB. ·
l'Wllld Check.
before (Figures denote
Temper
beats per second)
1 ! 4.1 4.1
n~= ~ ~ I~ ~. II
1 j
Wide Narrow
Tune the· following notes in.just intonation from B. This completes the bearing section between E below
middle C and B above middle C.
Tuned
before
As a final test, check the following intervals.
Just intervals
Tempered intervals
Wide major thirds
I ·-i
16
<t~iJLi-=~-~---·~-·~--·~·=--===1.=4=-'-----14-.5-15._4-- .4_·
Te1npe:red intervals
Wide sixths Narrow minor thirds
r---------
1 l.5 6.I
4.6
Pythagorean temperament could be improved further by finding the average or mean between
the 17: I 6 semitones. These new semitones would have a ratio being the square root of 9: 8, an irrational
amt they would then be exact meantones. The scale would then consist of two limmas and ten crn"'"-""'·"'"
:~¢1ITTi1ton.es. The results (scale-wise) are an extremely dose approximation to equal temperament, even only one
to be tempered. Also, the fourth is further improved to equal the quality of B-flat B-flat. The latter
rrnn·n•<> share ditonic comma equally. This development was initiated in history in 1518 by Heinrich Schreiber alias
tt.e1rlti1~us Grammateus. 1 Following are instructions for tuning the Boulliau temperament according to the philosophy
results are identical to the original Grammateus of 1518 except that the temperament is transposed
in pitch. It is in F major rather than C major. In 1808, Anton Bemetzrieder used the original
u:rarnm1at~ms t'Vltna201rea:n tt:ffij)erament in c for Sections 90~91 of the Drf:Sel1t
new kunstlid1 Buech.

TUNING THE BOIJLLlAU UNRESTRICTIVE IRREGULAR CIRCULATING
PYTHAGOREAN TEMPERAMENT IN. THE STYLE
OF HENRICUS GRAMMATEUS OF 1518
Tune the following quarter notes injust intonation.
Tune C to Tuned Test

the tuning fork. before Check
l
(just) (Figures denote
beats per second)
r --i
14.5 16 .4
10.9 '~ ~
lfilH--~=g
Temper B. First, tune B pure to G. Second, sharpen B until the wide major third GB beats faster than the
narrow fifth EB. Since this is classed as a theoretically correct temperament, strive to temper GB so that
it beats 5.556 beats per second, and EB so that it beats 3.354 beats per second.
Tuned Check
Temper
beats
5.6 3.4
--
i
Wide
1
Narrow
Tune the following notes in just intonation from B. This completes the bearing section between E below
middle C and E above middle C.
.Jus.t intervals
Wide major thirds
14.5 16.4
5.6 5.9
Wide major sixths Narrow minor thirds
ft~fnskm, there are three varying results dependitig on how the major third GB is tempered. If GB is tempered
sl.ower than the fifth EB, then the Boulliau Pythagorean temperament as published by Mersenne in 1636 is
t1/fflis was an authentic lute temperament used before the time of Glareanus (1488 to 1563). When the easier
perlng GB at exactly the Sl:Ulle.beatfrequency as EB is used, the results are nearly the same. Any amount
pet~d fa~ter tit~ EB up to 65.7 ;percent faster is a musical improvement that represents temperament
518 but before equal temperament, or close approximations of it, was used on lutes and viols.
O•· n pages 108 and 109 of i 'JJW'e Traisiesm~;des lnstrumens ~ ~h?rdes': and al~(, pn pages 363.,.66 of ."Liure
a
Sixiesme des Orgues'' from the set called Harmonie Universelle, MersenI1e published bearing plan with in-
structions for tuning keyboards by ear. The first part of the bearing plan with numbered steps was published in note
order as follows:
5 9
The steps that Mersenne listed as 5 and 9 are unnecessary, and there is. no need to tune them in any basic bearing
plan. In the seventeenth century and before, most keyboard tempering was done by means of a circle of fifths and
octaves. During this period of history, fourths were still. considered too difficult to listen to.
The second part of the bearing plan with numbered steps was published in note order as follows:
Wolf
In the above, it is. clear that Mersenne neglected to include the instructions as to where the high F and low B came
from. Also~ th~ bear,ing section is~~( cc)lnpJ~te without the ~-fllit above middle C. Thus; Mersenne omitted three tun-
ing steps in his bearing plan. Tbfougliotlt the H~rntonie U1tiver$elte there is ample evidence that careful proofreading
was not done on the manuscript. ·
By adding the three missing notes and also removing the two unnecessary notes, the following bearing plan emerges:
.:i~11tbeadng ~fan spanning 011e anqah~If~raves~ 'Jllisjs a}mo,st the narrowest bearing span that
· (ert1pering ~ircfo is restricted to octayes·arlct1ftfths only: It is: representativf!i 0£ early seventeenth-
1
e octaves are tuned pure or just. The fifths ate each narrowed by one-fourth syntonic comma so
third,s will be just; 1 namely BG-sharp, A~~sh~fl?· DF-sharJ?, GB, CE, FA, B-flat D, and E-flat G.
· i:fd~~··(dimtnished fourth~) are Wolf intervals~ Theii'tipper notes of the fifths are flattened from
are tempered, The two exceptions to thisi rule are thatB-flat and E-flat must be shwpened when
ersenne explained that instrument niakers and experienced organists often tuned the major thirds
ing tqning steps along with lhe fifths .cµtd ocraves. Professional tuners would at least have used
test intervals. as they proceeded.
e 1s manuscript was not adequately edited or proofread. Lack of clarity, along with small errors,
historians to interpretthat the notes B·flat and E-flat should be flattened rather than sharpened, The
. r the fifths B-flat F and E-flat B'-flat were to be sharpened (made larger or wider than just) or whether
t this sharpening were to be applied only to the notes B-flat and E-flat (making the fifths B-flat F
spialler and narrower than just intonation like all the other fifths).
doubt intended that.the note8c B~flat and .E-:tlat were to be raised or sharpened; otherwise, he would
the changing chord-colors, the characters of the keys, or varying effects when modulating. Further-
would be served by flatterung B.:.flat ahd E-flat unless one would also intend to narrow all the other
e..faurth syntQnic comma and thereby attempt to close the circle. This would create an unrestrictive
·ng temperament whereby one could modulate through all the keys without encountering wolf inter-
lik~ this was mentioned by Mersenne. Instead, it is clear that the int~rval G-sharp E-flat was not
·stied sixth which was therefore a wolf. Mersenne explained that E-flat could not serve as D-sharp
..3f9s, but lhat some manufacturers constructed split keys at this location. One of the half-keys could
w ile the other could play E-flat.
n •.l'yfersenne recorded the tuning. instructions. for the standard one-fourth syntonic comma restrictive
••• •• •••• • • • "aiii~nt ~ai~s;·uiuiql~ auritiutea;~tof>11ieuo .Aar()n:,;~Using only die aMVelHftli'mation on how
• N
perameiil, seventeenillcenttlry niusiCiaiis proceeded through the bearing plan tempering each note
. . . . <l l'l.l::i:ts.ical instinct:. This completes our s,t.udY of the tuning and temperament capabilities in England
l,!Q.through .dle. Yem:.i6~6. .•
tune the Pietro Aaron meantotte temperament in a theoretically correct manner, twentieth-century tuning
es.must be used. Since modern piano technicians lack the environmental conditioning and experience
century tuners had for judging intervals without listening to specific beat frequencies, the modern tuner
e .~eoretically corre1i:t m()del of regular meantone temperament. This is better than attempting to imi-
egular temperament of the past as it was empirically done. In this way, the restoration of tempera-
. · entic. ·
~is(ake to assume that since the tempering in the past was based on only a minimum amount of scientific
information the tempering was therefore crude and inferior. Tempering in the past was a highly developed
. ~Pth:-century professionals were as dedicated to refined artistry as the modern piano technicians are dedi-
.thematical ·ideals of exact scientific theory,
are the :instructions for tuning the Pietro Aaron meantone temperament theoretically correctly or exactly.
ns.are based on the use of a note C tuning fork tuned to the modern standard pitch for C. If one chooses
.... rumentflatter in pitch, possibly the equivalent of A =425 Hz, then all the heal frequ.ency nu1I1bers should
3..4 percent. Lower pitches require proportionately more reduction in beat rates.
29
wolf [
diminished
fourths
T.htMv,olf ditninisb~ si~th G'.'.sh,l'jrpB-ijat;i~ 3$.C)8l29 cet1ls wid~»~tn~n a:iust intonation fifth.
NOTES
1. Merserinb. "Liure Sixiesme des Orgues," Harmonie Universelle, 341.
2. Aaron, Tltoscanello De La Mvsica.
• .• . ; .> .. . · . . . ·.· . .. .. ·A.All'18ts
1. m.c.m.···. ERE.;..;6utAR.·.•·· N0Nc1.af;.·. m.·xTIN
·······.·.·.·... . REs.·.·... . .:,z. • c o.NmF.ow.m
.. ··
···sYNrONIC COMMA MEANroNE KEYBOARD··TEMPERAMENT
0, 1523 IN THE THEORETICALLY CORRECT MANNER
Tune the following quarter notes in just intohatfonin the order written.
Test
(Beats per second}
Check
(just) !
24.5
i
Ratio32:25
diminished fourth
(a discord)
Temper fourths wider than just intonation and fifths narrower than just intonation.
''"/ ,,,, ,,/,' "'"\'~">A0\'.i>""'"''' "~' ,~~'
Tuned·
Tuned Test intervals before
'" . l 2.4
beats per second)
3.0 l
~~'r.~.J!'' r r
3.0
II f f
i
Flatten
Equal beating
i
Sharpen
Decrescendos denote decreasing beat speeds.
Temper D from both G and A. The fifth GD

must be narrow and the fourth A D must be wide.
Test the following intervals for increases in beat freqpencies.
1.8 2.0. 2.7 3.0

2.4 4.1
2.0
~ ~
3.0
ll~if If ~ ~ I~ ~ II
Continue.
Tuned
before
l Test
0.0
1.4
1.8
Equal beating
--,
1.8 2.0
n2= ~ ~· ,, "
!~
~- "" "'
tf i f ~· f II
t
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before Wolf before
l 3.0 ! l
±i
Test 2.4
If ~
0.0 12.8
n2=Hj b~ f b& l~E lbr

l
...}';;: Tune
just
just
r~~!l ....
<to
t
Wolf
t
Tune
just
Narrow 6:5 ratio

3.0 11'lfifor tflir'ds
1.6 1.8 2.4 2.7
2.7 3.0
-==::::::==
i
Wide 7:6 ratio
small minor third
Wide 7:6 ratio

small minor thirds
Test
3.4
Tune
just
Tuned
before
J Test
o.o 1.5 1.6
J
·Tune
just
33
Tuned
before
21.9
l Test
0.0 1.5 1..5 1.6
:I~~ ......
!19/; It r E 1r I~~ qq~ ~
i
Discord Tune
t
just
2.9 3.0
2.2 2.3
~E
2.4
qf 2.3 2.4
i1ti:uE f .lutf r
I 1£
Tuned
before
117l&,. ·@r- f . ·r· "'$ ·I·~~ .II~... #r

i
Discord
i
Tune
just·
1.8 2.4 2.5 2.7
f 1f ~ f
m.• ·~ fqlfowing intervllls as ;t; f:\J,'!lll, te~t between the low D and upper B.
'. • >/ '·'.·/,P' !
Just intetvals
0.0 0.0
0.0
Narrow fifths
1.8 2.0
Wide fourths
2,7
Wide 7:6 ratio

Wide major sixths small minor thirds
3.0
§,
2.4 2.5 2.7 2.2
2.3
~f
1.5
i f
1.7
~~
f l&'ff
35
'
•....:...·.·.··;·.·.·.*'."."
&ii
Wolves Discords
I
12.8 29,3 24.8
!l~:t
12.8
~ll~~
21.9 24.5
g]
&#~ ~
•
Table 12-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of Pietro Aaron and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Pietro Aaron Rounded Figures
~

G-sharp minus 17.108 -17
G plus 6.843 + 7
F-sharp minus 10.265 -10
F plus 13.686 +14
E minus 3.422 - 3
E-flat plus 20.529 +21
D plus 3.422 + 3
C-sharp minus 13.686 -14
c plus 10.265 +10
B minus 6.843 - 7
B-flat plus 17.108 +17
36
::. ,· . . ,, ' ,· . .-~:, .»··~ .. ::. .:.·:.:/;'""'>:· :'\; <~:
llolde.r (t~lifr l(i9Sl w~s ~..mnfijcj©l~ mtliheJ»ilnc~an •. ©l<l fellqw qf ~~. J~oyru. Society~.. m. 4 fr'fatise
i ...
lj.a(ur,qJ.Gr(J.un.~s, and 1:rindl!!e~~f Ha,~iJ.ny,11Holder published tuning ~nstructions ~atap~r t? be

fopijh syn,t()lltc cowm~ ~eStllc!iVe. regul~r nteantone temperam~nt that lS usually attributed to Pietro
·. ~tt tf.K~tthe i!l()tje~ rq~ng ~~strtlcttons.) ll9W:ever, Holder's Wt)fds, "as 11,llich ~~. ~ qqarter of
~ op~n .tq interpt~tado1f:Cqn¢etnlng]1ow ihuch each fifth was to be tempered narrow. To Holder, the
.. .dt~(tn~ the ratj() &l tq 80 syn,tonic comma of 2l-.51 cents,. h1Jt when he described the fifths tempered
as m9~Ji as ~ quarter()fa Con1J»ll '.,. one ~anders wheiber or not the: rule was abs<>lute that one must aiways
fifth.exactly ·s.38 cents narrow .. (>erhapS.one.was ~towed to tune.one-fifth syntonic comma or one-sixth
mma meantone temperament if he so chose. ln these latter cases, the major thirds beat by small amounts.
phasis during the.tempering was on fifths without the help of any published beat frequencies and since
tn~centuey tunet'$ were not trained on how to determine whether or not the major thirds were absolutely
and fourth harmonics. it is no doubnrue that they tuned an infinite number of varieties between the
and on.e~sixth comma meanto~e temperaments. Also, Holder d:escribed one-fourth comma nartow fifths as
fthS that ''the Ear will.bear.'' This is gen.erally still true today; however, the ears of some seventeenth-
rs may not have been able to tolerate or 'bear' sucli narrow fifths. In conclusion, if Solder meant to describe
.tr<>1.<!\p.ron one..fotmh comma variety~,he would have, written that the fifths were narrowed ''by a quarter
i!'Jnstead o.ftheword 'by/ he usedthe<words "as mu~h as."
older was a more precise wriffllr and ptoofreader than Marin Mersenne. He made very few errors, and
been aware of the problems that Mersenne caused concerning the notes B-flat and E-flat in tuning mean-
ment. Ottpa~es 181 and·,J.Sl of~is tr€)atise;'·~t)l~e1', therefore.,madecit exceptionally cl(Mt:;that the notes
·,J:filftt"we•to,l»liai~,ep:~~dU. S~~il~ly, the fifths FC~ B-tlat F, and E-tlat B,.fiat were to
natrow~ the same as ~11 the ?ther fifths. (See page 29 in this book concerning the Mersenne ambiguities.)
etsehtte~tHoldet did not omit any notes from hi~ bearing plan which is transcnl>ed in modem.notatfon below.
,.- '' ;, ;.:>c '"' ,, '"''" ' " ' , ,,
Tuned Tuned
before before
37
fl-0.Idet's beafing t>lan. co11si~te4 .of t\Ve,11iy:.four notes. \Vhic.~ is. on~ note short (r<>m b~ill~ two ~ctaves wide. The
five 1.i'ppdnmst notes o. G~sharp, A, s:llat, and B atelii1ft~~essafy'Htlp1i~ati6ii~ ana iher~f6t'e are rilit essential to the
basic bearing plan. Pe,rhaps Holder tuned the high nonessential notes 0, A; and B because to tune extra natural key
octayes g!lvc; ..h.itn ~lladded .seflse, (lf security b~~ore attempting to tetnper an¥ chr(Hnatic keys. Tben the high nonessen-
tial notes q:.slialp ruicl ~-flatfateI' neeef~d t? 5,t!. t!ffioo in order to fill in the 1'earirig section to nfak~ it complete. For
w~ mod~m ~ne(w~o reli~~. heavity. on !he'
thirds attd sixths. for testing intervals, it is beneficial to reauce the span
o~ terµperament as ltiti.ch as possible.'fri tJ\i.s way' ()fl~}s more free to make corrective changes without having to also
change octave notes that have <ifready been tuned. By omitting Holder's five·rtonessential octave notes, the following
bearing plan emerges. This abridgement soon became standard practice.
Jhe.~bove i&;··;;iiiete~n~note·b~~;i~i pl~ spanni~g·~~e and one-half octaves. This i's aimost the narrowest bearing
Platt tha,t is P<>.~\ll~e. WbeP the te111permg. circJti1.~s r~smc!e.4 t() octa,ves rui4 fifths <>l\ly~ (A:Pc ~igf\teefknQte temperament
is possible.between A and D.) In compiping.these.results with the corrected. and abridged plan of Mersenne on page
29, the similarity is obvious. The orily liasic differences are that the beginning tuning note has changed from F to C,
and the tempered· fifth BF-sharp has been placed an octave higher for easier listening.
On page 182 of his treatise, William Holder clarified that the mean tone wolf intervals, such as the diminished sixth
G-sharp E-flat, were "Tolerable" as, "discords'' and therefore were of use in music. However, according to Holder,
these wolf intervals, or tolerable dis~ords, were not as "Elegant" as the normal discords such as seconds, tritones,
ot sevenths.
Using the broad interpretation of Holder's words "as much as a quarter of a Comma" concerning the amounts by
which tempered fifths are narrowed, the following instructions for: ~uthentic seventeenth-century meantone tempera-
ment are furnished. These are based on.the above abridged bearing plan of Holder. Test intervals and test chords are
added. When tempering is done by using aesthetic judgments or instinctive senses for chord-colorings, the bearing
plan used has a great effect on the final results. That is why the tempering must be dorie by using a Mersenne-Holder
type bearing pllin fot authenticity. This bearing pla1fconsists of a circle of octaves afid fifths orily. Fourths are not
listened tourilessthey are played in first or second inversion triads used for testing· chord:..cofors, this was the custom .
....NQ.1'£
. . . . . . l .•..WiJli~Jfol<.!er•.4•.1.:t:~g(i,re PiJb.~.. l:lqtJl.rgJ.OmlltJ~. gf1dl?ritJciples of fff;l.rmony(L<mdou: J. Hept~tall.. 1694), 180-82.
et all the fifths narrow ''as much as a quarter of a comma.'' Twentieth-century tuners must refer to
5 fqi; ~:it;a.µiples ~{.P,9w fast ~at quarter-comma narrow fifth~. beat .. For those· who have confidence
. . amourlts of beating, orte atlthentic philosophy is to make all the tempered fifths within the rtineteen
~eati1,1g section beat at one arbitrarily chosen rate. Howeve~j the majority of tuners· in the past did
§ten t2~ beats at al1. They tempe~ecl melod~cally. Thfs ability was based on musical experience. Thus
....•.·.·. ict authentic seventeenth-century fashion, one must use his, own aesthetic judgment concerning how
much narrowing melodically that ''the Ear win bear with in a fifth.''
€'.:heck all the major thirds, major sixths, and major tenths to insure that they sound rather just, very good,
iJt at least quite pleasant. Most of these intervals may contain small amounts of beating; but again, seventeenth-
'"entury tuners listened to interval colors or effects, and not the beatings. ·
.•.• ·~ever forget the following acoustic law: The slower the fifths are tempered to beat, the faster beating or
· hai:sher the thirds and sixths will become~ In .considering what ' 'the Ear will bear'' in the seventeenth cen-
tury ,the thirds and sixths are as important color-wise (beat-wise for the modern tuner) as the fifths and
•··.•. fourdts. In· certain theoretical regular meantone temperaments, the beatings between the fifths and thirds
ate well balanced. For· example, in the one-fifth ditonic comma meantone temperament, the major third
•.. J:ieats the same speecl..as. the fifth.in.theroot po5it\o!\JllliSl.~Ji;iad. Inthe.J):Yo::niv,ethss.Y9.toni6;1;cQ!nma•.mean-
et11Per®t~tlt,;llte...ntaj'l~.lltitdJ1~lUMhe ~j'ue.$peecl~a'$:. the fifth.in the .root position mjrtor triad. Many
equal-beating combinations become possible when various theoretical meantone temperaments are used.
ese. serve as. examples 6£ how. the beats (color effects. for seventeenth..,century musicians) of variousinter~
'val& may be balanced against each other. To apply this philosophy, one must use aesthetic decisions based
oh.music experience. Of course, one does not need to be concerned if one decides to tune all the major
tllirds absolutelyjust in Pietro Aaron style. The Pietro Aaron is one authentic temp~rament, but' the fact
that the Holder bearing plan contains no major thirds implies that completely just major thirds were not
tl1e most comitJ.on type i:n the late seventeenth-century. Also, Holder's words "as much as" imply this.
the following quarter notes in the order written.
39
Tune C to any
arl;litrarily chose!"\ pitch.
Tune Test
just interval
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Test intervals and chords

l T"'' ;n"'"'ru"'"" '""'"'
r---------·--·---·----·--1
II f ;~.+--~~-~______u
j
Tune
just
i
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
before
i----·--~--------·-------i
l
i
Flatten Tune
just
Tuned
before
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
Test
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
!
l
Flatten
i
Tuned
before
Test
Tune
t
Sharpen
l .
T'1!1ed
before
Test intervals and chords Tott_.
. 11 l>f •. tE . ·. 1 ? 111
t
Tune
just
As a final check, test the tolerability,· decency, smoothness, and color consistency of the following triads .
.· . . . ' # #
!l':fp ~~4f :j'fft#l f. . . f. f .IJ. fi
v.vv.•V•<•Vm•.+•<··•••• .,. V••<·••'•••••••'''''"··
1 11 l
nti:~~ m F •, · r 1#r 'e ~' ·,, ·r r J

1
i1tx 1F ~, ! 1hr .1 1r e 1 1,~ r ]q

·!t~: F. l . ~! rt. f f. Itf ! f . I&~fu ? 1
:fie nine1:ee1ritn ce11tnrv_ these test-chords 'l,Ve.r~ k,rl{)Wn as the 'trials._' In the eighteenth <;entury they_ were
co1mn10n to use only the t_'O()~ ~psition major triad and the second inversion major triad
they
Uo1Wrn~ii; interva1rs i;hould sound like discords. If are not extremely dissonant, out-pf-tune and harsh sounding,
'"-.:..·'-""·· then y9udid-not;tune.·meant6il~temperall)~nt·•in _true seventeenth7century fashion.
Diminished
Diminished fourths
t
Diminished
The classic
wolf diminished sixth
eleventh
the re~ainder of the instrument by means of just octaves from the sample notes within the bearing section
below middle C to F-shat_'P above middle C. Also, check the quality or decency of the following intervals.
IT
I
-~-- ------·-
T.h~ fe~ c~n ~.···
seve]iteenth·. . tu .... p
.... . .m ~ho
. s.i.cia···n.s·.· beatin~s
actually listened. to the spe.ciffo.·· tha~
of the. fifth. s, rath.·er.
their melodic effects. tem~red accordtng to the equal-beating method. At that titfie there was no rnformat1on
published concerning the notion that beats should increase in frequency when the intervals were played higher up in
to
~e~scale~ Jh~quajiJi~s9! ~a~o~s.fi~~r ~b~~ J?l~ye~ b~~~!~a!l~ ~r.Y~11*f vtl}lel~~~lYJ.~,~rl}l. id~ntical when
their b~t fr~quern~te~ a~~ tdel)ti~l,\IJ ltie. musicians were <1ec~1ved mto bebe. · .· at these tempered fifths were thus
of the same:size; ~owevet, mode~ acoustic law states ·that when variOus fifths are the same size they must beat at
different speeds. t Thus, equal~beating fifths can never be the same size, they only sound the same .. This means that
t."egular. te~peraJJ!ent. was. not achieved and the results of the tuning instructions in Section 12 are only theory. Even
though the followfug eqfull'..beatingJemperament analysis is stilt merely another theoey on paper, it nevertheless represents
a closer authentic truth than the pteviousjnstructionsjn S~tion .12. For those who lack the true seventeenth~centuey
environmental conditioning necessary to authentically apply the instructions outlined in Section 14, it is advisable to
follow the instructions below.
When. il)~.~e eq\lal~b~(illt§pliil~sop~y for fi~s while using ~e William .Holder bearing plan, it is essential
~at th~fi .beat not more.tfl~ l:4~98. beats. per secottCI; othef\Vise, llmow major thirds will result~ The frequency
of middle Cat standard pitch divi<fed by 178yields.tfie limit of l.469806547beats per second. Any amount less will
also work while using the Holder bearing plan. Zero. beats for fifths would.create the Jll.edieval Pythagorean tuning,
a form of primitive just intonation without pure thirds and sixths. .· ·
It should be dear tbat:an aesthetic decision· is required for. determining the smgle beating rate for fifths. For the
example of equal-beating temperament outlined below, the beating rate of 1.4 is arbitrarily chosen because it is less
than 1.4698, 'is· a si:rrtpl~numbe~1·;;.,.,,fi··the average sizev0t;4fte temp~ed.Jlfth&,i$.;stUl..04mQ\\t altnQst.' 'as much as a
·quarter of a e&mrmtr!i.~.•~ ass&~··Uleir autll~ticfty... Not co:unting .the wolf dimluiSlted sixth O·sbarp E-tlat that
William Holder omitted fromJ1is bearing pI311 because it is not tempered directly by ear, the average size of the fifths
at alJeatin~ rate of l ..tfs 691.28408cents•. TI\is is 4,61~lc.~nts narrow., .One-.fourth syntonic comma.is 5 .37657 cents.
The dift'¢reli~~rs: orlty·n~70'6''tent·wnrett~mmotbe'l~~~edVel'? mtcch~at,tse ~w major thirdsc~would soon result.
The advantages ()f.t11is tem~rament, compared to that outlined in Section 12, are that the wolf intervals and discords
are significantly reduced in harshness or beating rates, the major thirds haye m()re. color a!though they are no longer
just, there is variety in key-coloring supporting the characters of the keys, 1 and it is easier to tune after the single
~eating rate foi; fifths be.co.mes firmly established ill' the mind.
The following ch~Usts the. sizea..in cents of the fifths and their amounts of narrowness when each fifth beats 1.4
times per second. Since their beats ire identical, their sizes must vary.
Table 15·1: The F,ifths of the Equal-beating Meantone Temperament.

Fifths . Sizes m Cents Cents Narrow From Just
BF-sharp 698.65225 3.30275
B-tlat F 698.49369 3.46131
AB 698.25749 3,69751
GD 697.81794 4.13706
:E~~.C-sharp 6~ns41s2 4.41349
FC 691.'.fa9J3 4.62581
69'.7.0126'1 4.94~34
continued
T~ble 15~1: Continued.
Sizes in Cents Cents Narrow From Just
()96. 775't$ 5.1]902
696.. 42349 5.53151
696.0$280 .5.90220
695.76789 6.18712
diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat is 729.87516 cents which is 27.92016 cents wider than a just intonation
Tb.e d!1m1m1stu~C! sixth G-sharp E-flat from the Pietro Aaron temperament is 35 .68229 cents wider than a just into-
sizes of tempered fifths vary as in the above, the temperament is called 'irregular.' Conversely, regular
.t~J:f1}'j1er~me~ntis like the theoretical Aaron one-fourth syntonic comma temperament outlined in Section 12. In the Aaron,
the same size, eleven fourths are the same size, nine majorsixths are the same size, eight major thirds
size, nine minor thirds are the same size, and ten major seconds are the same size. The various wolves
are also in groups of similar sizes. In theoretically correct regular temperament with all the usable intervals
sizes which in turn causes all the usable chords to have similar effects regardless of their pitch level,
key-coloring or variety during modulation or transposition. When this condition exists there can be no
k<..noc.rr•1' the 'characters of the keys.'
··"'"'i;;"uu temperament in history rarely existed before the twentieth century. The Aaron theoretically correct regular
·c>·1jile:+rc1ut1m: syntonic comma meantone temperament was not tuned by ear for the same reasons that the mathematically
moaei:n equal temperament was not tuned by ear. Twentieth-century acoustic knowledge and test-interval tech-
·•·•.;;;mciuesare required for tuning any regular temperament by ear. Therefore, all historical temperaments were irregular
and key-coloring and variety of effects have always existed on keyboard instruments. This fact is evident
observing the many equal-beating temperament systems published late in the nineteenth century.
fifths vary in size, this automatically causes all the other intervals, including thirds and sixths, to also vary
This in turn causes all the thirds and sixths to vary in their effects or color-characteristics. This creates the
.c:na:t~tct~~rs of the keys; 4 that is, each key-center or tonality contains its own unique effects or qualities.
foUowing chart lists the sizes in cents of the major thirds and their amounts of width when each fifth within
bearing section beats 1.4 times per second.
Table 15-2: The Major Thirds of the Equal-beating Meantone Temperament.

Major Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide From Just
FA 387.33845 1.02474
CE 388.26681 1.95309
GB 389.51159 3.19787
4.03219
5. 15021
EG-sharp 389.25923 2.94552
] [
BE-flat 422.12172 35.80801
F-sharp B-flat 420.24545 33.93173
discords
C-sharp F 421.19763 34.88391
G-sharp C 422.47396 36.160247
E-flat G 388.36669 2.05298
B-flat D 389.40865 3.09494
FA 1.02474
The wolf diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat is 27.92016 cents wider than a just intonation fifth.
Compare this table with Table 11-1.
In the above chart, the major thirds are listed in dominant-tonic sequences (or the reverse). Also, the third
FA is listed twice. This was done so that one can perceive the harmonic balance of the temperament through the dominant-
tonic relationships. More than any other intervals, the conditions of the major thirds determine the colorings or effects
triads and other chords. From the chart one can see patterns. When the interval sizes varied within tP'l'nnr•r,;,1mP•nt
systems, there was no chaos. There was logical order supported by tradition dictating that the largest major thirds
or diminished fourths were usually BE-flat, F-sharp B-flat, C-sharp F, and G-sharp C. CE or FA were
·""·'~' .. "'""""'"''" while to
this tra11mon,
Th~Perfeciiol'l Of Eighteenth-Century Temperament
Irt Tabl~ 15-2,, · FA is the .smallest. 111aj9r thi~d~ but the major thirds E(l~sharp, E,.,flat G, llE-flat, and G-sharp C
appear. to· be out gf s~qpen9~ for th,~ir sizes. This is an}11~icatioµ!hat the equal-beating tempera111ent described thus
far is· not yet wholly auttt~11t~c~ A correction is. needed, and t}lis is explained as follows: The Mersenne-Holder type
bearing plan is always referi-etl to as a circle offifths and ocfl1ves. This is not quite accurate because the circle is broken
or not completed between a~shafP ;:\lld B-flat (see. ~igure 1~-:l); 'fhis break was .known as.·' 'the. imperfection of the
instrument'' or keyboard. Extra keys are needed in order to coqectthis fault. Otherwise, the diminished sixth G-sharP
E-flat was not tempered at all by ear. It resulted in being an extremely out-of,-tune interval known as the wolf even
though it was not tempered or tuned directly; it was the last leftover resulting interval.
Figure 15-1: The Twelve Notes of Meantone Temperament in a Near-circular Form.
Notice in the Mersenrie or Holder bearing plans that E-flat and G-shafP are the last notes tuned in the two sections
of that begin with For C, Thus, E-flat G-sharp are left dangling at the ends of the
and there is no and G·shafP. Since there are no further E-flat and
G-sharp that depend on their accuracy such as A-flat or D-sharp, there is no need to be theoretically precise about
the tuning of E-flat and G-sharp. No harm is done when one decides to temper the fifths E-flat B-flat and C-sharp
less than the fifths. In otheI when E-flat and are the beating may be reduced
any amount from 1.4 beats per second to zero. These adjustments or corrections are improvements, and it is our duty
to authenticity to them. This was documented John Farey and William Hawkes at the beginning of
the nineteenth century. (See Section 67.) This makes the temperament into an 'irregular' temperament.
Following is a table that reveals the results of tempering the fifths E-flat B-flat and C-sharp G-shafP each 0. 7 beat
o:
per second narrow instead of 1.4 beats. The figure 7 is an arbitrary choice based on aesthetic taste. Tuners of
ous centuries had incomparably more freedom for making these kinds of decisions than do modern tuners.
Table 15-3: The Major Thirds of Equal-beating Meantone Temperament after Co:rrectio:m;.
Major Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide From Just
FA 387.33845 1.02474
CE 388.26681 l.95309
GB 389.51159 3.19787
DF-sharp 390.34590 4.03219
5.15021
392.21285 5.89914
continued
',, ·'} '
''Hi\
diminishedisixth1GMsharp1~-tlat is 22,37896 c~nts wider than a just intonation fifth. The major thirds in
•· ~nt:areiin:·perfe1Zt1 himnoilr~1baJajtit~b~€au~t}\ they increase in size from FA to CMsharp F and they decrease
.· c~sharp F to FA whet\ mod\:llatiH1fby\mearis of fo~tt1fsiot :fifilrsL This is arranged· in circular form below .
. 'rah~~ 15-3 with Tables 11-l, 15~2. and 67-1. ·
woif. intervals
61' discords
(false. thirds)
CE
The smallest third
Figure 15-2: The Form of the Seventeenth-century Equal-beating Meantone Temperament•
.•. The acoustic form of the irregular equal-beating. mea.ntone temperament is exhibited in Figure 15-2. This form is
;~·::th!ill'lasis for the characters of the keys. For a continued study of key-coloring and the characters of the keys, read
;;,~n~ges62,..65.
'J> Perfect harmonic balance is exhibited in Table 15-3. When the cents values are rounded off to whole cents, observe
We
1 '''jfj~~ top six major thirds increase in increments of one cent each while the bottom three decrease by two cents
· · · ..This allows for very smooth progressions in the harmony .when root movements are a fourth or fifth apart. This
. . . . ee of perfection assures the authenticity of the system. Nevertheless, in the following tuning instructions, the tun-
"ingt of E-tlat and G-sharp will be left to the discretion of the tuner. (Advice will be furnished. It is optional whether
;i.Qj;!.not to follow it.)
· :t{QUSe th.at this system is caj.~ed .a meantonetemperament. The broader meaningof this term as it is used in this
kdescribes any historical temperament whereby one~third of the harmony consists of wolf intervals and fast-beating
ds. Observe .in theabove charts that one-third of the major thirds aree~tre111ely out-of-tune discords, The stricter
of the term meantone as used by theorists from ilie's1xteettth century fo the present refers to the note D which
caU,r sh~uld.be'·f>la~~,b~tw~n·Q.~·Ba~ an e,,;a~.t·mean as in the theoreticalJ?ietro Aaton teniperament. Thqs
and 10:~ ratio"ma}ofseconds.\Vitlitii the just thfrd Cl! are averaged to Be tlie same siZet>y means of tempering.
41
'4~i~~
t~.t(e~.• A~;ltfi ~~ ••.. . . ·
E::ltJ;i8J. ~~fl~.,, c~nt~ . st. ..· . . . . ...
.In concl\JS!iO~i;oQly ~fi~1)cttis understood that the broad m"~ing of the tenn. •meantone tem~rantent' is used can
it still. be said that meal\ton~ . tempetantent had been practfoed· since the fifteenth century and that the last vestiges of
it~~ gut· at ~e end Qf the nineteenth century. Its usage for roughly four and a half centuries makes it the longest-lived
t~~ll~J,:.. •. . .. ·
,.l:\tlQ19jna.~~ the.longest-lived timing system1 but a tuning is not a temperament.
\~~!J&o•~~tl t .. . .. . . . . . . ....•
~.!!J~~~,.oi:equAA t'!mpermi:ient is cenrories 014. but its acturu practice
o~k,eybo~d mstwm'!nts ha~ ~U·• Very ll.fliff~ ~lliMDd J~ ~@~.ot1lli~t0Ue temperament.
NOTES
1. For a mor~ thorough explanation of these facts, .see~ S~tiM a4.i!:
2. These words are from pag~ 180 of William Holder's treads~ written in 1694.
3. The phenomenon of key-coloring and. the characters of the keys will sub!fequently De explained.
4. For a listing of some of these chara.cters, see Section 43.
5. Notice the: fine hannonic balance exhibited in a temperament first published by Andreas Werckmeister in 1681 and later pub-
lished in his Musicalische TemjJeratur at the top of page 78: of tJte facsimile reprint.
1
TUNING THE ··SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY IRREGULAR
EQUAL~BEATING MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT
r.l. ' un. e a. U the oc.taves just. Temper all the fifths narrow by 1.4 beats per se.cond (or 7 beats in 5 seconds) which
is proper when a C fork at standard pitch is used. If a lower beginning pitch for middle C is chosen, then all
frequencies should be reduced proportionately. As an example, if the equivalent of A=425 Hz is chosen,
beatings should be reduced by approximately 3 .4 percent, and the fifths should then be tempered narrow by
per second. At the equivalent of A=415 Hz, the tempered fifths should each beat 1.32 beats per second.
Fotan even 1.3 beats per second, the equivalent of A=408.57 Hz would be required. Middle Cat levelis 242.938
Hz in frequency. Otherwise, when a C fork at standard pitch is used the note A will automatically be lowered from
its standard of A=440 Hz. A will then have a frequency of 437.46814 Hz in this equal-beating temperament. The
automatic lowering of A caused by most older temperament· systems accounts in part for the lower pitches reportedly
in previous centuries for the note A. The reason for this is that the note A in the past was always flatter in pitch
compared to C than it is today in equal temperament.
An efficient way to learn a proper beating rate is to listen to furnished the metronome. The
1.4 beats per second is found at a setting of 84 on the metronome. Use this when middle C will be at standard
If the pitch of C will be approximately a half-semitone low, set the metronome at 82. If the of C wm
a full semitone low, set it at 79.
The equal-beating instructions are based on the probability that some seventeenth-century musicians and tuners may
been sensitive to the actual beat rates of fifths. However, from the tuning literature of the seventeenth and eigh-
we must conclude that was not common; and the listening or of beats
the thirds and sixths was unlikely. for the sake of the modern tuner trained in beat rates
and sixths are furnished any beat rate on the metronome,
rate
the following quarter notes in the order written. Temper an the fifths narrow so that each of them beats 1.4
per second or 7 times in 5 seconds.
Tune Cto
Test intervals
l
stiuidard pitch. Tuned
T uunte (Figures denote belfore T.uusn.te Equal beating
18 beats second) 1 .
,--~-----1
. -'f!: ! 14 - ; _L_ ! 14 ~
~~4=1-~~}1§~:ct_=-=-~=1t+ f ~~
i i I
Flatten Flatten
t
Flatten
Tuned
before
··: &tuhl be:itin~
4.6
ti f If
r
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Flatten
1
. Tuned
Tuned before
l
before ·
1.4 1..7 3.4 6.1 .
i1:i: m _¥ 1~ · 1#¥ ~ ~ ·. n#f . 1r

·t i
Tune
just
16. Tuning The Sevdnteefltli-tf:entury Equal-Heating TetripeMtrtent
Tuned
before
Flatten
Tuned
before
3.3 4.2
8.4 1.
Equal beating
~2
#f # #
~f~:~
4.2
--'------~-
*F _--_-_-_-++--rr_·~ttr=--~---t---.PM1#~r-.-~· ~----~~
i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
2.8
Flatten
It is optional whether or not to improve the harmonic balance of this temperament by tuning G-sharp according
to the following rather than to the last three measures.
Tuned
l.
before The fourth G# C~ must be wide
and beating l.4 times per second.
! D
l~-=;:~4=~II~···
t
tF~=ti~j5*&=~ I
Flatten
From either of the previous methods outlined, continue in the following:
Tuned
before
l.·
Equal beitting
1.4 r--
Equal beating
----i
3.3
~L---1
~= t=====-~r-~---t.r-=-f
· - __.__=i--F.;;-=-=--·---+--1-'l"ill--i-==--·· -_~~r,~f~J]
i
Sharpen
Tuned
before
Tuned
before
l 2.8 6.6 l
~~[ t __~ I~
f-
w=
_Jir
i
Tune
i
Sharpen
just
Tuned
before
Equal beating
1-------1
I.4
2.1
4.9 l i.4
i
Sharpen
Equal beating
1--------
2.8 7.5
Equal beating
4.9
Sharpen i
Tune
just
.t~\ving'ate the res11I~ of the. t;>eatingsof the discords after the two optional corrections above are made. Notice
e 11 ~eatings or harshnesses are less than in the theoretical regular temperament outlined on page 36.
Augmented
Diminished third
1
Diminished fourths sevenths
14.0
i
... Diminished.
t
The classic wolf
eleventh ililninished sixth
.~'.~beck the evenly changing effects or colQrs of the follo~i~g chords (if the two optional corrections were made).
,;;~;~~:#~ ~ ,, ·~·
~ tt ~ ~~ II
m ! ···~ ~ ~. .~ ...
~· II
,...tt\e,..fe!!!!ln.sf~f,,.g.f".tt\~. i!t,~!!l!JllS.U:ll~l!,,.!!!~S 2~J!!§l.9£~ves.from.t!te ~!!!!ple no~s ~i.thi!t,tlle. bea,ri_ng section
C be}Ow 1 mtd,dte'e'.fO''~""Sha.,800W mtd~e e;. J1he. fifths immediately befow. the bearin3 seetlon beat half as
~d th~ fiftlts immecliately above the bearing section beat twice as much as the same fifths within the bearing section.
53
p... #.e p... e #P-
t--
e #.e
f- t--
p...
I-
t--
~
I-
t--
/ ~ r:..t: ~ 0 Jta
IT:
f9" I- I- f- I- I- I- I-
···:. .>. '.."._ r·· .· ·~·· -"-. .. ' ·' ...:;_

r.
..,-"ll
.~
<
~ ~~ ~~ ~ ~
J :..-.
r-'
_h_~ j!;- t-- +-
--i: ~ :fr ~ :h..!.~ "'
P". ~
~ ~ r-'
'
Table 16'-1: The Diffetences in. Cent~ between the Notes of Irr~µlar Equal~beating Meantone and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Equal-beating Meantone Rounded Figures
G plus 5.75857 + 6
F-sharp minus· 6.07759 - 6
.~· plus· 11.66155 +13
E minus 1.74251 - 2
E..,flat plus 17.39188 +17
D plus 3;51651 + 4
C-sharp minus 8.53608 - 9
c plus 9.99068 +10
B minus 4.72985 - 5
B-flat ·. . plus 14.16786 +14
the Optional Corrections:
G-sharp. minus 9.52966 -10
E-flat plus 14.80430 +15
Compare this table with Table 12-1 for the theoretical regular temperament.
THE TtJNlNG·RtJtES'By GOTTFRIED KELLER IN 1707
G. ottfried Keller was a German musician who became a prominent harpsichordist, teacher, and composer after
he settled in England sometime before 1694. He died in 1704, three years before his rules "for Tuning the
Harpsichord or Spinnet'' were published on page 15 of his A Compleat Method For Attaining to Play a Thorough
Bq.ss, Vjlon EitherOrgan, Harpsichord, or Theorbo-Lute (London: John Cullen, 1707).
The Keller rules contain no theoretical information or beat frequencies. This creates a problem because they can
be interpreted in two greatly differing ways, both of which will be given in this book. Historically, the rules are signifi-
cant because Keller tuned by major thirds as well as by fifths. In fact, he tempered the major thirds first in each case,
implying that he considered the major thirds to be at least as important as fifths. Keller's major thirds were not created
by the series of four fifths that was traditionally used up to that time. As far as fifths and octaves were concerned,
Keller followed the Holder bearing plan, but by inserting the major thirds he changed it into a circle of octaves and
triads. Each triad in turn was completed before going on to the next. It is interesting and curious that Keller tempered
major thirds directly but still did not include the direct tempering of fourths in the bearing section. These rules re-
mained through the 1712, 1717, 1721, 1723, 1730, and 1731 printings of his book.
The problem of interpretation is based on Keller's words, "Observe all ye Sharp thirds must be as Sharp as ye
eare will permit, And all fifths as flat as the eare will permit.'' Of course, this would have been perfectly clear to
Keller and his followers, but tastes change with In the twentieth century our ears will nottolerate fifths and fourths
altered more than two cents, and yet we accept as beautiful the major thirds and sixths that are altered or tempered
by fourteen and sixteen .cents, respectively, in temperament. Conversely, most before the eighteenth
century could not tolerate major thirds altered more than two cents while at the same time they judged fourths and
cents, which is almost tlm~e times more altered than
the fifths the• "'''"1''~'·""'""'"' for the various amounts of or tPn1n,,,,.,
of the just natural intervals reversed. The general twentieth century taste for interval effects is opposite that
previous· centuries.
Gottfried Keller lived during the beginning of a long transitional periOd of changing tastes. While it was stiH com-
mon to maintain the major thirds on the natural keys as pure as practicable, some musicians of Keller's time could
at the same time tolerate fantastic aherings thirds among the chromatic or raised keys. Andreas
in 1698 wrote, "Since, as has been asserted, the ancients' ears were perfectly happy with thirds all of which were
either too large or too small by one comma, one should really be able to accept deviations one comma too large or
too small, in a few rarely used thirds. " 1 The thirds altered "by one comma" were altered by 21.51 cents. This
is significantly more than the fourteen cents accepted for major thirds today. Thirds altered by a comma are called
ditones or Pythagorean thirds. The rarely used thirds that Werckmeister referred to are A-flat D-flat
A-sharp, and B D-sharp. These four major thirds were directly descended from the four discords spelled as""""'""'"'"
fourths in the meantone temperaments. The musical acceptance of the Pythagorean thirds among the chromatic or raised
keys was basic to the whole idea of creating a for the well-tempered clavier as published by Werckmeister
in 1681 and . Without this acceptance, the compositions and performances in an twenty-four keys or tonalities
would never have taken place. In conclusion, Keller's tolerance for "Sharp" major thirds could have ranged anywhere
between one cent and twenty-two or more cents wide, and his tolerance for "flat'' fifths could have ranged between
two cents and cents narrow or more. 2
or of thirds
in fourths and fifths on the otheL if fifths
arid sixths are
..·.~
()f
~1~ s were ntellnt to be the same size.
. The'Ttrst mt¢rpretation of th" Keller concludes that his fifths (the diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat is not jticluded
l:(s a :fi{th) wer~ meant theoretically to ~ach have a ratio of 1.495953506. This. fifth is 691.2784046 cents in size, and
it i~~~t1~~<ta;s cents. narrow, a little less than one-fifth ditonic comma narrow. Reasons m favor of this are outlined
l!sr. f.:)fltiws: ·
l. The Keller instru~~cms were not meartt f,or equal' temf1!rll1l'.let1t, By the words "a)l ye Sharp thirds . . . And
an ~M~•' '. Keller nieant only the seven fifths ·and eigtitlliajor· diirds ·th11t·w~re 1tctbhlly.written i.n. his. bearing
plan;· If Keller had rl1¢ant these in.structions for equal temperament during this period of history, he would have
bee~ required to write 'Ob.serve aU ye Sharp thirps ~ncluding the diminished fourth discords must be as Sharp
as y~ eare will permit, And all fifths including the .diminished sixths as flat as the eare will permit'; but, he didn't
writ~ fbis, »''•'•'" ,. · v .... 0< ' ,'.\···0·"" '" ",'. '.(.,: ..
2. On page 183 of the edit~ an<! corrected K~Iler rule~~ that were added to· William Holder's treatise as an appendix
in 173 l, it is clarifie~ that when a h~p~icbord c<)ntained quarter notes, that is, subsemitones or split keys? the
sh,arps were c(iffertlf\t.tQnes ~!W' t)le fl~.ts:; Jt\te~~s \ike S lJ:-.t}af, we~ <!jffel'ent from: •.B A-sh~. etc;. In the. mean:-
tone tew~raments, the d{t'f.Sren~ibetw~n 11sn~ ~nd ~ . . . !Jc asputiJI as41.06 cents~ It is the temperament
syst~m t~at all9ws ~af!l'.JQ be di(t'ere~tin ~itch from sharps •.· . .canneft happen in equal teJnperament. Therefore,
KeUer•s•;system wmrnotequal ten1~ramei1t.: lf it. was,. a •'1Jfil1?sicbl'd with<>Ut ·quart'er Notes'' would never have
been. mentioned for the sake ~fdafity; · 1 · ·.
3, On page 184 of the wor~cited atu)vf;l, there is a chart that.shows which keys are ''Practicable" and which keys
are ..seldom used)'i The rueantone torialjtieS't)fB major; F~sharp major, and C·sharp major and their lower rela-
ti~e mino.F~eys, whii:lh '1<!f1$ist of wol~ inte,:rVals, are not.mentioned at an, so we must assume that they were never
usett. In eqUal tem~till)lehi~ no key is more practicable than ~Y Qther; This indicates that Keller did not use equal
temper~ent. .•........... · .·· ..·• . .. . ·'' . ·• · . .. .
4. On pages 138 and 139 of the ~9}~el' .~r~.,Q.~edted ah?Yet~e tbning rules by }{()lder were printed unchanged from
fbe ()riginlt~ put;Jlis!1e<J· Jn 16~'·· !he.11'.lt ·e<fit9~inclt1ded Kelle( s. ti,lnillg rules on. page 206 with no changes from
Ke1Jel'~s. ori~iJ!al 9(,JJQ?·~ ~0 ,remarks tl,t ~ompariS(}n wert1 giveµ con~eming the two systems; so we must assume
s.· ~:;1!~!ba~~f~;;i~~~~tar~t . . .·' 'faitt¥hi~@iri~~Je};tW~~~~t Any·systeml'ret~lldiiig

.. to be equal
temperament wo{lti:fc~nhttn .. iritenihls IJttd chords in the ttey of A~flat major as a minimum, f>\lt there are none
in Keller'it bearing plan. By using it, but no' more,· it wofild be impossible to tune equal temperament unless one
had the exact beat frequencies well memorized. The beat frequency numbets during Keller's tit}1e did not exist in print.
6, · Kellerdid.,u~ al'* ... . ..·. mt~·~aflft;'a•:!~f;i1Jp»intf:b\tt'~~v~·wmr"~ittfl¥llf•*6f6At~lMW;Miatl5§'together.
················1n•oth~·w~®'!~~~., .~•~m . ~.~~·in: meantone·temperament·pl'&videdthat·varioos flats
are retuned as sharps when neecte<:l. or .vice versa, .
7. Keller ~as n~t pretending tQ tune the Aarol\ one~fourth. syntonic comma meantone temf1!rament b~ause in this,
···· ·.·• t1Je;~or·.lh•rd~·W'1~~d~·~l~~bafP;'~t"1~,,.:f,..,,.;''r1·11• ··• ••··•···
8. Ketler was not tuning Aaron meantone $tempetament, equal tem~rafuent, or wen temperament. (lit Keller, there
1
is no evi4ence fQr the vru,iety of keys.) ln his. ~aring plan he stressed. the equal st~s .Q( majoUhirc;ls and fifth.s.
Further,·· tte dio ·Mtexptain· \Vli<!tftef .the ·:~are \\f!fl permit'' any ff1or~· t¢ntpefing •oiififdis than on major thirds,
or vic.e versa. Thus;·we ·tnust cQ~ducf~ th~t.K:~l!e~r.~ ear ~oufa tolerate only an equal amount of alteration on both
fiM~ afi.d 'ajot thitd~<'~U~iefanll' df fjllst centffries were not trained to count beats properly among the upper har-
monics as'twentfeth-centbry tuners: do; They were sensitive to beats, but they did not count them. They heard
beats only as a coloring orquality of the intenial; Therefore, if Keller assumed that he was altering fifths and
thirds to an eq~al degree, he would have balanced them against each other instinctively by ear until both intervals
were equally as: harsh as '.'the eare. will pemtlt," In modem technical terms,. this means that the fifths and major
thir~s W<>l!l\\ ~.eq\J~:~tmg~ 11\~~l/'j()rpu~d would.~~t.exR<ltly the s~e speed as the fifth in the root position
Illajoi: triac;l, . q.· . . . .i:atio l.495~3~Q6 for a. fifth ~atisfies .thls qualifjcation. A}so, in .the second inversion major
triad. the Illajor . a beats ex~ctly the same speed as the fourth (which is an inverted fifth) when the above ratio
for nfths is l,Jsel.t
9. ,Oottftjed Kellet definec( rest chords as ''Tryalls'' (spelled Tryals it) 1731), In his examples, it is significant that
he'included only root position and second inversion tnajorJril1ds in pairs sharin CC)mmOrt bass tones. First inver-
sion . trill aU mino ere not in .is . that KeUer was concerned
. Snly' miff . .. . . . . . .. . f root po;itiori'majot triacls. Of the
. tt:tads.that.l(dle~didnot.i~ud~·~·his,~Is:".oo•haveequal-beating l}ualitiescinthiss:ystemi1'ellet's bear-
•ing' plmf'ltc•~ej thl'.'@t1111t~~ng•trimt'syst8if'extreme11 welt' · ··· ·· ·
The Tuning kules lJy Gottfried Keller
In con<:lusio!l, fifths.with a ratfo l .495953~06 cre~tea Teantone te1nperamentthat is typical among seventee.nth-
!Wd early ~ightee!lth-centurytemperaments. The nat\lra11key major thirds are quite pure and beating only enough
to give thenialittle color.. Oil the average, all theinterv~s sound very similar to results of the temperament out-
lined in Section .16 of thi.s. book. Tlms, t:he Keller tuning rules were not out of place when they were placed with
the Holder rules ~II Jhe same boqk.
this proposed Keller temperament containing fifths with a ratio 1 A95953506 was described by John Robison in 1801. 4
Robison wrote that this ''temperament is in great repute, and indeed is generally practiced. . . . Even Dr. Smith recom-
mends it as well suited to our defective instruments. " 5 Robison gave all credit for the temperament to Robert Smith
(1689-1768); but ifit was "generally practiced," it was due to the many reprintings of Keller's rules through at least
1731. This temperament was also practiced by the pianoforte builder David Loeschman in 1815 when be tuned piano-
fortes that did not contain more than twelve pitches within the octave. 6 Otherwise, he used Pietro Aaron's meantone
temperament on his twenty-four pitches within the octave pianofortes.
The instructions for tuning the proposed Gottfried Keller temperament are outlined in Section 18.
The second interpretation of the Keller in this book concludes that it is not absolutely impossible that he was attempt-
ing to tune in equal temperament. Reasons in favor of this are outlined below.
1. By the. words ''all ye Sharp thirds . . . And all fifths,'' Keller could have been describing equal temperament providing
that he was assuming that we would understand that major thirds included all diminished fourths, and fifths included
all diminished sixths. Further, he could have assumed that the tolerance level for alterations done on major thirds
was seven times higher than for fifths in his time and place.
2. When Keller described certain keys or tonalities as being more practicable than others that were seldom or never
used, he could have meant that the seldom or never used keys were impractical because they were too difficult
to read; that is, they contained a greater number of flats or sharps. The keys of G, C, and F major were easier to read.
The above arguments in favor of equal temperament tuned by Keller are weak compared to the likelihood that he tuned
the nearly one-fifth ditonic comma meantone temperament. The rules for tuning this meantone temperament are on
the following pages. The rules for tuning equal temperament are in Sections 221 and 225.
Table 17-1: The Equal-beating Regular One-fifth Ditonic Comma

Meantone Tempe:rament Using Gottf:ried KeJler's Rules.
Major Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 389.11362 2.79990
GB 389.11362 2.79990
DP-sharp 389.11362 2.79990
AC-sharp 389.11362 2.79990
389.11362 2.79990
BE-flat 421.77276
wolf
35.45905
F-sharp B-flat 421.77276 [ 35.45905
diminished
C-sharp F 421.77276 35.45905
fourths
c 421.77276 35.45905
E-flat G 389.11362 2.79990
B-flat D 389. I 1362 2.79990
FA 389.11362 2.79990
The wolf
NOTES
1. Andreas Werckmeister, Erweiterte und Verbesserte Orgel-Probe Theodori 1698), trans-
lation by Gerhard Krapf (Raleigh: The Sunbury Press, 1976), 68.
2. See the first edition (1694) of William Holder, A Treatise of the Natural Grounds, and Principles of Harmony, 180.
3. William A Treatise of the Natural Grounds, and Principles of Harmony. To which is Added, by way Rules
for Playing a with Variety of Proper Lessons, Fuges, and to Explain the said Rules. Directions
for Tuning an or Spinnet. By the late Mr. Godfrey Keller (London: J. Wilcox and T. Osborne, 1731).
4. John Robison, "Temperament of the Scale of Music," 660.
5, instruments were considered "defective" because octave.
the octave,
T he bea:t\fr~q\l~ncies in the foUowingtempefiunent.were calculated f?t us~ witlrn C tuning, fork at standard pitch,
the c equivalent of A =440 Hz'. lf a lo"-'erp~t~b 1s ·os~d, reduce the tieat ftequencies proportionately .. The original
tuning order of' the notes ffom the· Keller bearing plan is preserved for the sake of authenticity. They· are printed in
mode~ f()r1.rf f9r ~~si~i: rea<ling '.:· Three seco114 iny~rsitin triads \\Tf1f~ 'dded accorc:Iing to J<eller' s. recmmnendations.
Three' of ~~ll~r•s t¢st triadsi (tijairs)·Wet~;~nfoticted witlfextra tiot~s for' rilore ·complet~ testing. ·Measures nine and
ten wei:eadd¢d .. As ()fie can see~ itis. iJ»p()$~i!>l~ to.c91,}tinue in. ttte .~.earing section· without first tuning the note D.
Robert Falkener also made this correction wheri he copiw these instructions in 1774, 1 Measures twenty-three, twenty-
four, thirty-~·me, and thirtr-eight were addl!d for m:?re complete testing. All measures from forty-two to the end were
added in order to complete K,eUei:'s original bearing section from C below midqle C through. G above :lrtiddle C. The
sixteen diords aHhe end .of theiipstfllctions were added for extra testing. All the beat frequency numbers were added
for the convenience of the modern piano technician so that he can tune with authentic results.
Tune the following qµ&fer no~es il\!he or~er written.
"Tune the C-sol-fa-ut Test intervill

by a Consort Pitch-pipe." (Figures denote Tuned Test interval "Tryall"
beats per second) before· (Beats per second) or
TUne
l just
!
"Tryal"
n,r ·a ·Mr'
I.l
It
l i
Flatten
Sharpen Equal-beating
triad
Tuned Tuned Tuned

before before before
1 l I.6
l r I.6
Ir r If r
r Flatten
i
Sharpe11
i
Flatteµ
Tuned Tuned
before before
Equal-beating
triads
l 1.8
l
r 11 r m 1ttr 11 r f
t
Sharpen
i
Flatten
Test
(just)
Tuned
! before
1.S 0.0 2.1

l
~
1.3
'::c :;1~: ~ 1ii 1F 1f . · •· · •·· · t

!I r #j 1#&
Equal-beating
i
Equal-beating
i
Sharpen
chord chord
B was ttined Cwastuned

previously. Tuned previously.
before
! !
l
Equal-beating
triads
1.4
r
l.J l.4
i
JI??= t l#f II r r I~ I~ 1J II
i
·Flatten l
l!q~ai~beating
cho(d
59
Test
Tuned (just)
before Tuned
before
l 1.9 l 1.9 0.0
~~t?t~&t----'-···-+----br_~~1
m._·. -=11-1--+--~•-L-bg-===-~--tt~t_· ;t_·.
--+--!' · ---+1-+--F--+iu
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
i
Equal-beating
chord
Tuned
before Tuned
before
Equal beating
l 2.5
1 Gand B~ were
tuned previously.
~,_ _. ,_t2f-~~T. ·-4-+---'--f---------+-ti+---__ Jt ~m=~+--+--1

&~f. tfua
i
Flatten
i
Equal-beating
i
triad Tune
just
l
Tuned
Tuned before
before
I "4
!~£& ' --
#; --t---
~--~==:=-l-= Jt1f =-~-~;;~
------~f-=_______ --==tt-=---
---
i
Equal-beating
triad
l
just
EqJ•tmg
triad
i
Tune
just
As a final test, check the equal-beating qualities of the following triads. Do not listen to the minor thirds and major
sixths. They are not equal-beating.
· f , .......,... 18~1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of Equal-Beating Triad. Meantone and.Equ81 Temperament.
Eq~ Temperrunent Equat~Beating Triad Meantone Rounded Figures
G"sharp minus 13..60798 -14
G plus 5A4319 +5
~~sharp minus S.16479 -, 8
F, plus 10.88638 +11
minus
it~~~~~
E - 3
~-flat plu~ +16
D plt)S• ,·2.721CSO +3
C-sharp minus. 10.88638 -11
c plus 8.16479 + 8
,.,:q.. minu.s 5.44319 - 5
IHlat pJus 13:60798 +14
· ~Qptpare this tahre with the Tables 12-l and 16-l.
NOTE
.· \{Q~tt Fl}lkener. /fistructions For Playing the ff.arpsichord ~hetein is fully explained The Mystery of f!Jo.rough Bass; with Many
.·••.. '1thet M"1eripl 'f'hifigs. very rarely giv~n/o Sch.olars By the '{eachers of Music to which is added Exact Rules for Tuning the
;#O,tpsichord: With all the different-sized Wires used in that Instrument; 2d ed. (Londqn: Falkener, 1774). 43.
61
A lexandei Malcolm was a Scottish mathematician, theorist; and writer born in 1685, the same yearas. J. S. Bach.
Malcolm died in America in 1763. Sir John Hawkins (1719-1789), a friend of Handel and one of England's
greatest music historians, .considered Malcolm's 'Yrl.ti:pgs on l'ractical music to be the most valuable (jf the time.
On page 306 of Mab;c;ilm's Treatise of Musick;,.' J1t.ere is a hea~ing that reads: •'Of the common ¥eftl(jd of Tuning
Spinets, demonstrating the Provortions that occur in it; and of the Pretence of a nicer Method considered.'' Alexander
Malcolm W(lS describing two differing styles of temperament here.. Th~ surprising aspect of this is that the ''nicer Method''
which appears to have been a new system under con~ideration was the already centuries-old meantone temperament.
On p~g~ 307 Malcolm wrote, "others that affect a gte~t~~\:to.ficety pretend to diminish all the 5ths, and make them
deficient about a Quarter of a Comma." On page 312 he 'considered "the Pretences of the nicer Kind of Musicians;
they tell us~ Thatin tuning by 06taVeSi and 5ths, they diminish all the 5ths by a Q~arter of a Comma, or near it."
Notice that Malcolm wrote ''about''a quarter of a.commaand also ''near'' a quat,tet of a comma, .and that a circle
of octaves and fifths was trsed:' Ott1P'lige 3l2'be wrote '.'That it must be an extraordinary Ear that can Judge. exactly
of a QU(lrter Comma~~:J!~ ()bviously lrn~'YV the t~th tl!aln<:> one was able to temper by exactly one-fourth comma
by ear. Considering the latter, the temperament instructions in Section 16 of the present work are doubtless the closest
to what the "nicer" tuners in 1721 were doing.
Malcolm wrote that •'the common Method of Tuning Spinets'' was to tune an the fifths just (except G-sharp E-flat).
He then devoted seven pages to a thorough analysis of what twentieth-century tuners call the medieval Pythagorean
tuning. On page 307 he wtot~ 1 "Some and even the Getterality who deal with this Kind oflf1strument, tune not only
their Octaves, but also their 5ths as perfectly Concord as their Ear can judge, and consequently make the 4ths perfect,
which indeed· makes a gr~!lt ~any f!rtt)rS'·'.irt·the other,ln~e~~S'·of 9d ~''6tb:'" 1
;iih:e,Pythagoreanconeept"of>tuninf'is'Sevefal thousand years old. Next to this, the meantone tempefament certainly
was something newly considered; however. Malcolm may have been deceived by what ''Some and even the Generali-
ty" we~e doing. On. pa~e·n~ he admits '''fhat some Practicefs upo~ Haresichords hav~told me they always tune
thei£5'lli~p'erteH, ancff1na'ffietr Iiistruriienfanswefvery Welf"'Noti& thai'On bOlli pages 307 and 313, Malcolm really
did not write "all" their fifths, but this is probably what he meant. This, of course, would have been a contradiction.
For the harpsichords to "answer very well" was an impossibility if all the fifths were tuned just. In this late period
of history, it is inconceivable that a majority of the tuners w9uld have been tuning all their fifths perfect in just intona-
tion. If they were, tlu~irharpsich0crds wo1dd not have "answered" at all.. ·
Beginn¢g witfiwritings in 1681, Andreas. Werckmeister revealed that excellent systems for the well-tempered clavier
were possible when around eight pure fifths were used in the temperament. This style of tempering creates orderly
variety in the keys. Ev~n though the early English theorists neglected to discuss Werckmeister's many publications,
it is certain that the Continental musicians constantly settling in or traveling to London for the concert opportunities
importaj Germ(lll influence. mcJmJmg the i-;I~a of performiJ.lgill all ttje keys without retuning or encountering false
wolf intervals. In condusion, the "Generality" of the tuners were tuning only a majority but not all eleven of "their
5ths as perfectly Concord. as their Ear can judge." This was "the common Method of Tuning Spinets."
As previously mentioned, the well temperament style contains variety, and this is what Alexander Malcolm was
describing when on page 313 he wrote, ''Tis true they cannot deny that the same Song will not go equally well from
every Key, which argues still the Imperfection of the Instrument; but there is no Song but they can find some Key
· ·····m11r·wflf''answ0r.··t·eo1fcefffiifg'f'm8flfg'i"Pf<YitefVwe1t::r"m~mf'liey rora·pmTfnratsong, rs.
Bacnis·tmown to have
placedNarious.en(ties.. in.hi&,.Jlt';l W.e.llr:.Tewperetl {'fallit!t thatwere composed 41 keys other than the ones.that were. finally
,,.. · "'"X'f>Y"n't?r!'0":1Y ·~'" «· •..• ,,, ,. "''' •.•., ,.. , ,
JI). Tempetliment Cdndition$ln 1721
a strikifig example of how "the same s(mg w,iU not go equally well from every Key,'' transpose I. s.
.B~ichc.s !Pr(:fmjeand in C maj()t from the first volun!e'!)f The WeU~TemJ>.ered Clavier into:. C-sharp major in well
extrem~lY: dissonaJit It sounds. Conversely, transpose Bach's Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp
into C major notice how dead and lifeless it sounds.
318 Malcolm Wrote, ''The DiffereneeS! a»,Jon.g the Semit~rles, i~ the best tuned Instruments, is the Reason
that a go better from one Note or Key of the Instrument than another.''· He also wrote, .: 'Because the Semi-
tones· are· very near equal, therefore.in Practice(upon such Instruments at least) ·they are all ·accounted equal.'' These
descriptions apply only to well temperament. In any meantone temperament one can clearly hear that the chromatic
scale is quite uneven, but not in well temperament. Malcolm explained that "in the best tuned Instruments" some
ofthe intervals were still "false." On page 311, Malcolm explained that all thirds and sixths altered by a syntonic
comma were "false." This included the 81:64 ditone or Pythagorean major third. Werckmeister and the Germans
as many as forty years earlier had acknowledged that these intervals were acceptable as consonant intervals as long
as they were placed in certain lesser-used keys. As proof ofthis acceptable consonance in well temperament, perform
the Preludes and Fugues in E-flatminor and also in B-flat minor from the first volume of J. S. Bach's The Well· Tempered
Clavier. Along with the smoother sounding effects, notice that among the black keys the minor triads sound more
minor while the major triads sound more major than what we are accustomed to. This augments the expressive effects.
Bach's first volume of The Well~Tempered Clavier was finished one year after the publication of Malcolm's Treatise
of Musick.
Alexander Malcolm obviously disliked the well-temperament idea, for he wrote on page 313 that the system "argues
still the Imperfection of the Instrument." It was not meant for ''the nicer Kind of Musicians." He therefore quickly
speculated on the advantages of equal temperament within the same paragraph on page 313. He wrote, "lf a very
just and accurate Ear can diminish the Errors, so as to make them yet smaller and more equal thro' the whole Instru-
ment, I will not say." In other words, he was not sure that anyone could tune equal temperament by ear. Next he
explained that the purpose was to ''make more of Octaves like other, and consequently make it an indifferent Thing
whichof these Keys, that are brought to such a Likeness, you begin your Song at." By the word "Octave" as used
here, Malcolm meant diapason or the whole diatonic scale. He also left out the word 'each' between "like" and "other."
This could then have read, ''make more of scales like each other.'' Clearly, Malcolm was explaining that all the scale
effects in equal temperament are identical; therefore, it should make no difference in what key you perform a piece.
Next Malcolm wrote, "even these cannot deny that aSong will do better from one Key than another; so that the
are not removed even as to Sense." By the word "these," Malcolm meant an those who were pretending
to tune equal temperament in 1721. In other words, Malcolm heard a variety of effects among the keys in all the equal
temperament attempts that he had the privilege to examine. From our present knowledge of acoustics, we know that
this would have been true.
On page 314, Alexander Malcolm wrote, "That tho' the Octave may be divided into 12 equal Semitones by ge-
ometrical Methods, that is, 13 Lines may be constructed, which shall be in continued geometrical Proportion, and
greatest to the least be as 2 1, yet none o{ these Numbers, ands() 'tis impossible
"·l."h"·''"u a " But that not make
the Semitones exactly tho' they may be sensiby so in a single Comparison of one with another.'' This explained
why "supposing them equal, the Doctor the same Song will stand better at one Key than another." What the
previous means is that Dr. John Malcolm both organs tuned in
temperament from mathematically correct monochords. Even though they could not hear where the consecutive semi-
were at all they knew were not equal" because the music was better in some than
in others. Copying tones from monochords produces inaccurate results.
On page 318, Malcolm explained. that the problems of temperament or bearing were ''not from the Nature of the
System of Musick it self, but the Accident of limiting it to fixt Sounds" of keyboard instruments.
On page 317, Malcolm wrote, ''These Semitones may be made in exact Proportions, according to the Methods above
explained; or the Instrument tun'd by the Ear." By these words, Malcolm meant that theoretically correct tempering
in 1721 was done by copying tones from monochords. At that time it was to tune theoretically correct by
ear, but "practical Musicians" generally tuned "by the Ear. " 2
On page 339, Malcolm wrote. thanhere is a "Consort Pitch," and "there is a certain generally agreed upon,
that differs not very much in the Practice of any one Nation or Set of Musicians from another." This indicates that
Alexander Makohn was aware of Continental music practices.
NOTES
63
he s.·t·y•. I. . ~:o. t.he.. · .so··.ca1 ·~.~·.· g·.·o.od· · ·.:o·r······c·o.r.·r·e··c.Hun···i··m.··. ·st.em..s..fu.t.e.rid. ~Cl.. fi·o·.·r tlie··. ·.we.U·.tem···..·.;.P~.red.·c.·.·.lavi·e· r....· as. o·.utl·..in··.·e.din
.. .J.. the.earlier
' T. " .. f.· g.··.··s···.··y·i···.
writings .of A11dreas Werckmeister Jias c9rrie to be known in the twentieth centucy: as '.'well teml'era-
11),~nt.'; 1 .. The .llisto.rical bas~s. o.f .this w'~ ~e grow~g need during the late. seventeenth centucy: for ability to perform
ill; ~U th~·ke}!s.Qr tO'.Mllities wi9fo.U• festJ,i,:l:t'?l1s (Ji; .~\~~r~CeS:. Jlowever, inusicjans ~f the time were pleased a.net content
wi\ll.~ti,SJ.Qse-:to::P\lr~ 1h.ir4S'. an<tsjx,tl:!.s ip.t~e ttad.itku~at meantone t~mper,aments. Actu~lfy, pr~sent-day musicians also
tenet to 'pr,efer these qumikpµfe .inte~a,~ ~~ce tli~~ have. ~ad 9fe opportuni~y .to get atcustomed .to them.
The prn~Iem with any rneanfone ty~~Qftemp~~~ment is thl.lt the following intervals are discords or wolves: G-sharp
E~flat, :Sij~n~t~ F·sbarp n,:.fiat? C7s~arp F, ®d G-sJlarp c. ~evertheless, musici~s of the past were reluctant to give
up the har,rrionfo\ls eff~ts caused t>y the remaining eight q11asi~pure major thirds pei; octave. However, a compromise
~ven(l,!a1%h~~rne ~e~t}ssl.l~·· ''file ~h~Ienge was to re~in as m'111Y of the q11asi-pure major thirds in the commorily
q§~J\~tdt1.tl 4.i11fot;li~ .~ey$,. ~~. p~ssiofe)~~~ile at tlte. sam~ .\iffie allowing pne to modulate .throug)l all the keys.
fu the or· I nieantone ~~mperaments0; the two maNr thirds. CB at1d JS· <lsharp were excelle.nt in tiarmoniousness,
but the~Uwi.. .. . .•f<l~fi'.':$.~~.~. w~~.tOOdissQ!.\'111~ q~ ~:mt::IJ{~tUIJe so~~9ID$t6l.ll~~. ll~ a. f()1:J.S()~~!!t.rriajor third A-flat
C. 'fhe . 11),atlj~ffil.lti~~ l)asiS'Q~~~s problem.i$.tl1atth.e third'powerofthe majorthird nltfo 5:4 ~qes not equal the octave
ratio 2:1. In other words, l.953125 does not equal 2. This rrieans that three just intonatiQn major thirds can never
equal a just octave.
ln w~UtemJ?eriun~nts~ the rnajor tljircl .CE.was ch~geq very little frorn the original me'1lttone temperaments. The
majol' tliird EU-sharp was theri comproll),ised to be idugllly as ltatsh as our rnaclert1 equal temperament major thirds.
This resulted in the former diminished fourth G-sharp C becoming tolera1:>le enough to be used as the consonant major
th.·. a·!:~.tl t:C lt wis;:ut~.tt .;f()J;l• a•idsfi·int6ttatimt tml~~r:;third. Ttli9.·was musically
.Ut ·· .. ·~·•::"·.···.··•····•·····.•
.e~1.1:mthe .. .· . . •·";·:···:...
· ~en·a. . atwasasrnuchasadiesis(almosttwocemmas)toowide
. ••"'••················.··:· ··"· .·
.
. .· .... ma111 ·.· three sets ()(major thir9.s e l.llte.raj)n a similar ?1al1fler. The. res.ults were that the 67 percent
~!;'~t~~r:l;~;ma1ne!· . . .. . .. l£*~~a~~~~JiiI~~~~lfe~~~1f !:1:z::~,~~~~!r!=~~~~
This wa~ pl"oper beca,qse these are the most used harmo11ies. The intervals among the chromatic or altered keys became
quite Pythagorean. whfoh is also ari ancierit he~itage, The cb~ging, cbqrd col(}t$ wete a,rt:anged in an ortierly variety.
Thus, well temperament strongly su . 9. th~.~~~a9ters of the keys; . ·
One w()uld think
that ~;~ti~de~ en.ts Cluffin«t above would have caused increased complications and difficulties
for the fUller ~'Nevertheless, the effect was. the opposite. Tempering became easier. fu the seventeenth century, meantone
terri,p;er~ent had been·tu11~ ~Y. m,e~s of the. Merseilne-Holder type bearing plans. Octaves and fifths were used because
most mqsicians had. not learned
how to hear beats in thirds. This means that it was necessary for tuners to temper eleven
notes in the bearing section in meant011e temperament (see Sectfon 16), .When well temperament ~as adopted, it was
discovered that. one couhUet anywhere from six to ten fjfths remain.in just into11atiori. Theresults were that it was then
neces~lll'Y tQ temper £Irily five notes or less in well temperainent. This mearis that well temperament was two or more
times easier t() tune than meantone. tempetamerit, and it was incQmparably easier than equal temper;nnent .
.The.J~rge. 11\lffi~r 0i'pure fifihs.i11.1he origit1al.Werckmeister type well temperaments being practiced is what deceived
Alexander Malcolm in 1721 into thinking that ''the common Method of Tuning Spinets'' was Pythagorean tuning.
. T~~l!~!~~Jy, fot th!.~.r,~i:!.~~!! well te!!!~!~ent Cf)Ulti ~~.!!!~.~. as a te,~e'~ ~~ago~e'111 s~stem. .IJ!storically. it is
more acdirate to class well temperainentasa mdd:iftedof com}1rbmls~Cl meant(jite'ternperament; it wll's meantone tem'-
11,!~e~~·aiter@d, ~~~.!2~!~~iseti:::~~l~:~t~at one couldl»OOulate freely thi:ough all the keys~ ....
'> .• , 'th,~ cpnnnatic ·s~ale in tn()st wen teJ11p(!taments sound~ quite even. Fo,rthis re~son, wen. teTpetament w~s often
> .~eported ~sbeing eqµa~ temperament. OccasionaUy, this h~pp~ns even today, As an example, read the section entitled
· "What the Tide 'WelFfempered Clavier' Me~ns'' on page 6 of Joseph Banowetz's edition of J. S. Bach's music,
The. Well-Tempered Clavier. 3 Of course, weU temperament is not equal temperament, and Werckmeister did not in-
clude equal temperament as one of the goad and correct s:}'stefilS in. l 69J. More proper and up~to-date information
is found on pages 3 and 4 of Willard A. Palmer's edition ofJ. S. Ba~h's The Well-Tempered Clavier. 4 (See Section 182.)
Well temperament contains key~coloring and an orderly variety in the sizes ofmajor thirds and other intervals. When
triads are performed through a series of root movements a fourth or fifth apart, the chord-colors change gradually
and evenly in well temperament. None of this exists in equal temperament. The problem for many music historians
been that they can not comprehend the existence of a tuning system that will permit completely free modulation
through all the tonalities and at the same time is not equal temperament. (For a continuing study of well temperament
and the characters of the keys, read Section 42.)
Andreas Werckmeister published a theory for the well-tempered clavier, and he also furnished examples in monochord
.Qllitm1ces. The majority of keyboard musicians, however, tuned by ear. Therefore, this book will present aural tuning
·~"'"""'""'"'"for early well temperament that are more authentic than the results of precisely following Werckmeister's
monochord distances. The basis of this is as follows: Musicians of the seventeenth century were accustomed to the
Holder bearing plan, and there is no indication that they altered it when they gradually converted from meantone to
well temperament. Since the purpose was to retain the traditional values in the natural diatonic keys, there was no
reason to make any changes in the meantone temperament procedures until the chromatic keys were tuned. Most likely,
tuners concentrated on widening the major thirds in the natural keys a small amount without changing their effects
very much. This was done in order to improve thirds like A-flat C as much as possible. Therefore, in the example
given in this book, the instructions previously given in Section 16 are followed with two exceptions. First, the basic
equal-beating rate for the fifths was reduced from 1.4 to 1. I beats per second or the equivalent of 66 on the metronome.
This prevents the diminished sixth, G-sharp E-flat from becoming wide, which would cause harmonic waste. Also,
this keeps the diminished fourths within the safety margin for not being more than one syntonic comma wider than
just intonation major thirds. Second, all the chromatic tones beginning with F-sharp are tuned by means of just intona-
tion fifths. This is an exceptionally conservative system based on Werckmeister principles.
This is a highly authentic well temperament that is based more on the actual tuning techniques of the past than. on
monochord theory alone. Nevertheless, it is not the definitive well temperament. There were innumerable varieties
of this history, perhaps as many varieties as there were tuners, and the well '"'"'"'"'·r_
ament presented in book is one single example. It requires the tempering of only six notes; therefore, it is
as easy as the meantone temperament tuned by seventeenth-century methods.
This development was most natural. It must have become common practice by the 1720s in England. Nevertheless,
no Englishman at that time described it specifically or laid claim to it. Alexander Malcolm's writing in 1721 came
closest. William Jones later described this temper~ment in 1781, and he wrote that the Italian Francesco Antonio Vallotti
(1697-1780) was its originator. (See Sections 48 through of the No doubt there was an originator
of In will m book as '
Temperament."
The following chart.lists the sizes in ce.nts of the major thirds from the Vallotti well temperament. Notice the
h?!rni""'i" balance. A review of last on page 45 would be in the term 'harmonic
balance.' The tuning instructions are in Section 21.
Table 20-1: Equal-beating Well Temperament Tuned by Francesco Antonio Vallotti's Rules.
FA 391.73856 5.42485
CE 392.47541 6.16169
GB 393.46221 7.14850
DF-sharp 396.70943 10.39572
AC-sharp 40L04856 14. 73485
EG-sharp 403.94737 17.63365
BE-flat
F-sharp B-flat
G-sharp C
F
407.21288
407.21288
407.21288
403.57723
] the
same
size [ 20.89916
20.89916
20.89916
17.26351
E-flat G 13.01120
B-flat D 396.07769 9.76397
FA 391.73856 5.42485
s·
Of=# "'
;:;;·
CZ)
.s-~
GB ~Jfe
CE (lj~
'>o~r:s
FA.
LI
The sllJa,Jtest thi(d
Figure 20-1: The: Form of Welt Temperament Tuned by Francesco Antonio Vallotttts R'e11es Using the Equat,..beating Method.
Compare with Figure 15-2.
NOTES
l. Study Andreas Werckmeister's Musicalische Temperatur.
2. Wt!fckipefster . Erw.~itef(e ·wul Vm·besserre.· Orgel~Profte,· ~r00 •0 00
3'. J6sephBanow~tz, e~;;A:n·lntrOdutti~·'.tf>"thBWell}femp~redfJlavier: SelectedJ>reluaesand Fugues (San Diego: Neil A. Kjos,

Jr., 1979}.
4i. Willard A.. Palmer,. ed., J, S. daih, The Well-Tempered Clavier:, yol, I (Sherman Oaks, Calif.: Alfred Publishing Company,
Inc~. 1981). · ·
;:;{1c,·' ~'%~:'
AAi~·· ...•,~. .~-

.l•rn·E·"'.n··Tr;,~'t:t.:E!t·~B''ftruniwu.
31,11:, ·<ft~I· :&!t ·'1' , ·:.1,..1!1.m. ·.
,~nx~~.m
. ''.'·"~'~w··.·
.~~,i'Jf',~,·.,·•·t
~·~A.t;:,!f.1,.WJft·I;l·.
·\ ...
tm·· ·n.''''.t.•
...,, 1n.•
.. .,_l\.T'I" t
··JIU··
B.Ef~ R.l)Jl.L~JrDAAL~.l.~tl'~ •
1. The instructions on page 40 include the William Holder bearing plan and the Gottfried Keller ''tryalls.·· Follow
these instructions, but ignore some of the instructions for flattening or sharpening. Instead, temper some or all of
the natural diatonic key fifths (white key fifths) narrow to varying degrees as needed, and tune the remaining fifths
pure or c~ose to pure.
2. Make sure that the natural diatonic key tnajor thirds sound closest to pure (because they are used most) while at
the same time do not allow the four diminished fourths among the black keys to become more than one syntonic
comma wider than just major thirds. Majdr thirds. more th.an one syntonic comma larger than pure were considered
in poor taste, although there is evidence that some of this was done on the Continent.
3. During every tempering step, check the color effects of various intervals and chords. Make appropriate alterations
by relying on good taste and fostinct for maldng aesthetic judgments based on musical. experience.
4. When finished, check the sound of the dimini~hed sixth G-sharp E-flat which was not directly tempered. Make
certain that it is Mt a wolf.
5. Perform a series of all the Iflajor triads progressi~g it.i root ml)Vements a fourth or a fifth apart in order to determine
if the varying effects change evenly and gradually 11ccording to tradition. ·
'6; Forthose whotackthe true seventeenth- and eighteenth~century environtn:ental·Mnditioning necessary for aestheti-
cally applying the instructions above, use the instructions in Section 22. The beat frequencies were calculated for
use with a C tunfog fork at standard pitch, the C equivalent of A=440 Hz. If a lower pitch is used, reduce the
beat frequencies proportionately. ·
NOTE
1. As an optional alternative, one may fQUow the instructiQl\s in. Ses;tjons 49 or:Z~l gf th{) present work
67
Compare. with Section 16.
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
Temper the first five fifths narrow so that each of them beats 1. 1 times per second. This is 66 on the metronome.
Ttihe Ct6
standard pitth. Test intervals Tuned
Tune (Figures denote before Tune
l ! just beats per second)
!
just
!
r r
2.2
112= r
... 1.1
r t I~< f l!t
t
Flatten
l
Flatten
· c·'Tutted
.befom..
Equal be;ting
l
1.1
l.t
1.1
2;2
3.4
6.9
u2= f f II r r ~ ~
~ I [
~ II
i
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l 1.1 2.3 4.7 6.2 l

~---tf--1---F"'----1f------t-=-~-·
- f-------------+-~ t-=j --+!---JI
i
Flatten
i
Tune
just
Hatten
Tuned
before
0.0 4.4 8.8 9.4
i
Tune
just
Equal beating
8.4
8.4 ~ .
r
Tune
just
Tuned
Tuned before
before
i
Tune
i
Sharpen
just
Tuned
before
i
Equal beating Equal beating
l.1
1.1 2.7
l
Ii~= f f Ir r
49
11 r f
i
Tune
just
22. ·T/Jttirig .Francesco Antonio Vallotti 's Temperament
Tuned
before
Tune
just
Tuned Previously
before the old wolf
1 !
Equal beating
8.1
l~~--1--4·--+-=p~-::==-~)--%-+---02__:__·.¥[
i
Tune
i
Quasi-pure
just
Previously
the old wolf
Tuned
before
1
l 0.2 0.0
11.2
11.2
Tune
i
Quasi-pure
just
The following intervals will be very bright and rather harsh, but they should be within the range of
JJeefection Of Eighteerith-Century Tempera me*
The following chords should sound good because they are equal-beating. This gives them a rhythmic harmoniousness.
Roughly 15
(Beats per second) Exa1;tly equal beating
9A 16.8
Quasi-equal beating
Perform a series of all the major triads progressing in root movements a fourth or a fifth apart in order to determine
if the varying effects change evenly and gradually.
Tune the remainder of the instrument by means of just octaves from the sample notes within the bearing section
from C below middle C to F-sharp above middle C.
Table 22-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of Equal-beating Vallotti Well Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Equal-beating Vallotti Rounded Figures
G-sharp plus 3.00356 +3
G plus 3.67635 +4
F plus 8.26144 +8
E minus 0.94380 -1
E·flat 4.35144 +4
D plus 2.38413 +2
C-sharp plus l.04856 +l
c plus 6.58079 +7
B minus 2.86144 -3
comp,are this table with Table 16~1.

Observe that this is more than half way toward
eo11ru,,oc:~at1n12: meantone It is almost tvvo-thirds of the toward
Pietro Aaron temperament.
23
ROGER NORTH'S ATTEMYr TO WRITE HELPFUL
AND THOROUGH TONING INSTRUCTIONS IN 1726
·..
R oger North (1653-1734) was a younger brother of Francis North, lord chancellor and the first Baron Guilford.
• .· . . . ·
Both were sons of the fourth Baron Dudley North, Another brother of Roger was Sir Dudley North, the great
English economist. Roger North was a lawyer who became solicitor general in 1684. As an independently wealthy
gentleman, he spent most of his life writing. He is known mostly for his Lives of the Norths. He also wrote very exten-
sively on music, including the practical, theoretical, and historical elements. Historians have found that his writings
contain a vast reservoir of information concerning seventeenth- and eighteenth-century performance practices.
In the 1726 revision of his still unpublished essay, Theory of Sounds, North included an example of the most practi-
caltuning instructions possible in this period of history. As expected, no beat frequency numbers were given. Without
the specific numbers of beats, the instructions included the usual abstract phrases like ''bearing ... a litle flatter,''
"rather ... sharp," "less bearing than the former," "a tollerable bearing fifth," "bear as much as may be ... to
a tollerable effect," "a small matter too flatt," "it may be allowed to sink a litle," and triads must contain ''elegance. " 1
Using these kinds of descriptions, North gave a detailed account of how to temper each note of the scale. The beginning
of his bearing plan was the same as Gottfried Keller's except that it was transposed from C to F. Like Keller, North
tuned major thirds directly.
Since these instructions were intended to actually teach harpsichordists how to tune their own instruments, North
gave descriptions on how to hear beats. Nevertheless, concerning tempering the fifths, he explained that the best way
was to listen to one's own voice while singing. In other words, one was to temper melodically as had been done for
centuries. Had the acoustics of beats and the techniques of listening to them been fully in the eighteenth
century, Roger North would have written beat frequencies into his bearing rather than on abstract
,.... v,.,,,,.."'' that some tuneiswere fifths and that the should
"'""""'''" ''i--Taking the from theoretical meantone tem_perament as
an example, quaver note) speed would be 96 on the metronome when modern standard pitch is used. In
both the equal-beating meantone temperament and the equal-beating triad (Keller) meantone temperament, the metro-
nome speed for FC at standard pitch is 84. Since of slow was so North found the usual
abstract descriptions to be more accurate for teaching purposes.
these instructions without the of known numbers of beats could allow number of
of meantone temperament to result. Individuality was a privilege that tuners of past centuries enjoyed. In Roger North's
case, his mark of individuality was that his fifth B-flat F.was in just intonation. In theoretically correct temperament,
the fifths DA and C-sharp would also have been just if the major thirds B-flat D, FA, DF-sharp, and
were the same size. Usually they were not, since Roger North's fourth AD was only sometimes just. No special men-
tion of exactness was given for the fifth F-sharp C-sharp. Therefore, the was The ,.,,.,_.,,.,"''"'!'.
for assuring that major thirds were identical .in size did not exist at the time. Other than for sound of
the effect of most of North's intervals must have been similar to an average between the results of the temperament
systems presented in Sections 16 and 18.
For tuning Roger North's the easiest way would be to follow the method outlined in Section 14 of
this book, except that you must not temper B-flat. Instead, tune B-flat just to F. The more difficult but authentic way
would be tofolfow North's exachvords and hope them note to note. For these
ms,tru:cuon:s. read pages 206-12 from North on Music the years
He admitted
c;. 1695-1728 (London:
·rm·AMotiNr•THAT''l1E~~.WitL.PERMIT'!
ON WIDE MAJOR THIRDS IN 1731
.
P eter Prelleur (?-1755?) was an organist and harpsichordist who composed music for voice and the theater. He
is known for his series The Modem Musick-Master. 1 This collection of books was considered a valuable com-
pe,idium on how to sing and to play the flute, German flute, hautboy, violin, and harpsichord. Instructions were also
given for transposing, fingering, thorough-bass, and tuning. This compendium also contained music for instruction
called lessons, a history of music, and a dictionary of music.
On page 48 of The Harpsichord Illustrated and lmprov:'d (Book VI of The Modem Musick-Master) one finds the
''Rules for tuning the Harpsichord or Spinnett." These instructions were modeled after Gottfried Keller's rules, pub-
lished in 1707, though no acknowledgment was given to Keller. In the 1731 edition of William Holder's A Treatise
of the Natural Grounds, and Principles of Harmony, Keller's rules were also reprinted but with no alterations and
in this, Keller received full acknowledgment arid credit. Perhaps Keller received no credit from Prelleur because the
cha11ges that Prelleur made were improvements in efficiency, thus making the rules somewhat Prelleur's invention.
Prelleur omitted the high G and therefore shortened the temperament section span by two notes. This was one note
fe\\(er than the abridged Mersenne-Holder bearing plan outlined previously in this book. Prelleur also tuned the octave
FF directly and lowered E-flat an octave for easier tempering and testing. The five octaves and eight PreHeur' s
bearing plan are identical in· note placement to the abridged Holder bearing plan outlined on page 38 of this book.
Instead of being a circle of octaves and fifths, the Prelleur was. a circle of octaves and major triads.
Peter Prelleur wrote on page 48, "Observe that all sharp Thirds must be as sharp as ye Ear will permit and all
Fifths a.s flat as the Ear will permit.'' This was an almost exact copy of Gottfried Keller's words from 1707 (see page
55 of the present work). Nevertheless, the meaning of the words concerning major thirds had changed. In Keller's
most musicians could not thirds that very that were most
were meant to the most used thirds
tempered much more, wpile the seldom-used thirds were improved enough that they could be used more fre-
quently. The seldom-used thirds (the old diminished fourths) were still tempered more than our modern equal-tempered
major tolerable even though the
tuning rules had remained the same on paper, the basic temperament had changed from meantone temperament to well
temperament. The change was not to equal The in was still
major thirds first while listening to their quality rather than listening to specific beats and narrowing the fifths by micro-
a.mounts. Evidences of the above, change are outlined in the following.
On page 13 of A Brief History bf Musick 2 Prelleur wrote, ''There are yet several other Systems besides these already
mentioned but espcially one worth more observation than the rest, which is what the Italians call Systema Temperato
or Participato by reason of its being grounded upon Temperament that is to say, the increasing of certain Intervals,
and consequently the decreasing of others, which make it partake both of Diatonic & Chromatic Systems." It is
frustrating that on page 15 Prelleur wrote, ''How much the Fifth ought to be diminished to arrive to this Temperament,
is what I won't determine in this place, several having already handled that subject very learnedly.'' Of course, without
our modem technology, Prelleur had no way of determining how much he was instinctively narrowing his fifths by
ear - It is significant that he was no longer repeating the words 'as much as a quarter of a Comma.'
Onpage l of The and lmprov'd, PreUeur wrote, ''the short that is between G & A
serves both for and A-flat; the short key between A & B serves also for A-sharp and B-flat, etc." Notice
for either A-flat and both at the same time.
the """"'"°'~-
that ·•s;wof.ds
~~s~atiY:.~ey.sitou."cl'krtow all
· few ~it9rial changes
. · tutting well tem-
. .~ .tceys as being "practica-
l!lth . . ·~ ·. by P . . rs ~en ence, . ic a~ . k'd with a Cross under them
are ~eldom used.'• Keller had listed only eighteen major and minor keys in. his examples. Of these, only six major
~It~ sl,X minor key~ were considered commonly used by Keller. In contrast to this, Prelleur listed twenty-one major
ana mht s ip: th~e sante exatJ1ples. P'relleur still omitted the keys C-sharp major, F-sharp major, and E-flat minor
no doubt . ·. s~·there was so liffl~ mti~i~ wti:Uen for these keys in 1731. By that time, however, musicians were per-
forming in all the keys Qccaidonillyf ana·no le1$We~~·sel(.f~91~sedt in tlle transposition processes. Therefore, Prelleur
oniltted. t1t:at sent.ence. Prelleur also expanded Keller~ s key signahire exan1ples of five sharps and five flats. to six sharps
and six flats. Using mQre than five sharps or flats is impracticable in meantofie temperament because there are only
five short keys (black keys} on the keyboard .
. .D1;1rln~. !he\,seventeenth centu~, jtiusici~s us~g rn~tQrte tef1lpe~ament prepared their ins~ments by tuning the
ptoper sfiatps1or flats needed 'ft1r'vari6u~ c'1Jliposiiib~s~ ~san examp1~· for his Sonata No. 3 in c Mlijot! fortWo treble
re~~rders,fwooboes orviol:ii1s; and
basso contmtto, Keller tuned an F-sharP, B~t1at, E-flat, and A-flat on the short
orraiset1keys:·Ttie :tfiQs.i<!:s~Yed\Vithm tJte.se.linlltatfoi'fs. One' G..:sfiatp appeared, but in this case it.was unessential an
passirigrfote. ·Th~ tufiing•m;this ~Ilse for Gisllatp was ir?t important. •This .sonl}ta was 1wri~11 in 1698: }1or his Sonata
N(). lit) DMaj?r for tr~mI?et or ob?e* strings, and continub, K~ller tuned all the raised or short keys as sharps, and
there were no c9nfficts 'in atty meantone:te1nperament5Ih coiurast t() this; Prelleur' s five lessolts oh pages 4~47 alter-
nat~d between ·using 'many•shatps atrd rllttfiy flats. If wo1rtd have been1impracticable to do all the constant retuning
betwee~ fhe sharps ~d fla~s.that meatito~e temperament required. Ttie problem was solved in the eighteenth century
by ad<>pting· well te:tfiJ?erameim • · ..·. . ... . ....•
· FoUowirlg Prelfour~s hinirig rules literally, an infiiiite number oftempetamertts became possible. It is therefore difficult
to finds represe~~ti\l~'sam~le ()fhbw Mlleur'tUiled'.One litefaJ irtterptemtfotHsequaltemperament, but the technology
for runii1g eqt1al temtJ'ramt~t ~fihs' by eat'did'ifi()fexist~' The few musfoiartsi or. tuners who listened to the beats of
fifths l1SS!lmed ()l~t .were tempering. tliett• fifths alilCe if they tempered them to beat the same speeds, Using this
pffflo~<ipffy•wtfffef ...· .... ·i·Ra1ifer"&f'l1fe"Pieliittr/l5Mi'ins :pioos in llli•. attempt fo tun~ equal temperament, one would
need td temper each fifth to beat 0.596486269 beats per second at the mooern standard pitch~ This is approximately
36 on the metrontlfilet 'l'he results are a •rough quasr-.equaltemperament;
Certainlyl1relleurdidnothle~ for his· rules to be applied to equal temlJerament any more than had Gottfried Keller.
lfiei,ner of 'them h~d so intended~ they·would have"~ified·this·in theirinsfructions; Peter Prelleur actually directly
tempered only six fifths and six major thirds, resulting ii1 only eight tempered major triads. These temperament rules
could not have suffi~ed.·~for±.equal tehlpelam~nt.. »or•th ns:eroiqq~tiil iame~><llleUemi•wowEJ:;have had to
Ji&t:fl~::ti>miiiiij>i&~~J&,~:•&j&t;'thi• 'ill~ .. . Xtil!IUS' to Ii . . &· oHryats~ He did list two extra
major thirds artd two extra fifth.~ that were suffldynt for tests in well temperament.11le eight major triads that Prelleur
tempered. were the~same•·eight1tria'ds that· ha<' been. ltadit1onal in m~antonei•·temperattient··for· sevet.al· hundred· years.
tpcmtelttstonl';:Pre1l~"S''ftt§''11ft~~~·~tm~tmli1Jf1tlfellflf~t tllltlis·anafffth!''illJplf~<f·MJY to'the Hmited•ttumbet of inter-
vals that he actually tel1lpered directly i~ his bearing plan.
AnOther interpretation is the assumption that a well temperament was the goal! whereby ele.vefi fifths. (n<>tinctuding
G-sharp E-tlat) were each tempered to beat ex~ctly the same speed in the llnlder or Pre1leut bearing plans. If a beat
freq~~ncy'?f 1.. 0 }let s~~~nd.is~~ose~, tli~~ the·oltfdiminlshed fourths resulfin being somewhat more than a comma
wide . .Thi,~ W()fil<f·~.i:npoortaste~ Also, ttie diminished sixth·G~sharp E-flat would be 13. 16458 cents wide, too wide
to be acceptablt; Tber'efore, this type of tuning would be classed as a form of meantone temperament. The truth for
Prelleuris thus less than LO beat per second but more than 0;6 beat per second. At a beat frequency of0.9 per second
for fifths, the d1lltitdshed fourth~ are ea~h reduced tu being a sbad" more than one syntonic comma wider than just
intonation major thit:ds.: Thi~ f~ tolerable: The· dilninlshecf ~ixth G..:sharp E~ fiat is reduced to being 9 :48523 cents wider
thanajust intonation fifth;'andthis·istolerabtet>ut still rough. (The traditional seventeenth-century quarter comma
narrow fifths were on}y the~retically. alter~ by 5 .377 cents each.} The harmonic balance or form of this temperament
is f()Ugh with crude: changes that disrupt the color sequences. Overall, this temperament is not satisfactory as a representative
W'eltrempermnent:Jtt)wever;··m·acceptfifthsbeatrng·m·a.8orfessper·secon<ri!ltoapproacfftffe·unitifonaooequaltem-
Petattient to.o closely.. ·
·•• !ffte~calway'ttl'Mtel'f'fft'the··Ptellm··m~ 1s··as•foltows:•·Pfr5t; Prelleuf~§iffstmcti6fiS•a15PJy·onryt0 the·.six fifths and
~Y!;. ~.iot.!!t~. ~tb~.~~~~Q~r~bik~!ly.'fb.~ r®Jilinmgtwo fifths at\d.two~jor Qtirds.m'l'.~.U~ut~s. ~g plan
······•(%·····•F·•••;; ......... • ""S··'' .1;,''.\J<>•. ·;~R;i;0Lfld~)ll;l$;/;1,'l!,t;\~;Js,__fj,i:J•)'.,,"lf-f\ in:cti'W<''.fotYi1k;$'i\1t1f!i<)t';\;'J>i\,;,;::11:;;~o;\i;' '• ' ' + \<«~J
rermunm,g four fifths and four m~jor thirds. Second, as
'""'"'"'"'"''~rti·ira.•'"' used for fifths,
am~rat~en or tempering when they are in
ac1ous,ttc:1uy opposed to thirds and sixths (perfect concords
mo~t altenttions or telilperi~gs of major thirds when they are
the chromatic arein the natural diatonic keys. In conclusion, when tempera-
is not eqtJal temperament, it is unequal temperament which in tllfl1 means variety of effects which support the characters
keys. Therefore, the eighteenth·century ear permitted varying degrees of temperings or sharpness and flatness
di~pe:ndmg on where the intervals were placed. Environmental conditioning through strong tradition was the basis of this.
a sample Prelleur well temperament based on the above philosophy is formed as follows: Each natural
(white key) fifth. beats 0. 9 per second. The fifth B-flat F beats 0.4 per second because it contains one short key
key). The fifth E-'flat B-flat beats even less at 0.2 per second because it contains two short keys. Prelleur did
or test the fifths BF-sharp, F-sharp C-sharp, C-sharp G-sharp, and G·sharp E-flat in his bearing plan. The
.... 1,.,f,.~'fif'<'t"t·inn of these fifths is completely free theoretically, but for good harmonic balance and practicality, the choices
to being close to 0.5 beats per second for the fifths BF-sharp and F-sharp c~sharp. The fifth C-sharp G-
sharp win then be almost pure {no audible beats) as long as the old diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat is completely in
ju~t intonation as A-flat E-flat. None of these last four fifths or their beats appear in the instructions in Section 25
because Peter Prelleur did not use them. Table 24-1 and Figure 24-1 reflect the theory of this sample temperament.
Notice in Table 24-1 that the harmonic balance is excellent. The old diminished fourths are less than a comma wide.
There is no problem with G-sharp E-flat because it is pure. Notice that Figure 24-1 looks almost identical to Figure
15-2 for the equal~beating meantone temperament. This is an example of how well temperament descended directly
from meantone temperament. Well temperament is meantone temperament altered so that one can modulate through
all the keys. Compare Tables 15-3 and 24-1 to determine how much the amount that the ear will permit on wide major
thirds had changed by 1731.
Johann Christoph Pepusch (1667-1752) was very knowledgeable about Greek music theory and acoustics. In his
letter read to the Royal Society on November 13, 1746, Pepusch wrote, "We here find the Ditonus, or an Interval
equal to two Tones Major expressed by 81:64, instead of the true Third Major expressed by 5:4. As there can be
no Question of the Beauty and Elegance of the latter, the former therefore must be out of Tune, and out of Tune by
a whole Comma, which is very shocking to the Ear. " 4 In other words, the ditone or major third which is a whole
svrno,rnc comma or 2L506 cents wider than a intonation major third was ' shocking to the Ear" in 1746.
diminished fourth C-sharp F in the sample PreHeur well temperament is 19.47 cents wide. This is less than the
middle eighteenth-century "shocking" amount. This was a change in taste since Andreas W erckmeister wrote that
the Pythagorean ditones in the proper places were acceptable in 1698. 5
Johann Christoph Pepusch was a German composer, musicologist, theorist, violist, and harpsichordist, employed
the Prussian court. He settled in London around 1704 where he published theory books and extensively.
is famous for The Beggar's Opera. According to New Grove Dictionary, 6 Pepusch in sixteen keys
J. S. Bach in B
befol'e· Bach did. mayhave
nias, and The Well-Tempered Clavier.
Table 24~1: Well Temperament Tuned Peter Prelleur's Rules.

Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wid;e from Just
FA 394.66856 8.35484
CE 395.27547 8.961756
GB 396.08761 9.77389
DF-sharp 397.56976 11.25604
AC-sharp 399.55106 13.23735
EG-sharp 401.61289 15.29917
BE-flat 404.77564 18.46193
F"sharp B-flat 405.20592 18.89221
C-sharp F 405.78038 19.46666
G--sharp C 403.11164 16. 79793
E-flat G 399.13675 12.82304
B-flat D 397.22432 I0.91060
FA 394.66856 8.35484
table is for
FA CE
···iJ'
The smallest third
Figure 24-:l: The· Form ot Welt TenilJ(!rament Tuned by Peter Prelleur's Rules.
Corrip~re witli Figures 15'-2 arid .t0-1 ... Noti~e the similarity of hdw these .forms developed historically.
NOTES
1. Peter Prelleur, The Modem Mwick-Master or, The Universal Musician (London: Printing Office in Bow Church Yard, 1731).
2 .. Another boQ~ in Th:e Mol)em: Musick-Master.
3.. l(Qlder, A Treatise of the Natu~al GroutUJs, and Principles of Hannony (1731 edition), 184.
4. JohtiChtistopher Pepusch; ''Of the vatioml Genera and Species of Music among the Ancients, with some Observations concern-.
. ·.i1~&:i~~~~e,' ~ ~~il()~()p~ical !~~!!i~JIS!i<];!l:?ri·\ml- .'f:ttP~!l.llfJ.,,ll!f!:~fqr 1!1!1c(l:2ng99;,<:;:"P!:t'.i~~,.f£i~Si!!Qlb~~9:y~l Society,
5':···werc:rroteist~1;·TfWe1ieite·una P"er1J'esserie'tlrglt:Pfobe; ·<>s.· ·· ·
6; Sadie,. The New Grove Dict~onary of Music and Musicians.• 14:358.
' ,\«·,
.ATiN'GWELLTEMP~
,..,.... T,.. PEifER· PREiLEUR'·S~RtJLES OF 1731
' ,, "' .,, ''"''""',~'·,, ' ' ' . "' ' ' ' ,· . . . ' . ' ' '
..
T he beat frequencies in the following instructions were calculated for use with a C tuning. fork at sti\naard. pitch.
the C equivalent of A=440 Hz. If a lower pitch is used, reduce the beat frequencies proportionately. The beat
••.. frequencies are suggestions that are intended only.as guides for authenticity. Actual beat frequencies were not men-
<• tioned by Pete( Prelleuit.f{uners• who beHeve that they have the proper eighteenth-century env;ironmental conditioning
· · . fiiay ignore ~l beat frequency numbers. In this ca~e. "Observe that all sharp; Thirds must be as sharp; as ye Ear will
peitnif and all Fifths. as flat as the Ear .will pennit"r while following the notes.
The original tuning order of the notes from the Prelteur bearing plan is left unchanged. It is printed in modem form
• •. foi- easier reading. Six second inversion triads were added according to the Keller-Prelleur recommendations. Meas-
ures eight and nine were added. A:s one can see, it is impossible to continue in the bearing section without first tuning
the note D. Robert Falkener also made this correction.when he copied these instructions in 1774. 2 Measures twenty-
~wo, thirty, thirty-four, and thirty-eight were added for more complete testing. The nine intervals at the end of the
instructions and the advice following were also added.
Tune the following. quartel, notes. in.the order wiitten•.
Test interval
Tune the ''C-sol-fa-ut"
"by a Pitch-Pipe or Consort-Flute." (Figures denote Tuned
beats per second) before
.... ·~
l !
3,4 l 0~9'
"Tryal"
t
···r r !·~ 11r r IF I~ II
i i i
Flatten
Sharpen
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
~;~~}u~,~
lr· 5.5
r
0.9
""''""""~'"';J'C"'"""'"'·"•" ... ,.
1f
i
Flatten
79
i
Sharpen , Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
1
i
Sharpen
t
Flatten
Test
(Just) E and B were tuned
Tuned a long time ago.
! befote,
!
0.0 6.8
l
.fF. ·11 F
0.9
~7J=E
7.3
It IF I#! md
i
Regarding the octave E E,
i
Sharpen
see page 132.
Tuned C was tuned previously. Tuned
T . 2 !.. 1~ ·r
1~i-2=-r---.c. -.. . . . .
,--r---r:-----t_._t"--+--r. -,-+-+--rr-..-+-+-1
..... f-.. --!--,-.. r-t=~bra
-++--+--11
i
Tune
just
i
Sharpen
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l l
5.8
Ibt~ II ~r t I'r ~~ II
i
Tune t
just Tune
just
.fr followitig inteniats will be bright and harsh but still within the range of eighteenth-century tolerability.
15.6 11.9 7.8
fqtJ:n a series of all t~~ major tri1,lds progressing in root movements a fourth or a fifth apart in order to determine
Va:lF)!ing effecits change e¥enly.
Kthe remilinoer of the instrtnnent by means ofjust octaves from the sample notes within the bearing section
C below middle C to F above middle C.
;;; Tuble 25-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of Pretleur Well Temperament and Equal Temperament.
'''""''"''. ,,,'<.,·;' ' ', ' ' '
~q~t T~tnperament Prelleur Rounded Figures

G plus 2.29136 +2
.F~sharp minus 0.&3889 -1
F ptUs S.33144 +5
E minus 0.41328 0
~flat plus 3.15461 +3
D plus 1.59135 +2
C-sharp minus 0.44894 0
C plus 4.3H25 +4
B minus ...
l:iS:2103 -2
.1t,,flat,.,2. ply,s .•. . . ·... A.3<?7()4 +4
81
~- . .
?¥/ :~!1n~=~~rb~!~~~!31t~:;~!;~:!:!;,~::fi:;j~"'.~~:f0~:n~f!:i~:~ !l:i~s~~~!;,~~;~~ ::o:;~

~~ y~s as late as 1830. Qn pages 71-:-73is a section entitled ''O:f Tuning the Organ, Harpsichord. or Spinnet.'' Tans'ur's
. bearing plan is similar to Gottfried Kellet's.1707 plan except that he placed all the tones leadingto the C major triad
· an octave higher. He also added many extra octaves and high notes so that at the end of his bearing section he could
t~~tafour note. A minor chord in root position above middle C, Tans'ur introduced as tryals the diminished chord
BDF and the tritones BF and FB. In spite of this advanced listening he did not tune any fourths, in his bearing plan,
although there was one tryal. fourth that was disguised as an agumented third. Fourths were still untuneable in 1746
tlecause they were considered to be discords •...
On page 102 Tans'ur wrote, ''Cc>ncords a,re $uch Intervals as are: Tuneable and agreeable to each other; that is,
when two (or more} different To~es sound fogeth~r, so as ta be Harmonious, and Pelightful to the Ear, &c. such as
the Unison, 3ds, 5ths, 8ths and:their Octaves1 perfect, and imperfect, Discords, are such Intervals as are untuneable,
........Jatting.and.Oisl,lgt:eeable•. su~h~s~.. ld•. 4ths~·7tJ!§, a11d.th~ir Octaves, &_e._both of which_ are either Simple or Com-
pound." On page 1031 Tans'Ur listed the fourth in bis table of discords. On page 127 he wrote, "In former Days,
the 4th was caU'd a Concotd, but now it is reckon'd a Discotd." On this point, hearing development actually pro-
.• c~eded backwards. Neve~etess, the notes in the bearing section were tuned primarily by the m.ore difficult major
·.•·.•. . tl\irds, and Ta,11s7ur· prais~d the tritone (major fourth or minor fifth) when he described it as ''no Cord having a more
·. · gra€eful Charm:" On page 112 he. wrote, .. all Racios that are within the Number Six, are Concords." He explained
.. the. frequencies of string.s ~d the ratfosof the intervals; namely the unison, octave, fifth, fourth, major third, minor
m
· .. t!\ffd,. etc . . Jlle.Mtut~~otd:er. ~t .is:it1(¢t¢st~q-g ip~t·:1t~'.tt~~·e~eh one·nrturn•as a ~cottc<Jrd' ·until M reached the
'fmfflft"W•fti~:h''he~·tt~~l'd·~·"'·ltt'ffd':rerwonts; he·cootmr~r-·aclrnowledgethe fourth as a concord;·but since an the
followfng thirds and sixth~ W€?re k11own as concords, it was against all acoustic logic to call the fourth a discord in
't!'.i,\~-~~~~i~~ o~ s~.~~~~~~~~tt~ concor~·l~!~~s~. . . .. ... . •. • .. . . . . .·. ·.· . . .
· . .· Onpage16-,Tans'urlistedthe ''Chromatick, or Sem.t:itonick~Scale. ''Each pair of enhannonics such as c~sharp D-
tlat, D-sharp E-flat, E-sharp 0-flat, G-sharp A-flat, and A-sharp B-flat was notated with a tied slur between the two
··notes. This implies that two enharmonics were the same tone on the keyboard. On page 9, he listed the pairs by using
the word 'or'; that is,. "C..:sharp, O!·D"~flat~'; ''D.-sharp. <.>r :ta-flat, 0 "E·sharp, or o~tlat," "0-sharp, or A-flat," and
~.~A,.sharp, or ll+-flat. ~· On page 9lJffil'HS. key signature table for transposing, he notated six. flats and six sharps. This
., ··Shows that····Tans~ur was using well temperament.
Evert though Tans'ur•s bearing plan was basically the same as that of Gottfried Keller, he directly tempered only
three fifths, namely CG, GD, and DA. The fifth AE was checked~ The tones Band F, as well as all the sharps and
f1ats, were tuned by means of major thirds only. None of the remaining eight fifths were checked, although they would
have been heard in th~ ~¥iad$:. 1ls~•.as.try~s: 'fb~J,Wo Jritones llF and f:ll were checked, and the augmented third F-flat
A was listened to as a fourth.· ·
Considering the above, William Tans'ur's instructions on page 73 applied only to the fifths CG, GD, DA, and AE.
, ~ ..Hifil1stn!£!igl1sJ:~(ld, '. 'Qbs~ry_e, tgJ.'u.11e <tH Sh(lrp~ 'fhi!ds,. 11s sharp as. the .E8:r -wm admit; and also an 5ths Bearing;
.J~(lt is as flat as possible: which will render your Musick the more Grand and Harmonfous." if one really tempered
· s. . '..:~_s_f1(lt:·~-~J!.~~s!!?.!~i.'.' th~ !t;s!!!t-woilld~ a l'.1:1~. .2,!!l~!ly .1'1:1~~.!!!~t~!.t'!ird: This contra~ictsthe i~struction
ajor thirds should be as wide. "as the Ear will admtt. •~Any ma.tor tli1rd m equal temperament ts 13.686
e«ltmg ·r.~~;;:tit~tl!~~~~~/~f~~~:~b~;i~ffiWt~~;~::~::·~Jtfi:::~ ~! ~~~::;:~~~:~~~~~~in~iu:O~

83
:~SS
by where me~· . ... · . . · . . · ...·...... i
and Fi~ure 264 refte'1r tti.Hhloly·~,~.( ·
Table 26~:h Well Tedlf!ji~el\tij\.ntiij~byr WdUam Tanstur's Rnl&lS.
Major Thirds Siz&lS in Cents Cents. Wide trom Just
GB 390.85846 4.54475
PF~~ti11rp 391 .63396 5.32025
A(;'-shMP: 396. 7$903 10.44532
EO·shltrp 400.~8419 13.87047
BE-flat 404,1913"7 1;1.81766
P~sh11rp D-fll)t 407.24974 20.93603
C-sharp F 407.24974 20.93603
G-sh1trp C 407.24974 20.93603
E-flat G 404.95016 18.63()45
u~nat t> 4'Yf.116~0 14.802.58
FA 395.99123 9.67752
CE 392.S6607 6.25236
OB 390. 85846 4•.54475
Compare this table with Tables 20~ l and 24·1.

This table is arranged in a somewhat circular form for perspective in Figure 26~ l.
GB
i1
The smallest third
Figure 26•1: The Form ot Well Temperament Tuned by William Tans•ur's Rules.
C()mpare with Figures 20-1 and 24-1.

'~'.·,;.ti.·1 the
he beat frequencies.in. th.e .fol.lowin.g instructions were calculated for use with a C tuning fo.rk. at standard pitch,
C equivalent ofA=r;440 Hz. If a lower pitch is used, reduce the beat frequencies proportionately. The beat
'fr~quencies are suggestlons: that are intended only. ~s guides for authenticity~·· Actual beat frequencies were not men-
'tiQned by Tans'ur; Tuners who believe that they' have the proper eighteenth:-century environmental conditioning may
· re .the beat frequency t.iumbers. In this case,. ''Tune all Sharp-Thirds, as sharp as the Ear will admit; and also
~ll1 ~tQf i,earingphat is as.~flat ~s possible"• w~ile following the notes.
· .·. , "'UliamTans'ur•s bearifig plai\ is inefficient~ The bearing section spanning two octaves plus a fifth is cumbersome.
J!~'>il~ins several repetiti9ns qf testi11g intervals. Mlll\y intervals are tested lml.g after the notes involved are tuned.
' "Ute.re a~e other eccentricities. Regardless of this, the original order of the notes tuned and the testing ifiterva1s used
.~a.s. beefipreserved:1for reas()ns of aut.Ji.enticity. 4ctually,: tuning or~ers affect aesthetic judgments. On page 73 of his
<!tiohs, Tan&'ur wrott~ ''And often, by way ~f Tryat,. touch Unison, Third, Fifth, and Eight altogether; and also
ison, Fourth, and Sixth.'• Therefore, four note root position major chords and second inversion major triads were
edJn appropriate plac.es. Measurc::s twelve and th.irtec::n were added. As one can see, it is impossible to continue
mthe bearing section without first tuning the note D. Measures twenty-three and twenty-four were added so the thirty-
fwdi note bearing section would be complete. Although Tans'ur listed the E-flat octave, he omitted the instruction con-
, 'ing ftom wher~ E~flat was tuned. Therefore, measures fotty-three through forty-seven were copied from Gottfried
. ..... "s bearing plan and added. The seven intervals at the end ofthe instructions and the advice following were also added.
On page 71 Tans'ur wrote, ''Tuning only depends on a good Ear, and is very diffieult on some certain Notes, such
JlS. E-flat, D-sharp, &_c.'' This means that E-flat and D-sharp were the same tones. In any Holder-Keller-Prelleur-Tans 'ur
.. Ji,m,,jl\e:fi~Xe'.~-:;t\~~ wqulti'.tll'V~ :t)eetJ; ' . git beci,ttt:$e··itis ·thi.1 last note tuned. The note E-flat
cfret~''1f"welf~•mment·with the noter . More clearly, H...flat must sound decent when used
..~h~rp \Vith. eithel' ~~~~a>' o,r S. Since Tans\ff wro}e about tQis diffkulty, he certainly tnust have included the
ea~~~~!i~~~k~1P*a !1i1~~~~M~t~~. ~i~~iJ:~~~~~~:ri t:~s:;iJRit;tyw:~:~~~~tgtdt:::a~~::s:~;e;:~~
.Uie easiest notes to temper in meantone days because no one expected E-flat to serve also for D-sharp without retuning .
. ,;. In later editions of Tans'ur's book (at least from 117'1to1S29), the bearing plan was transposed down one octave.
. Howevel", this was most likely done so Uiatthe pearing plan would be easier to read since it would then be in the
• ~~~s clef only. Certainly it was meant to be played an octave higher; otherwise it would have been highly inefficient,
·~:ing so extremely low in the bass for tempering such notes as F-sharp. Also in the later editions, there were errors
\\'hereby A-natural was written as A-sharp.
·· · Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
"Tryals"
!l~
r r r
· · · ~;! .
Tune
just
J
I
f
!
;r·· r r
t
II
Flatten
I
r f , I II
Sharpen
Tuned Tuned Tuned Tuned

before Tune before before before
just Sharpen Flatten
l ! l l ! 2:.6 1 ! 1.3
r
Tuned
before
Tune
t
Sharpen Flatten
just
Tuned Tuned
before Tune before Tune
just just
l.3 1 ! 1
!
1f ~11_· r $1~ #r #f
#-
Time
just
l r t Time
just
r Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
Tune
! just
!
! .. #
/1trf r ':"r r r II f r
i
Sharpen
i
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before Tune before
just Flatten
4.9 l !
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before Tune
Flatten just
l ! l !
87
Tiie Ferf~ction. O}Elght¢enth·Century femperwr1ent
Turt~d The first

before Tune diminished chord
just used as a "Tryal"
1 t 25.6 13.3
--r I
~---__J
Wide
7:5 ratio
tritones
Tuned Tuned Tuned

before ages ago before
Tuned ages ago
2.6 0.0 1 !
0.0 l 0.0
Tuned ages ago
0.0
Zero
beats Tune
Tune just
just
Tuned ages ago Checked

Tuned before
l
Tuned
!
before before Tune
just
0.0 0.0
i
Tune
Tune just
just
The following intervals will be bright and harsh but still within the range of eighteenth-century
16.8 16.8 12.6

J 1.2
middle C to A an octave sixth above middle C.

. ~w~n.;t~=~~~~-·-~·~qgal»l'elb1Jerament.
''l\ ~•~uJtclld~:lf!IW'es:· ·
A zero mff~r~trcie . . O cents
O-snruv nnl:tus . ; 't.~859'[' -:1
6 plus .5. 04893 +5
F-sllarp minus 5.19597 -5
F plus 4.00877 +4
a minus 1.47016 -1
E-flat plus 0.09877 0
D . pltt$ 3~il:100'1 +3
C-slllUl> minus 3.124®? -'--3
c· plus 5.96377 +6
. :a minus 4.09260 -4
B-flat J>tus 2. 0.5317 +2
Compare this table with Tables 22~ land 25-1.
NOTE
William Tans 'ur, A New Musical Gram'fnar (London; Tans'ur, 1746), 13.
89
28
THE OLDER FOR.MS OF MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT
REVIVED BY ROBERT SMITH IN 1749
R obert Smith (1689-1768) was a mathematician, professor of astronomy, and Fellow of the Royal Society who
became Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, and vice-chancellor of the Cambridge University. He was known
for his A Compleat System of Opticks in two volumes and also for his book on temperaments. 1 Robert Smith revived
the older forms of meantone temperament and then published the beat frequencies of the fifths so that they could be
tuned in a theoretically correct manner on organs in 1749. As an acoustician, he knew that the publication of beat
frequencies was worthless without a standard of pitch, but there was no standard established at the time. The frequency
of A varied from community to community. The only solution for Smith was to publish a series of six sets of beat
frequencies at six differing arbitrarily chosen pitch levels ranging from A=381.3139392 to A=438.1371929 for Pietro
Aaron's meantone temperament. This accommodated most pitch situations. The organ tuner was expected to experi-
ment by guessing which of the pitches was closest to the basic pitch of his organ. By applying the beat frequencies
for that pitch, he would then tune upwards a fifth, down an octave, up two fifths, down an octave, and finally up
another fifth. If the resulting major third was pure in just intonation without any beating, then the tuner guessed cor-
rectly for the pitch of the organ. If there was beating, then the major third was either narrow or wide. If the major
third was narrow, then the tuner was expected to experiment over again by applying the beat frequencies published
for a lower pitch. If the major third was wide, then he was expected to apply the beat frequencies for a higher pitch.
In this way, the organ tuner eventually discovered the pitch of his instrument. 2
In Plate XX between pages 212 and 213 of Harmonics, Smith published 240 beat frequencies at 6 pitch levels for
21 notes to the octave. Thus, his Plate XX was valuable for its broad utility for various pitches and 9 extra enhar-
monics. His plan was extensive, and one was allowed to begin the on any arbitrarily chosen note. Robert
Smith's D for the note. His chart was thus on the basic 262,
for D,
The pitch of D on the Trinity College organ in Cambridge was 262 Hz, and after Smith tuned the organ, the pitch
ofAwas 391.78l38Hz. ·On pages 202-6 and 259-65 of his book, Smith explained how he determined the frequency
above middle Cthrough physical expe:riments using weighted etc, Also, Smith this his beat
frequencies of fifths producing just major thirds. 3 On page 221 of his book, Smith explained that D=262 or A=39L78 was
known as "Roman pitch," common around 1718 or before and he admitted that was a tone lower nonnal in
1749. By a tone, Smith usually meant ,/I.25. Therefore, -.Jf.25 x391.7813807=438.0248998, an average pitch of A in 1749.
Robert Smith shared unique. qualities with J. S. Bach. During roughly the same years, both geniuses were anachronisms
who nevertheless were far ahead of their times in temperament matters. This was a rare combination of traits. Bach's
music was a summation of the composition techniques of the previous century when meantone temperament was the
most common, and in this style his music attained the highest degree of perfection. !twas Bach's sons, not Bach him-
self, who created the style of composition of the future. Nevertheless, Bach wrote the first music in rarely used
such as C-sharp major or E-flat minor that lasted as permanent classics. This music was practicable only on well-tempered
claviers, and it demonstrated the best qualities of well temperament. Thus Bach, through his music, prophesied the
final acceptance of the advanced tonalities using up to seven flats or sharps in keyboard compositions.
Robert Smith worked to revive the meantone temperament of Pietro Aaron published in 1523 and also the very
'"'"""''°'"' Huygens temperament of 1661. He also invented a new meantone temperament modeled after a
average taken between the Pietro Aaron and the one-third syntonic comma meantone temperament pub-
Francisco de Salinas in . Like of Smith's
Smith.·W.a$.thefi.rstw.r,ite.rJo.lay.thefoufldati@$Jorni~~111.temperingtechniques.
·H~~ tklilSJtl.)lmp1tl.)n~q. Jtije .org1,1n to a. mw:h .higher degree ()f the()retical pet1ection .tl'lan VV;aS possible i1:1.Pietro Aaron~ s day.
a fl}usi9ian but a celebrated engineer; famous for. steam engines, ~uilt organs. He was
tuner~1tecJlln11c1ai1s who tu~ed o~gans by bt:ats
in a ~eoretically correct manner by using Snlitll' s beat tables. 4
this book it was stress.eilthat matheniaticaUy eliact theoretical· regular temperament was· not tuned on
pianos . . twentieth century. The basis of this is. that harpsichords or pianos with their short-lived tones cannot
be tuned theoretically correctly unless all the consonant intervals are used as 'testing intervals in various patterns. Further,
the tuner rnust be aware of the theoretical beat frequencies and also hear them above the intervals at the locations where
ttie ~armonics of the two notes of an interval coincide, or nearly coincide. Most of this technical information was unknown
l::lef0re the twentjeth century.
Even though ttte title of Robert Smith's book includes "Harmonics," there is no indication that he was aware of
beatings among the upper nearly coinciding harmopics. 5 Like most theorists before the twentieth century, he ex-
the beating of tempered intervals was caused by the regul:u but in:fteqµent contradictions or non-coincidences
'1tr~r!llrU'11l<' of the two fundamental tones. Therefore, it was thought in 1749 that an beating took place only at
the fundamental tones where one was playing the interval. This was based on the following: Ifthe lower tone of a
fifih had a frequency of 210 Hz or vibrations per second, the interval would be completely in tune in just intonation
ifthe upper tone of the fifth had a frequency of 315 Hz. In this case, the fifth would havea ratio of 3:2 which in
decimal form is 1.5. No beating would be discernible because every third vibration of the upper note would coincide
\Vith every second vibration of the lower note. In this example, this would take place 105 times per second. This is
too rapid to be heard as beating. Actually, the freql1ency 105 is rapid enough to become a new tone known as a 'differ-
ence tone' that can be heard one octave lower than the just fifth on organs. Robert Smith explained on pages 118-19
ofhis book that these rapid coincidences (difference tones) can be heard as a "fluttering roughness" especially at low
pitches and that they are "of a different kind from the smoother beats and undulations of tempered consonances."
Robert Smith wrote about this before Jean-Baptiste Romieu and Giuseppe Tartini did. If one flattened the upper note
from 315 Hz to 314 Hz, then the fifth would be tempered and have a ratio of 1.495 · · ·. In this case there would no
l<)nger be 105 coincidences per second. There would be only two coincidences causing two beats per second. More
clearly, every 157th vibration of the flattened upper tone would coincide with every 105th vibration of the lower tone,
and this could happen only twice per second in this example. The ratio 157: 105 is also 1.495 · · ·. Therefore, the l::leat-
ingsupposedly took place only at the fundamental pitches in 1749.
The problem with listening for among the fundamental of a interval is that the noise and
loud tones of the interval obscure the beats. No wonder mathematically exact tempering required so many years to
learn. Conversely, harmonics are pure tones that are separate from the noisy fundamentals, and they are clearly heard
without interference from the interval itself. When tempering fifths, the twentieth-century tuner listens to the nearly
CQinciding harmonics one octave above the upper tone of the fifth being tempered. According to the example outlined
previously, the third harmonic of the lower tone of 210 Hz has a frequency of 630 Hz. The second harmonic of the
upper tone of 314 has ~frequency oft)~8 Hz. The differ,ence between th.esene~rly . is therefore
twentieth-:~~ntury technique reduces of
difficulty tempering .. . . .. to
au.1usrmg or mistuning (tempering) unisons among the upper harmonics in locations conveniently separated in distance
intetvals. In the above exl;!mple, if both.ham1onics were tuned exactly together as a unison with a fre-
then
Smith published many examples of the frequencies for various tempered fifths at several different pitch
levels}' He also explained the acoustics of For a to be ' fifths
including the diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat) must be the same size. To this meant that the fifths were also
"equally harmonious." In regular temperament, the beat frequency of any tempered interval of a kind increases propor-
tionately and as it is played in parallel motion up the scale. Knowing this fact is the most acoustical
of the modem piano technician. On page 134, Smith wrote,
After an organ had been well tuned by all the. fifths as equally harmonious as the ear could determine,
l found that the numbers of their beats, made in equal times, were in the inverse ratio of the times of the single vibra-
tions of their bases or trebles, as neatly as could be expected: or that the times between their successive beats, which
are equal to the periods of their least imperfections, were in the direct ratio of those homologous vibrations, or of
equimultiples of them, or of the lengths of the short cycles; which therefore were equally harmonious in those periods.
explained this fact more clearly when he wrote on 235, "And herein this observation is of use, that the
cm1conis of be made to "v"'."'~'"'
than the in the same ratio as the vibrations
91
some
4,, ttl~~!~:~~~:~~:~~ ·he. was hampered \;~~·~id William Holder beating plan as ablidged and 0'1t1ined
· ' · .. · · q)J i,11 'ibI$ Gook~ . . ugh. be transposed m<Jst of it upwards a fourth for listening to faster beats among
ot t1nJ}pg F, B-tlat, and tMlathe ust:d the same locations as in Holder but sometinies E-flatwas an.01;tave
..... c,tjons we~e arranged so that one fOUld begi~ from any no,te, even E-flat. 8 Robert
i,>,-ri·sl' ,, ,,. ··'"• · " ,.. ; · · · · · . '
A '1tie'm1nt'FU\tt
,1 i;:irfi~; ·. · · ··. si"'
The mi si'}(tft'll lleVefttee'ftm:test for twelfths
B,, T1t0:. major thin,l'..maj<,lr .sixth~teiit.foi fourths;t\.:.
C. 1P:4 nilil~l" tbi~.,inajCIJ",§j:&~: t.est ~,z.~V:e~ '
· . tfte major th~r4·ttiajQ£ teQth test f(lr:.tictaves
. .·'· Tile t,naJQt. !e11thtll1a.iQl seventet:~~ testJ~~ octav:es . ...
..·. f'.• Par~t:ltlt~d~, ..th~~ an~Jef119~ . Ve tile tr,u~ of the prQgressive beat frequencies. .
6.· !~ere )Va~ ~Oi, · pl~di;s~n~ar~t· ,:1 pitclto~ I) or; any
Qther ~one.on the instrwnent bad to be deter~
ntme<J ~xperi .. . :· . ·. • . . ·
1. 1116e~perf . . . ··n~ oirp~ies S~d .6 of; esent \Vo~k demons.trates that matiiematically exact theoretical
temp¢rament w~s im:fk?s,sil:Jl~ <1ri mos~ ~eyb011rd ents trefore l911j. e:&cept for organs with their sustained tones.
flow' accurate wa~ lo&ert ~nnthts. nmmg? }le hat:l'tbe assistance 'of professional organ tuners. Even considering
the above ouµi11tX1:handj~aJ.1s* the probabilif¥ <)fllis tempering being fairly accurate was high. The reasons for this
jucf~lnettt are as follows; · · ·
\'
l. Unl.ike clavichords. lllll;l)sichords, 01' pian~fort~s, the fo~~sof an organ can linger on for great lengths oftime. the'ie-
•· ·fore~ the beatillgll'Ut'nlie smgfe"fifthwa'efistenedto mr·1lft~n second~ <1n · s; Controlling· beats ·over this length
of time asll\lted great. accUra<lY ihat W:outd> Mve Offset' the abOve~listed h . Tbi's te'Chillqtie is impracticable
.O[t pianos. Q~. o ~ thi~ ~~i~S, W~!~ •• ·•· ,. tJie,.bl~~l.9.f the be.II(j~s, ~:~itiform. "!> Fu~er, two professional
ni.eit 1:1,s~\ste9111 .· cou~tf.~g· Ott P!l ·· ,. ~filttli.,wr<Jte,. "'fbe t.btle may ~ measured ettiier. by a watch. that
shews s~oJids, o ... ttIUm-cloc}(~ o~ . •·..... ·.· . / e~ndultlfil that vibra~es sec.011ds:•.A~<t ihe Pers~n tiiat counts tfiem
nulst give ll stam . his foot· at the 6~ginrilng and end tJte U Seeopds; and anoihet person that counts tiie of
beats, at the first stamp should say, None, one, two, tiiree, &c; otherwise if he · s with sa i ne, ht: l:llUSt
count on '6'fe'•bet ~en · ats
·· .:.:~· ·... •..· ·.• ... ·..·• ·. . . ...·. . . •• · .· ,. . .
tio11S of beat frequencies. ;rtiere was ~o starnfard of pitch in 1749, so snµtb;.tran~sedhi~figures for application
"flttC .. . . .• .·. .. .. l'S in the oa1~mla-
. . on five othet'}1itehieve•s.l'•~m():ng··thifse ta*!et . .· tiierewete ·~•.refY fe~ eft'.oiis•·~!1ttittinj to. only on~ ~t in
·· J.5 seconds· eifoJl.:•·As•alll••:lta.i1f;tet".Qt•"rote• tke'fipte 44c.~~·89'1fadm"tltan••44·1 J(i;•;!Fh'~1 d1fferen0e between
4Sbeatsancf~beafs'infJsecoiicrs:1nahsmarr·tobe·orcaiicem;·there:fore,snt1tb!s·calciifanoris,pubHsned in
his Plate XX 11 •are·reliablec eQ<.\Ugn•·tQ. use in tiie twentieth century.
2. Tfle fifths in Pietro. AarM•s< me1Mtohe tem~rament beat 2.1'3 •um,e~ fas~ei t)ian'~e)•ftlUtsdn et!tJal temperament.
Smith protl1Qted this style . ~(~fqre'~.ltill. aural tein~ling of the fifths would.have been 2. 75 times .
ea$!!t'~f~.',l9p~oi .Jfnequ11Hemperament. :Eqgaltempetament fifths beat too slowly for
accqraoy 1n tent ·
3. Robert Smith did not specify whether or not he used the parallel interval sequences as tests, but he was capable
of doing so (s~Jtis ~ages134, 235).
4. Robert ~mitb; was \(efY ~~at COlfc~piin~ th:e .tliertnometer ~il ~d the humi<Jiey at tiie time of the tuning.
Acc~rdipg:Jo SiJ\ith; '.'t~e e~~ol.~figtt~t.tt>Jtlelnfd'Me ~f ~~a.·• Was tre~t .Afro, on·page 2231he wrote, ·•constant
care 1111ist ~ ~~Jiinptfo h~flft~ .Piii¢s by touc~itlg th~ni'offener than is needful; not to, stay too long at a time in
th¢ or .. ~~as':; not~otµ~e eiifiy'itiili« mouqilng, bufrath~r tow~ds tiie evening, when the air is drier and ifs declin:-
ing .th is kept at ·a. stay oy· ttte Watmth'o:f tiie persOns aootit the organ;. in a word,· not to proceed with the tuning
~heQever tiie.temeerature of. tlte'.airJs sensibly, altered, which is discoverable either by a thei;mometer in tiie organ-
cllse; or· by tiie preS'ent nwnbet of beats made b.Y a given pipe, in a given time, com~ated witii a former."
,, ' ',,' ';;; •. ·\ c • i . .·. .·~.' ' . . . •.
Robert Smith'·p;~}X;;~ih~ invention Qf ametroii~m~·(;·;;pl;ce.tlie two men required for beat counting. such a
· · ··~·~!~:;ttt~,1~~i~~i::'.a;~~fly~~l15.~~;:la:~~_,i.· ............. .
5'\z -?"'";, \ ,; ~\' ,e ~~- :,>,,~~\'.'.;':; ·0~,,,~A .·:2;L~+;;t1 i'Y::::~. \r· ., 'JJ·' .~ . ,. ·.; ~:~: :;. ·~;::r1 "'"%~:~· \:7,' z· ·~ ·:. ': ,',>,, '"'.·;;,p; ·;,oi.··yf'; :/!&,, :~~'!Yr~; ?tr:~~, tf1, <~1_:;:* , 3''t+ :· z0;yy: ,~;;::~~"~· :v~T,\ - .'4;:~, ::~·= "\1::~.~"~i4.~:t;g1'y.!&'~fs:.,+:,.. ;x1:~:f:~ '.: ,:·1~ c: {:£:·< '· .:.' : .,. :· .;"
:Wever•• metron{)l1le$ W,ereJ}ot man.ufacture4J1t tl,l!s tjiheJJ\ h~stocy ;. ijier~ • ijit} . t>x~ct ijieoret1Ca} r<;g~at. 'el1lpera-
... w,~§ :Unpp~§i5le tq.tWt~~n harpsichqrd$'9r pi~Il~f9rtes Because the tfoats di~d awaj teio·rap~(,Uy on these i.nstru-
:$,..·x~1:n.•~J:~Qt. 4W~.fifdJsxequires.Ustening.to their beats for fifteen seconds or·more for:.accuracy.
QJ}~~rrili\gh~ .. . rct~~pg~.. ~Itli!h WJ:9~e;
ii · s~ffl.ci.
••·: ttl~·.~·
•.• .·•.. )lit since
~~~·~°'
tl\e l>eafsof .~e. cqnci:Jr~s d{~..
n~~ llfo
ith~stin:1atin~fait<hofl1 .· ..... .
S®l .in tunjng qrgims will finc.l le§
f . .. tiY:tJt~·
rty than others u11acquairltect w1th tllatm~m"nt; u
. . gQt'~ftl\¢i.~f.~iJ.4qin~.wnich
:w<JM~; ··ontY''CJfg~~~ IJ)lijis{c~()fU$··with·anY)'Qug~ •d~gree. of correctness

. ot~et\iJisef'Qn:}ia:tfl'.36 • . .. .. . ,, . . . ... .· ·. . . ·. &~~Ji()tdl •f\v¢n·ooii~vt<Jt• fal''flifil~l11'arvskttords.
en thougll well tem:pc:mutl~ttt was·~stabllsh~ at thifl1fue i.n b:istory, Smith's revival of the efil'lier forms of mean-
e~ajlt~!lt is ~ exrun ft\ ~f lfo\\T tile practf~e of m€'anto11e temperament died outnot sudderuy but gradually
r~~i'(\Vg;'ce' . . ·~tt'~~lfof:~~~toJlet~lllllemfuent stillexisted at thebegmning of·m0·~~µdetb cen-
~bert Sm~tfi:, , . ., cort~e;rting ijie well tempetrunent ·or highly modified meantone tempetrunent found on
·nity Coflcb'g"' 'l>acli;ihtor Pietro Aat61Jts meantone temperament of 1523. Smith wrote:
·Some musicians h~re. who had constafiti)' bee1fuse<f to major thirds anct consequently major sixths tuned very sharp,
. could not welHeHsh the smoother bannoHy qfpeifect thirds and better sixths in the organ newly tuned. At first they
.;, thought: it dull and lifeless\ till.aftera little use .tlley became better satisfied with it, and after a longer··use they could
. not bear.tJ\e
'11. .
hatsb:tt~s of other organs tuned in<the fQnrteF manner) 4
y . ~ ~ffottner ma.J.mer~'.• ~ S~it}\ tnel:lnt Well(errip~taml~pt;Jt is most Unlikely that the organ had b~n tuned in equal
ament..·101tn Ro6ison••wtQte mlSot;·.·.
We.bave1also heard some excellent niuslclaru~:d~are~· tllat the o1;llan of 'l'rini~ ~oUege chapel at Cambriclge was
,; • greatly improv~·ifi.it~ ll~ol\Y: by thee t.i:h®g~ mlide on its temperame11t under. th~ inspection of Dr. Smith. When
;~e name Stal\l'.e.y~ w~ presQme that tne aU!b:f;l!iitl!. wAI riot. t>e disput®; ..1'
•t•0::i0.rllt~,r~sqn.tb:at1tb:e.m.Ysifi1ii9s,.~$~ilmb.U9!l~J~9&$4,~:,~&il~t2.l!~Kmte~. t()·.~. '+:9!!!!,.M~.\if~.lts~·;..at. first is

•tl\e:f«l!l9m&.l'l.3l~~~!t~Di!. .Yal.QSl~!he ~ filll!Jr:r~t ~sition ttt11d ~m ntid~e ~. tl,lqeq at s~<lard pitch as
.le, thef()tal nul1l))ers .of beats per second of the fifthr major third~ and minor thii:d within the triad are 29. 06
t se<:ond..in,.t.:ql,l11Uemll~'im\ell~~ 'th\s,~11~~q~. mY~lJ: llrilli~<:e. and ll~rsllness. :Q. · J>e!er freUeur well tem-
t·as..a,,11lot\i ~*uff,tt~·i.~..~i$··1eNllfilpl~:~·AAW•·the:f·:J.:mity.,0rgan.was.tunedb .R,oheft Smith changed it,
. number beats for the C majo[ of tnad
at stmdard pitch would still have been around 23 .27 per second. This
•-vely; 1hetef9fe;. tfie Aaron C major triad· beating at only S.5.2 per s~ond would. have. seemed relatively ''dull
l.ess.'' at first. HQwever, .Rob.eu ~with ~lari:fie4 .thlJta.fteKOne on~e !lecomes .accustomed to the more harmonious
>' ••~~JQ.~~~ilterva}s ~9P~iJ;diJ .be. ~~t1tt.~~;~p~arppr~dates the harmony.more for its perfection. Ultimately,
.. . •. s t~at ttia~s;irt; . . . .io fe:ys were allowed to absorb mote and more beat frequencies mostly so
cot~Id .m~u]ate through: ijie,Jesse,r.11.sed keys without encountering extreme dissonances or w,qlf intervals. Smith
atmajot dJirds were.made "shai:per than perfect: with a designi I suppose, to improve the false concords,
.t0r .the ffi$ifest detrimemt tu all the re.st.''~«> ..•
rt Smith (,lid n9t writ~atJ<>ut eq~Jettiperaffi.ent (called the system o! twelve equal parts. fit the eighth in 1749)
t() mention ()n It!.~. page 200 that it contained no 4ie~e.s; th~t i~, the sh~s. and. flats were exactly the same pitches
· ·tewD(lr~ll1ept, Sltli!h'~ p~ilo~ol'~Y .\VIJS obviously opposed to equal temg(lrament, for he proved mathematically
}lier c():i1S9naq¢~s ;wilJ'g~((~~alfy beat greater temperaments than the less simple will; or the less simple ones
·bt..,•pealti~9·wi&n9t·~IU'S<!' great temperaments as thee simpler willi centrary to the common opinion.' '.17. As
t. i(tfie wi,n,Qr 1hitd on Abe!qW, Widdle C to tn:W·~e. Cat the ~t!!ndard pitch of A=440 Hz is widened by
ayntonic,,e...mm&,-itwillJ:i~"'~\l.O.Si~iw~·'pil&t~Bd) iftl\&.,Qiaj0F 0tbir~·AG-sharp ba•,Qn the same A
e~~'-{OU . . . t 3. .wes per second; if the fourth ADJ~ w!9en~ by one-
···· . . .. . .·. . . .· .· . ..~id~MO:.t£Y:,01\i-::f~ligm;~11~~~;itwm n~1.2.qs29
.~e~on~~·;~~d fi~al~~if·.the:A.below,;nuddfo,C. to the, octave' ab<lve.at . A.is . Widetted h3'.one,,fourth syntonic
.fr<Jm.J\le.;t~(J\f~'.. ~~,m~r~c{>mPl~~!ft!Q.!l.'i~Qlbe~ ~smuch tempering because
much more ~e~ting te .· !144" i•c()11$()11fll~es tlfitbe saniei.1lAAie,a~~·more1hann~mious
in the same or<let. a~ their temperaments ate s •·•· · . .r Tlrerefore, the acousti~a.l co11ctuiilo~is tha.t thirds .and sixths
sh01;ild not be ~empeted veey mUcJt• b\it~at fqurWs an~fifths trn\Y be. tell1~recl by l~ge .amounts. This philosophy,
h~seq,, ori1m~ID~m~~~~.~~~~,is\Srt)ll~:tQ tit~; lllt~<J~5111bY: oi equ'"'' temper~en~.wlticll:.sP.e~!fte~. tfJ.e. <JPP<Jiiite;. that
is, quP majem. tlti~d~ att<f sixtlls ·11~ a1tered by large. AAIQU11ts fnd the f<mrWs and fifths by vecysmaU amounts.
The octave has never been tempe~ in llis.tocy~ .Robert S.llJjtfJ. listAAreasons why the. octave shoW..4 not be tempered
on his page.173•.Thus~ the octave. was an excqtfon.in Smith's philosophy, The ltistoric~ systems that approached Smith's
philosoP.llY closest.were the Pietro A,ar9n;1ueantqnetem~rament1published in 1523 ~dthe Christiaan.Huygens meantone
tem~.mmentpublislJeditt, 1661,:l'besetem~~ent~avqidedthe problems listed in Table2Q,-l fairly well.More clearly, in
both of them,. the fifths and fourths beat faster than the ~jor thirds and minor sixths;, even though the octave was not
tem(Jered. Comparisons were made only when the variousintetvals shared: common lower tones. For the latter quality of the
fifths beating faster than the major thirdS, Sm1th gave partial approval of the Aaron and Huygens tempt;lraments. Nevertheless,
he:couid not tolerate'. the fact that fn both. oi: these temperaments the major sixths (sbaring co~on lower tones with
fifths)· alwaysbeaH'asterthan·theftftbsr·0tr this·ptJint;· ttre~aron and Huygenstem~ents were not·gooo, but equal
1
temperament was much worse to Smith. Howev~r, Smith published the beat trequertdes of the A.aron and Huygerts tem-
peram®ts ~ thafth~y ~9W.q be tun¥
91J: qr~!Ws in ·~·t!J~retkally co~ ~er,•a;t~µs, t1tese ~lllpt;lmments were revived.
In the·~.arodie!J1pet;~e~t; the n1aJor third~ and:t]ctinorsixth~were ~urein j~sf int'1f1ltti()n/·an4 the. fourths, fifths,
minor tlUt'4:~. Mct #lru(}t si~W:si ~~r¢ ei\c.b: fetPP~~~ny <Jne~fouft}fS'Jnfonic coQtiUa. The a'.uyg<ms temperament was
based on twelve notes se1ect¢d from an eqtil!l temperament of thirty-one micro-tones per octave. The Huygens tempera-
mt":PJ..~cn.rn4~ ~!!11£.~~i i9.iU.!is,tt.t2:··lh~\[ajt\.,,£9,,Ikl~mlle!~Snt~.,,l~t:k~,lJ\l~it.DL~1llll~U.~llb:.,Y&.~.miig,t,thitd.s;.were· tem-
,1'!,~ . ' '• • ' ' ' ' " '"',-. ,·.· '.\~~~":·~/.:·:,,;,<f~f·~·· .,~.::::,~::·;:;::·""
:,«' ,>~w~j>0!+'{,.\~~:~.
..'',,;,.,z.,<c.,,
+\· n ues n ing a temperament whe;eby th~ major sixths beat slowe.r than the fifths sharing common lower
(q4e~~th~te:~1:tstll~ \':(~!!~11~9·. .inM.§Al~H.hitd syqt<lJ1i§;.~QlIDh~meoott:;}ne. tpµt:Jlish~d ill.JSJ1 ;·In this,
tfi ajot,si~tbtit~<tll)ino~~. . .....et~p~f~6ini,J'UlltJn(onati~n~~wo-Wevel1"Sifli~•. ,. . ... · . '~d nt1t accept this tempera-
t becausethemafdr''thlrcls werebe!iflrtg'fastet'thaii 'the fifths sharing conl.irioh fowertones. Also, the fifths were
beating' too rapidly, for· good taste.·. the· Salinas temperament is: similar to a'S'election of tw~lvet~Hes taken trom·equal
lempefa11Ienff>ased Oif'nfrtHeeh tones ,tqthe"oct~ve:Tite ·S~litfa~ tef1fpe~sntelif wM~~CYfl~HMlty•ttte opposite· ffom the
Aaron tepi:petatfi"Iif}Ii, tllat tb.~'t!lru<!t · · ~~~~~~tirt~'tofifasfln the.Sllli~as,. whereas the Jtiajor sixths were too
fasfin tlfe:1'arfi~WH~H;'cofflf1ffed1& . .Rob'err Smiill'd:tdapprove ofatempetamelit iitvented by Mr. Harrison
wftefeliy'ille'majtJf'~xths~lsJ'O\Ve.tthafi.!he fifth's; The Hamson temperament sbimqMsoitlewhatsimilai to the Salinas,
bec;ause; the mafdr thirds. wer~ still.a shade faster than the fifths and the fifths w~re stiil on the rough side fo:r good
taste: Mr. H1mis°'~'s fifths ~ad a ratio?~ 1A9:44U51. 1 ~'fhe rati9 of~iett<l A~ron's fiftl\s were 1A95348782. In the
salirias and Iramsontemi'eramei:it~~ ~e ~if(eren.~e, of effec:tsbetween dte rnil]ot'and diinor modes was greatly reduced
coinparMto the; modem eifects'matwe;are·accust<>med to~
R66elt1·snlim..sown·rempeflllftelitbf l749wa'smot~pr~cticabte to tune than wasllatrls<>n's, and it was an almost
e'.ila~t'cilMlfrUfiiiseb'etWeen the'HM'fis~H'aitCf'Alfron meantone tempemments: ·v1;494411s1 x1'.495348782 =t.494880072 .
. Stnith~s,f~mpe~e~t:w~s~vecy:~imilartoa~electionoftwelveton~s,talfenfr()m,ef}uai.tem(Jerament,basedon,fiftymicro
to\t~,ftftfi~ dcta~e. ~~ rn, ¢,i~~ the fifth· had a ratio of l :494849249' w~i~h ~fll be compared to the .ratio 1.494880072
it§~~e~'.i~~. •t,~ijij(),.~~Smidt's~ fmtJs'"~~::~s~,Qn.UJe,.fo . ~+'41~;-::l&·:where X equals the. fati& of the fifth,
or 1.4948:r . Smfth labeled thls tempetameiit' ''tite System . . . . !Harmony." In this, when. a fifth shared a com'-
·····:m~ms;;~~~?~S'l~M1!1lt~;=imlf~'~peM:n:~u's~·suntfi:S:;li!W';ll~'jiiiam~t·was•a
foM1of~lJl,l)~~~ft'tn.,.m~;r~~J~nt~:·Wlfe1f a:fifth;sltaied'll'"~Ummt1'.h:·fuwetlbrt4f with· li'itlajb'~~Ulttd; the fifth
e
rn1so1~Jobn Roftts,~11wr9f~thaf;§htill\"sth:¢ttry~ott'~uar1nwmo~ J~>i!~ ~~aSl!~Y' jltoJ>Qsitiqp;Jn, Euclid's
; ~I~pieiltS•' V/e; are, l;)qtifi~'l9 j!dd:to: tfiese.ternarks; that We ?live oftener. , an one~ heard: musi~' peq9tni~·on· the; harpsi-
~hotd describecl in the second edition of Dr.. Smith's Hatmofii.cs, both. before it1 was sent h<>me by the maker (the first
114'~§;tJf(}f~~i~J'.l/lttfi(llift~f\XilifEfs ls:'.91 the-a:11thor himself; who was
avery ptMsing perfomter, and we thought its harmony
the finest we ever heard:..!~1~; ~qbi~9p:,,.also wr~te ·. ~o~cerfii.ng equal hannony ~at' ••we think its harmony preferable to
any thing we have ever. heatd:' W1'flie'it<ti{t;''ifs..¥~jl~~ . · · ··~~under hiS: inspection, by the celebrated liarpsichord
;~er l{irkµiafill, both when the.instnim~ntwas y~t~ t1te . m~~l\ an~.aft~~,&ds by ,the ingenfous autJ1or. " 25 .:tme
. ,. C'on~emihgJhe vhlueof Robert Srilith's work,. Johfi Robis()fi ~orrecu}i'corielhdeH ~·iliatDr:' Sooth's Jb~o~9f the
· beating of imperfect constlnan~esJs one. of the most important discoveries, both for the practice and the science of
·'" ·. ,rn'llsic, th~~ Jta~e ~eell; off;ered, to .the public. We:.~r~ !~clin~ t()·. ~o~l~i~~l .!t,.~~{'~e,}.no~~ important. that has . been made
.:.' ... ~!n,~e th~ days Of Galileo. '' 26 Robiso~ also~rgte~. ''.'}'<>.:l"~<fersof ntore inf9rrtliltion, we earnestly rec()~eP9. a:.$~reful
ptrfsual of Sooth's Hlitnloriics; second editi'on. We
a~kno'Wlldge a great partiality for this work, haVing gdt\:mt>re infor.-
mation from it than from all our patient study of the most celebrated writings of Ptolemy, Huygens, Euler, &c.•• 21
Tuning organs. by ~obert Smith~ s rulesproducedmathe:ntatically correct result!!' according to theory .. but the purpose
of the present work is to furfii.sh insttilctic;ns also for harpsichords and pianos. Smith's beat fteqtrency figures: were
impracticable on harpsichords, and therefore, they were not applied to .them. The tunings. were theoretically correct
regular te1llperaments only on o~gans; therefore, the only way to authentically duplicate Smith's style of temp~ring
on harpsichords or pianos is to a{Jply twentieth~<:entury type tuning insooctions using modem testing procedures. Thus,
tlJ.e old Holder-type bearing plan is not used in the fgllowing insooctions. The bearing plan used is the modern. type
whereby fourths as well as fifths are tempered so that the bearing span can be greatly reduced. Organ tuners can use
the modem bearing plans to obtain the same results as in the original Holder-Smith bearing plan. Using tliese proce-
d~es, the insooction,s for Pietr() Aaron's. tell1Peli~en! ari.r :f\imished in Section 12 of the present work. The Christiaan
Huygens temperament instructions are on tliefolfowing pages, and Robert Smith's own "equal harmony" tempera-
. · ~nt:is'in Section 30; These;insttilctions produ~e the C major selection of flats and sharps; that is, C-sharp, E-flat,
:f::snli(p, G-'sharp, and B-flat; This was traditional in past centuries. 28
:R:obert Smith began tuning with D ex~ept when tuning harpsichords. Most other eighteenth-century tuners (as well
.... ~smost twentieth-century tuners using the historicaI temperaments) began their tempering from C-sol-fa-ut (middle
C}. When Smith tuned the Aaron temperament, his A above middle. C turned out to be 391.78138 Hz on the Trinity
organ. Smith wrote that this was a tone low, so the usual A in Smith's part of the country must have been around
· ~~,~!8~i~J::~ J'i1;(~~1» ~z~~·iYiY;,;;';~i~.y~··ri~:'·:'~7~Jli~~i''iii~~~~s\Jseu~~t1!~~:~ ~:~~~!~~

'*4>,,+Gt~~0'<;><':o'-''f''<1Hi+"\i·F9Jh"'-,''" "'"''""~"'""·'·A"·'Yc>.-, ,,,W0···"1'P1>nWW'i'~\0ZM-\\f1M·"'V"+\\hJ;;._',: -·~'*''"'"'?Nfa.rJNWh'l\Wt\\'0S.')Vh'(·(!Jo>· \~·'""·'
_,_ \ " '" ." ''''""s"'">"*}d$1.~1\\Ae(' "'~"
' '· ',,' '' ,, '" \'"·" "' '"' ,r.:., '·"''· ' '' eq ' ,' . ' ' ",, ,. 'y ' ' p
A being 437 .3989 Hz in Pietro Aaron's temperament, and A being 437 .5473 Hz in Christiaan Huygens's temperament.
,. ~these pit<:hes for A .llfe. ~ l.it!Ie on the. fl;J..t si<Je. but many ntQsi<:q,ogists today stress that the average eigpteenth-century
,j\,shouldbe 425 Hz: Some harpsichordists today . use the.pitch A:;::415 Hz, a.. whole semitone flat. Next to these ex-
tremes, the results of using a standard C fork producing A's that are only a little flat seem quite reasonable. If other
pitches are used,. the beat frequency numbers must be adjusted proportionately.
Table.28-2: The Christia~ Huygens Regular Meantone Temperament Being a Selection of Twelve Tones
Taken from Equal 1'emperament Based· on Thirty-one Mirto-tones to the Octave.
CE 387.09677 0.78306
GB 387.09671 0.78306
DP-sharp 387.09677 0.78306
AC-sharp
EG-sharp
BE~flat
F~sharp B-flat
187.09677
387.09677
425:80646
425.80646
J wolf
diminished
[
0.78306
0.78306
39.49274
· 39:49274
g~~:~
E-flat G
:~~::~:,..,_
387.09617
.. fouths .. . ~::::;~:
0.78306
Dfl{!t''D'",... ... ·· 387.&1'77?'· · 0;78'306
FA . "'' ' ' . 3'87.09677 0. 78306
flfl• NJ the thi"fd edititJn l)jtlre lfhqdo]ltledta Brt'tannica, or, a Dictionary ofArts; Sciences>c and<Miscel~
gh; 1'homson.8onar,: 1sn11; 2:6.$~ •
.th qyote(,i :Ptolemy t>y writing, ~'Harmonics is a power apprehending the diffe~e11ces of sounds,
,~,~t~nes.§,,.;•,. Jj • • •• •• ••••• • ••
~~i,~!~tt,li~~.;::r~~J~st~~ ~I~ pl~£7d ~tween pages 212 and,. 213.

·~~
\"'to:JjF6tl1
""'
att~tiori ·. ot'wlif'Snlllh made these micro-errors, see Section 31 of the present work.
11'.Robe "tll•· Hurmonl<:s; between'},la8eS< ·~I~' an,cHJ3;'
i2:. lbfd~.
13/i Ibid: •. (23!4; j
14., lt>id.~;225~
M~; ·· · t ~~pplf!lf).f!llt fQ ,t~e;. Th,~~t/.E.dftit:Jn of the E.nfJclopaedia Br#anrJicq, 2:661,
l~!( ¢~·~mitthj'1~rf«l)n.i~~) xij~,, .
J:Z" ? l4($~ .. . .
l~., .· 1'.II~te JOI:, 'r~f:>(eJ, betwee11 page~ 2n ~tt~. 213.
j ••• • .·•. • •
•t
I~, jltlid.; xi. . .. . ' · .. .. · . ·.
20. Ibi?·· 188-90.
zt:, Jbitl,. ix, .x,'. 215, 219~
22. See Plate XX, fable n, between pa~es 212 and 213,
23,• Ibid:, xf ·
~4.f Qtt;iig, Supplefflent to, (fut Th,lrd Edltlotf obhe EncydoJ?aedia Brltannica, 2:652.
25. Ibid;' 661.
i6.,.;lbid~t> 652•....
27'. Jf1icf.' 663'.
2l~~,.RQbert Smith, ffamionics, 196-98,· 234.
NE 1»iPERAMENT
.u~ oN·-31 Tt1NEs ro: -rm?ocrAVE
.......f l...... ...... · · .,. ·
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written~ Temper the major thirds an almost imperceptable amount wide.
Test interval
(Figures denote
beats ~r second)
Tuned
TuneCto
l
before
standard pitch. Tuned
Thne before
1
just
0.6
! l
n~xr r
0.4
f I& FIr
i
Sharpen
Test for equal beating,
provided that G E is in
i
Sharpen
reasonable tune; that is,
th$' beats of E G and GB
must be slow enough to
comprehend.
Tuned
Tuned before
before.
23.6 ! 2.3
3.4 ! 2.0
2.0
4.5
I~ ~
3.4
u~:~ 11J r I~ F~ II f ~ ~ II
i i
Flatten
Equal beating
i
Sharpen
Equal beating
97
Temper D from both 0 and A so that A D beat~ one and.
·· ohe~h11Ifdmes as fast as GD. A D must be wide, an&
G ti must be n!lirow.
·Tuned
before
!
Tune
just
f
4.5. 1.8
3.4 1.8 2.0
t 11[ r If
1.3
If f II
\
Test for equal beating,
Pfl?Vi~ed tl)at F D is in
reasonable rune; that is,.
the beats of D F and FD
mµst be slow enough to
comprehend.
,,, ,,,,,,
Turied Augmented third
before (wolf) Tuned
before
l 2.7
3.4 ! !
0.0
~12= r "r
0.4
I&& I~ ~ 1&11r
12.0
11&r 1 1F
i
Flatten
i
Tune
just
11r r
Equal beating
1
Wide 7:~'iatio
small minor third Tuned
before
l Narrow 6:5 ratio
1
,,
minor thirds
3.0 3.4
2.7
f i
2.9 3.0 3.4 0.3
llf 'rt
Sharpen
Diminished seventh
(a discord)
Wide 7;6.r!ltio.
small minor thirds
.Nrurow 6:5 ratio
··· mfnor thirds l
23.9
Tuned
before
! 0.5
2.6 2.9 3.4 3.8
1fu 11i
t
Flatten
99
26
b:e .. .
2.8
r &f ·r·· tt·• 1e~*-=~~-:~r ]

L3. L4 . . 1.6 2.0 2.1 2.3 . . ~ 3.8 4.0 4.5
~1~1 1F•···
Diminished fourth
(a discord)
I Tuned
i before
!
21.1 0.4 1.4 1.5 1.6 2.1 2.2 2.3
!~LJE4=-+----21-----t~+¢..--+..<-f---~~0~~---'--;~t~I
b_,.,,__&~1£ f_tt~
i Sharpen
2.8 2.9 50 5.4

I.~ 2.5 2.7 4.0 4.2 4.5 . ~
l :-=~~df=~=t~:te --t~~"!=-~~j I
Diminished fourth
(a discord)
! Tuned
before
i
Sharpen
-== ---~-
Narrow 6:5 ratio

Wide 7 :6 ratio minor thirds
small minor thirds 1--·-·---·1
3.0 5.4 5.6
2.8
2!), Tun$ng Christiallttc Huygen 's Tempertltflent
the following intervals as a fi.nal test between the low D and upper E.
Just lntervaISc Quasi-just intervals that are a shade wide
Narrow intervals
-------i
1.8 2.0
1.6 1.6
n
L3 1.4 1.5
b~E ~ i!t f -~ --~
Wide intervals
r I
n~i:_f=_ i -i= ~-~f~_-Jf-~-i----~i_=--=-_-~i::gj

---===================--=-=-=-=-=-----------------·
Wide
3.0 3.4
2.7 2.8 3.9
--==·-------------~------
Narrow intervals
5.4 5.6
Wolves
12.0 28.2 23.9
~ ._._. _ _+- ·.~#f--+--•---i----1~-i- ~--+--i-==~~.-~f..~J!~.~

120
Table 29-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of Christirum Huygens and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Christiaan Huygens Rounded Figures
G plus 6.452 + 6
F plus 12.903 +13
E minus 3.226 - 3
D plus 3.226 + 3
c plus 9.677 +10
B minus 6.452 - 6
Compare with Tables 12-1 and 18-1.

une Ute. following quarter notes in the order written. Temper the major thirds narrow. (This is contr~ry to the
usual acoustical law whereby major thirds are always tempered wider than just intonation major thirds.) It is
t.ial that the first several notes be tempered precisely; therefore, metronome speed numbers are given in paren-
~- Thes~ fi~ttres ~ere calculated, by.multiplying the origi~~l beat frequencies per second (nut the roullded figures)
6t:LFor example, t812618954x60;;,i'08'.7571372=t09 metronome beats in rounded numbers for the major third
·CE.. The. metronome beats serve as. excellent examples of the proper beat speeds. 2
Test
(Figures withih p8ft1ritheses ··
art1 metronome settings
given in beats per minute)
Narrow
TuooCto
standard pitch.
1 Tuned
before
!
Tuned
before Tune
just
l (109)
l (136)
l !
Flatten Flatten
Narrow Crescendos denote increasing beat frequencies.

(Smaller figures denote
beatS per second)
103
The O/Eiglueenth-Century Tettiperarnerit
.VlH!lllll.SIUm fourth
(a discord)
Tuned Tuned
before before
0.0
l 1
27.4
(169)
2.8 2.8
(203)
3.4 l (113 x 2)
3.8
1~ I~ d#1f11l~#(?
Sharpen
Sharpen
Tuned
before
l Equal beating
r--------i
Equal beating
~--
Equal beating
!- ~ ]jl J-Jij=t3
2.8 3.8 2.5 2.5 3.4 3.4 2.5 2.5 2.5
Ig J
~ r I
r
Readjust E if necessary.
Temper B from both F# and G# so that both BF# and BG~ beat at the same
speed. B F# will be narrow and B G# will be wide. Since there is only one
pitch for B that will produce these two equal-beating intervals, complete
accuracy is easily obtained by this equal-beating method.
Tuned
before
2.5 2.8 2.8 3.4 3.8 3.4 l
Temper A from
both E and F# so !hat both A E and A beat at the
same speed. A E will be narrow and A will be wide.
=
Equal beating
:xn~i · J
3.0 3.0 2.8 3.0 3.4
lg J 1;g g g
- =
Temper Dfrom both A and B so that both AD and B D beat
at the same sp¢ed. A I) will be wide and B D will be narrow.
Tuned
before
2.7 3.0 3..4 1.8 2.0 2.7 2.7
Readjust C ff necessary.
Temper G from both D and E so that both D G and
E G beat at the same speed. D G will be wide
and E G wilt be narrow.
105
i
. . . !~.inper F fr~m both C and D so
ililtt boili C Fand DE beat at the
slune speed. C F will be wide and
D F will be narrow.
A narrow 7:6 ratio

small minor third
Tuned
before
3.4 3.6 4.0

l !
4.3
Equal beating
2.4 2.4
12 s
Temper B~ from both F and G so
that both B~ F and B b G beat at
the same speed. B~ G will be wide ·
and B~ F will be narrow.
Tuned
before
2.4 2.5 2.7 2.9 3.0 1.5 1.6 l.S l

11$ ~w
Temper Eb from
both m and C so that both B b Eb and C Eb
beat at the same speed. Bb Eb will be
wide and C E~ will be narrow.
~{~il~j/' , ~. Tj ·
2.7 2.8
_____:.....;;..;...===~~========::::::::::::::=======
Wide fourths Wide major sixths
3.6 3.8 4.0 2.3 2.4 2.5
ijd lij s ~'

Narrow minor thirds
2.5 2.7 2.9 3.0 3.2 3.4 3.6 3.9 4.0 4.3
t t
Nonce that this is the only te'mperament in which the 7:6 ratio small minor thirds
j
(spelled as augmented seconds) fit in with the 6:5 ratio regular minor thirds in a
chforriatic pattern of evenly progressing beat speeds.
Narrow 111ajor thirds
1.6 1.8 2.0 2.2 2.3
107
'nis tt;m~~ament wguld bC} tp,()re efficient if ()De. cguld begi!J the tuning with a G-sharp fork. The frequency of
G-sba:rpshouldbe401,o~18 Ri•. 4~eflUnjflg b<>th G-sharps, one could begin the tuning on page 104 and omit the
tests involving: the notes C $d :£ in tll:e 1.ltst ~e·
Table 30.:.1: The Dittereri~e1i·fu:·c~its Biltw~n the Notes ofB~btiri S~h~s

"&)ual Harmony" Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Tempe}'amttnt ··J.tohert Sm•th Ro1,1Jlded Figures
A •Zero difference • O cents
Q::sharp minµs 7Q.1~. -20
0 plus 8.043 + 8
F-sharp minus 12 ..065 - 12
F plus 16.087 +16
E minus 4.022 - 4
E-tlat plus 24.130 . +24
D plus 4.022 +4
C·sharp minus 16.087 -16
C · plus 12.065 +12
B mil)us 8.043 - 8
Compare with diarts. on T~bles 12-1 and 29-L

Table 3t)..2~ Robert Smith's Equal-beating Meantone Temperament Meant for "Equal Harmony. 0
Major Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Altered from Just
C:B 383.91315 - 2.40056
OB 383.91315 - 2.40056
DF-sharp; .....•.. 383,.9.1315.•01,,..•."'••.,.......... 2.40056.
• .••••"""'''"·····::::;••.
AC:tsb~........ .. .. S:~\91·~15 '"- 2.40056.
EO-sharp 383.91315 - 2.40056
BE-flat .·
fcsfuuP lJ~flat 431faJ7~10 J.··.·.
432,17370
wolf
diminished
±4:~. ,8~999.
r··.' +45.85999
C-sharp F 432.11370 fourths +45.85999
0-sharp C 432.17370 +45.85999
E-flat 0 333.91315 - 2.40056
B-:flat D 383.91315 - 2.40056
FA l83.~~3lS - 2.40056
The wolf G·shlltj E-tlat is 42.28384 cents wider than just.
Comp(lfe this table with Tables 11-1, 28-2, 15-3, and 17-1.
NOTES
l. For an appreciation of the term "equal harmony," one must read the whole of Robert Smith's book, Harmonics, published in 1749.
2. Ibid;, 235"-36.
RollERf SMITH'S BEAT FREQUENCY· FORMULAS OF 1749
·A
..
mong the beat frequency calculations published by Robert Smith there were a few micro-errors here and there.
These errors were not caused by careless calculation; they were caused by using methods that were not wholly
accurate. Smid1 explained that he was aware of the. differences created by his system of calculation. As an example,
he .often wrote that various entities were "very nearly" correct rather than 'exactly' correct. 1 Robert Smith did not
own a modem electronic pocket calculator in 1749, and even though logarithm tables were at his disposal, his mathe-
matical philosophy W!iS to avoid irrational numbers whenever possible. His purpose was to make the new beat fre-
quency calculations easy in 1749. His substitute formulas reflect mathematical genius of a high order. Thus, Smith
was accurate considering the methods he used. For an understanding of Smith's formulas, the following modem methods
of beat calculation will be given first as follows.
The common way of calculating beat frequencies is to use the known just intonation interval ratios provided that
the note frequency numbers are given. For example, because the just fifth has a ratio 3 :2, one multiplies the frequency
ofthe lower n()te of a tempered fifth by 3 and then compares this with the number found by multiplying the upper
note of the tempered fifth by 2. Basically, one thus compares the third harmonic of the lower tone with the second
harmonic of the upper tone. If the fifth were just, then these two harmonics would be in tune as a unison. fifth
were tempered narrow, then the third harmonic of the lower tone would be higher iri pitch than the second harmonic
of the upper tone. In this case, there would be beating between the two harmonics. The difference between the fre-
quency numbers of the two harmonics is then the number of beats per second. Thus, when tempering a fifth, the tuner
listens at a point exactly one octave above the upper tone of the fifth for an out-·of-tune unison between the two upper
harmonics and counts or controls these beats. In mathematical terminology, three times the frequency of the lower
tone of a fifth minus two times the of the upper tone results in the per For the
this could be per second. The Don Smith's (lrgan was 262 Hz or
vibrations per second. The A above D was 391.7813807 Hz after Smith tuned it in Aaron's meantone temperament;
therefore, (3 X262):-(2 X391.7813807)=2.4372386 beats per second; 15 xZ.4372386=36.558579 beats in 15 seconds.
Smith published this as 37 beats in 15 of beat formulas are as follows: For the
fourth DG, use 3G-4D=beats per second. For the major third DF-sharp, use 4F-sharp-5D=beats per second. For
the minor third DF, use 6D-5F=beats per second. For the sixth use 3B-~5D=beats second. Smith
used none of these formulas because he must not have been aware of the coinciding harmonics just intervals or
of the nearly coinciding harmonics of tempered intervals. Tuners during this period of history still had not discovered
the great utility of listening to beats among the upper harmonics.
Another way to calculate beat frequencies is as follows: Let the frequency of the left string of a theoretical unison
be l Hz. Let X represent the ratio amount of tempering applied to the right string of the theoretical unison. This ratio
or amount of tempering should be the same amount considered for the interval to be calculated for beating treom~nc:v
If the interval to be calculated is narrow, then the right string of the unison must be tempered flat. the frequency
of the left string is 1 Hz and the frequenc~ of the right string is l + X or Yx in Therefore, the beats per second
of the flat tempered unison are 1- )Ix, or · x1• Conversely, for the calculation of wide intervals, the frequency of the
left string is still 1 Hz, but the frequency of the right string is X times 1 or simply X in Hertz because the
must be tempered sharp. Therefore, the beats per second of the sharp unison are X -1.
Let m the number from the fraction or. ratio of the just interval closest in effect to the tempered
to N Hertz of the lower tone the interval
U1!r!Pr.<•nU one string had a of
The Perf¢ctign Qj~ighteenth-Century Temperdtnifnt
l .·then becomes a constant number.that canb~.used. inpalcuiating an.· the intervals. that are·tempered by X amount.
Thus, either x;-{1 orX ~ l is .the c()nstant number needed; The constant number times .m . N produces the beats
per sec.ond qf ilie inte(Val. f9~ narrow intervals, the finished formqlais (xi 1)mN. For wide intervals, the finished for-
mula is (X _.J)mN. Thes.e fonmilas Ptoducf beats per second,
Th~ just intonation {atiO!l of <JC!ft~~S, (ift~S, fquJ'ths, 1!1ajpJ..th~ds~ minor iliil,'<iS, major siXth\i, .and t\)\'elfths are 2: 1,
3:2, 4:3, 5:4, 6:5, 5:3, and 3:1, respectively. lrimosttemperaments, the fifths, minor thirds, and twelfths are tempered
narrow; and the fourths, major thirds, and major sixths are tempered wide. Various advanced formulas for beats per
second are as follows: X represents the degree of tempering applied; N represents the frequency of the lower note
of the interval.
Narrowfifths and twel.fths
exx 3)N =beats per second.
Wide fourths
(4X-4)N=beats per second.
Wide major thirds and major sixths
(5X-5)N =beats per second.
Narrow major thirds
( 5xx- 5)N =beats per second.
Narrow minor thirds
( 6\ - 6)N =beats per second.
The fifths in Pietro Aaron's meantone temperament are each one-fourth syntonic comma narrow. The ratio of
ilie syntonic comma is 81 to 80. The ratio of one-fourth syntonic comma is {ib-) 14 or Vi· or 1.003110457. This is
an irrational number that contains unending decimal places. Substituting this irrational number (with only the number
of decimal places supplied by a modern calculator) in place of X in the formula for narrow fifths, we have
( 3 x· 1.003110457-3)
1. 003110457 N=beats per second.
This simplifies to 0.009302438N. The middle Don Smith's Trinity College organ was 262 Hz. Substituting 262 for
N and then multiplying, we have 2.437238636 beats per second forthe fifth DA on Smith's organ. 15 X2.437238636=
36.55857954 beats in 15 seconds. These figures agree with the figures previously outlined on page 109. The calcula-
tions were done with a Texas Instruments TI-60.
In order to avoid the above difficult figures, Smith proposed substituting 645 + 643 ·.in place of the irrational number
1.003110457 + representing one-fourth syntonic comma. 3 Substituting 645 + 643 in place of X in the formula for nar-
row intervals in line three at the top of this page we have
(~~~-1). ~~. . ·. mN =beats per second

643
This becomes ( 645-643)

~!; . ·. . •
- mN =beats per second
643
2 +6645) mN =beats per second

or ( 643 43
2 x 643) mN =beats per second

or ( 643 645
simplifying to ( 6~5 )mN =beats per second

nmnot~r ftorh the fr~cti9n qf tl,le syntonic comtna used. 'therefore p =4 in the above exam-
(6~5 )mN·~···(06 i~J)•+•i)~N·~( 161i\ q.)mN·=.beats per second. 4
The latter is Robert Smith'sfonnufafot tne 6eat frequencies of narrow irltervals. His formula for the beat frequen-
cies of wide intervals was (16fi-q)mN=beats per second. These formulas work well for other temperings in addition
to one-fourth comma tempering. It is essential that q and prefer only to parts of the syntonic comma, not other com-
mas. According to Smith, m represented the larger number from the just intonation ratio in fraction form that was
d()sest to the te~pered interval being calculated. Also, N represented the frequency of the lower note of the interval.
Using Smith's formula for calculating the beating frequency of the fifth DA on the Trinity College organ tuned in
Aaron's meantone whereby the fifths were one~fourth syntonic comma narrow we have
2q ) mN= (
( 16lp+q 2X1 )
161 x 4 + 1 X3X262 Hertz=beats per second.
This simplifies to 2 x 1 ~s" 262 - 1t1s2 -2.437209302 beats per second or 36.55813953 beats in 15 seconds. This type of
calfulation was easy for eighteenth-century acousticians who did not own calculators .or tables of logarithms. In com-
paring these figures with those on page 109 of the present book, one can see that they are "very nearly" correct,
as Robert Smith wrote. Also, it should now be clear why a few micro-errors, insignificant as they are, existed in Smith's
published figures. This is a fine testimony to how well eighteenth-century geniuses calculated without our modern elec-
tronic· tools.
NOTES
l. Smith, Harmonics" 105-8, 113, 115.
2. Ibid., Plate XX between pages 212 and 213.
3. Ibid., 107-8.
4. Ibid., 113, 210.
~Hrs1::~tH!/a~~:=~~l!~=~~*:;:;::t~i1t:=~~
J!J~ ~<>~Jrw ~ff.. .:·An
attJ(~~ l~~ IfatJJ~~~~f{4•·P9~li~.~~;~~~J~~~ert ~reim,e~ ffi . ~<\il}bµfgh; confain~4 appr~ved
Method of Tunm&. e"H~stcbord'f ;tn l>late XV. NC1 pubhcatton date was given, but this nmst have been w~tten
tietWeep t.143 a.nd: 1757. Pasquali's method of condensing the whole theory of tuning into. one plate was quite a contrast
ttl' .Qobert Smith~S. b()Qk wbfoh cQntatned mote than 2glpag4~ qf explanations presented in difficult geometric and mathe-
matical terms. Of course, Smith's theory. was meant for organs while Pasquali's was for hal'J?sichords.
Nicolo Pasquali's instructions con~ain no mention of whether the fifths wer~ te1Jlpeted melodicaUy ·or hatmoni~ally
(vertically) .. There was no mention of beats, beati:qgs, pulsations, waverings, flutters~ et"~ The onlytempefing instruc-
tion was, tJtat f'The ~tltsmqstbe/tuned rathert1atth3tl.Qtltellways. '' Pasqua1i macte.no distinction between the temper-
ings or non•tem~@lgs of ~e various fifths. :Philosophically, ~is illlplied ~Jtegul~t' temperament, but this would have
been inipossible without th~ qse· of all the t~stingintervals. He didincludeth(~ majot: thi.tds,as trials.· but he omitted
tlte re~jni~g; ijve maj<>ri thir~s tltalhe c<>uld hav~ used. 'l'tt~re ~e always eiglt~ g9od major thirds in the meantone
tettiperaqierit. systems~ ·1. ]urtliei ·~nd.icat!o11 jhat .P:asqua14's te:mperaQient· was meant to be.regulat' was that the three
trial majo:t thirds,were . GBt EG-sharp; and E~:tlafG rather than GB. CE, and PA. Also; 0-sharp and E-flat were at
the. extreme ends of the ~hain· of eleven fifths. anddiiG-sharp, E,.flat G, and GB were iqentif;al.
Meantone tellIPerament: was strongly implieq by Pasquali when he wrote, ''By this Method of Tuning, the imperfec-
tion of the Instrument is thrown in A-flat'and. ~..flat. its 5th."' li1 the bearing plan there were a.:.sharps but no A-flats.
Since the three trial major thirds· including EG-sharp were expected to be ''!me,'' meanfon~ tell1~erament was intend-
ed .• The.final.dill1i~ished-si1lthG"shar~Jj"'~at~~~€t:~!lthav~s~~~the·1lftll~f1~t:·WflaF~au!e·of: ••th~·imperfec
.tifui.:..ofcthe,Jnsmwtent,..!,!.~.!!i·~~t~.~-&B',tft~t. the··keybootd did not contain at least nineteen or twenty keys
to tlte octave. .
Concerning. the three trial majtir thirds; i wrote, ''If the first Trial gives a fine 3rd, what has been done
may•be·deptftdedon; if'Othi!l"Wa}'$itWUJ' be1in afresh. and Tune all over again, and so of the 2nd and 3rd
Trials.'' The fifths were '•rather flat'' (narrow), and the major thirds were ''fine.'' These abstract descriptions seem-
ingly allowed tremendous freedom to the tuner except tltat the tuner no doubt ha.d a st(ong lniptessictnconceming exactly
what a ''fine'' third. should sound like• Therefore~ the tuner wa,s as restricted as ever. Years of listening to harpsichord
perfor.mances woul~.h~v~Aete~~4.~~ ~9mtcf eXpectedfr€»tn a "fine;' major third .. In any case, the major thirds
were rather $lo~ beating.ill this quasi-reg1dar te1Jlperament; otherwise, there would have been no "imperfection" on
A-flat E-tlat. The chances of the majo:r thirds having been in complete just intonation as in the theoretically correct
version of Pietro Aaron's meantone temperament were remote because of th~ bearing plan used a11d the lack of test intervals.
Nicolo Pasquali wrote c'Oncerni11g octave tuning that ''After Tuning a Bass Note to its Octave it is proper to compare
it. with the Trible Notes.beca.use in a Success.ion of,.Octaves the Eads apt to be deceived.•• He furnished the following
example fQr tuning C below middle C from middle(;. This was based on experience in listening.
31. Nicolo Jiasquiili's T11ni11g Rllles
Test
a_ a_
A
~ - ~ .•. . ~·
.2!Z. ·..
~-"- ~ "'- ..;..:.
D !'\:· -
'\: ll
Ill
. . -flt__
4}: ± :;
~
L r2_ l!2_
-
I
i
Tune
The above is an indication that the sounds from the harmonic series affected pitch determination or tuning decisions
even though the tuners of past centuries were not trained to listen for beatings among the nearly coinciding upper har-
monics. They were not consciously aware of the harmonics, but these harmonics nevertheless affected interval quali-
ties or colors. Two harmonic series of the two C's plus the coinciding harmonic locations are noted below. For similarities,
compare with the last chord in the above.
The coinciding
harmonics
l
Harmonic se1ies
(mini-notes)
,-----
ti_ ~ ~ _IJ!J_
/
!:O_
I @I
~l. J!~
..•
:1 ~
•
I
~.:t...·
-0- .,. ±
I
\
L
'J.' _o_
··.
• d
L ________. - - - ·_J
The fundamental pitches
of the two C's
(whole notes)
i
The octave
t
The note being
played tuned
As William Holder had in 1694, Nicolo Pasquali published a twenty-four note bearing plan consisting of the usual
circle of fifths and octaves. Pasquali's bearing plan was similar to that of Holder except that it was transposed a tritone
higher in pitch, and Pasquali began tuning from G rather than from the traditional C, Like Holder, included
unnecessary octave duplications of five notes in the bearing plan. For efficiency, the five uppermost notes could be omit-
ted in the bearing section. Pasquali's tempering techniques belonged more to the seventeenth century than to the eight-
eenth in that he did not tune major thirds directly as Gottfried Keller did in 1707 and he did not reduce the bearing
section as Peter Prelleur did in 1731. Nicolo Pasquali's bearing plan is duplicated without any changes except that it
is printed in modem form for easier reading and the last measure was added.
13
'
Tun~ the follbwing quarter notes in. the order> written. feinper the fifths '~rathj;)r flat"
(narrow). For exan;iple!i of theo-
retichl beat fr. · .equencies. refer to page 101 and double most of the figures for applications an octave. higber.
',, ,\ ,j'", ,,, ,', ' '" ' ' ',.,
Tune
Tuned just
Tune Tune
before
!
just just
!
! !
'"Tdi\'rlf''
'l)~~d ·'b@fore
ix:fore Tune Tune
"First trial"
1
just just
! ! l !
fl~ J A Li J . #J
l t
II J t #d
Flatten "a fine third" J'1latten
JJ Tunil'lgNicola'Pasquali.'s Temperament
"Second trial"
Flatten Flatten "a fine third"
This shows "the

imperfection of
of the Instrument."
Tune Tuned
Tuned Tune just
before before
l T t 1'
i
Sharpen
Sharpen Sharpen Sharpen "a fine third"
A nindica~on that the most common· tuning during the eighteenth centuty ·in England was not the meantone sys-
tems of Robert Smith at14\ Nicolo Pasqual~ is found in II Principio OF a Regular lntroduction to playing on the
J{arpsfc~ord or Organ by James Nares (111.5.-,,1183). This was published in London by Welcker in 1760. Nares had
beett a s~dentof:;william Croft, Bernard Oates, and Jon~Christopher Pepusch. In 1756 he was appointed organist
and con:tposer to the king. In 1757 he became master of the Chapel Royal, the most prominent school of music in
England~ JI Prlnd'pio became the model for mo11t future instruction books. In the chart explaining the symbols of mus-
ic, Nares wrote that ''The Regular Flats" were. B~tlat, E-flat, A-flat, and D-flat~ and that "The Regular Sharps" were
F~sharp~. q:..sh!rp, 0-sharp, an~ p-sllarp.Jt is trtt~ !!J.at (]-flat and A-sharp were still omitted, 1 but using eight chromatic
tdnes wonl<l h11ve been too much of a burden on<the n:teantone temperament that usually accommodated only five chro-
matic J9pes. ThereflJre,, well temperam~l\t must have been more common than meantone. ..
Ja:d.tes.N11res was a,n important practi~ing musician whereas. the writings of theorists were basecf bn over-simplified,
easy,mathematics. Tlleorists sitt,ce!!J~ sciventeefith century had beeA l'e~ting that fifths were narrowed by one~fourth
synt()fil~ C()mma (\,18,1:8,Q) r~~ylting in just~tE>nation majol' ~rcls.<§~~). These sta,t~J})~R-ts no doubt seemed like meaning-
less academic jaigon tQ the practicing musicians who tempered instinctively according to their .enharmonic needs. In
practice, even if some musicians did tune a major third such as CE completely pure after narrowing four fifths by
one.-fourth comma each,. they no doubt tuned th~ remaining eight fifths close to pure in order to perform in all twenty-
four tonalities efficiently. If CE were slightly wide as in Huygens, Sauveur, or Pasquali, this task would have been
proportionately easier. Thus, ·~emperament was irregular (fifths being of various sizes). so that the most harmonious
sounds were preserved in the natural diatonic keys while at the same time allowing one to modulate freely through
an the l<'.eys. . . . ·. .·. . . ·. ..• ·. . . . '
··UrilesS"the·average·nmsidmtwasltighlr'trained inmathematies; the following·deseriptions written by theorists prob-
1
ably had little meaning. In voluJl)e 4, page 3177 of A New and Complete Dictionary of Arts and Sciences (London:
W. Owen, 1764), it js written that the ·
fjfth will be deficient by 1A of a comma .. Which difference, although it be sensible, yet experience shews, that fifths
so diminished are tolerable. This is what is called the common or, vulgar temperament. and consistst as has 6een said,
in diminishing the fifth by. 1A of a q:>nuna, in preserving the. third major perfec;t, and cliViding it. into two equal tones.
Whic}tQeing supposed, it folloy.rs th~lth~ fourth: musf ex(:eed the truth.by 1A of a comm~; that the third minor will
be deficient by the same qQantify; that th~. sixth minor will be perfect, and the sixth majorredundatit by 1,4 of a comma;
arid lastly, the semitone major will exce&l the truth by 1A of a comma. If we introduce chromatic notes, or flats and
sharps, the semitone minor will al.so exceed the truth by 1A of a comma, and consequently the difference between the
two semitones, or the diesis enhannonica, will be preserved.
This is a complete description of the theoretically correct version of the Pietro Aaron meantone temperament pub-
lished in 1523. No one had a chance of tuning it excepfprofessfonal organ technicians who had read Robert Smith's
book of 1749, Harmonics, Or The Philosophy Of Musical Sounds. Tuners who used monochords were not profession-
··· ally. accurate, and.without the twentieth-century ear-training and testing techniques, this exact meantone temperament
was impossible. to tune ()~.harpsichords and clavichords .
. C'111,tintdng .on. page. . :U.11..ofthe dicti!l~Jswri~~t;l •.. ~ ~lll,exe., l;\te atso•. otttextemgeraments. proposed by different
authors; as that of31 parts by Mr. Huygens; Mr. Sauver's of 43, Mr. Henfling's of 50, and that of 12.,. The mention
.·:·~~ct;!!Jtlf:~t··~·~~t.wa,~,;~~;:J2tr~j~g!,Jf~~=1t!.l!'·iimotrnts::llf'.fet(fgnitiott•th~t .~mrt··~pe~~~lt'rt~n proposed
····mathe.maticians ·who
Jl'~ at the
bt natural
the lfasis of information
as thatrepottaj in~ Nt?W and Comp nary rts a ci ces. The four :fifths minus two octaves that
tea just intonation major third must be an average of <Ute-fourth syntonic comma narrow. but as Alexander Malcolm
..... te in 1721 •• ~ ·i~ W1,I~t be al} extraordinary Ear that can, judge exactly of a. Quarter Comma.' ' 1 Actually, musicians
;rlf the eighteenth ctfi(\jry c()uti:t ~o more teJ]lper fifths exactty a quarter comma narrow without testing intervals on
harpsichords.that}. caniJ1lu~i~ian~J '•> .;."!• • /. ·<• .;· · < .· .. •
• fqtination in the dfotiona· . f)fl~~e& fly ~en in:f164 was. copied word for ..vord without changes in The
1
Dic#onaey af Arts and Sciences published by the anth<>rs Rev. Temple :Henry Croker, Thomas Williams,
•and Samuel Clarldn London in 1764-1766.
NotIS
!~~. f~es.ita~e~~tf~ri~~ ·ea~~ag~~ in Gi.tfat maj~r ~~a if~nor which ~buld \lave required an A-sharpaccordtng t6 The New
'\ Cro~e'J)(dlo~ry .o.(Music cm(,(Musicians.,.,3:38.
.~;~~M~ebrttt• ,4
·~'-',t,''·
.:J'rea(i.i'~ of6ffl~i~~.' •..•t•.
'''·''d·,,.;,;t,, .. ,, . . '.··.>;·.:,.>'
·.;·· • .•• ,.• \
SpedJ.la~vr;··>·Pfdctfcal, and
,'';'.<··' "~' '
Historical, 312.
H7
THE·ONE-FIF'tll·.·SYN£0N1cCoMMAMEANroNE·TEMPERAMENT
BY JOHN HOLDEN IN 1770
J ohn Holden (?-1771?), a writer on the theory of music, was associated with Glasgow University from 1765 to
1770. A conservative, he did notacknowledge the movement for adopting wen temperament but rather promoted
meantone temperament which contained the wolf diminished fourths G-sharp C, C-sharp F, F-sharp B-flat, and BE-
flat. He suggested that these diminished fourths could be accepted as consonant ratio 9:7 large major thirds in the fu-
ture.1 He also pointed out that the augmented seconds E-flat F-sharp, PG-sharp, and B-flat C-sharp were valuable as
ratio 7 :6 small minor thirds. 2 These small minor thirds were superbly harmonious when they were used in dominant-
seventh chords such as B-flat D FA-flat leading into B-flat E-flat G. 3 Notice that FG-sharp used as a ratio 7:6 small
minor third was spelled as FA-flat.
John Holden's one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament4 was somewhat similar to Gottfried Keller's mean-
tone temperament published in 1707 (see Sections 17 and 18 of the present work). Holden's fifths were a shade better
than Keller's; therefore, Holden's wolf diminished sixth was reduced down to 23.83 cents too wide. Keller had equal-
beating major triads. Keller's major thirds beat the same speed as the fifths when the two intervals shared common
aurally and quality-wise, Keller's major thirds were completely compromised with the fifths. Size-
wise, however, Holden's major thirds and fifths acquired the perfect complete compromises; that is, both the major
thirds and the fifths were tempered by exactly the same amount~one-fifth syntonic comma. Therefore, Holden's major
triads were not equal-beating, but his first inversion minor triads were equal-beating. His minor triads thus were among
the finest in history, and this offset the loss. For the tuners who knew of their existence, these first inversion minor
triads must have been invaluable tools for tempering. They removed the guesswork in making decisions. Holden did
not mention anything concerning beats or beat frequencies, and his original bearing plan or scheme is unknown.
In the advantages of invetsioh minor one must use a
plari. In the to concentrate or strain to temper the first sixth with exact
precision according to a specified known beat frequency. Two other intervals are easier to temper because they can
be compared with intervals previously tuned. The remaining intervals are then tempered by means of the easiest equal-
beating techniques ever discovered. The Holden temperament is thus easy to tune and even though equal beating tech-
niques are used, the results are theoretically correct.
According to the Texas Instruments TI~60 calculator, the ratio of a fifth narrow by one-fifth syntonic comma is
1.49627787. The ratio of each fifth used in the above equal-beating temperament is based on the formula 4X 4 - 3X 3 = 10
whereby X equals the ratio of the tempered fifth. According to the TI-60 calculator, this fifth is ratio 1.49627972,
which is two-thousandths of a cent larger. This micro-difference is too small to make any differences in practical beat
frequency calculations.
Table 35-1: The Equal-beating Regular One-fifth Syntonic Comma Meantone Temperament by John Hoiden.
(Fifths having a ratio 1.49627972 we:re used in calculating this table.)
CE 390.6235 4.30982
GB 390.6235 4.30982
OF-sharp 390.6235 4.30982
390.6235 4.30982
EG-sharp 390.6235 4.30982
Fifihs having a rafia 1.49627972 are more authentic, musically, than the fifths with a ratio 1.49627787.
The wolf G-sharp B-flat is 23.S3028hw1ts wid~r:thim p\lre. Compare this table with Tables 11-1, 15-3, 17-1, 28-2,
~~2~
Table 35-2: The Equal-beating Regiilar One•fifth Syntonic Comma Meantone Temperament by John Holden.
(Fifths having a ratio.l.4~l7787 wei:e used in calcidatmg this table.)
'1
Major Thirds Sizes itt .Cents : ' Cettf$. Wide frmn:c Just
CE 390.61497 4.30126 = ~ syntonic comma
GB 390.61497 4.30126
DF-sharp 39().61497 4.3Ql26
AC-sharp 390.61497 4.30126
EG-sharp 390.61497 4:30126
BE-flat 418.77006 ).'.· · wolf [ 32.45634
F-sharp B-flat 418.71006 diminished 32.45634
C-sharp F 418. 77006 fourths, 32.45634
0-shilrp C 418. 77006 32A5634
E.tlat 0 390.61497 4.30126
B-flat D 390.61497 4;30126
FA . . 390.~J497 4~30126
The wolf G:~sharp E-flat is 23.85383 cents wider than pure. Compare this table with Table 35-1.
NOTES
J. John Holden, An Essay Towards. a Rational System, of Music (Glasgow: Printed for the Author, 1770), 147.
2. Ibid., 148. ' .
3. Ibid. 147 .
0,
. ,~~Ibid •.
119
~~ttBAnNe··
. N'FOF1770 .·
Tune. the roi1owing quaner note& in th~ ljrt:fcim written.

This Del!t frequency is
essl!!ntiaL CA must be
Tune Cto abs<iiufoly correct.
standard pitch.
l. T Tune
1 .
. •.
Tuned
bef()fe
I Equal beating
65 l3.0 "' 3.3 6.5 3.3
u4J. ·. J J 13 g 113 w 1j II
f r
·~
t
. Sharpen
Ctesi:endos. denote increasing beat speeds. . T~mper,E fr<.>m both C and A so th~t the major third
C E beats at exactly the same speed as the fourth
E A. Both intervals must be wide.
V~·•)H/C•Y·•V)AV'C•••••V·••>!,·•
Tuned
Tuned
l
before
before
L Equal beating
.· 6.5 6.5 6.5 3.3 . 1.6 • 1.6 l.9 3.3
i
Tune
t
Flatten
just
TempetB from bothGlui<il!'s~thllttti;~aj~~ij~~~i&aim~·.; ..•.
same speed as.the fourth BE. Both intervals must be wide.
Tuned
before
2.4 3.3 l Equal beatin~
1.9 1.9 1.9 1.6

3.9
3.3
n~ J J Ilg J lg 3 lj 3 !::~ 3
-====== i
Tune
======-
just
Tuned
before
13.0
9.8 6.5 l 4.9 5.8 6.5 5.8 6.5
11 W I
&J J II
i -=====
Flatten
121
l
Temper D from both B~ and G so that the major thi.rd B ~ D beats at the
same $peed '88 the fourth I) o~ ·Both inreriiafs must lkl: wide. · .
3.3
11, g.g J
1.9 2.2 2.4 2.9. 2.4 2.9 3.3 6.5 7.3 9.8
g .g J IJ J j II
'J &J
Tuned
Tuned before
r
before
Eqiiill beating
7.3 2.4 2.2 4.9 7.3 6.5

7.3
Tune
l
Temper F# from
just both D and B so that the major third
D F# beats at the same speed as the
fourth F# B. Both intervals must be
wide.
Equal beating
3.6 7.3 3.6 3.9

3.6 3.6 1.6 1.8 1.9 3.3
u'#~ id I~ iJ ti i9 d Ig #d ~
Temper C# from
bodt A artd Flt. so that the. major third
A Cit beats at the same speed as the
fourth C# F#. Both intervals
must be wide.
. Equal beating
• r
,,.~.1 :"2.1
!!~'
5.5 2.4 2.7 2.9 2.4 2.7 2.9
#g I~ iJ lj ~ d I
J #J iJ
A wide 7:6 ratio Tuned
small minor thircl before
Equal beating
! l J 2.9
,J
13.0
~qJ II J
8.2 9.S 2.9
#J Id ~
; Tune
just
Tuned
before
1
Equal beating
2.9 4.4 3.9 4.4

2.4 4.4 l.7 2.6
ufd J .·~ <II J.

i
Flatten F until the wide major third FA beats
at exactly the same speed as the fourth A D.
123
The Perfection Of Eighteenth•Centui)I Teinperament
2.9
1.8
2.4 2.6
d 2.4 2.6 2.7
ID-====~··====d~~-__,____1J-4 A 21
Tuned
before
3.6 4.4 4·9 ~ 73 8.2 8.7 9.8 l

i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
5.8 130 l
l ''~Jt-~i~Jt~~~~-j3jJ_~=] ~---- I t
I
Tune
just
beating
8.2 2.6 2.7 2.9 5.5 5.8 8.2 8.7

4.9 7.3
~~·--::_~--"-~~-~~---------->--~.--+-.JL-f'7J.--·~-~Jt~~ --==::.:.._ _ _ _ _ _
~-----
36. ·Tuning Holden 's 1etnperarnettt
Tuned
before
Equal beating
l 3.9
2.2 2.3 2.4
Flatten E~ until the wide major third m G beats

at exactly the same speed as the wide fourth G C.
Tuned
before
---- ~
Temper G# from
both E and C# so that the major third E G~ beats
at exactly the same speed as the fourth G# Clt.
Both intervals must be wide.
Equal beating
r ----,
4.1 8.2 3.9 4.1 4.4
Tuned
before Tune
l
just
11.7 12.2 13.0

3.9 4.1 4.4 5.8 6.1 6.5
Check tin~ fQ~owing intetvals as a final test between G and D.
~e just intervals
Wolf
Narrow fifths ~,
• . ..
15 . L6 . 1.7 . U
. ·.
.. l.9
..
2.0
22
. •
23 2.4
.
2.6 . 2.7 29
~
!
&S
Wide fourths
Wide major thirds
5.5 5.8
4.9
qi ~J ~~
A wide 7:6 ratio
small mittor third
6.1 6.5
! Minor thirds
ll.2 13.0
The equal~beating triads:

The major thirds and fourth~ beat at the same speed, and the major sixths beat exactly twice as fast.
II
:,talSl~fJli-t~ Tllt! Oi«ft~n~~·~('.:O,ts li~~~;qt.~'· •;fi),IW'flOl'den Melftf<»Jfei0~m(H!mntedt md~ttti'fem(H!tament.
...•,,,,,,w,..%,..,,'"...~,..,·ltwving'11';.nnm'i l·wenMtsed in calculating this table.)
~'l~.,.x~mp~rwnent H~!~!ll '.f!~Jl!rament Rounded Figures
A ··•;~¢to· diffet~ce 0 cents
G-sharp nil.nus 11.12058 -12
G plus 4.68823 +5
F-sharp minus 1. 03235 - 7
F plus ' 9.37646 + 9
E minus 2.34412 ...., 2
E:..flat plus 14.06470 +14
D plus 2.34412 + 2
C-shatp minus 9.37647 -9
c pJu~ 7.03235 +7
B minus 4:68823 -5
1Hla~ pJus 11. 72(}58 +12
Compare this. table with Tables 12-1, 16-1, 18-1, 29-1, and 30-1.
•••¥•,,,'"'" •'<•H•'•>'<
.. tl'cents
.:.:12 ...
plus ,, 4.692~!. +5
ntinus ' ' · 1J>3811''' ~1
ptus 9. 3ll5<>3. + 9
E ntinus 2.34626 - 2
· ~-flat plus 14.07754 +14
D plus 2.34626 + 2.
C-sharp tnfilus 9.38$03 - 9
c plus 1.03871 +7
·D,,· ntihUs 4.69251 ...., 5
B,.ftat p1us 11.73129 +12
Compare this ~ble with Tabie 36...'l.

R obert Falkener was a London harpsichord builder who also had a music printing and publishing business. As
a harpsichord technician, he must have also been a professional tuner. In 1774 he printed and sold the second
edition of his Instructions For Playing the Harpsichord wherein is fully explained The Mystery of Thorough Bass; with
Many other Material Things very rarely given to Scholars By the Teachers of Music to which is added Exact Rules
for tuning the Harpsichord; With allthe different-sized Wires used in that Instrument. The words 'Tuning' and 'Wires'
were in larger print. Falkener may have been more interested in the printing business than in harpsichord manufactur-
ing in 1774 for he did not hesitate to publish his detailed stringing scale on page 44. He considered string replacement
with proper sizes an important aspect of tuning. On page 44 he wrote:
Most people, in learning to tune, are very apt to break the strings, owing to there making the thirds and fifths too
sharp; for if once you are gone beyond the mark, it will require an exceeding fine ear to distinguish on which side
the fault lies therefore, if you are doubtful let down the string, or turn the pin back. And as a further precaution, I
would advise you to set the first Note rather below the Pitch-pipe, till you become more perfect in tuning.
Robert Falkener wrote on page 43, "In tuning you must make the thirds as sharp as the ear will permit, and the
fifths as flat.'' This is a repeat of the abstract instructions published by Gottfried Keller in 1707, Peter Prelleur in
1731, and William Tans'ur in 1746 (see pages 55, 75, and 83 of the present work). Falkener attempted to clarify the
instructions when he added, "but as it is impossible to describe to what degree of flatness or sharpness these Notes
ought to be, the best way is to make your third perfect; which done, draw up string a little but that
in so scarcely to hear a difference in the sound." would
n.rn«""'" H.UV!rre111s v.,...,. ,,,,,,..,..., in , or at the very most, the ten1.ipe:raine111t
1707 as interpreted and calculated in Section 18 of the present work. However, Falkener
created a new when he wrote, "Likewise make Ga perfect fifth to C; after which let down the wire, or turn
the back; but also must be done in so small a as hardly to make an alteration in the sound." The tw1:m11eu1-
century piano technician would certainly interpret latter as being equal temperament. The problem is that equal
r""'"'"'"''""'m"'"' is different from the or Keller There is no way to such
differences. To have Huygens type major thirds and at the same time have all equal-tempered type 'Vfi fifths
is an acoustical impossibility on standard keyboard instruments.
From the above, the truth is realized that what was "so trifling a degree as scarcely to hear a difference in sound"
during the eighteenth century is now considered by modern professional technicians to be large degrees of tempering
making great differences in the sounds. This is the only way to interpret this otherwise contradiction in the Falkener.
Throughout tuning history, major thirds have always acoustically opposed As major thirds were fifths
were improved; and vice versa. A choice always must be made between good thirds or having good fifths.
Robert Falkener published two bearing plans. His first plan was an almost exact copy of Peter Prelleur's published
plan of 173 l. Even so, he gave no acknowledgment to Prelleur. Falkener transposed the plan one octave higher. He
also tuned F from C rather than from A. Falkener's second plan was almost identical to that of Nicolo Pasquali pub-
lished about 1757. Again, he no acknowledgment to Pasquali. Falkener restored the note back to the
traditional C whereas began with G. This was the only difference.
As ~s
app~ars. that Falke11ergaye~s. another con~t~4.icti~n. 'f:h,i~ is~()1Ved,.·.·ho~eyer,.•when<m~.?otices . the·.complete absence
or purposeful oil1ission in the Falkener instructions of P~squali 's sentence, ''By this Method of Tuning, the imperfec-
tion of the Instrume11t is thrown h1 A-flat and E"flat, its 5th.'' 1 Falkener made no mention of any imperfections or
wolfintervals. For these reasons, we must conclude th~t Fa}kener's tuning was the same as Prelleur's. Also, Falkener
listed PreUeur's bearing planJirst in his ins,truqtjqns; (Ind he ~ishe<l elaborate descriptions on how to use it. The
Pasquali bearing plan was listed second as only ''another method of tuning.'' As a professional, Falkener no doubt
preferred the extra challenges required by Prelleur for tempering major thirds directly rather than indirectly as in the
Pasquali. For an interpretation of Prelleur's bearing plan, read Section 24 of the present work. There is no reason
to form any new interpretation for Falkener.
Robert Falkener used the word 'Trial' for test chords. He explained that if the notes of a Trial "are well tuned,
they will all vibrate agreeably." In the following bearing plan, Falkener's notations of the word 'Trial' are retained.
Falkener advised that trial combinations such as
!ff 1 II
should be played ''frequently . . . for in so doing the ear will be refreshed.''
The original tuning order of the notes from the Falkener bearing plan is left unchanged. It is printed in modern
form for easier reading. Six second inversion triads were added according to the Keller-Prelleur-Tans 'ur-Falkener recom-
mendations. The nine intervals at the end of the instructions and the advice following were also added. AU the beat
frequency numbers for standard pitch were added by the present author as suggestions for authenticity. Robert Falkener
published no beat frequency figures. For a guide for electronic tuning, see Table 25-1 of the present work.
NOTE
1. Nicolo Pasquali, The Art of Fingering the Harpsichord (Edinburgh: Robert Bremner, c. 1760), Plate XV.
TUNING WELL TEMPER.AMENT BY USING ROBERT FALKENER'S
RULES OF 1774 OR BEFORE
(Compare with Section 25)
"Get a Pitch-pipe,
whereon blow gently Test interval
the Note of C natural." (Figures denote
l ~:, "'"' T=d) ::~ Tri.
!~~~-~~t:--==ti···~·=1~---¥=tf;-~-1
i i Sharpen Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before Trial
l !LI l 18 !
..-----t-------~-:---- ---+----l- i~
~~i=-=J 2-----+--=B~t~1
Sharpen
i
Flatten
Sharpen
t
Flatten
"Proof Key"
Tuned Tuned Test Just
before before
!
1 16.8
1 1,8
Trials
0.0
irf 4 #J !#~ If
j g 1d
t
Sharpen
1
Flatten
i
l::ow E was tuned previously.
Concerning the high E in the last nieasure above. Falkener explained on page 44 that this
is the Proof Key; because if you have tuned right, it will be a perfect unison to E below; but if it should be too high
1. so, care.~ly ~.~!'~r.1m1s over ~1.a1~; vy w c me~~JOU w11. n out wuere me euctency 11es.
pfr sharp f'!_~ 1 it, and !P~ ~f'~~ to C sh2~!~ ..bJ &oohl~'h.th"'.~J'.£~.~Y, ?el' fiassdu.~~~L~,?:.~~: mda~ !our fi~fths too sharp:
Tuned
Tuned before
Trial
before
!
l 14.6
Trials
l
JI'! [j ,w l1J lti #~ II J J
t
Sharpen
t
Sharpen
Tuned
before
1.s r 'l>iai• ! .•· .J 0.8 Trials
!~~~._ _ ,_~~-
_,. --..+-==f~·
~q-++--+-J<---+--JJ~· =:;:;;__~J'===-_~~1d~·--====I~-,_____··
+-><M---1 . • · .· . __Jt=~=_2]
·-====J_..
i
Sharpen
Tuned
before Tuned Tuned
l 0.4
Sharpen
just Tune
just
The following intetval:s will be bright and harsh but still within the range of eighteenth-century tolerability.
Perform a series of all the major triads progressing in root movements a fourth or a fifth in order to determine
if the varying effects change evenly.
Tune the of the instrument means of octaves f:rom the notes within the bearing section
from middle C to an octave above F above middle C.
For electronic tuning, see Table 25-1.
For using Robert FaHcener's second bearing that was from Nicolo as outlined below.
Set to pitch. Tuned

before
l
Tune Tune
just
l
just
Flatten
Continue with measure two on page 114. Omit the first three notes of measure
J ean-Jacqties Rousseau {1712-1718) was~ Swiss philosoph~~ and composer who spent most of his1jf~ in.France.
As a composer, he"
was known for his oper~ •t--e devin du village which enjoyed instant success. It was widely per-
formed in ~utope throughout the last half of t,~e eighteenth century. His writings on social and political theory were
atJ\ong the lflost inflU f the. eighteenth cenftity. ~i~ Du contrat s'?dal and. his novel Emile caused so many pro,blems
f~~th.e a{lth.orities, he exiled fitstt<1 Switzer~and and later to ~ngland where he' was well received. Latefi~!he returned
tct France ~,~er an assumed name (he was tech~Mllly still under arrest) and finished the Dictionnaire de Musiqzt.e that
he had beeh Working on for many years. lt was published in 1.768. It is unique that one of the greatest eighteenth-
cenfilll authors was also a serious musician capable of writing this important dictionary of music. It contained exten-
sive info~tion on acoustics o(m,tervals and temperament. By 1771, the dictiqnary was translated and distributed
in En~J,an~k; Reprintings of .the dictio11ary continued throughout the nineteenth century.
Rousseau$s original temperament instructions1 were translated into English by William Waring as follows:
;I!!!l'h ~~ f:leg~!l'J~)!:,;J1\ 1i~ .~~.mt!1d1,e !:1,f !J.l~ ~~ys, .amhw~~~11.JheJout; fir11t fifi!11' jn a~c~11Hi11s~ until ~t the fourth
mi forms a msjor•third~ abso1ute1yjust with the first sound ut, which we can the first proof.
Secondly, Iti continuing to tune by fifths, as soon as we are arrived on the diesis's; we enforce the fifths a little,
thoug~ the thirds may suffer, and when we are arrived to the sol diesis, we stop. This sol diesis ought to make, with
tlt~ .rm~.·.\\. ,iq§t m.ai~(thir(i, q~ atl~~s,t tolet:iblY fo~ this}s the. sec9nd Pt~pf. ..
'Ffiirdly~ We tatc:~.~e· tit againi ~q tune the fifths in flat, .viz.· fa, si B flat, &c. weak;;cif consequence; then enforcing
th~ni {j.y. degrees, thaf 1~,: wea.kenilig the sounds till we come to the re B flat, which, taken as ut diesis, ought to be
found in concord, and form a fifth with the sol diesis, at which we had before This is the third proof. The last
· fifths•wm be founct:·~~t:ftet' strol}g4 ~ •• ••••
"' >' ' n<''-'' '," '" < < •'' < ,"''
M• •·••·•
.,, >o/'-"";ih~;iWA«?.%'._'J0A"1>A,\~,:N'N"';{c '\f,: ~' f):,'.'\:,.;,o,)'1110•c:><.·lh·l'.'"."0''
these instructions ·were mea~t to accompany the bearing plan chart on page 3.g of 1!1e Waring translation. The
R:o\ls~ea~ be~ring;plan · .~n · a,~~dg~ ~iHiapt Holder plan i.ne4 on page 38 of the present work
·ext1eptth!tir·was··· · · ·ttrte· i!r~ anitaJowB'wasa<ldea tO: ··· t.oilllttiftgthe highest F-sharp. Thus,
the Rousseau bearing plan was nineteen notes from B below middle C to F, an octave and a Jourtp above~
.. On.pages 247:. amt 24~ of the Waring transla.ti()n. one.fhtds. that. Roussea\JnWlils.I\.ol th~.autltfJ)ti of. this. temperament.
It was the established (eIJlperament (l~. tetl}perafilellt .etabli} approved· by. organists and instrument makers according
to cus$qm. \\(~ri11g. t:f(lllsl!'l~~.tji.§,4~QtQc;~~eltiP~l'aµtent' as .'modification.' This temperament will continue to be referred
to. as .th.e ~tlUS$~~\l temperament in. the present work because the established temperament was not exactly the same
in every century. ·
T~eabove instructic:ms: trecome dear only when one reads the pertinent paris of the translated dictionary. The sym-
bols ut, re; mi, fa, sol, la, si, ut,referred to the n~filral scale C, D, E, F. G, A, B, C .. 3 The term 'weaken' meant
to narrow, and the terlfls: 'strengthen~· 'enforce,• OF 'reinforce' meant to widen. 4 As an example, Rousseau wrote con-
cerning the c;omm()nnatutaljust intonation scale th.lit ·~the fifth DA is. weak by a comma, as well as the minor third
IJF." 5 .:tlytli~ cg~, R9\Jss~l!\~pt~nt th~ .synton~c; c;9mma of rat.io .81:80.
In Greek theory, the term 'diesis' was used for the difference or comma between three just major thirds and one
. ·just ocfave:Tit~jatioTSl28:I25'.Rousseau referiedlo this as the 'enharmonic minor diesls' or the ''grand comma.' ' 6
This isthedifferencebetween a sharp and a flat in the Pietro Aaron meantone temperament. It is 41.06 cents in size,
·w1ucrrisirearlya merutmn"e'fempermneiifquaner"totte of~728~cents.·onpitgei"I22and 123 of the translation, Rousseau
} \~xjpiaine(}Jhat S~. A~drews' scross, . . . setyed a~(the sy1'Xl?~l for ilie '' ~imple diesis / 'Jf !1118 •was placed before a note,
be r~ised a quarter~tone without··•the• n-Ot{) undergoing. a change of name; Thus,
was a quarter-tone higher than
but in both cases ilie notes were called C. Furtb.er, a double cross, J?Jf , represented a double or chromatic diesis;
therefore, if the double cross was placed before a note, the note was to be raised two dieses or a semitone in pitch.
This usage continues today, so the word 'diesis' eventually came to mean a sharp in France. There was also a triple
dtesis, 11«. This signified that one was expected to raise a pitch by a three-quarter tone.
Another term, B-flat (not necessarily a flattened B), was also the result of historical development. The term 'hard'
meant sharp, and the term 'soft' meant flat. 7 The first chromatic key was added to the keyboard in the tenth century.
It was a soft B whereas the regular B, or sevenili degree of the natural diatonic scale, or si, was a harder B. The soft
B, because it was flat, eventually was called B-flat. The regular natural B or si was harder or sharper than the latter
B-flat, so it was eventually called B-sharp. The remaining chromatic keys were added to the keyboard in the fourteenth
century, but in France these four extra chromatic keys continued to be called B-flats. The sign b represented any flat,
and in France this sign was called a B-flat (Bemol or Bmol). Eventually in France, the chromatic keys (the black keys
of the modern piano) were called either dieses or B-flats. The natural keys (the white keys of the modern piano) were
called B-sharps. The sign for a B-sharp was q, and it was used to cancel the effect of a diesis sign i or a B-flat sign
b.8 Thus, in France, the term B-sharp never meant only the note C or ut. The translator William Waring did not under-
stand this, and he incorrectly substituted the sign # for ~ for-B sharp on his page 27. He also translated the French
word 'temperament' English as "modification." This causes one to wonder if Waring had any musical training.
English musicians in the 1770s were very familiar with the word temperament but not with the word 'modification'
used in this way. Otherwise, Waring's work was an excellent literal translation, although there were many errors in
mathematics caused either by Waring or his In conclusion, Waring translated "lesdieses" as "the diesis's"
rather than as 'the sharps.' He also translated "sol diese" as "sol diesis'' rather than G-sharp, "si bemol" as "si
B flat'' rather than 'B~flat' (the real English B41at), "re bemol" as "re B flat" rather than 'D-flat,' "ut diese" as
"ut diesis" rather than ; "Bequarre," "B quarre," or "becarre" as a "B sharp" rather than as a 'natural,'
etc. Regardless of the instructions:
If as translated a contradiction soon becomes '""'"'°'""r
The CE was to be tuned "absolutely just." Literally, to acousticians of the present century, means
a to 4 major third in just intonation. Also, the major third BG-sharp was to be tuned "just ... or at least tolera-
bly so. To modern technicians, this means a major third perhaps no wider than those of Gottfried Keller which were
each 2.8 cents wider than just major thirds. Mathematically, the following is true: If just CE=386.3 l37 cents, Keller's
EG-sharp=389.1136 cents, and the octave CC= 1200 cents, then the final G-sharp C cents because
1200-386.3137-389.1136=424.5727. Also, 424.5727-386.3137=38.259, so the diminished fourth G~sharp C would
be 38.259 cents too According to meantone temperament philosophy, a diminished fourth this wide was classed
as a wolf interval or a false third, and it could never be used as a major third A-flat C because it would be too much
out of tune. The contradiction in this interpretation is that the "third proof" as well as the bearing plan on Waring's
page 312 specified that G-sharp and A-flat were the same tone. This also implied that there must be a tolerable major
third A-flat C as well as EG-sharp. In addition, Rousseau explained on Waring's page 212 that the modem "rules
of modulation" were not. limited because one modulated "everywhere." On page 246 he explained that there must
be no "multiplying the chords"; that is, Rousseau did not approve of meantone temperament because with modem
it would necessitate split ''everywhere," resulting in extra strings (multiplied chords). There--
fore, Rousseau's temperament was not meantone temperament.
The contradictions outlined above are solved a more study of the word
m!:anm~!S for word. On 37 of the he wrote, "in my the ti:e:am1gs
. in the moment that conventional term
,,, ''<'1''
·~~m1~~$
~~.~,~~re
.+ • ~ti e"\tefy
()9Uive only~ . , .
:'t!~to~~:i°tlt!!~
which tjlfJ).oW has b~~~ tb,()ugJ t9hll~~ ~'tq~t·~fttj~' . :'(~J~f\~~~f ajj~6~imation, and gives too
strong a5th; and from. thence the r~ pdnciple of modification; which is called so only tli~o9~h abuse1 si.n~e tile 5th
m9st be weak to be true." Here, the word 'connection' meant ratio, 'modification' meant(emper'amerit, 'weak1 meant
narr()w. 'stro1'g~ meant wide, and Waring translated Rousseau's French word 'juste' as 'true.' Rousseau here used
tht'l: Ejilier ~ediJing·<>{.~~ \\'Ord 'just' when he wrote that a narrow te,mpered fifth was "just" while a ratio 3:2 fifth
was too wide ~Yen though itdfd Jt<lt ~t•~ justfj~, accordinj fo ~ousseau, was one-quarter syntonic comma
narrower than a just intonation fifth.· On · · ·mr1~:~ll~tt~=~te~. h'l'fte connection of a modified fifth, according
to Mons. Rarn~u's method, is this,
>' ,,;." ,'';, ' '' ,'," ~';:'~'~":?:~ '. -'.<:~ ""~"~'''\,' :.~"''
This' connection: huwever, pleases, the ear.~.· :WiHi~Wating ouµ~e,~tli.e number tl()i in his:trnns1ation. Rousseau's
form.ula could also be .writte:J,l
~Q~xs11A: .·. ......
-0.66a;74oaos.
•. .~?·i::m+;.•
,'fhi§ is ~e string.l~pgth tlitio:fqf ~oi11g up a ope:...tonnti .sy~tonic comma natrow fifth from a fundamental string length.
·Q~~Wil!4ig) Rligfc·2~7•.~ou$~fllit. expb1inecl .th~t 'any ~rtect cotis9nance'was'rtot just if it was altered. by a· semitone
an~ ''€lall¢4,(als~/~ Afats~ int~~al ;was one that was either Qiminished or supedluous (augmented). Thus, perfect
consonances Wet¢ eitJiel' '".f\!Storfalse,' 111 If pel'fe(!t con$onam;,es.Were . tempeted andlfad beats, they still Were· Called
''just' 'Jnterv~s ·ift?eY w~t'.e.~ptd•mjnjsh.~ ot a'IJ~tl1ented by setnitQU.es. Upder the d~finitiQn for ''Just'' on page 211,
Rou.ssea.ij, e~nti!in~],9~ .m~hgs. 9fthe .term. ·· ·, . ... .. · . . . .
Regargle~sof tll.e.abo:ve~ 'lfOUs!ic~ re~ity.de.~rmines that Roussea~·s Jtlajor thirds,co~d not ha;ve been in just into-
1!1:\~2~.!~S. .t h~:~~e.!S.9!!~9!~:!'.!th(),U~.~()~~. SmltlJ.~s~~le of ~e,ats:t (Ro~~~eau J'1rnis~ed; no. beat frequency figures)
3Jld.will.lo.• ... •.·t~llg, . f .•~·•·org3Jl~.it~&:untikely .that tunetSi.C9\tt<Jllawe.arrivcuQ,t a beatless major third on
harpsiclJords ~y .µsiflg . }~"& \1~ing. plan. wJ)i<;li.created. major thirds. iJl.diI~ctly tllrough several fjfths and
octave$. Tbereffi?(e. t1Ie major tb,ir9.~E·1:>€!!ing \~a):>solUt€!!lY just" w~tlioutany m,~ting ill thednooem sense, was un~
1
(eali~tic~ .]Villia1n Wl!fiJ1g !tan~!~t¢4. ~Qµ$s€!!~ut~ term ' 'bienj11ste!' as '•@~~9\gtely jµs!.' •. l'hj~ was an exaggeration.
A. m.~re.ac.cuJ;ateJfanslati()n. WPuld llav~ bet::tt'€ltJite·just,• meanfng thaulte tlllr4was.11ot.ailgrncmted or diminished
by a semitone.
N,ow that it is und~r~t9~tb,at• • s~Jn .~&·~·r~()nl)"·e'()ftSE)i)~~·lJlf~f\t~~,.
· eu;,c0i:·•~·E·~.~~~t~'~ ·· . ·. fii~1,.,.,~~1100&rtiiag to:.jf-. ~pleases the ear!' and therefore
was. considered in tune,, we shou\d retranslate and reword the Rousseau temperament instructions int() more common
and·µpi-t~ate.. ~nglisJt··as·folJE)ws~ ·
First, set middle C and narrow the first four fifths in the Rousseau bearing plan. Check if the major third CE is
quiie.c9n,s~nimt.3<t9tiding.M.~;fine tbiJ:d· .· . . ••• " ..· ..·· . , ·
Second,. te.m~r. th.e :Qftlj ~~ na,rr,<1w~•. ~e ~im!ea$r in .t,ll.e, PJ:eyi~lls ti(ths. 'reni~r .the fifths :Bf-sharp, F-sharp C-
sharp. ~q4~~. .. . . ~li~tl~l~~.;n~~~w. ~t!J~ugti ~e.thif<:fs may suff~r. ChecJ<;if the major third. EG-sharp is
t~t~~a~le'as• a · ·. ·... •.. ·. . . •· •.·
1
• H ' •• • . • . . • . . . . ..· ~.. . . •
· ' Tllitct~ ace . g to me ll.ousseau bearing plan, begin again ftom middle c, and temper the fifths going through
tl!~ fl~ts. Con~~Q.U¢ntly ,. the fifths must be narrow, but enlarge each of th~m in tum by degrees; tha! is, flatten (weaken)
the lower tones of each fifth more and more by degrees (!llmough me fifths are still narrow) until D-flat is reached.
·S~ificall}t, the·:nfths CG; :Fe, B~flnt Fi and E~ttlit Jr::flat must eacfi be larger i1flbrn~ 0"sharp was previously tuned,
but ehecR:if 11'-flat. B~tm. is narrower than A•tlat !,-tfat ·which' ifii' mm must be naitowtlr than.o. flat A-flat. The fifth
O.flat A~flat. is th0iflftb G-sharp. O~sharpatwhich Point. we.had before stopped. The last two fifths, A-flat E" flat and
D-f!llhA.-::tll!t\\'Ul t9sul( ~ beil:ig r~ttierJust (h1 the modern sense).
Tlie~iib~ve iS more iinderstruidable. and a· temperament infor}>reiation cafi be constriicted from it. lt is known that
the•.fifth. .l)~flat A-fiat was.almost pure. (''rather strong''.), butsilll narrow by a small degree. 12 D-flat A-flat was the
. .. ----
df'ft~:
tr~ r.'{l(h~Aljs.,ty~~~Ji... .. t~~e con~ulted on
st system o~ modiflca,~orr. Fori . ideni. that amongst alf poss1 ... < ·. . • bieaves tl)e fewest
tings in the organ, is fliost pleasing to nature and the ear. " 13 William Wanng translated the word 'temptframent'
'modification/
•It is.B,n; ac€lusticaffac tth;e ..f~west beatings" in keyboard instruments when all the intervals are calculated are
oduced by equaHem · ni· aud ats~ lclliY w~Jl tenip~Fa1ment that does not contain a wide fifth or a narrow major
.. ~· f\,f~re?ver, the.n ... roflYe~tifigspro~uc~d'~Ji'JH)~i~t·r,Welltemperatilent or equal temperament is a single
. .. . ntnufli~F Meaµ!§n~ temperament seems tt).pr{Jducof~w,~rl'fleats•onty·wnen.•th;e wolf '1t~~afsarenot included.
e reason th~t the nutilber of beatings is a constant number regardless of what well temperament system or equal
erament i~ comp1;traj is that it i~ the sin~leditonic or Jfythag?r~ancomma. that is shared by various fifths. Just
te. ai-e ~"certain num~~~ Qf c~nt~ per oc~vei'thete· ~~e a t;etmfn. number. o~ \)eats r octave.
evfousfy, in th~ meanto~t tefilpef'ilttt'ent~m; It w'asc ruways·the syntonic·co~fl tl)~t ~·· shar~ by vafious fifths,
>~~~ording to the theorists. ID,/ any completely circul1;ttingtemp~rament or w..-;lttemperament, it is always the ditonic
..'.; ~~~that ~ust.~ ~¢>Ul1ted f9t •• lfo'1ss~\l.• Wfote, ''tastfy·;.The comma maximum, or.comma of Pythagoras, is ... the
•• ···~~CeSSofthe tWeflfnfi'ftb•sf dies.1Si~• Ot:i the· SeVerith• Ottflve•\it, an(f lliis;'e:itceSS, ·.in the: reference of 52.4288. arid 531441,
jg tl)e difference which g°'vernm~~tGAbse~ to be milt' ·~4 Wnftam Waring transl~ted the French word 'temperfltnent'
a:S. 'government:• The fact that R0\1.sseau wrote lliatit was t~e clitorlic conuna and not the syntonic comma that tempera-
ment disguises is proof that Rouss4iau •s. temperament was well tetilperllment and not· meantone temperament. This is
~ts<> verified by Roµsseauwhen hewrote iliatJ?rflatis ~~~n as C-sharp. 15 Also, he wrote "the same touches may
be used under their different conru~ctions.'' 16 Thus, illl tones could be used ehharmonically .
. . J~ tlle ~ ~f~~h~fi>· F:.s~aJ:P g~s~~W· at1d, C-:§.b •§hat:p (J?:-~atA-flat)ar~ ~a~htempered one degree narrow,
tft"n ac~<>rl . . to iU:iu$s~µ· s iils~cfieitl'!i A-flat l?ffl' .. ·b~ t"in.pered tWd degfees·ftarrow, E-flat B~flat iliree degrees
~arrow, B~flat F'fou\degtees narrow; F~five degrees: narrow, and rutally, CG, GD, DA, AE, and EB each six degrees
lllitow; 'This makes a total of 41 degrees of. temperiu.g thl:lt must absorb the ditonic comma. or
531441 )~1 ~ ·1· 000288361
( 524288 - .
fot QiJ,e ~e~~~ 9ftentpering. 1'berefore~ the above nks
have decin)al ratios of 1.499567583, 1.49913529. 1:498703121,
1.498271018, 1.497839159, And l.497407365, re$pectively. Table 39~1 reflects the results of these calculations based
on Rousseau's theory.
Tllble39~l!'TfteiJh!tf~fy'CiJ~"WellTemperament Tuned by Jean-Jacques Rousseav'sRules.

Major Tbir~ Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
c~ 395;84(143 9.52671
GB 395.84043 9.52671
DP-sharp 398.33617 12.02246
AC-sharp 400.83192 14.51820
EO-sharp 403.32766 17.01395
B:lMlat 405.32426 19.01054
F-sluttp B:.:flat 404.32596 18.01225
C-sharp F 402.82851 16.51480
G-sharp C 400.83191 14.51820
E-flat G 398.83532 12.52160
B-flat D 397.33787 11.02416
FA 396.33951 10.02586
CE 395.84043 9.52671
Compare tliis table WittrTabtes 20:.:1, 2* 1, ·and 26~ l;

This table is. arranged in circular form for perspective in Figure 39-1.
137
The smallest thirds
NOTES
h Jean~J!l~q~es~ot1sseau, DictioJma,!re l)e ]1,1usi911:e (Paris: qiez la Veuve Duchesne, 1768}.,502 .
.2.•. J~it1t:1~~~li~s R?~ss~a!!t.~CornJ>lete D!Cff<J1l~'Y, o.f}ftisic.. .. Translated • • '. by Jf!illiam Waring, Second Edition, (London:
J. Murray and Luke White, 1779; reprmt, New Yotlu AMS Press Inc., 1975), 246.
3. Ibid, 352.
4. ffiic;f .• 2Q9, under "Intonation.I'
•···5~••'1brtt.••;•••4l9j··· ·•H ...........jJ•¥¥••~7,,;,.,,,,.,;,,,,...,jW•·• '
6~ Ibid.,:123, 332, and4(H.
7, Ibid•,··251
8. Ibid., 27.
9. Ibid., 89.
10. Ibid., 89, 244.
11. Ibld., chart on 208; ' 1Just" on 211; "Major" on 218; 315,. 339.
12. Ibid.' 89; 247. 400.
13 .. Ibid.,. 37.
14. Ibid.~ 221.
15. Ibid., 246.
16. Ibid.,. 244.
TuNING JEAN-JACQUES ROUSSEAU'S WELL TEMPERAMENT
OF 1768 IN THE THEORETICALLY CORRECT MANNER
..
T he beat frequencies in the following instructions were calculated for use with a C tuning fork at standard pitch,
the C equivalent of A=440 Hz. If a lower pitch is used, reduce the beat frequencies proportionately. Although
Rousseau did not publish beat frequencies, these instructions produce results that are very close to the theory intended
by Rousseau. For examples of beat frequencies, multiply the given numbers by 60 and listen to them on the metro-
nome. Rousseau's bearing plan is not altered from the original except that several test intervals were added. This was
n~cessary because these instructions are intended for correct tempering according to theory. Otherwise, an authentic-
type tuner may ignore all beat frequency numbers and aU test intervals except those that Rousseau specifically labeled
as "proofs" (trials).
Rousseau specialized in the temperings of fifths that varied by degrees in their sizes. In order to gain more control
over these fifths, he transposed the Holder bearing plan up one octave. This had the effect of doubling the beat frequen-
cies of the fifths for easier listening; however, the thirds and sixths also beat twice as fast. Consequently, many of
the thirds and sixths that the present author usually includes as test intervals were not added to these instructions. Test
intervals that beat more than twelve times per second are often considered impracticable.
Test interval
(Figures denote Tuned
Tune C-sol-ut beats per second) Tuned before
by means of
a whistle. 1 before
l l 2.0 l
Flatten Flatten i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Tuned '
1
· ttefi1re
Equal beating
l 2.3 1.2
2.3
2.3
d ··~
·1·~
Flatten
l
Tune
just
Tuned
The frrst Tuned before
proof
!
before Almost
equal beating
i J.···
J l.7
f
10.8
... K·. • .
10.6
f
II J
n'i ff J
t
J
t
l Flatten
The word proof is defined in the glossary, and this particular proof is
described on page 246 ()fthe Waring translation of Rousseau's Dictz'onnaire De Musique.
Tune
just
Tuned
Tune\I before.
before
l 0.3
'l 0.3
Equal beating
0.3
ll~#J ··#d 1i3 II*~ ;J I;@ i3 II

i
Fla~n i
Tune
just
The second proof

· (From page 246 of the Waring translation
of Rousseau mentioned previously.)
1
Tuned Tuned
before before
l 0.2
0.5
16.2 l d
ll~#J I~ l=Jj
#~
i!3 Iii llJ ~
t
· Flatten
i
Tune
just
'i t
1.5
10.1
J lj II
1
Tup;d
before
Tuned
Equal beating
bet'ore
J
l 3.0
J
1. 6
1.6
II II
r
Tune
i
Sharpen
just
A proof
(From page 312 of the Waring translation
Tuned ,of. Rousseau, mentioned.previously.) ..,. ., •..,,"',.
before
I 0.8
1
0.1 13.6
B 0# must be
faster than B D#
14.3 11.3
liJ 13 I~~ II
t
.Sharpen
i
Crescendos denote increasing beat speeds.
A proof
(Frotri page312'oftMWaring translation
the third proof
1.6
!
0.7
(From pages 246 and 312 of the.Waring
translation of Rousseau mentioned previously.)
~-----------,
J I 0.2 0.2
=~~~==--~~~---~--==--==--~~--=li~b~-~~:··1~-j]
t L_____~_______J
I According to Rousseau, these tones
Tune are identical ort the harpsichord.
just
As a final check, these six fifths must

each be larger in tum from left to right.
--------
Tune remainder of the instrument by. means of just octaves from the sample notes within the bearing section
from B below middle C to F an octave and a fourth above middle C.
Table 40-1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes of the Theoretically Correct
Rousseau Wen Temperament and Equal Temperament,
Equal Temperament Theoretical Rousseau Rounded lt"igures
A zero. difference 0 cents
2.28777 + 2
G plus 2.07979 + 2
F-sharp minus 0.62394 1
F 3.66043 + 4
E minus 1.03989 1
E-flat plus 3.2445 + 3
D plus 1.03989 + 1
C-sharp plus 0.83192 + l
c plus 3..11968 + 3
B minus 2.07979 2
B-f!at plus 3.70202 + 4
Compare this table with Tables 22-1, , and 27-1.

This temperament is theoretical, and it is based on the literal interpretation of Rousseau's tuning instructions. As
seen in the deviation chart for electronic tuning above, it is closer to equal temperament than any other well t"'''"'"""'"-
ment so far in this book. In order to tune such a theoretical temperament, one must apply exact beat frequen-
cy numbers accompanied by sufficient testing intervals also furnished with beat frequency numbers. one must
have the twentieth-Century abiiity tO among the Upper Coinciding harffiOilicS When tl'.fl(l0f''1"111!0
exception as Robert Smith showed in 1749.
any beat n·pnrn~nf•V
i-JUiLH.li>lH,.AA HUHU"''
.~ajor
.fiftlts
~·flat,
thirds,
·usseau oouICI: not·. ave tileant
'i\a·•Sifii'eli!~'t6. . . . ... . . .· . t:~ ·........·.· y us~ ili~rds for. cenwries. One could not
without E-tla,! G~ and one ~otild net perform .in· F .major wi.iliout B:-:tlat D. C(lntta~ to custom
.Ro"ssea . gJn~~:thitds. as pr~gressing ward ftoltl the upp~r potes. •.. ··. . .. ·.
teenth·century. ears were very sensitive ta al differences; meIOdically, and :Rousseau was able tu temper
I: t~e> .atyinl.degrees~:othetwise, he coUld not Mve acquire9 the results for the major thirds G-flat B-flat
an . ~.. . .. . :prqbl~~J~K !I\ ~e la,st me,sure on page 1~3 of the present work. Modem technicians.know
that the six :fifths. m thisltleas\ile ...ea~e·!\~a~1i\l~:l>~ eve~l ees. However, the. beaVrequencies do not decrease
gradually; i1lfa~t~ e :ffrsf ~r~e i}\~Fea~e 1nstead. There is a . ffast be•W,ee1l the ~ird and fourth fifth and also
tb~fffilj an~.i~· w.'..~Uj:~~~tiiey'musidans cc>titd not ha managtd'ffiis• .AsRb~~ttSmith revealed ii\ 1749,
equal beating pfOdut:es equalhafffiony. Even though eighteenth-century musicians did not listen to specific beat fre-
quencies among the up_()er harmonics while t~mJ'.I '1.l.JJharp~i~hords, they lis!ened to interval quality and color which
is neverthel.ess tletermined by the number of > • P{~~e~kT~u,.>the ~J1€ ~fths in the last measure mentioned above
must decrease gradually in beat frequencies ac~iff1(1lfig' t~ ei~teet!tli·tentuiy standards.
In the first interpretation, the ditonic comma was divided into. forty-seven equal parts to be shared unequally by
twelve fiM.s (see page 137 of the pr~sent work). Each part had a ratio of 1.000288361. A closer and more authentic
interpretation of the Rousseau is to divide the number of beats available within a just octave (rather than the ditonic
comma). The twelve fifths would then share these forty-seven divisions unequally in the same manner as before. One
d•'Vision Will be called onedegree aC¢t>r<fing m tenninol()~ from the WAiing translation. If middle c at standard pitch
i~Used,. then the,.fo~U1l);..1153C+6374914 produc~s~.~.93555341 on the Texas lnstrulnents Tl-60 calculator; This
figure is the num~H)fbeats per secondf9rone degre~ ~fstandardpitc~, If Rousseau's pitch might have been asmuch
a& a semitone lower, the figure. would still be 0.277079346. Both figures round off to a 0.3 beat per second: This
repre~ents the l\filOUiit ofte111Pttring for one de~ree that Rousseau must have had firmly implanted in his subconscious
Inind. R:onsseau telnperedhtstmctively based ()n empirkal e.xperience usi~g these sll1all amounts of color5hanges. When
this _l)hitosoJ>hy is. ~ppHed to the previous beating plan, the' results are that Rousseau:s six degrees are· clearly apparent
in
aiid ma~geabte th~· last measutc.1.TM~:, ffila tef1'.t.¢rp£e-lton must. be.moreauthelltic t1ecause the problem in the
last measure from page 143 is solved (compare With'page' HO).
According to Rousseau's ""
instructions,
,,, "·'< .,.
the degrees must be distributed as follows:z
f•1•''•' ,;, ' \
Fifths narrowed by Degrees

CG; on, DA:', AE, EB 6 each
f;'..c;.:.,....•.•,,..•....... ..~
IM1at:·F. 4
B-trarl\~ilai 3
G-sharp E-flat . . 2
BF-shl!rp; F-sharp C-sllarp, C-sb~fll: 0-sharp 1 each
The results of this reinterpretation are on the following pages. A study of the figures will reveal that there is no
significant difference between the overall sound of either interpretation.
Table 4()..:2: :F;quat~beating Well tem{Kl-.amc,:nt Tuned by Jean-Jacques. RQusseau•s Rules.

MajQr Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide frQm Just
FA 395.43654 9.12282
CE 395.54591 9.23220
GB 396.34105 10.02734
DF~sharp 398.25(149 11. 93677
AC-sh!lrJf 401.26'1'.23 14.94752
EG.:sharp 402.96603 16.65232
lUHil\t. .. 40$.24360 18.92989
F-sharp B-flat 404.29741 17.98369
C-sharp F 403.30223 16.98852
o:snirp'V. · · 40li488~·· ··· 15.11434
. . lHl@tg... ..•..... . ....139.8:,41~3~ ..• l,...... U.JOl6l. . .
· · ·B.;,ft8f..i8'•'"' .,.... · .,,..... · 1• ••·•· ·~9'1;4'5~H'l' 11,13639
·· FA 395.43654 9.12282
s.·
similar sizes
GB
~
FA CE
~
The smallest thirds
\
··r1gore·40-1(The Form otWeU Tem(Jframent Tuned by Jean-•Jacques Rousseau's Rules Using the Equal~beating Method.
Compare with Figures 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, and 39-1.
NOTES
1. Rousseau, A Complete Dictionary of Music, 312, 439
l. tbid., 246. S¢e also f36·ot the preseftt'WOtk:.
145
Tune the following quarter 1\0te& in the order writtell.
.Test interval
(Figures denote Tuned
Tune c~sol-ut beats per second) before
by means of l Tuned
l
a whistle. before
l I.& 1 1.8
II J
J
i
Flatten
i
Flatten i
Tune
just
Ttlfled
before
Equal beating
1.&
}.8
l 1.8
3.5
8.8
l!~ d ~ ALJ ~ I~ ~ 13 II
t
Flatten
1.8
f.8
1j J
Flatten
i
Tune
just
Tuned
The rrrst Tuned before
proof before
! 1 1.8
3.5
Very similar
11.4 10.7 l
J I~ d Ii ~ II~
!l'j II J
t
J
l Flatten
The word proof is defined in the glossary, and this particular proof is
described ori page 246 of the Waring translation of Rousseau's Dictionnaire De Musique.
i
Tune
just
TuntX\
before
l
Equal beating
1.8 0.6
l.8 10.7 (}.3 10.1
~
!I' g IJ llJ #J
i
Flatten
1¥3 #s I#~ II
The ·Perfection Of Eighteenth~Century ··Temperament
Tuned
Tuned
before
l
before
Equal beating
l 0.3 0.3
Flatten i
Tune
just
The second proof

l
Tuned Tuned
before before
l 0.3
M
L 15.9
Hatten Tune
just
Tuned
before
3.6 18.3 l l.5

1.5
9.2
Sharpen
befor$
l
Tuned
before Equal beating
l w
l.2
~~~--!-J7--j~rt~'===ti_ 1 ~·-+---··:~~~11
i
Tune
i
Sharpen
just
A proof
Tuned of Rousseau mentioned previously.)
before
l 0.9
l
0.6
BG# must be
faster than B D#
i-------1
13.5 14. l 10.9
i
Sharpen
A proof
(From page of the
Tuned
t
The third proof
before
(From pages 246 and 312 of the Waring
l ::::h:~:
translation of Rousseau mentioned nrfovirnis'lv
!.; o.•
~··== -=-3J7--id-·.~&b~~.
0.3 0.3
i
Tune
___J
According to Rousseau, these tones
are identical on the harpsichord.
just
The . PerjectionOfd!:lghteenth·Centu('y Tempeia#lent
As a final Check, the beat speeds of these

six fifths must decrease evenly from left t(J right.
r
1.2
1.5 0.6
~,_ _ .,. . _ i~j·- '~-

- ~ ---"""l-d_,,_,___-~~~-===-~==¥-+--·_~~~-~&bi_~--~
i
Tune the remainder of the instrument by means of just octaves from the sample notes within the bearing section
from B below middle C to F an octave and a fourth above middle C.
Table 41-1: The Differences in Cents between the

Notes of Equal-beating Rousseau Well Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Equal-beating Rousseau Rounded Figures
G plus 2.15761 +2
F plus 4.56346 +5
E minus 0.36207 0
D plus l.51481 +2
C-sharp plus 1.26123 +I
c plus 4.09201 +4
B minus 1.50134 -2
Tables 40-1.
NOTE
1. Rousseau, A Complete of Music, 439.
THE PHILOSOPHY OtWEtLTEMPERAMENT AND KEY-COLORING
AS DESCRIBED BY JEAN..JACQUES ROUSSEAU IN 1768
On page 247 of the.William Waring translation of 1779 of Rousseau's. Dictionnaire De Mu9ique, we find that Jean-
Jacques Rousseau wrote,
The organists and factors. [facteurs were keyboard instrument makers] look upon this modification 1 as the most perfect
that can be used. In effect, the natural tones enjoy, by this means, all the purity of harmony; and the transposed tones,
which form less frequent modulations, offer great assistance to the musician when he is in want of marked expressions;
for it is good to observe, says Mons. Rameau, 2 that we receive different impressions from the intervals in proportion
to their different alterations. For instance, the major third, which naturally excites a joy in us, impresses on us even
the ideas of fury, when too strong; 3 and the minor third, which inspires us with tenderness and sweetness, changes
our sensations into those of sorrow, when too weak. 4
Ingenious musicians, continues the same author, know how to make a good use of these different effects of the
intervals, and, by the expression which they draw from them, make the alteration [highly tempered intervals} flourish,
which might be condemned 1ott'"'""''
But in his same Mons. speaks quite another thing. He reproaches himself for
his condescension for actual [actual meant current or present} custom, and destroying all that he had before established;
he gives a formula of eleven methods proportionate between the two terms of the octave, on which formula he insists
on the whole succession of the chromatic system being established, so that this system resulting from the twelve semi-
tones perfectly equal, it is of necessity that all the intervals which are formed from it, should be perfectly equal between
themselves. 7
For practice, says he, 8 take whatever key you please; 9 tune then its fifth just, diminish it a very little; 10 proceed
in this manner from one fifth to an(lther, always t~at is, sharpto flat, 11 until the last whose sharp
Peen the tlJ1tpf. fo-st/1• may ... be certain .. the harpsichord will be in tune.
This method which Mons .. Rameau proposes, had already been proposed, and abolished by the 13
We may find it also at fuH length in P. Mersenne, 14 who names one Gallee15 as its author, and who has even taken
the trouble to calculate. the eleven proportipnate methods., which Mons. Rameau gives us the Algebraic formula.
In spite of the scientific appearance of this formula, we do not find that the practice which results from it has been
yet approved, 16 either by musicians or. factors. The first cannot resolve to deprive themselves of the energic variety
which they find in the different affections of the tones 17 which established occasions. Rameau
tells them in vain, that they are deceived, that the variety isJoundin the unison of the modes, or in the different degrees
of the tonics, and 11ot at .all in the altercation of the intervals: the musician answers, that the one does not exclude the
other; that he does not think himself convinced by an assertion, and that the different affections of the tones are not
in any respect proportionate to the different degrees of their finals. For, say they, tho' there is only a semitone distance
between the final of re and that of mi B flat, as between the final of la and that of si B flat; however, the same music
will affect us very differently in A la mi re, than in B fa; and in D sol re, than in E la fa; and the attentive ear of
the musician can never be deceived, though even the general tone 19 should be raised or lowered a semi-tone and more:
an evident proofthat this variety comes elsewhere than simply from the different elevation of the tonic. 20
In regard to instrument makers, they find, that a harpsichord tuned in this manner, [equal temperament] is not reaily
so concordant as Mons. Rameau pretends. The major thirds [in the diatonic natural keys] appear to them rough and
disgusting;and when we tell them that theyhave only to act in the alteration of thirds, as they did before in that of
fifths, they answer, that they can't conceive how the organ can be managed to suppress the which are heard
therein this method of tuning, or how the ear can fail to be disgusted.
m., nu~rp cn:!mi;;ea than the third
aft1erntio'n on that side where it is least u""'u"'"
rm,te1renc€L more without
ry but that it
was nqt used o .. .ettt descend~
from ~qa1 temperament (not the other way around as is commonly believed). Evi'dence of this was is statement that
<1ttlY ~·trte :firstftftlls'' and tlQt all the fifths were weakened (narrowed) in order to create the common temperament.
'flius~·tfie; ·.· · · ··· · ·. f R9lJ~~eaq.w~~ tlJ~t wen te111perament was a great improvement over the much older equal
temperamen . . . • •. / .. , . ... · · ···· · ·· ·· ·· · · Jn allJc As such, well temperament was not a primitive substi-
tUtefOt eqtjal tempe~ent · • . . ·.. · . · •· ,. ·... > l e~t~utoh'lua1~eltlperament. Although Rousseau
~~.~~ru!fst f ~~ttl t~1t1~r~~~t.Jle~8\l~ . . . . .. ·.· · · · ~!fgij.~f~eJ!:~~~~a~~ti ~~We p:yerty harsh major
thirds in the leys. he c~ribt be classed as an. l'machronism because his temperamenfwas as advanced
as any other practiced at that time in ~istory. Rousseau was against Rameau' s proposal (a proposal was all that it was)
for it1ttO<JUcllig ~ual'temi)i~e~fifi1(0'~ra<ltt~~·~nkel'tmatd1ib8(rufti~n~si 'F<t·RO\fss~\l~ the equal temperament proposal
was an ai1aa'elhi~ eX:er§i~~.t€Sr.t!intf~'l("fufl1m?n~~enti~.lltlVrac1ii.'.lableitew'06lratne1,lttbat~ha4:lq1:fgsin~Q. beeit.attempted
and which had finally failt!d for thelast time in the days of Francois Couperin (1668...:.1733).
The word 'tone'. had four definitions in Rousseau's dictionary, 2-' The first was a description of the ratios 10:9 and
9:8. The;s~~ond nteani1J9{wass.,ttc11J1e1ev~~Q:fl~'l1te~rd!me$lin$ was:awhistle..,,pjtch1pjpe~ etc.. * use<! to determine
a beginning pitch to tune l>y,, Thefoufth,rueanhtg wasta·definitfon;of1what we unde:rstand to be a tonality or key center.
On page 439 bf tb~'·WMinl·;~slatf(jfl'R~ass~au'wr~t«Jz
,, "' ~:'
;\s our m~defti s~ste.111 i:s co Qfi'l ~hotd~ bi,< c:fiit~re~! soµrids, each. of these sounds may serve as a foundation
to ii torte. iliafls;·fie'Ii:k. ionic ~'are illr~lly f2 fone~; an<tasthe inajor and min~l"·modes are applicable to each
~~~i: ther..ar~•&:11i}t111J~~~i~r~~ifht~~~tHe~b;'~~'~tf~;~~f~i;~: ~~~~v~~J!~~~ixt the tlat and· snarp·which
the tonics•ma;inbtin: Tltey'dlfte~1al~o·flY1tHe1 diV'ers' alterau()ns oftlYe souitdslUlq i~te~~s:·:i.1 • p~dutred in each tone by
the. lllodification [the fished · · · tot 1{88 '(well .telllperament)} so tfiitt;·ofi ~ welt"roned•fl · hord, a
sldtlftif:Gli nt~blt~f . . ·. . . . . ... . . . . . ·~t~Sltt~M•sD.)l'ttte.iMd&faflonifhlflthe'~totte~·are . . tfu<'>wn
~n tutted h~sic,~brd§:nrg1fet (}~towed~~()n~.thai} tfle'.'<>ili,~r;wlllctli shews dtat tilf~ ..... at least as much
ffom ttt~ ~ifte*iit ni8d1filfatfot1~2 " a§ fropt the degrll ·~r etevatio~·w,1tfoh ~e totif .... .. . ... . .. tlie keys.
' ~om. ifterr~ei ~s@s·a'sijuice ofvflh'edeiflatjd'~udes m'the·mOdulatton a ffi{fer~rty'aild .tfmlrable elfei'gy. in die
e~mssto~:i~Mffi ttten&jnike~·rliStlttlte'f~eottytif ex~rctsmg different sentime~ts wrutslfifilar•·oonoortfs?strllckiifdifferent ·
t()ne~'. A~'1<eJn wantqftlYe . i~, tbe flat?F t1tt1t, and tlte major tones by .b tlat2~ willeipress it nobly.ls the
gay; the tiritlililit wanting? Tak . i fa, IYla re, the major tones by diesis [sharp}. Do We require the ~ffecting, the
tender? Take th&minoli\t'1 ~Jlat.i'1i• Qcc~uw~ s. ·Ai Biiml.lmlftead!Ddfe1moum·
l)ll:~dn'~.\\!tudt we must
stddy; and herehl}s. olie of tJY~mefliods Whlfh render·~· in~enicms composetm~ster; i~ som~ respects! bf ~h~ affections
.ifli!'.o~ l~~f!!U .t9:Nm:. It i§'!Jiftj~!! ~f ~ct}Ji)il!feiit 10 .t!\~.!DJQ.ijn• w0<1es. tlto' v~fy .mll~fli rebJQV~fn1m tltf.iir variety
·~ '*ot;~dii~ii~~iYe1i\i<filfJn~mU~~~~; ilittt Mons;; Rarneaii wott1d'depnve the mu!lie; by introducing
an entit,"e equ.~Hty ;md monotony in .the h~~ny of ea9h mode, by its rule of the modifica\lm1 lequiU te!Ilpe~amentl;
a rule lilre~dy so··often prop:ised amt·abaitdi:ined before him.· Accor<Jing ~ome•aµth.,rfM:ameaul;vit· would retider: the
h~t'Ill~~. lll~re petfectJt ·n. ho · .;att be g~.ned'ilt. this on c:foe sisfe; whkh is not lost on the
(jthetj WI~ ~o~ we Sh(llllQ: . . .. .. . . · ). .. .. ny. in general, wobfd.be rendett;d more pure, would that
v
m~~~f:·atjt~nds fOfw st..on e std'~o(expression'l
Eiglttf'.~ritll-C,~~f9ry:fea:cler~ of the atrove philosophy fI1U&th1!ve been convfuct!d that eqµ~ tefI1perament would never
come, t<J,. ~e 11r~~ic.e4 Qf1 I< .al' · · ~~1}:'.~~~\W!! o:te..oi;l~ss alpce; .tfiatjs•.w~tli. tfie same effects as-
sociated wiili:tti~ s~~.· . . ..· .,v . . . . ~cJi~qtl,WJ)s. . . . . . ~y t:W<!~9n4iti~t1&:·Fi~st, mOs.t tuners began their
keybQarcJ,n.ning Wi@..,,fli~iQ.Q(~•.f.;l,~O ~e.C.()Q.cft .~itll.tnbIQJ;. . VaDatf()ng,Jhe .\\Ulli.f,Ull :ijo}der J)earing.. plan (on page 38 of
the pre,$eitlW9dt). b~am . .. <l~M by nw&t trmers~ By. beginning with the note C, tuners instinctively imagined
that C major was thebas · key used as a foundation. Indeed, the historical development of our: western music did
evotve'otiloflfieltiafdrirc. sl:irue in tbcfkey of.C; When tfie sffarps and ffatswere added: to The keyboard and tuned as
Cc-sharp, E-flat, F-shatp., G-sharp,. and B-fiat ht tire fourteent&·~entnry~ tfiis was. considered• to be the basic chromatic
···~1t!~tJf"e:···sy'ft'Hto~"M!'1'ttt~f'"of"Me1UniftJ'ftC)tes·1fi1fifmrdmi·~iUfftif'fJfMl''Jmng WithUretnrus'Of . test intervals
il~>!'o
.,
1
> J()p~ visually lis a c ma10 . .· . . . .. . .. .. . .•. . . · ....·......· ..·.
Jl•t••'fherewas it··~ettetal·confomtity betWee«th~·t~~j;uU~nts"~fth,•t' ·. ..... ·.·. .. . · ry·t\i~ers althollgb•the tem-
~r!UUentS.()f nt'$ two• mnets'cofild. fiave·been ··exadJY)di~e b¢cait~~·Of ..•....•..•........•.·~w~tieffl:~¢'fi~rytem~ttng tech-
. '• es. 'J:he, similarity tha(We ~Xpe!ien~e t(ld,11 mkeyooafdtlJnfag COU}Cfnfithifvee:ii:istOO ift tfte'efgbfeefith'centllry.
· · ·· · •·· · ·. ''1n.itl, ¥e¥~cotoring~ ·.did exist..· .... ·
·9't:Jte(lrlt~t\i.al.~ajQr siflths C(Jme second. By ·smdying Tables
.· . ·· ·· · i$: ~~.Eir tllir4~. ~ssoci,too wjtll toq~U!ies or key
. .. · . .••. ·. ··.•·· .. . . .. ........ · . .. . ~.~in&.b~fWay t1r<>ui:ict th~.~ircl~, in
telfipe~~s~iuew~aisitn~artol . emper~ !1,91\ . .· . ·.. · ·· . .... . ~iqe. therefore.
keys of Artrajor, £-flat major. and sometimes Emajor $QW]ded very sinUfarto war·t . ¢1.l:Y·mequal
tetn.perament~ .Sine~· the: ~oloration of any• topality in equal !em,t>erament is. a monotonous, neutral gray. the keys of
NandE-flatma\jdr''reptesenfm~ffo s~ciale~otibtt'ot·tiff~t·e~te,Jt11ftt·Whi~h'.wa~1imag~~ by the composer or listener.
Confequentty; tliere was Jitile agrell'fttertf·a~·tt$ therm~il)fs ·oflttt~s~ k~yg; fiJ7~ottti'~s~f() this;'the~·'Wll'5' stto~$'. a~ee
ment coitcerning·the meanings oftcfrihli!ie~ Witll' promW,enti feyJcliatacteristfos'suclf us Cmajt:JrWitfl no shafl's·or•flats
flt the key signature. The 'or d C~ wa,~ alw~ys ~ong ~e smallest thirds m the well temperaments'. Tiie sitnpler
r~tio q((J§ .1lleant. tllat (J .. . . .. ;t·~ifilpJ~!t ~~~'.; :fJH~. itt'turo cal!~e~t;fewe . ·11er• se£~l'.t9 whi~~ £ausoo C Jl;lajor
to oe tm:oWn as more Hptire.' ·e same way~' rltitjor tli.itds sucli as C-sh . . .-:slfatl' (p:.:flat I:'} rutkrG..fJat B-flat
(f:·shiup ,i\7s1larp) Were 31llo113 the largest thirds because tqey. were asso~ia~<l. with key signatuy~~. contai11ing large
numbers of sharps or flats. There was agreement cqncerning tfle mea11ings o( tl;ese keys, In short~ ~~ more accic\entals
there werein.a:Jonaji~f:;tn~Jarger dle Jl;laj4Jl' tllirds woul(j b~<>me. Agreemen.twas easy in the ex((eme cases where
the thirds were either smallest or largest. · · · ··
Major thirds were used as parts <>ftrlads;. therefore •.when Jl;lajor thirds were large, the· remaining minor thirds of
r()()t ~osition triadS: were €<>lis~quently smrul. C'1t}Versely1; small major thirds were a mpanied by large minor thirds
in trlj(Js, tn themeatitdne tem~tamertt;)1eri0d of fUstE>~!'Uie augmented seconds .. . ¢:"-sharp, E:-flat F-sharp, and
······· FG-sharp·\'.\fer~~metinles11secia$e:ic:ces1dn~.sll1a~ .• ·. . s.thllt we.re clos.erto being.1:6 ratios than to 6:5 ratios
\vhfclfare notirlal for mfMr tfiir<fs. these same e*tt:~-sgt .•· .· b:ior tlllrcf§ ~~tefetaifted as tlie smaUesnninor thirds
in the well tem~ram,em§· P.·.. ,ently'.tlx~ ex~~mefy 9'epf~§S~ s9unds o}~~ middle Mtes· ()f theE-flat minor' B-flat
~o,h.~~ . l;-;mj~~r.~~~~:~~. · 111~. Nt;I~~ti,e.s ~f ~;t1a~~ J:-f!at, and J; ~11,9~ t() ~e u11psfl'1tly e~pres~ive.
lfr<l1ll fitS~4Y of Ia~~e.~.~<¥ .. . .f: l •. i~· l,. l97'!lt ~~ 40-i of (be prese11t.w~i:t,.JlOftce that.the wa.ior third CE ranges
from being. 3.4 cents wide tO: 9.S cents. wide, A•s(),. Pie major third F-sharpA-sharp ranges from befng 18. cents wide
to 21 ~en~s. wide.. '.fliese fi re~ represent the variety in te~pe.raments that was natural for the eighteenth century. These
!l\li~~!i~'.Ql .~ij~r ~~.ll; • ~~$~iated.~tbJl.m~sund'.Qt;tQna)iti~<; ~eg31'.~ess of these
varieti~i;:lJte . . . afgest'<•thiros alwa}lstn..tbe. same.general traditional locations.
M<>re.,c · ~. th~ ,§pJall~st roa]()r th~r<;ts we.re.. ~~~ay§ .associatoo with key signatures containing the fewest sharps or
. flats,( . 9'~m.i!J~]JI:mi,!~~(~5 g9f~1l!'tJi1':fu~im'p~llJf(>.Y~·'·a11d tlte.kc ·· · $t majtit thirds· were.always associatoo
With key signatures co11tainfo8'me:: largest numlJit ot·:lfats ofshrups~ ''fht·•% .. ~~;in· ttmjor tftird Cihizes by the
v~~iqµs t\.ln~rs of ;fhe vas~ ~erff g~ff~rences o( sha<ifilg OrtlY '.. ~quating the 'characters of the keys' to colors, one could
saytliat a:· 3: :4 cent wide major tliird ·CE used along wftf,t •a 21 cent wid~ F"'.s~~l.J:tl f!, . pt9'J'1c~s ~tµUant an<J rich
colorssf'l~w1.ng gr~~~ontra~ts~i.. .• e.~.1 ~YS~f.eff~ts when modulat . rough the keys. Conversely,
usinga 9'~.' ~~~~W,~4fe Il;lajq~.tJMf:4. .•. . .· ·~, .S.~entwJ9e f"'.shMP:A:shjlrp pi:oduces exactly the same colors
in (be. s~~. places;: but the colors woulE,ll. be· 111ore ·s\l\>d\loo~ . n()t as. brigJit,. and more faded thereby redlldng the con-
trasts. 1Jte variety of effects while modulating would be less contrasting, but the variety would still be apparent. In
equal temperament tlle coto:r contrasts are so faded that they don't exist at all. Therefore, there is no key-color in equal
te~perament. There is no variety of effects ~hile~modulating ~rough the keys in eqUal temperament. All of the latter
shohltf gi\f" ~ne an tlnders!M~ing 0N1ow tliefo 'Yas 11 con~ist~hcy of key-cflaracteristies even though no two tuners
ti.trial e~act}y'·atike; Basre~ty; the Holder"fYpe beating pl~rfS;Were responsible for creating this consistency in history.
In the next section,. a cliatt lists abridgoo quotations describing the characters of the keys by prominent musicians and
.writers of.the past~ The dl;lte~ of Pt~ wtitings are listed after the quotations. TheRousseau mentioned was not the Rousseau
who wrot~ (be ,Diqiqnt14ire J)e M1:1siq1le, and Schubart was not Franz Schubert~ The chart lisf$ only the tonruities. whereby
. ····· ttieriwe,re tlle grAAt~~t!J~t~~111ents ~Q!!cernin~ their meanings. the meanings of E-tiat mmor and B-flat minor were
similar because tlle E-flat minor and n:na:fm1tt<>t scaiesweretempetett1<5m~what ruike.
153
NOTES
TlU~. ~()di~c~tio~· (~et} tempet~ent) •. isdes~rib~d·iii .sect~dl1ir 39~4f o(.tPe··· prese~t. ~?rk.
Rqµsse~u. ~s qeseti~ip.~]~~.n-}>hilipp1e. ~~~11u;s ~a~iier Plljlq~9phyfrqm !{cz~veau. Syste~eDe Musiqu~ Theorique (Paris: Jean-
Baptiste-C,hrist?pheBaHard, }726}\ ··written.before Ra~eau. l'lec<m1e an. avant-garde temperament theorist.
3. Strong meant.wide;· Rousseau,.A Complete Dictionary ofMusic, 209,245.•
4. Weak meant narrow; ibid., 209, 419.
5. The word. 'otherwise' was added by the present author. These.first two paragraphs were an excellent description of the qualities
and purposes of well temperament. The term 'well temperament' was not yet invented, but since this was the common tuning
approved by most everyone, it needed no name in the eighteenth century.
6. Jean"Philippe Rameau, Generation Harmonique, ou Traite De Musique Theorique et Pratique (Paris: Chez Prault sils, 1737).
7. This was a lyngthy definition of equal temperament. The term 'equal temperament' itself was not yet established, so this was
described. as a system. in whi<:;~ ~ll the intervals \\!ere o.f equal sizes which in turn destroyed all key-coloration or possibilities
for "marked expressions" arid variety during modulation. for keyboard il)struments during the eighteenth century, this was
anavaphgardeidea .. Evidently, Rameauregtetted that he had formerly a~proved of''actuaieustom'' (''!'usage actueI" or
common tuning), for this became a. hindrance to his promotion of the equal temperament idea in 1737.
8. Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764), French composer and theorist.
9. Unlike in well temperament, one can begin the tuning efficiently from any key in equal temperament.
10. Rameau was aware that ''a very Httlei• was one-twelfth ditonic comma, but. without the calculations of beat frequencies like
those of Robert Smith in 1749, there was nothing further that Rameau could have written. According to twentieth-century
standards, tuning equal temperament by these insufficient rules would produce unsatisfactory results.
11. This is an error in translation: ''grave a l'aigu" should read "flat to sharp." This description of tuning order follows the
standard Mersenne-Hold(!r type bearing plans except for the arbitrarily chosen beginning note.
12. The last sharp must agree in sound with a flat tuned from the opposite direction from the beginning tone. In other words,
the sharps and flats are interchangeable in equal temperament.
13. Francois Couperin (1668-1733), French harpsichord composer.
14. Father Marin Mersenne, author of Harmonie Universe/le.
15. Vincenzo Galilei (late 1520s-159l), Italian composer and theorist who performed in all twenty-four major and minor keys
on lutes. He made important discoveries concerning the acoustics of strings and pipes that were continued by his son, the fa-
mous scientist. Galileo.
16. This is a clear statement that equal temperament was still not practiced on keyboard instruments in 1768.
17. Another translation of "affections des sons'' (affections of the tones) is 'characters of the keys' or 'key-character' which is
more common in English.
I 8. William Waring translated ''letemperament etabli'' as ''the established modification.'' The established temperament was well
temperament, but the term 'well temperament' was not yet invented.
19. The word 'tone.' here meant 'pitch.' Rousseau (Waring translation), A Complete Dictionary 439.
20. This is a very significant statement. Rousseau here explained that eighteenth-century musicians could always tell what key
a harpsichordist was playing in by the 'characters of the keys' or the qualities of the harmonies being heard regardless of how
flat or sharp the harpsichord may have been tuned in pitch. ln other words, even without the ability of 'perfect pitch,' one
c9uld hear in what key akeyboanl player \Vas I'erforn;ii~g. Rq.1.1ssea1.1 used t~is as.his that the 'characters
keys, fil1dyariety. of effects du~in,1:1 rnodu!ations in well temperament came. from of the intervals
not from the pitch. The phenomenon of key-character cannot exist in equal temperarnent.
21. Robert Smith proved this in 1749. See pages93-94 of the present work.
22. The \Vfiting in thi,s paragraph applied only to the diatonic nahiral keys. This is verified by acoustical law when one is allowed
to modulate "everywhere" through all the keys.
23. This is an unclear translation of the sentence, "Il paroit done que s'accoutumer a cette maniere d'accord n'est pas pour une
oreille exercee et sensible une aisee aprendre." A better translation is, ''It appears therefore that to accustomed
to this manner of tuning [equal temperamentJ is not a habit easy to acquire for an experienced and sensitive ear."
24. On page 245 of A Complete Dictionary of Musi<;, Rousseau announced that the equal temperament idea was ancient and that
it was not a new invention by Rameau as Rameau had recently claimed. Evidently, equal temperament was so rare on keyboard
instruments during the eighteenth century that Rameau thought he could deceive everyone into believing that he was its author.
25. Ibid,, 438-40.
26. This is a further indication that modulation was done through an the keys in 1768.
27. The intervals are tempered to be of varying sizes in weU temperament.
28. More dearly, in well temperament the diatonic and chromatic scales had different ratio relationships (temperaments) for each
of the twelve tonalities. Also, a "knowledge" of character existed because most tuners maintained the same traditional
effects Jn general iJ1 the same tonalities. Compare Figures 15-2, 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, and 40-1 of the present work.
29. "b flat" meant any flat. See page 135 of the present work.
A Complete Dictionary· of Music, 450.
oil the keyboard that there are no. black keys between E and F and also B and C that would make it look even.
43
CHART OFlmY CHARACTERISTICS
E ighteenth- and nineteenth-century musicians knew that the characters of the keys were in part caused by the slightly
unequal chromatic scales of the various well temperaments then in common practice. Following are a few descriptions
of keys from writings of the past quoted from Rita Steblin's book. 1
C major
"Completely pure" (Schubart, 1784)
"Cheerful artd pure" (Knecht, 1792)
"State of nature, virginal chastity and purity, lovely innocence of youth" (Heinse, 1795)
"Naturalness and nobility" (Gervasoni, 1812)
"Cheerful and pure; innocence and simplicity" (Weikert, 1827)
"Simple, unadorned" (Schumann, 1835)
"Concerning the psychical expression of this key, it appears to be completely pure" (Schilling, 1835)
C-sha:rp minor
"Penitential lamentation, intimate conversation with God" (Schubart, 1784)
"Despair" (Knecht, 1792; Schrader, 1827; Weikert, 1827; and Ebhardt, 1830)
D major
and 1691)
crrn1rpem~e:r,
1692)
"Pleasant, joyful, bright, songs victory" (Masson, 1697)
"Songs of mirth am.I rejoicing; grandeur and magnificence" (Rameau, 1722)
"Martial ardour" (Hawkins, 1776)
"The key of triumph, of Hallelujahs, of war-cries, of victory-rejoicing" (Gathy, 1835)
E-tlat minor
"Horrible, frightful" (Charpentier, 1692)
"Feelings of the anxiety of the soul's deepest distress, of brooding despair, of blackest depression, of the most gloomy
condition of the soul. Every fear, every hesitation of the shuddering heart, breathes out of horrible e-flat minor. If
ghosts could speak, their speech would approximate this key" (Schubart, 1784)
E-major
"Uplifting" (Junker, 1777)
"Bright" (Gretry, 1797)
1. Rita ~tebtin, A History off(iY ~har11cteristlcs in the Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Centuries (Ann Arbor: UMl Research
.Ptes:s, 1983)~ 22I-308. (ffles~ quotations are reprinted by permission of UMI Research Press, 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann
A~l)(Jt~ MtcbiQan 48106.:.1346.)
'.I'.'.?.~em.·
· . · 111g to.·.on.strttte
the rulesilie. ·.c·.· ·~a. •.ct~rs ~~;·k.ey···.
outlme;.d·r.a. o.f.
m Sectton o!.ktty-
88 sof . •. C'b· · t·o.•··r.·au···o·n.·
the. presen,t '.~d ~
work.. o..'fhu~
ili. foll.b.•w.·.·
temperament
easily b()hqai-d: Nex!;pei:Wrtl}t;!te preludes and fuguesfrom ttiefirstvolume of J. s. Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier
... n.cont.ams
ing.: Tu e a.· p~ano···
or•·h·mp··
great ·. s.1.ch·.·.o.· ·....·.·rd.··a·
contrasts c.·.:~.~ ~
t1tat. . o.can
r.d. . •.
in thiSi temperamen¥t~otice thatt;!t.~rextm~ssl(jn i.~atiifilent~~esp'1cially in th~ 1'eys listed.in Section43:. N~,xt~ to prove
the v~lic,lity of authentic key"colbration, transpose tlfe Prefode No. 1 in C major into C-sharp major and notice how
brilliant~ harsh •. and out; of tUne the prelude now sounds in· the wrong key. Conversely, transpose, the: Fugue No. 3
in: C-sharp. major dmvn into. C niajori NQtice how extremely dead and lifeless it souhds in C major. The cheerful,
happy, and bright sou,ndinS. melody of t1tis fuguE; .needs the extra wide Pythagorean major thirds and sixths to sound
proper and itt chara¢ter: . t)nly tonalities like C"sJtarp· or· F~sharp: major could furnish these qualities. Notice also in
this C,.sfiarp tnajonp~~lqd~anc;l ffigue tlt~t.Jlacnt (lopC~l}ga(ed 9n ~ast lirtear writipg .rather than on vertical harmonic
Writl)Ig so that th~fl(~t. ~~goreap b,e;ats> \Vt>,Ulf;J' 1}~t be he~(ci,or at .least not be erominently displayed. In contrast
to this,;· the Prelude and'.Pugutdn cu..ii:tajor.is h~9~c,,aQd the beat frequencies i~·~\~:are vecy. slow inc major.
Trt!Dsll9s~ i~e .fqgy~..,NQ;~;. ~JRP,maj~r..d0)Y~ i!J.!O C,maJor~AAd t1()tice tha~ t;!t~J~!!~~ .~~.triumphant sound is gone.
Bqtti the ~-flat minor and the· B'"~at~n0t triads· conform to the descri.etions· in S~tion 43 extremely well. This
is caused not only by the depressed minor thirds o:f'.. the, triads but als.o by theJiure. fifths. involved. With pure fifths,
noi matter how fast the major• thirds may be'beating~ tffe:.minor> thirds in the ·root·positiof} minor triads beat exactly
the san1"' ~peed as the major thirds. This gives these minor triads. and their inversions a fantastic rhythmic harmonious-
ness.'caus~ .by the idetttkat. be~t fyequendes. Actualty ~ t;!te beat frequencies of thes¢ triads are' too rapid to be easily
comt>rehertded, so along with their 1 to 1 ratios they are not objectionable. In fact,many tuning novices have been
fl~£eiv¢4·\n,t9; · vi:ttg:·,t!f~~· · t~it~~?~.~ig>p~rticutar·+~)J:tem~tam~11t+.wer~.jmi·1into11atio11
tri!tJS:·~·,~ • . ·.· · ... . ly·~ltarmonicallyin·these·:Pythagorean keys using many flats,
AfteF beco~ng accustomed to tile sound of Ba~h •. llaydn, or Mozart in the above n~ed well temperament, perform
t;!t'e. i.n~st~· ;lg~in fJt. e<1,u~t . . afireht: ~one~ Mw c'*>~tess and ineffective it soun(Jg; This is analogous to removittg 1
iltl the ~()15r·"ffom a·fin6;p g ~Y''iiffo\ograpJiiliJ'ft>;fJI.·ISr«~I~!" illfd;'whtte::· Oilly tlJt'shaCting.·and fomt wiJuld remain.
This is why Rousseau WJote that expression .is. reduced in equal temperament. 1
In eomtlusion, composers in the past permanently im;orporated the psychblogical effe~tar of the various·sizes oflnter-
valsinto the emotional content.s of the tn9si~ ~tself., ~~ll .this muskris performed today in equal temperament, the
basic; emotio11 of ~e musi~ is•.:tg ~ swatl deg~eciih s~ll felt by; tb¢. listener. The sty le of the composition insures this.
Itis ibe basiSi of why t.nod:etn pianists today say t~t various keys still have certain emotional effects. This is said even
t~ough modern equal.temperament has no characters of the keys. It serves as an indication of how uniform and strong
key"colot~tion must have. l)een i!l the past. Anycme professing to hear key-coloration today actually has acquired this
~ense second.hand or indir~tl~ (rqm th~ classic~,music itselfand not from the souitds being heard in equal tempera-
ment on pianos or organs.. (:For continuing inform~t~on on th~ characters of the keys, read Section' 151.)
NOTE
l. Jean~Jacques.Rousseau,. DictionnaireDe.. Musique (Paris: Chez Lefagevre, Libraire~ 1859),129.
157
.C~
l.,•~<.··.· . and
eQrge.F.•.'r~erick···. H.ailtfel(l68Sttl. S.·.9:)1:.~was;a,CJ.'e.~
'1. ...~n b¥ birth·
. . ) In 11Q6.h~ trl;\vele<lto:'ltal~ wher.e. heide. . velo~ed
matured as a composer. In 1710 he visited.London and in 1712 returned to England where, except for occa-
siOnal v.isits to the. Continent,.. he remained permanently, becoming a naturalized English citizen in 1726. As one of
the greatest.of aU cqmposerst he.•wr~te. tput1fl ipsttu~el!tah vocal~ and . operatic. musicr•but it is the. \nvention and, de-
velopment of the. English oratori0t fotwhich he•is mbst remembered o His oratorio Messiah continues in popularity.
Aroung· 1780~ the.1)velve Voluntaries and.IiUguesfot: the Organ·or Harpsichi>rd with Rulesfor Tuning by the celebrated
Mr. Handel,;Book W were publishecUn Lclttdon by :tongman and.Broderip; No.. 26Cheapside; Music Sellers to the
Royal Family •1 Therefore, these rules. were published roughly twenty~one years after Handel's death. Some historians
strongly doubt that any of the twelve voluntaries and fugud were written by Handel;. The musical style of these pieces
is more. adyam~ect than . that of H~del' s, s(}. they. properly belong to the. late 1170s or early 1780s when they were
publish~,; Nev~~eless. they prov~ popula,,-. M teaching.. pieces. Editions were published in 1866, 1881, and later.
A t!ew ¢dition (Without the tutting rules). by Richard .Peel\• was...published in ~k Lotlis by Coticordia Publishing House
in;l9&4. ...........•....•. .,.;,,. .••...•'. ·~······· ..
. oii~ way of inteij)ieiliig th¢; abov~.~& (tl as$ume. that Lotigman and Broderip were aware that the pieces may not
Jiave been ~rittell by Handel but that tµe. tuning. rules were genuine. In this cas.e, Longman and• BroderiP used wording
meaning:.th~t the ''Rul~s for1Tuningr~were ·~by.th~.celebrated·Mr~·Handel'' while the music was written by a talented
but anoiwmous co11ternporaey:composer. ·.Thu&,.. the title. does not really• speE(ify' that the music was by Handel~only
tfle tunittg rules.In any•case;: l::;ongmmand: Broderip:were tapitalbdng on Handel~sgreat name in order to make money.
It is left for the reader to decide for himself whether the rules were by Handel or not. For convenience, the tuning
wi}1:~ontin~e ~obe ~~l~th01~Jlaiipel9* . . ltn1e imthi9'.~M~'ilt•~~s•f~~IJ · ·oi\~~7~,age··manuscript
o&~milt:Yi1Jil>Jisll~t.~~ . ·"ii i~~ifttiie~Jon:tfiatl:,ongman · e:t1if>.censideredthe tuning
rules. tQ' be. the most .valuable attraction for customers purchasing the. ''Book. IV.'' Otherwise, during the eighteenth
· · centuey·:tunin3·rt1le~'Wefe'·t:t1ad{tiQnany;af>pended:•at ·the:~n€1~of le&sonbooks on•coUee~ions of,pieee&• As· far as the
nr~$.~flfwOr:kis:'.Ccttt'.t~m~~:(t1ntmt~r~·tt~~ft~l\'Uthm:ed'.:th~;f\lt~stl'fi~<Jr~n~'<!'ettli~les$J siltttificrtllt because they wete
published and distributed in the 1780s, and they represented the state of the art at that time .
. For the at'gument that Handel did not author .the rules, it can be, stated tha~ ihe.tentperament•.was an improved ad-
vancement over ''le temeerrunent etabli' '(tfie es~blisp~temperament) a9 reported by Jeam·Jacques Rousseau in 1768,
nine YeaJS• ~ft~t· »~9el.' !!. 4eatfl• .r~~~W.~st Js:tfle:statenient ill; the rules tµat ' 'the Fifth will not bear to be reduced so
niut1~b,ef9w•ll~·tru~accor~~·asthe1'hird;wiltto be raised above it." This is the first time in England that it was ac-
k:nowledged in print that the· major third ·CE could be tempered more than the fifth CG, although this had long been
true inptactice;·To temper the third· CE more than the fifth CG was·contrary to the basic baroq,ue temperament philosophy
that ~ulminated in Robei;t. Smith.' s;l7~.9 pi:oof that this •should, 9ot be done. (Seepage.s93-94 of the present work.)
In .1768 e;ven Roussea\fl ~'19¢' tµe;b~tqqtJe•11hiltls;Qphy;?; althO:\Jill.he:did J!ot practiceit··and he did not understand the
reason for it. Born in 1685, Jtandel was a true baroq,rie compeser. To write the above statement would not have been typical.
Asecc>nd arg~ent is.that excep~ for . the tones F andB-'fJat, which were an octave lower as in the original Holder
bearing plan, Randel"s be~ringplan was a copy ofR'.ousseau's 1768 plan with one change caused by a greatimprove-
m~m~·fiuf'Haiiaenliedin·'t159;IilRousseau;·onetiaa·tofemper·four·fiftfis·oeforeone·am:voo··at····the··first proor·
and another four before one arrived at ''the second proof.'' These. proofs, the major thirds CB and EG-sharp, were
· ffle·mrJsn~ssential imervaI~ in the wftote·tem~r:mient;To'go'ltftnngbf<JUf tmfts•mifius two ·octaves before one could
. . . . . . g.n:ix~. at..g...::n.t®t'..~ .•ni;i.iqr.wtlt.b:4.•tn~M1gJ1~\'..~.ttee.\\..,~~ey.~fi~kll~Jg.l;\c;~ompU~h..with . the.aeiill'e4..~~<;un1,G~*"····lJie. <.<b~nge
· ···t111t'1fltlfdet~d~WlfS:'Htff1~t~~~'~tf~~e~u~·s prooftmtj~r·thtrd·cE·t1treatyas.t1t~·flrsntepin'tfie•tetttperament.
' - '•'''' ' ,, " .· ' ' ,· ""' ' '.,' ,,,, ,
In this way, .0,ne qn1ld; get t11e desire~ accur~cyj~ lh~ ~egh1ning with far greater· eas~. · • F?r . the .second proof major
third, . §G"sharp, Handel t,e,mperedG-sharp directly !t"q1n ~ for the .srune reasons ..• Rousseau•. tempeted .·q:.sharp from
c~sharp,.and .tf the< l'esults w.~l'e ~otsaffsf~ctotY;• ~?µsseau h~d· to retune· the fo?r.·fi~hs . and. two.·octaves again. ··Handel,
instead, senhe quality. ()fthemost esse,ntialmaj?t t},lird CB first and then after tempering only two fifths to specified
qualities he·. averaged· outthe differences on the tw? reIJ1ai~ing fifths when he tempered the/ tone. A.. >F()r the second
proof, Handel tempered three fifths to specified qualities aridthen left the fifth C-sharp G-sharp to fend for itself and
abs6rb any accumulated residual errors. Actually, the fifth C~sharp G-sharp was the least important interval in the
temperament. Thus, Handel did not need to do any retuning work like Rousseau may have had to do. Handel's bearing
plan was the same as Rousseau's except that E was tempered first, thereby causing the octave EE to be tuned back-
wards. Also, G~sharp was tempered from E, and the tones F and B-flat were tempered an octave lower. Rousseau's
two proof major thirds are the only major thirds that. Handel tempered directly.
A third atgumentis seen by studying Table 47q of the present work. This table reveals that Handel's temperament
was closer to equal temperament than was.any other eighteenth-century .temperament presented in this book through
1780. By studying Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27..1, 40'-l, 41~1, and 47-1, one can see that there was a steady and gradual
change in the common established well temperament style from being a highly contrasting Werckmeister type to a
less contrasting type that was closer to equal temperament. The only exception was Peter Prelleur who was obviously
ahead of his time in 1731. If Handel authored the presenHemperament of 1780, he would have been even more ahead
of his time.
For those who believe that Handel was one of the greatest composers who ever lived, it is easy to have faith that
Handel was far ahead of his time in temperament and that he therefore did write the tuning rules. In this case, the
similarity between Handel's and Rousseau's bearing plans would have been coincidental. It is regrettable that the origi-
nal handwritten autograph submitted to the printers in 1780 is not known to exist anywhere. A handwriting analysis
could settle this question.
Concerning the notion that the major third CE not only could be tempered first but that it would actually be tempered
to a higher degree than the fifth CG rather than just (using also Rousseau's meanings for the word just), Peter Prelleur
was the first to do this. Since Prelleur's rules were circulated in London in 1731, it is possible that Handel was in-
fluenced by them. In fact, Prelleur's ''Tryal" chords were duplicated in arpeggiated form by Handel in his rules, ex-
cept that the trial chord numbers one, two, three, four, five, and eight were transposed an octave higher because Handel's
bearing plan was an octave higher. Comparing Handel's and Prelkur'stuning systems, Handel's was significantly easier
to tune for two reasons: Handel removed the dependency for accuracy from the major thirds except for the minimum
necessary, and he cleverly reserved certain fifths for the absorption of accumulated errors; that is, the two fifths DA
and AE and also the residual fifth G-sharp E-flat. Further, he tempered the beginning fifths excessively flat (as much
as the ear could possibly bear) so that the remaining fifths would be all the easier to average-out with results never
offensive to the ear.
The ease of tuning is not the only indication that the Handel temperament was composed by a master. comparing
Figures 15-2, 20-1, 24~1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-1, and 46-1 of this work, one can see that whoever authored the Handel
nioreunderstandin~ . . ..·. than had else before 1780. PreHeur's form
was second in perfection. By aU the latter, it is meant that when the major CE is the one and smallest
third because it represents no alterations (no flats orsharps in the key signature for C major) and when the major
third C-sharp the one and major because it represents the ultimate alterations (the largest
possible number, seven sharps in the key signature for C-sharp major-seven flats for C-flat major was too rare to
be this is the greatest perfection possible, according to the basic philosophy of eighteenth-century well
temperament. Thus, the Handel temperament was the highest achievement in tempering practice up 1780. By
comparison, the Rousseau temperament was poor in harmonic balance mainly because BD-sharp rather than C-sharp
E-sharp was tempered as the largest major third. Perhaps this difference was caused by the differences between French
and English music. Basically, this was a philosophic choice between the tonalities of C-sharp major and C-flat major
as being the least used.
The Handel temperament as published in 1780 was intended for well-tempered tuning and not meantone-tempered
tuning. It was irregular because it contained six different sizes of fifths, the same number required by Rousseau. There
was no purpose in having varying sizes fifths other than to have varying modulatory effects or key-color changes
as in well temperament. This, coupled with the instruction that the major third CE must be tempered more than the
fifth CG, indicates that mean.tone temperament was not desired. A final is that the voluntaries and fugues follow-
ing rules in the 1780 publication used all the sharps and flats except for D-flat and G-flat. The other three
pairs of sharps and flats were used enharmonicaHy. The were in the keys of D, C, and Neverthe-
less, have been no way the VII! in C
temperament unless there were keys on the keyboard. In the and Number IX
C third. of the
.."'"'"r"'c the usage of all sharps and flats.
~·gl~ce;
·· the
{~~em
ynum-
. •A' ,
.;:JJl'lf~ia~19n,s
~te;tl11;t• '·d~lct~m .. .. . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . .·.. . .. . . .. . .· . ... . . . .· . lclJ9rds were
wl'i.Cell.9u•~lmeQiYiE~etC1di.callJ)•··IJi:evioµ~3qt11"u·3atway,s·wrote1l!J4tW&·in·Ne. •ca~.bamt9W:ti1:,cb:gi:~J~bion (the notes
sttrdght up..micl dt'.\~}>).·; . . ... ·.• .· . . •'· •. ·.·.·..... .
•·.}11\ereJs no. wJy.tC! utilize equl:\1-::beating·te'lblJiques.while proceeding through.Handel's. be(lring plan, .and observing
hls~j~~~ti9tlsli•·$:ge~if~c!lllY~ •the roajor.thirds J>P-sbarp: an,d AC:-shai:p were required. to be the same size. AC-sharp
is a\J'l\le,tl1€)' u:r7~.b~i~ ~e ..... {ll(lll,"JfJlJlY. equa1tbeating. meUtQ4s .were applied, the t\yq major thirds would
n,qtb.e•,th~s•~~j~~~~TJt~r . . .. . t thall,.QF-sbarp, This.WQ\lld havel\e.en intolerable,
.. · .·. . ,
.~n~ bJ;:eight¢ertthr-cent\1~1teli\.er~e .· .. ·. ~·~~~!lthei41Jl'i . i,s t.tJa~.t)le fiftll. GQ •ro\Ult be Jess narrow
•·;~11~. qy~, CG iq the beating (GU We:(b terll))eted html aYsti@oesfess thM~9~·~~ ·if BF-sharp
weret~mp4 a.shad•1les&1tQroatch,.;great distortions would occur, and the harmonic balance would be ruined. This
is caused b)l. the fact that if QU~ere tem J'.et\ a .sllad~·sIQwerJ~ beat~~ ire~uency than CG, GD would become a
¥ery. tar-ela1llou~~ less narrQw~.ir~tner. · · .l1J~~3.~mru~!imo\Utl·1~r~~Q~~·,, :. · • ,
Whenever equal-be~ting techniques o M~beating increments cannot be applied to a temperament system without
distorting the intended·th~ry. this can be Uiken as vroQf that th~ author was tempering mefodically. Without published
!leatfr~f.I · } WQ\Jt1 \'J,~ ef!e~t~ ~aU~ed by e~:i:ial ~ajs~ th~ ~~~~es t>t effects he~<t ,vvbJle pla)ling various
ifiterttal~'. . . .· .· · t.l'f, . .•. ·... i~;ch~rctt\\1.fasbi't.lit\V~uldti'.avemeatitMtbing.duringthezte•ramentpr()<:ess. As
BA ~ltffiple:~.1.WeJieat frequen¢i~s. :.c~C'1lat(:<l a.ccQrqmg to We theory Qf )Jandel'S teropetltffient $llt>W no resemblances
to the qualities of'. the intervals··cresctibed in the tuning instructio~s whett nsing Handd's odgina1 bearing plan. The
ft{th GDbeat& faster than CG even thot.tgh Gn is less narrow, and AC-sham beats mud1 faster than DF.,.sharp even
thougll,bQl}JWaJol·d:,iirds Qe .....e~~~.si~tt· The.·1llmty musicians who.did not teµipe1wetodic~ly in th~ manner of
llandel tempered. by Uste11i~g to the qmdities and effects Qf vertical chordal sonorities aml their degrees of harmonious-
ness, ~etlter or not they wer~ eonsciqus of th¢.beatings. these beats were nevertheless tile determining elements in
.the~~~alfJi~., .<>f .lb~ ~ll,1~zyt})s.,1lti~Js. tJi.eJ~~s.is ()( W~.e9ual-:beating pbiJ()s~~hY of . teropefaroent.
· ·1f1.)Jattde.lw..s tiotthe'autlt~r;·ofth¢se temperamenttrules, then it must have been someone t;ils~ who had an extraor-
diQlltil"4~Yelopedmll&i~~' th~t.Wa$•fcattab)e.Qf roel'Q.dicallybeatin:g inteJVaisaltetecJ:U..ineteroe!\ts of a twenty-fifth
pan. of the dit9ruc ~bwma. (O}}cent), as•will be shown in• the follqwing paragraphS', Only, the.1nusicians of the 1780s
that 'Ye.re pi~s~ed ~i\'J, ~an.<JeUs ~igh q~gree °:~ tatent~()\lld b~ve follow~ these rules· attdP!~d~eed t11.e proper results .
.. .. tlie f~llo~in~. i~·a COJ?Y Qf pa~e ·1 ftqilitlte oiig!nat;~1ticin published around 1780 by llongman. an_dBroderip (from
film 78-3544, Hougfitott pbrary, Harvard trniversity); Notice tha'.t Peter Prelleur"s trial chords are here in arpeggio
ft>rm for· melodic comparisons. T:he trial chords are not. the bearing plan. The hearing plan is in the written tuning
instructions:
c\,:i ,+;" .> .:. '"'''
The
:
,~,,, ,' v.:. ·,,
bearing plan is. written out in Sec~ion .46, with
"'''''""~:\;,~,,..,~?$..,,\, •of«·,,.~· '
the .instru~tions insen~.,,,,·:.,::
,,,\,;,,,,fo~ 1A<\,-uf<.<i;1AfN.f<J.wi(,,;;,.~,H'·%"'.\: .;,, >,-.',.'.~
•< .,,...,,,,: ,; ,••j')~;~,ffi4if;Ji&l}.~~:P1®!;;;!,,~s· '·'"' \:0:,,;:,,,;{~V,~$'1Mh~»11i'.,«.;,«;.:,Q\.;:;",,;:{1::.,;y \\,;.::·\~:;,~,'.:~'.;,,,:j,\·,~·~0?.if'.,,~;
, "In tJij~ Chord tvne the

l"i ·. .·. fl'afand the Third
coii!!t too
161y sharl>, NB.
the Fifth will not bear to be
rettu(e~*so µiuch below it's
true accord, ~s tlte Third will
to ~e rais¢d above it."
2ctd-loRI>..
! •-.·•.----'---tiQ~.·. --------?-------jtr-tlt :,inf~:~§
ll'-t.'·.·.··,..;"'•. •··.-
"•.•.-0
.•-•. .
ing flat!' ·
"Tune all Octaves perfect."

rd~ ·1
]~s~'nte measure btjng .down
the sharpness of the Thlrd.''
''Tune the Third very fine
5th CHORD. ~H! H+.·.·.. ------'lf~Q...-----··_g_·_.----ti :~:~:~~==~~~~

· · -·-0 -·
should be flat."
''Tune the A, an Octave to

A, above, when you have
6th CHORD. Si-l•·~'"-,·~""':""--------3-.-·~--!-----tlt-

0------ilrml .~:~~;:~ ~oaa1~~~~1:
-------'-----------'-~----~~ tion higher, that being the
l.__
same as if you had tuned your
C, a fifth to F, giving the C,
a little flatness."
"Tune all the rest by Octaves .."
NOTES
1. Sadie, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 8:136.
2. See page 89, the la~t complete paragraph of Rousseau, A Complete Dictionary of Music.
161
THE AUTHENTIC WAY To TUNE GEORGE FREDERlCK HANDEL'S
WELL TEMPERAMENT IN AROUND 1780
Tune C-sol-ut Tuned

to pitch. Flatten before
"pretty flat.''
l ! l Trial
i i
Sharpen
"considerably too sharp."
"N. B. the Fifth will not bear to be reduced so much below

it's true accord, as the Third willto be raised above it"
Tuned Tuned
before Flatten
before flatten
! t Trial
·1
"Let the Fifth be

i
"make it good but
nearer perfect than just bearing flat"
the last tho' not quite."
·tuned
before Tuned
before Tuned
1 l ~=
~-·---=y----ttJ-------r=--ttx------~a
~ :J
t j____._.____j
"Tune all Octaves perfect."
"Tune A, a good fifth to D, trying it at the

same time with E, above already tuned."
Tuned
Tuned before Tuned
before
l
and
Flatten and equalize

with the 13 above. "let it be near as flat as the fifth (C G) in
the 1st Chord, this will in some measure bring
down the sharpness of the Third (D F#)."
Handel wrote, "Tune the a fifth. to F,

be the same as the [DF-sharpJ in the ''Acoustic dictates in this case that the fifth
must be identical in size to the fifth DA, a "good fifth."
Tuned
before Flatten
Trial
Make it a "good fifth."

(see note above)
Handel wrote, ''Tune the Third very fine rather

as all should '' Handel meant
"More or ' reveals that Handel was aware of the varieties in
Tuned
before Tuned
before
l Trial
i
Tune
Sharpen
just
Concerning the low F below, Handel wrote, ''when you have drawn the F, to a perfect fifth with C, give it a little
inclination higher, that being the same as if you had tuned your C, a fifth to F, giving the C, a little flatness." Concern-
ing the fifths FC, B-flat F, and E-flat B-flat, Handel wrote that they should be identical.
Tuned
before Tuned
before
1 l Trial
i
Tune
i
just Sharpen
"a little."
Tuned Tuned
before before
Trial
r-···---------·--------·---··1
Tune
just Sharpen
"a little."
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l l Trial
Tune Sharpen
just "a little."
Tuned Tuned
Tuned Tuned before Tuned
before before before before
! 1 l l l
l~d
bJ =l lb~ I~
i
4J i
~J d ljJ =;l=I
Tune
just
Tune
just i
Tune
i
Tune
i
just Tune
just just
This completes a twenty-four note bearing section from F below middle C to E an octave plus a major third above
middle C.
Handel wrote, "Tune all the rest by Octaves."
No one but of would have been able to follow the
above instructions and achieve the intended results. For the sounds of Handel or of others from the 1780s
with the greatest authenticity it is preferable to use exact beat frequency figures along with modern twentieth-century
In this way we can approach the original sound very closely. The following explain how
the beat frequencies can be determined.
One can observe from studying Handel's instructions that Handel began his tempering with a'
Each successive fifth (or set of fifths) was progressively less narrow. One was that the was
as narrow as the second fifth because it had the special mission of bringing "down the sharpness" of F-sharp. Thus,
there is a distinct the fifths BF-sharp and GD were no doubt the same size, at least six differ-
ing sizes of fifths emerge as follows:
"pretty flat"
"near as flat" as "pretty flat," "not quite" as flat as "pretty flat," and "nearer than flat"
"good but just bearing fiat"
"good"
"a little" narrow (meaning the smallest amount narrow)
and G-sharp E-flat were not tuned directly, and were no doubt
. $!.
goo
a l!~l~ oiw:~)¥: i!cfl~~ :B";fl'.~tr )l-tlat . ~~.and F<;
j'qst_...~"~batlJ:~-ll~~rp: ~d.tf-:s1tarit E~£fat {A•ftat E...flitt)'.
·;; ., i ~i\t~q~~:u~~pit~r3t)o: ili~ origiriafin~tructionswhite tuning their iiistiuments, they most ofte~~·~nlsh
wlifj':,,. ., .... · (?'"~~~J .i\tp thatis quite narrow and a. fifth A-flat to E-flat that is excessively wide. A wide fifth
causes •l'Jij.tm,olj~~ was. . ·. ·. ~!st~~~~tj~m is l1~acceptable to the standards of the late eighteenth century. Musicians
of any sensitiVitywoutdif~ Viii ttlleta~e(f;th~~~~~~~··i~g.~; re,. the fifth A-flat E-flat must be at least as narrow
.~s~Jl1~t.jDto11atjo~ :fifih. lJ9wever, thefifth A-flat i~il~Ui~1l . :¢ t<lbecol]Ie ~Y: p~~~eptible amount narrow.
This W()ttfd cal'Jse· th~ diff~rences am<mg the above six class.i ns to become s& refitted tha~ they would become
impossible to control. 'fhe'temperament would then approach equal temperament too closely. This was not Handel's
inte11tion. If i~!was, Han4ei, ;\\'Ot1ld Jlaye µsedJWety~ro~ chprds Jathet th~ e,ight,. and he would have instructed that
altthe.fifths·.lllUst be tempered alike. !h~8i• for pto}1er Jfan~eli~ tuning1 the fifilis.C-'Sharp G-sha.fP and. A-flat E-flat
must result in bein~ ~eatless o! very dose to just intonation .. This is the basis for a previous statement in this book
tJl;;i~ the Han<!eltefiiperament was not a''ffee aesthetic type temperament but instead was a highly inflexible Me whereby
dfore were no. variations ~Uowed .. Conve'.rsely, amateurs who can accept the harmonic waste and the crude results find
Handel's insttuctfons to be. the easie~t of any system present~ in this book through 1780. This is because the fifths
c~shMp O.:shlltp artd A~flat E-flat are·n9tplayed during the trials. Their imperfections are not heard, and they absorb
a\l!OmaticaUy the t;rrors in tempering .. The fifths. '.DA and AE also absorb accumulated errors. 1n C{)nclusion, for anJ.ateurs
ti(t} Han~ertemp~r~~nt is v~ry easy; for professionrusit is.,as. clffficult as equal temperament.
~: . There were si:x:?vafying'sizes. of fifQl~in increments from small to large. With so many varying sizes, there is no
reaso~ tg believe that the inc en.t~. \Ve~e unequal in.
size. Within the limits of possibilities for this number, the incre-
mefits are· excessively small ther or not Utey are equal. Unequal increments would have placed an unnecessary
bµ~~nvn the ptOfe$sionfil tut\~t, HMdel included. Unequal inElrements serve no putpose and are unrealistic. Let X
repre$entone.eq1lal inctl!lllent~and als~l.an ait1ount of na,rrowing for a t~mpered fifth like FC. Then,
E~flat B-flat, B-flat f, and FC are each narrowed by lX,

DA. AE, and F:..shatp C-sharp are. each narrowed by 2X,
EB is.narrowed hY . 3X,.. . . · . . ..• . . . . .· ·
GI,) .and· BF"shatp are ea'(h narrow,ed by 4X, and
CG is narrowed by 5X:
. . ofi}i;i@n;.fi.rui~ in·tlii:ll~tet:.:ms1ntc1trons:::'Tft~s1';fen·. fiftftS:~D\\tst·th~tlf"r~'sWrirt·ttt~·titt<5rrtc··comma .

. lly"cou'Jitrri'g; tlfofi' ''weliiiCI"mere'are 25 x•s:·ThetefOte, I Xis. one twefity-'fffth diton1c comma. The
rad~ .~f.tJlis iS'l: ()()t)542H8wht~~ is (}·~93~4 ?ents in size; This is the tiny increment that Handel was capable of hearing
in..in~fodtQ;;int~~fil!l!•·l:his;,~uc;~~lli~)!\1sr,atth~.lit1l.ito~ c(ltJJpre}1ensi9n for tJJany tuners.
Now it can be seen that the
fifths C-shatp G.::shatp and A-flat 1M1atmust be at least as wide as just intonation fifths in order to prevent the incre~
mentsfrom becoming even.smaller.,Nevertheless, wide fifths cannot be tolerated. In conclusion, the r8;tiOs of Handel's
fifths 111\isf have been very similarr't(j the following~
i(!:-sJ:tarp·.~sha.~;·andl*zA~ftac::ia~na~M"e<ralfo·•I ,5 ·~aclt
'E~flat&4tatrB~flat F~ and FC are ratio 1.499187158 each
DA, AE, and F~sbarp C-sharp are ratio 1.498374'758 each
:ttn: is ratio 1.497562796
di) ancl ~f-sbarp ai:e: rati9 1,,49~15Ji76 ~ch
CO is ratio 1.495940193, · ·
For the sake of comparison, a one-fourth syntonic comma narrow meantone fifth has a ratio of 1.495348781. An
equal temperament fifth has a ratio of 1.498307077. Thus, Handel's fifth CG was not quite as small as a regular Aaron
············meantoiiefifm;His·fiftlls·ulS;,~E7anctF=sfiarpc=sharpwere··verysimilart(ft!qual··remperamenrfifths:·Hisfifth··co
was4•;69l cents. narrow, ·while his major third CE was 9.307 cents wide, This accounts for his statement that ''the
··ptfffi'wtlJ"fiotbeaffo''5'ere"ef&~d su·muel'flfel(fW its·ttue'aeei'>l'tl';·as ·the Thin.twin to be raised above it.'' .'fbe results
''''·tt~ntf6nie''trfillm'~~"tfi1ft''m'.trtte.t'~~nievett;•:•... ' 1
m
"''~1,..,.,. .,.................Qf.. ~his..ruJ.~sis,,ruJ.i:J;. s;~g·JJ.lPY.titiQ.q§ •.6t§. •~l!!tU!1~!J. . .tl\~~b;~V.1s ..9.1J.!hl! follo"".iIJg . page. Thes.e chart~. c:IisPlllY the perfect
• · · ·
AC~sflam .•..
EG-shf1rpt•li 1'' • ·~ :i;; ~~ ~$92:1·31MO'"'• .0.
BE-flat 4(}Z.18960
F-sharp B-flat 405.00480
c~shamF 405.94320
o~~fl!ll"R c 405.00480
E-flatG 400.31280
B-ffat D 397;4~1<i{l.
FA 396.55916
CE 395.62080
Compare thls table with Tables 20-l, 24.,I. 26-1, 39-1, and 40-2. This table is arranged in a somewhat circular
fonn for perspective in• Figure 46-1 i • · ·
The largest third

JJ;.
0 6F
NC-the samll .size - FttA11

4 flats .and 6 sharps
AC/ G·
the same size--. ( . OF# $·
~
B o;;.
FA fl>~
CE ~o~
iJ
The smallest third
Figure 46-h The Form of Well Temperament Tuned by George Frederick Handel's Rules.
Compar~ with Figures 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, and 40-1.
167
E....'· ..... · /· ·. . . .·: ........ ·. ...
il<'e Rolisseau. ·Hafideluanspos'ed' the· ol'igJnalWilliani Jiofder beatinS: plan. up one octa:Ve sa that control over
·· .. · . tlie n:ui:ny gtadatiufis o:f fifths would be easf~t. The fifths then b~t twice as fast. but so did the thirds and sixths.
However,·the thirds and sixths were not listened to for their .beats. The original Handel bearing plan was created for
ef:ficient•melodic te111perln~~ 1uning by t:Jeats in a theoretically correct manner is a.very different technique~ so there
·is no ~utjro~e iriadheririg to the original Handel bearing plan and high pitch. The following instructions therefore uti-
lize a m~em condensed b~arin~ p ·at:a lo\\fer pitch that is most efficient for twentieth·centuzy professional tuners
who can obtafu a high degree of a .. ''1y« This is the· ~st way to imitate the sotmd that Handel must have had.
Fifths can be inverted to become fourtbiJ.altd that is how the bearing plan can be condensed. A lower complimentary
fourth beats tlie same speed as an uJjper comptifttentilfy fifth when the octave is in just intonation. This advantage was
not applied in the eighteenth century.· Very few tuners tuned or tempered fourths. because they were considered to be
too difftcult~ Undetstanaftfj tltat dte.Jfeat frequencies of fourths represent the beat fr¢quencies of: the upper fifths, one
· can"see"futhefiillQ\\(iitlt' ~~Bl l'lflg that th~ boot f~ue'1"iesd(lcOrtesiro~~, to<t~~del?s de~~riptive· im1tructions. The
major third EG..sharp beats lil<'e a ''fine'' third, even fin~r than CE. If Handel· had usea this bearing plan, we would
have· been convineed that he temJjered' by beats rather than by listening melodically.
Tlier beat frequencies,inithe following instructions were calculated for use with a C tuning fork at standard pitch,
the<; equivalent of A=~49 :Hz. If a lower pitch i~ used, reduce the beat frequencies proportionately. For examples
of ~a,t ft~'!tt;~ncjes~ lllt:l~~l?~ th~ given null}bers by 60 and listen to them on the metronome.
TU~e th~ follo~b1g. quart~r notesdn the o.rder written.
'',·• ,•·'%(MA-"i,·}\,,,,,,t,,,,,
Test interval
•'•c ,· ,·•J/·\;<0'f'''if.0\~(<..li)'"M';h)h•"'
.. , r.'*"!•rrrrr •r¥r•~SalJ~~r~lt<)~!.J,wrr
beats per second)
Tune C-sot~ut Tuned
···· topitcb. before Tuned
before
1 ::n l 7.1 7.9

l r
U!>~ f-.·········µ· Tf !!-' f ,r F II r
l Flatten
r
Sharpen
i
Flatten
7.<J 7.1
<'¥:, Tf
""'·
E
t Decrescendos deoote decreasing beat frequencies.
Temper A from both D and E so that the fourth A D is wide

and beats exactly 33.5% faster than the narrow fifth A E.
Tuned
before
Check fot an even
decrease in beat. speeds;
2.t 1.1 1.0 0.7 1 2.1

1.6 1.3
f E f 110 r 1f f f I
t
Flatten
Tuned
before
Equal beating
0.7 1.0
0.7 0.8
r f
Tune
just
169
Flatten
Tuned
before
1
e r r·r j
2.1 l.6
1.3 ' 8.S
)ltif ·. .•.· if > 1 g 1 11 1 ;E

t
Flatten
Tuned Almost
before just
l ! 6.I 7.9
r
0.3 0.6 5.2 6.3
. t
If t
1 IF & 1E 1
Sharpen
Tuned
before
Sharpen
Tuned
before
~t2~fr~'"_l-=--+---~r--==-tt~l-~~ =il- _hi- -i-.~

i
Sharpen
Tuned
before
Tune or equalize G# from both C# and D #. The fifth

G# D# and the fourth G # C# should be just. However, if they
are only reasonably pure, they should be considered acceptable.
\. ~..~ '- _::=--* =-=2~

•
lE-=t'=---
-
--,..--
s.2
-. ~
6.2 --·
. +-------.L
-
- - . - . .. - .- -
-
----------
6.3 -
--I'-_.._ _ _
i w.~•---~--'
11 2
--+---
----~----------
,
-
11.3
-
~~==--~-
... -.-~.-+=-
·
u.s___
----·--+----
----~~---
11.3 _ ..
=ti
~-------
Wide m~joi; th:ifds
r
7.1 7.5 H.3
6.3 7.1 10.0 11.2
t
5.2
~,
6.2
n?= r #r qr ~r ~r rt
Wide major sixths
Narrow ininor thirds
6.1 7.9 10.5
6.2 8.5
i Ff
8.3 10.1. 11.3 11.8
7.9
u~:f I~ I~ ~· br ~qr §~,

II
Table 47-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of tile Theoretically Correct
Bandel Well Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Theoretlcal Bandel Rouncjed Figures
G-sh~'"'' ;·;t;,;,minu&;i.,,,,r. (),~.41~··r. ; ;. ;;.,j:.
. pl~. . . . ,... I. 7204U. +2
F.:sMrp minus 2.58060 -3
F plus 3.44080 +3
E' plus ().()7820 0
E-flat plus 1.40160 +l
D minus 0.07820 0
c pltis 4.45740 +4
Br.. minus 0.18200 -1
Compare this table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, and 41-1.
THE WRITINGs··eF WH.J5t:AN.(JON£S 0N .TEMPERAMENT IN 1781
illiam Jones (1726-1800) was a natural scientist, Fellow of the Royal Society, composer, mQsic theorist, writer
on music, and a divine. His chapter, "On The Philosophy of Musical Sounds," is found on pages 293-358
of his book on natural elements. 1 He began by giving a complete dissertation on the nature of sound, including all
the theories on string vibrations, frequencies, ratios, the harmonic series, difference tones, the sub-harmonic series,
etc., in the same manner that we understand these elements to be true today.
On page 319 of his book, we find the term "equal temperament." Up until this time, the only terms used for this
temperament were descriptions like 'the system oftwelve equal parts in the eighth,' 'twelve equal semitones within
the eighth,' 'the system of twelve semitones perfectly equal,' 'the temperament of twelve parts,' 'the equal division
of the semitones by eleven mean proportionals between the two extremes of the unison and the octave,' 'the system
of mean semitones,' 'geometrical temperature,' 'hemitonic system,' etc. Thus, the term 'equal temperament' came
into common usage in English over two centuries after its theory and philosophy were first discussed by theorists and
applied to lutes and viols. The originaJ of the term 'equal temperament' included not only the system of twelve
equal t9nes to the octave, but also nineteen tones to the octave, thirty-one tones, fifty tones, and any other number
of equal-sized tones to the octave. Technically, equal temperament still has this same term
temperament' thus represents a classification of temperaments. A freer meaning of the term also included everything
the Aristoxians had been doing since Biblical times. the majority of musicians, and writers since
1781 have used the term 'equal temperament' to mean the system of twelve equal semitones within the octave.
During the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth the most common was what we
today call meantone temperament. This is a class of whereby modulation is In 1781,
the tet·m notseem to exist or to case the term was
re}:ire:1enten was used. the earlier no name
for meantone temperament was necessary because it was simply the "common" or "vulgar" tuning. In the eighteenth
century, . dassification of temperaments represented by what we today can well temperament became common
tice. This replaced the meantonetemperaments to such a thatthe term 'comnmn esilm1Hs11ea t"'n""'"'"'"'m"' "t
1
now applied to mean only what we can well temperament. the meaning of the term 'common"''""'"'"'"'...,......
ment' had what we today call meantone became known in the e1~nte:en1c.'1 c1::ntiilrV
tuning.' The new common established temperament became so common that it still needed no name. Thus, was
'old tuning' the 'new ' The 'old tuning' was restrictive, and the 'new tuning' was unrestrictive.
By the twentieth the meaning of the term 'common established temperament' changed again to mean the
"equal temperament" referred to by William Jones in 1781. Therefore, a new term became necessary for
the texms 'new or 'common established temperament' referring to and mr1en;enm-ceritmrv
temperament systems. By their wordings, these terms 'new or 'common estaOJl1sr1eate.11npt;raime·m
be used for describing eighteenth- and. nineteenth-century systems.
In the 1960s, the term 'well temperament' finally appeared to replace the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century
usages of the terms 'new tuning' or 'common established temperament.' Like the term 'equal temperament,' the term
'wen came into usage several centuries after the system of tempering it represented was first prnccU1cea
had respect for the experimental idea that equal temperament should be tried on
he still well Equal was beginning to be discussed
the too cumbersome. The short term
£>01mnr1,,,,·,,11 for keyboard instruments. Jones found that
· and so it used ever since.
Inmuchthe sam~way; theterm'wellternperame~t'J~ ~hprt and descriptiv~, ·It is more .appropriate than the original
terms 'the new tQning'. or 'establishedtemperament. '. Italsois .far more efficient than using the description ''irregular
circulating unre~trictive temperarne~twherebyone can· modulat~ freely th:ough all the keys, whereby the best fourths
and fifths are p1acedamong the chromatic keys, wherebythe best thirds and sixths are placed among the natural dia-
tonic keys, wherebythec!lorct~c2l~rsch~Nleerenly <l.1\~•gra.dual.ly w~e11 one play~ a series of triads in root ·111ovements
a fourth apart around a complete circle, and finally wltereby no wolf iiltervals exist because the temperament is meant
for the welHempered clavier (the late seventeenth-century meaning of the term 'well-tempered clavier').'' This description
might seem long, but it is necessary. There were other unrestrictive temperaments and experimental temperaments
during the eighteenth century that were neither equal temperament nor the common established well temperament. There-
fore,· either the lengthy description or the usage of the term 'well temperament' is necessary in order to keep the classi-
fications of temperaments dearly separate from each other.
On page 325 of his book, William Jones used the term 'equal temperament' to include all the possible equal tempera-
ments whereby there are more than twelve equal tones within the octave. ·rn accordance with this original meaning
of the term 'equal temperament,' Jones referred to the system of twelve equal tones. on page 319 as ''an equal tempera-
ment" rather than "equal temperament" without the "an." Equal temperament was not yet "the" equal temperament
because it was still only experimental in practice.
On page 325, Jones explained that there were "three schemes" of temperaments. The first was "the. method of
lowering those four fifths by a quarter of a comma [the syntonicJ each ... to keep the major third to its true measure."
Jones further explained,
The second scheme, is that of equal semitones, which was hit upon by Mr. Davis, but was first given by Mersennus,
and after him by other writers. The third, which is the easiest in practice, and perhaps the best of all for the organ,
as accommodated to the music of the church, is that ofValloti, 3 a French organist, to which Tartini 4 gave the prefer-
ence. His method was to give to the notes of the long keys, which are most used, all their native perfection; and to
throw the imperfection upon the short ones, which are most remote from the diatonic scale; that the contrast of differ-
ent modulations into remote keys may have the best effect.
The latterlengthy description was necessary because the term well temperament did not exist in 1781. In conclusion,
William Jones in effect wrote. that there were three classifications of temperaments; that is, meantone temperament,
equal temperament, and weU temperament ..
It is easy to determine what the Vallotti temperament must have been. Since it was not stated otherwise, ''the long
keys" literally meant all the long keys, and "the short keys" meant all the short keys. Also, since it was not written
otherwise, all ''the notes of long keys'' must have been· tempered and all the notes of the short must
have been tempered alike. In any case, this is how Englishmen must have interpreted the above when they read it
in 1781. Therefore, the fifths FC, CG, GD, DA, AE, and EB were meant to be identical. If preserved ''all their
native perfection," then in fones's words, "the method oflowering those four fifths by a of a comma each ... to
keep the third be used on an the keys.
nA1rl',,,~tirH1 for
all the harmonies played on the long keys (white keys). The F, C, and G major triads would then the fewest
would be the most harmonious possible. If the
F were also a quarter
comma narrow, then the textbook standard Aaron meantone temperament would result, and indeed, the imperfections
would be thrown keys. However, the resulting wolves F-sharp
B-tlat, and BE-flat would have been intolerable on harpsichords during this period of history, and the statement that
"modulations into remote keys may have the best effect" then could not be true. Also, Jones wrote, '·It is a matter
of great consequence to musicians that keyed instruments . . . should have nothing offensive in any key." 5 Therefore,
this first interpretation could not be correct
A second· interpretation would be to retain the ratio 1.49535 fifths on the seven keys, and then let the short
keys share the remaining imperfections equally. In this case, the fifths BF-sharp, C-sharp, C-sharp G-sharp,
A-flat E-flat, E-flat B-flat, and B-flat F would each have a ratio 1.50127. The problem this is that not only would
there be harmonic waste butalsothe major thirds like F-sharp A-sharp would be 413.686 cents in size which is 27 .37257
cents wider than a just major third. This is much more than a comma too wide. The wolf fifth would be corrected,
but the major thirds BD-sharp, F-sharp A-sharp, and D-flat F would still have been considered intolerable wolf inter-
England, Therefore, this is another erroneous interpretation. These latter results are a modified meantone
temperament whereby there are nine good major thirds to the octave rather than meantone
on the
thata\lthe .l.ong ~eY§ .il:;l'1$tretah1th.e uUign1te in ''theii;.natiyeJJerfe~tion.'' Jn thiscase,}~t 9nlythe.fifths CG, GD,
DA,. and AE r~titin the,i(leaLratios l .495348:781, .and l<.:tth~ rerpa,ipj~g .·eight fifths share the remaining imperfections
equally.· Each remaining fifth vvould then have a ratio of 1.499788419 which is almost pure. This results in an excellent
well temperament; however, only the C major triad retains the ultimate in ''native perfection." This does not agree
with the spirit of William Jone~;~ description: These results are sin;ijll;lrt() whatJohanµ P}!ilipp I{irnberger ( 1721-1783)
and his followers were doing on the Continent at this time.· William Jones was well read. If he had meant this tempera-
ment, he would have mentioned; Kirnberger, but ifisteadhe wrote about VallottL
A fourth interpretation is based more on the reality of how intervals were tuned in the eighteenth century. Without
thetwentieth-century tuning techniques, there was no way to assure that one could actually temper a fifth exactly one-
fourth syntonic. comma narrow after one studied Robert Smith's book except on organs. Copying monochords was
inaccurate for harpsichords. Thus, instead of the theoretically correct textbook model of the Pietro Aaron meantone
temperament outlined in Section 12 of the present work, seventeenth-century tuners were tuning more like the tempera-
ment described in Sections 13-16. In 1707, tuners were tuning more like the temperament described in Sections 17-18,
and this would stm have been considered the ''native perfection'' in meantone temperament. The average amount that
major thirds were wider than just major thirds were then around 2. 8 cents each for mean to fie temperament. In 1731,
Peter Prelleur's well-tempered major third CE was 9 cents wide. Considering all the latter, we can acknowledge that
the "native perfection" was traditional and good but that it was not the ultimate perfection that was possible as in
the one major triad in the Kirnberger temperament. Instead, the "native perfection" was of average quality so that
the three major triads on G, C, and F could all be equally harmonious and also be of the best possible quality under
these limiting circumstances.
Referring back to the second interpretation, it is a simple matter to enlarge the long key fifths and also to narrow
the remaining fifths until they are as narrow as just intonation fifths. At this point, harmonic waste disappears, and
the major thirds BD-sharp, F~sharp A-sharp, and D-flat Fare no longer more than a syntonic comma wider than just
intonation major thirds. Thus, there are six pure fifths, and the long key fifths FC, CG, GD, DA, AE, and EB are
each one-sixth ditonic comma narrow. Without harmonic waste, this is the only case whereby all the major triads in
the long keys can have the greatest perfection possible (the "native perfection") and at the same time be tempered
alike. Considering that they were meant to be tempered alike, and considering that no harmonic waste was allowed,
this then was the Vallotti temperament. The six tempered fifths each had a ratio of 1.496616064, and the major thirds
GB, CE, and FA were each 5. 86628 cents wider than just intonation major thirds. This is very conservative compared
to the
From Figure 7 in Plate IV, between pages 304 and 305 of Jones's book, the VaHotti bearing plan can be determined.
It is outlined in modern fashion in the next section.
NOTES
l. William Jones, Physiological Disquisitions; or, Discourses on the Natural Philosophy of the Elements (London: J. Rivington
and G. Robinson, D. W. Keymer, Drµmmi.:md, and Watson, 1781).
3. Francesco Antonio Vallotti (1697-1780) was an Italian composer and music theorist. The temperament referred to is the basic
well temperament outlined first in sections. 20-22.
4. Giuseppe Tartini ( 1692-1770) was an Italian composer,. violinist, music acoustician, theorist, and teacher of prominent composers.
5. Jones, Physiological Disquisitions, 316.
49
THE AtJTHENTIC<W'.AY To TUNE THE
FRANCESCO ANTONIO VALWTTI WELL TEMPERAMENT IN 1781

"Give to the notes of the long keys, which are most used, all their native perfection; and . . . throw the imperfec-
tion upon the short ones, which are most remote from the diatonic scale; that the contrast of different modulations
into remote keys may have the best effect." 1
Tune Ctoany
arbitrarily chosen pitch.
Tuned Tuned
Tune before before Tune Tune
l
l
just
T ! T
~~___,_J J-f-~~~·f~I J j ===T--t-J_J~
I!
Flatten Sharpen
Ltt_f Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before Trial
before Trial
l !
l !
Sharpen
i
Sharpen
II
t
Sharpen
i
Flatten
'(uned . '(~~d
bt;rote . Trial before
l J l ~~ ...
lffl .··.·:.;++.·.
. ··~~ ······~ ii
·
. II*#.
l
Flatten
j i
Tune
Tune just
just
NOTE
1. Jones. Physiological Disquisitions, 325.
I .fan equal,.beating mtthgd is used to tune the :Valloflf;'all the· fifths in the bearing plan must beat afle!lst as. fast
. as 2 .2 beats per secondIn order to assure that all the natural diatonic triads will be in the most harmonious condition
possible<(the "native perfection''). At the same.time, all the fifths in the bearing plan must beat at least as slow as
2;2 beatspersecond•in·orderto assurethat there will be no harmonic waste. Thus, 2.2 beats per second for the beats
is most proper and authentic .
.· ~ stlldyoi th~ bearing plan and the required beats reveals. that the Vallotti temperament was identical to the tetnpera-
n1~nt analyzedprevioilsly in Sections 20-22. Tfie Va:llotfi:bearing plan in Sectfon 49 is one octave higherin pit~h than
the bearing plan in Sectio11...i2~ therc:)fore. th¢. required beating is twice as rapid. The secol}d measure ih the Vallotti
in Section 49 . is found as measure thitty-foiirin Section 22. The only remaining difference between the two bearing
plans is that in Section 49 the accidentals are.tuned by major thirds rather than fifths. This sel'ved to reduce the bearing
span by two notes. Thus, the Vallotti bearing plan in Section 49 is 17 notes wi.de. The minor differences between
the two beafiyg plans do not .warrant writing out the temperament again, so those tuners who lack the environmental
C()!!c!i£t;iq!ng n~cessaryf()!J!Y!l.J~ntic~ly {0,l!Qwing the insttl,J.€f~o.ns in Sectiol} 49 !),re advised to follow the instructions
in Sec~ion ·22. The instructions . in Section 22 ilfe betterbecause. the beatings of the thirds and sixths are slower and
easier to hear. Table 20..1 and Figure 20-1 are valid for Vallotti.
FRANCESCO .ANTONIO VALtOTTI~s TEMPERAMENT TUNED
ACCORDING TO LATE EIGHTEENTH..CENTURY THEORY
F or tuning the Vallotti temperament according to the theoretically correct ideal using six pure fifths, an entirely different
bearing plan is given in Section 52. This plan is incomparably more efficient than the original. The question then is why
did V allotti not use it. The answer lies in the period of history that VaUotti actually practiced his temperament. Vallotti
was born in 1697 and died in 1780, one year before William Jones published the description and bearing plan of the
temperament in English. Vallotti probably developed his temperament as early as the 1720s. At that time and also later,
there were ample statements by many theorists testifying thatditones or Pythagorean major thirds that were a complete
syntonic comma wide caused by four just intonation fifths minus two octaves were considered out of tune and therefore
unacceptable in music practice. 1 By using a bearing plan based on ancient traditions, Vallotti was assured that the diminished
sixth G-sharp E-flat would be a small amount narrow. This softened or destroyed the Pythagorean ditones. Vallotti must
have tempered like the system outlined in Section 22 of the present work. It is advisable that harpsichordists should con-
tinue to use this system of tuning. V allotti achieved great modulatory contrasts while at the same time his major thirds
D-flat F, G-flat B-flat, and BD-sharp were slightly smaller than Pythagorean. Thus, there were musical reasons why
the efficiency and ease of tuning directly the six pure fifths was not applied.
By the 1780s changes were taking place. In Jones's book we find that "keyed instruments" are "organs, harpsichords, and piano
fortes. " 2 The name 'piano forte' was becoming common. On harpsichords, Pythagorean thirds and sixths sound quite harsh
because of the rich harmonics in the tones of harpsichords. For the same reason, pure thirds and sixths sound excellent and
rich on harpsichords. Conversely, piano fortes had strong fundamentals along with weak upper harmonics; therefore,
Pythagorean ditones actually enhanced the tones of pianofortes. The Pythagorean intervals added needed coloring. Thus, the
Vallotti temperament tuned close to the theoretically correct manner using six fifths was beneficial for "'"'"~"v'
W erckn1eister' s beginning in 1681, is in the thirds are pre:ser:ttea

as being included among the musically acceptable intervals on keyboard instruments in England (except on fourteenth-
century organs). This was proper for the 1780s on pianofortes. Pythagorean thirds are found in Monsieur Boulliau's
fourteenth-century Pythagorean temperament outlined in Sections 7-10 of the present but this was meant
for lutes and viols, not harpsichords or organs during the seventeenth century.
Pythagorean intervals in their proper places also enhance the tone quality of modem pianos. Accm'<lm<g
an article in the Piano Technicians Journal, 3 the piano technician Stephen Fairchild recently revived the th~·nr.~t"'"
correct V allotti temperament for application on modern. pianos. He did this not for historical reasons but for musical
reasons and in particular for the easier control over the great inharmonicity content found in small modern pianos. The
smaller the piano, the greater the inharmonicity. Concerning the effects of Vallotti well temperament on pianos, Fairchild
wrote, "I have demonstrated altered equal tempering [well temperament] to many piano technicians. So far, most have
agreed that there was a great improvement in the overall sound of the small piano.'' Fairchild calculated his beat frequen-
cies from A=440 Hz rather than from Cat standard pitch; therefore, his figures show minor differences from the figures
given in Section 52 of the present work.
Concerning key-coloring, Fairchild wrote, "The keys of C, F, and G will be mellow. B-flat and D are mild. E-flat and A
are normal. A-flat and E are bright. And lastly, B, F-sharp, and C-sharp are brilliant." The latter agrees extremely well with
the basic philosophy of well temperament. More dearly, the more accidentals there are in the signature of a the
tPnm"'"'"m"'·nt for that should be altered. the keys of F and Geach have one accidental in their
In are "nri1d." E-flat
each have four
:in their
·'mins.·
',,,,'.·.·Ji:%(
'flnf
For the efficieil,~$i<!~~§~'~n~t.~·;pi
For testing and comparing the three most impo t ..
~~f'1;1
mall e .. eramen .
!'f we .
prona:ry ma.ior
thirds. GB, CE, and. FA, the lower F is necessary. The bearing span is thus fourteen notes in width.
'Jlie.~at. frequen<;ies were calculated for use with a C tuning fork at standard pitch, the C equivalent of A=440
Hz. If a fow~r pitch is ~~~t t~{tc~ th~ beai fr~quencies proportionately. For examples of beat frequencies, multiply
the given numbers by 60~ and'listfn to tb.em on tb~ m,etronome.
Tab~e 51~1: Tbeoretieally Corrett Well Temperament. TtiHed by Franefleo•Antohtb.VaJlotti's Rules.
1
Major Tfdtds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just

CE 392,18000 5.86628
•. SJ'S<<'• . . . ;\ . 5.~§~2~.
JJF'.:~qatp . 3. • . .9.11618
AC4lhlltjY 400:00000 lJ:68629
'E.Q~~h 403'1~91000 17.S9629
. f~~;~~~~:t
D•flat fl ·•
.~~~::=
401r.8~0001
;t;:i:
21'.50629
A~flat ~ 40:\91000 l'h59629
E~flati G · 4~1~ 13.68629
B~nat D 39().09,0()9. 9.1762S
F,A ~92:1~()00 . 5.86628
C::E 392,18000 './/•\,;
S.86628
Compar~ tllis table with Table~ '.Z~~t, .24~ f. 26~1 ., 39- f. 4a.;:t, and 46-1.
T.·.11.·is table i~ arranged in a somewfuit· ~iteftlJr' 'ftjffit'1 ~f l'~:rSP.·. e.ctive in Fi.·gure
,','" ' ·-,/". ,,,·'. ' ''"'•' y,_ •• ' ',.,,:.;. '""'
51~ 1.
· The largest; thirds

···~
enharmonicalfy equivalent
Pythagorean thirds
the same. size _ _ __,..

4 flats and 4 sharps
e1re . ~-,..._..-
i equat temperament thirds
. the same size -._ ____..,.
3 ffafS and 3 sharps
the same size
~
FA CE GB
~
'me smallesi.ttirrds
· M1.Uft;i;;1;::~;r~m:~;1~w;n;7f;b1fi~;i1fu;;a·t.~·r~e5eo A'.nto.iio v~1oiil~&1u1eS···
·· · ·· tJsing di& Th~oreticalij Con~d Metltod.
1. A~:aii1~ fe ~tei·m~
P:ai<tta ·. .it.,.••.:~ • ·"" ..•..... ii, J•~..
2. Jones, "'hys jfJJfs(Jtifsltfon$, 3t'ij~ •
3. Stephen Fairchild, ••Altered Equal Temperament For Small Pianos,'' Piano Teclmicians Journal 25, no. 10 (October 1982): 20:-21.
UH
Tune· the following quartet notes in the order written.
Test interval
(Figures denote
beats per second)
TuneCto
standard pitch.
l Tuned
before
l 2.4 ! 1.2
![:9cf 1f II E r 1F 11
i
Sharptjn
i
Tune i
just Beating exactly twice as fast as the
same·intervalin equal temperament.
Tuned
before
l
r
Tune in just intonation.
Just intervals (zero beats)

12.9 17.3
10.6 15.3
!l~:i','''
,I tl.5
t
12.9
~
~ I~ ~~~ ! II
Tuned
before
1 8.3 9.9
r
6.6 10.6 4.9 8.3
112=~~ f !~ *~ ~
Pf 1i @
l Crescendos denote increasing beat speeds.
Temper D from both B~. and Ftt so that the major third D F tt
~af& <ltie and. one-fouMfftiies·as fasra:s·ttte'mltJ(fftfllrd BfJ D.
B!Yth mwrvals mustbeequallywide.
Tuned
before
1 1.3 1.8 1.2 1.3 1.8

2.4
112:1 r 1f f 1i f f ~
i
TempetG from both C llnd D so that the fourth G C is wide and
beats one and one-third times as fast as the narrow fifth G D.
183
j
Flatten
twice as. fast as in

.equal. temperament .
,r
2.4 8.3
1.8 2.0 8.7 10.6
3.3
[
3.0
!l~f [ ~ ~ fr !M
Tuned
before
4.9
8.7 ll.5
7.4 8.3
l
j
9.2
f
8.7
112= F 1! ~ I~ ~r II~ f
t
Temper E from both
A and B so that the fourth B E is wide and beats one and
one-half times as fast as the narrow fifth A E.
1.5 2.2 1.5 2.2 2.4

1.3 1.8 2.0
112= f f If f f f f f
4.4 6.6 4.9
,._,. ,
__
5.5
e , 8.7
II
Narrow fifths and wide fourths
t.5 2.2 2.4

l.3 2.Q
r
l.8
E E f. f ~ ...
Wide major thirds
3.3 8.7 10.6 11.5

3.0
~f ~, ~?r
Wide major si~ths
5.5 8.7 11.5 12.9

4.9
f f '
Narrowmmor thirds
9.9 23.0
~.17.3. ~i.
7.4 8.3
f ti 1 tt? Pf .
15.9. 16..8 .· .
II
Table 52-1: The Differences in CentS Between the Notes of the Theoretically Correct
Vallotti Well Temperament and Equal Temperament. .
Equal Temperament Theoretical Vallottl Rounded Figures
G-sharp plus 1. 955 +2
G plus 3.910 +4
F-sharp minus l.955 -2
F plus 7.820 +8
It minus 1.955 -2
E-tlat plus 3.910 +4
. I). plug;..; .. . J ..955 +2
continued
185
'" ,,v,,' <,,,''''
Corµpare this table w'ith Tabtes,~2-1, ~S~l. 27-1. 40:.11 4f·1. and 47-L
WILLIAM JONES'S 'PROPQSAt' TltAT MUSICIANS
OUGHT TO TRY EQUAL TEMPERAMENT IN 1781
W illiam Jones proposed that musidan.s should cons.id.er trying. equaltemperament, at least experimentally. On
page 322 of Physiological Disquisitions he wrote, ''I present this scale [equal temperament] such as I find
it, and think it may deserve the acceptance of practical musicians, without censuring such theorists as can please them-
selves better on other principles [various well temperaments}." He further wrote, "A musical reader may, however,
be curious to try the effect of this equality [equal temperament}, and to compare it with the common methods [well
temperaments]. And for thorough-bass in a concert, a harpsichord might answer better when tuned by this rule than
by any other.'' For musicians to try equal temperament, it was necessary for them to construct a monochord in equal
temperament. In the section titled ''Of the Mono chord,'' Jones furnished the background, theory, and instructions on
how to construct a Monochord in equal temperament. 1 The musician could then imitate the tones of the monochord
while tuning the harpsichord or pianoforte though the results must have been crude.
On the history of equal temperament learned from his accomplished friend, the Reverend Mr. Twining, Jones wrote
that equal temperament occurred "first in Mersemms" and second in
Rameau's writings, who gives the 11 mean proportionals, as D' Alembert has also done (in Algebraic notation) in his
Elemens de Musique Theorique & Pratique, p. 52. 2 That Couperin, a famous French organist, had proposed this method
of tuning before Rameau, but afterwards rejected it. Rameau, after having strongly recommended the old method in
his earlier writings, fell into this afterwards, and recommended it as the most harmonious in his last works, and has
directions how to tune in this way by the ear. 3
Jean-Le Rond D' Alembert {1717..,-1783) music, and writer of

many the from upper
chart on page 38 of "Liure Premier des Instrumens" from Marin Mersenne's Harmonie Universelle, into the most
simple figures in the left column of Table 6"6 of the present work. Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert in 1752 did this also
in slightly diffetent as follows:
ut re re# mi fa# sol sol# la ut
1vv lVfJ !Vi.4 IVJ) llfi7 l'Vf.8 llfi9 1V21z
After this was done in 1752, the calculation of equal temperament monochord lengths became easier and more accurate.
A further development was accomplished by Mr. Davis who, according to William Jones, was'' An ingenious gentle-
man, well skilled in the philosophy of music. " 4 Also according to Jones, Davis was not aware of any previous
on equal temperament, and Mr. Davis thought he invented it. The fact that aknowledgeable person in the 1770s or
early 1780s could have believed that he invented equal temperament is evidence that equal temperament was not prac-
ticed at an during those years. Mr. Davis's great contribution to the development of equal temperament was his calcu-
lation of the equal-tempered semitone at a decimal ratio of 1.059463094366. The Texas Instruments TI-60 calculator
produces 1.059463094 .. William Jones showed that Mr. Davis calculated monochord string lengths with more accuracy
than anyone previously had, Mersenne. 5
of the of as known by the English at this time included
Monsieur Marin rv1f''"'"''1:"'"'
On page. 322. of book,. Willi.am Jones described ~is, .~~perience. of tuning a, harpsichord·. in equal temperament.
He wrote: "WhePr\Ye tunedJ1 ~a:rpsichord by thfan1l~, w~ thougl1t the notes were better than we.had heard, and it
was remarked th~ttb.e chords yvere sensibly louder. Yet, after. aH, a learne<f ear will want satisfaction in some places,
and perhaps be obliged to retouch them a Htde nearer to the old. proportions. The fifths in general are very near perfec-
tion, even in the ext:remekeys,'' Jones.thencomplained~hatthethirds.<;E.andG~.were ''ve;rysharp'' and that they
should be reduced to ratios 1000:796 and 6674:5310, respectively. This results in CE being 394.9915969 cents in
size and GB being 395.80779()6 cents in size. This agrees exactly (when rounded figures are used) with how Peter
Prelleur tempered in 1731 {see Table 24-l of the present work). Thus, Jones agreed that one must well-temper at least
as well as Peter Prelleur in order to satisfy "a learned ear." He also wrote on page 322, "For my own part, I am
rather persuaded that a variety in the tones and semitones is not only necessary to satisfy the proportions of the scale;
but that even the extreme and less tuneable keys have their beauties, and assist the effect of the more perfect ones."
Thus, William Jones personally preferred well temperament over equal temperament even though he suggested that
other musicians should try equal temperament, at least as an experiment.
On page 324 of his book, Jones wrote, "When I shewed this scheme [equal temperament} of Mr. Davis to a learned
and accomplished friend [the Rev. Mr. Twining], who, while he is among the first performers of this musical age,
understands the science of music deeply as a scholar, he favoured me with the following judicious remarks upon it''
Reverend Twining then explained basic acoustics followed by the history of equaltemperament. Next, Twining. con-
tinued, "But it is an insuperable objection to this method [equal temperament], that the major thirds are intolerable
[at least in the natural diatonic keys]: for the fact is, that the fifth will bear a temperament better than the major third.
The ear is more hurt by any temperament of the major third, than by the same temperament of the fifth.'' These last
two sentences are a dear explanation of baroque temperament philosophy as practiced by Robert Smith in 1749. This
philosophy was completely opposed to the new philosophy of temperament by Handel in 1780 (see page 160 of the
present work). Reverend Twining continued, "Dr. Smith proves that the simpler consonances will generally bear greater
temperaments than the less simple. His (Robert Smith's} objection to all equal temperaments seems solid; that equal
temperaments do not make all concords equally disagreeable [and also equally agreeable} to the ear." Also, no equal
temperament can temper ''all concords, at a medium of one with another ... equally and most harmonious.'' In other
words, in equal temperament the thirds and sixths are not as harmonious as the fourths and fifths.
William Jones must have been convinced by Reverend Twining's remarks against equal temperament. Later, Jones
admitted that Francesco Antonio Vallotti's weUtemperament was "perhaps the best of all. " 6 Thus, equal temperament
was still a failure in 17 81.
Concerning the varieties found in well .temperament, William Jones wrote,
The ear may find satisfaction from the different complexion of different keys, as the eye is pleased with the variety
of light and shade, which they call the chiaro'scuro in painting. The imperfect keys may set off the more perfect, as
concords are improved by the dissonances preceding. If imperfection is natural to the scale, and it may
be wiser to moderate than to attempt to it. Some great masters have certainly thought that the more 1 m•,0r1r"'"t
parts of the scale they would not for
1u'e neeemrarHy very excellent compositions; and may mention
the celebrated Stabat Mater1 of Pergolesi . . . the imperfection in keyed instruments is in a great measure the conse-
quence of art. &
NOTES
1. Jones, Physiological 312-27.
2. Jean-Le Rond D' Alembert, Elemens De Musique, 'Theorique Et Suivant Les Principes De M. Rameau (Paris: Chez
David l 'al:t1e, Le Breton, and Durand, 1752). In this original edition, the algebraic notation is on page 45 and not 52.
4. Ibid., 319.
5. Ibid., 321-23.
6. 325.
7. This was written in four flats by Italian composer Giovanni BattistaPergolesi (1710-1736). There was extensive use of the
fifth A-flat E~flat in this
54
JEAN-PHILIPPE RAMEAU'S
EQUAL TEMPERAMENT PROPOSAL OF 1737
REINTRODUCED IN 1781
J ean-Le Rond D' Alembert (1717-1783) was a French mathematician, philosopher, writer on music, and writer of
many articles for the Encyclopedie in France. In music, he is famous for his book Elemens De Musique,
Theorique Et Pratique, Suivant Les Principes De M. Rameau of 1752. This complete book was translated and inserted
between pages 18 and 60 of the article ''Music'' in volume 7 of the second edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. 1
This volume was published in 1781, twenty-nine years after the original publication of Elemens in France. On pages
11 to 18 is a "Preliminary Discourse" written by D'Alembert as an introduction to the Elemens De Musique. This
was written sometime after 1754 for new editions of Elemens.
Baroque temperament philosophy states that major thirds should not be tempered or altered as much as fifths, even
though the octave, which is also of simple ratio, should never be altered at all. In his writings in 1726 and before,
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764), a great Baroque composer, abided by these principles. He believed "that the altera-
tion of the fifths is much more supportable than that of the thirds major; and that this last interval can hardly suffer
a greater alteration than the octave, which, as we know, cannot suffer the slightest alteration.' ' 2 Concerning these prin-
ciples, D'Alembert wrote,
We may conceive without difficulty how the eye judges of relations; but how does the ear form similar judgments?
Besides, why should certain chords which are extremely pleasing in themselves, such as the fifth. lose almost nothing
of the pleasure which they give us, when they are altered, and of consequence when the simplicity of their relations
are destroyed; whilst other chords, which are likewise extremely agreeable, such as the third, become harsh almost
by the smallest alteration; nay, whilst the most perfect and the most agreeable of all chords, I mean the octave, cannot
suffer the most inconsiderable change? Let us in sincerity confess our ignorance concerning the genuine causes of these
In other words, D' Alembert, through the experience of listening to harpsichords and organs tuned in the meantone
his the Baroque philosophy, but his reasoning could not explain why, if the fifth
can altered by as much as a quarter of a comma, the octave can not be altered at all. Other than the question concem-
the octave, Robert Smith in 1749 proved the truth of the Baroque philosophy (see 93-94 of the work).
On page 505 of volume 7 of the third edition of the sixteen years later in
a new footnote a half-page long was added. This was a lengthy explanation showing that the Baroque philosophy was
not true in 1797 and that the fifth cannot tolerate as much tempering as the third. This is a documentation on
how aesthetic tastes changed between 1754 and 1797.
By 1737, in Generation Harmonique, eleven years after Nouveau Systeme De Musique Theorique, Jean-Philippe
Rameau had denied the truth of Baroque philosophy. The new philosophy was based on the natural order
of the intervals in the harmonic series, but Rameau reversed the reasoning of Robert Rameau believed that
the octave could not tolerate any altering (Smith agreed with this), but the second interval in the series
and also containing the second to the simplest ratio, could tolerate only an extreme minimum amount of alteration
or tempering; the fourth could not tolerate any greater amount because the octaves must be perfect; the major
being the fourth interval in the series and also containing a much less simple ratio, could much alteration
or tempering; and finally, the minor third is fifth in the series, so the minor and its the
could tolerate the amounts of alterations or The about 1780 also
conform to this. wrote:
The Petfecti<Jn Of Eighteemlt-Century Temperament
l:lut •.~~· tile i1lterva1;. ofs~~ndswhich constitute~ tile thir9, .~r~115e,s. aJess perfect. coalescence than. that ofthe fifth,. it
is 1lece~saey, sa)'!l:rvl;· ~ameau, to.sacrifice ttiejustice ()fth~t~hord to the perfection of the fifth; for the more Pt:rfect
achor<l is in)ts ()Wl) Q<tture, the giQre disple,asii;ig to the ear i& any alteration w.llic~ can be made in it. In the o.ctave
the least alte,ration is insllPPOrtal?le .4
D 'Alembert wrote the latter as. a report ()f R.ameau ~s new philosophy. This. was contrary· to D'Alembert• s own opinion. 5
D' Aiembert'.s opinion was based .on considewticms of th0 ear and centuries-old tradition. whereas .Ram~u· s new philosophy
was based on mathematical reasoning dictating that fifths must be as perfect as possible. If Ram~u·s philosophy were
true,. why isn't the medieval Pythagorean intonation used today on keyboard instruments? Nevertheless, this new philosophy
was one basis on which Rameau based his proposal that musicians should adopt equal temperament on keyboard instruments.
What temperamentbetter satisfies the qualification for the least amounts of tempering on all fifths than equal temperament?
The second basis for Rame,au's proposal w.as his new belief that variety in music and modulations does not come
from the physical differences of effects in the various keys of instruments tuned in well temperament. Instead, variety
comes from the skills of composers having the capable imagination for such varieties; therefore, µµequal temperament
in any form was no longer needed. Rameau no longer relied on unequal temperament for expressive effects. According
to D' Alembert, Rameau now believed in 1737 that
The character of an air arises chiefly from the intetmixture of the modes; from the greater or lesser degrees of vivacity
in the movement; from the tones, more or less grave, or more or less acute, which are assigned to the generator of
the mode; and from thechords more or less beautiful, as they are more or. less deep, more or less flat, more or less
sharp, which are found in it. 6
This certainly applies to all composers today working in equaltemperament, and the "character of an air" can no
longer be assisted by the characters of the keys' which are non-existent in equal temperament.
Backin 1726 when Rameau did depend on unequal temperament for expressive effects, he wrote
we receive different impressions from the intervals in proportion to their different alterations:· for instance, the third
major,. which. naturally elevates us to joy, in proportion as we feel it, heightens. our feelings even to a kind of fury,
when it is tuned too sharp; and the third minor, which naturally inspires us with tenderness and serenity, depresses
us to melancholy when it is too flat. 7
Composers were aware of the locations of these variously tempered intervals, and they "choose" them "on purpose
to render the expression st!'onger. " 8 .
In conclusion, Rameau's equal temperament proposal was based on the new philosophy that the 'characters of the
keys' were unnecessary for in expression and also that "the more perfect a chord is in its own nature, the
more displeasing to the ear is any alteration which can be made in it.' ' 9 . The old philosophy required excellent thirds
and sixths; the new philosophy requirt<s ¥Jl:ce1l(;:nt fifths ~n9 .fourths. history ,constant war
and sixths side fifths fourths years 1780 and 1781 seem
to be the turning point when fifths and fourths began to win over thirds and sixths for the second time in England.
Before the fifteenth century, pure fifths and fourths had reigned supreme.
In 1781, foundational tools for equal. temperament existed: the ratios of all the intervals of
equal temperament by Jean-Le Rond D' Alembert, 10 calculations by Mr. Davis and the instructions for building
in equal William the of the acoustics of the harmonic series published
by Jones and many others, the capabilities for calculating the beat frequencies of equal-tempered intervals
by means of Robert Smith's formulas as long as one used the syntonic comma and not the ditonic comma (e.g., an
equal tempered is orie""eleventh syntonic comma narrow, approximately, etc. ), 12 and finally the very crude and
primitive instructions for tuning equal temperament by ear published by Jean-Philippe Rameau in 1737 as follows:
Take any key of the harpsichord which you please, but it be towards the middle of the instrnment; for instance,
Ut: then tune the note Sol a fifth. above it, at first with as much accuracy as possible; this you may imperceptibly dimin-
ish: tune afterwards the fifth to this with equal accuracy, and diminish it in. the same manner; and thus proceed from
one fifth to another in ascent: and as the ear does not appretiate (appretie in French] so exactly sounds that are extreme-
ly sharp, it is necessary, when by fifths you have risen to notes extremely high, that you should tune in the most perfect
the o~tave below the last fifth. which you had immediately formed; then you may continue always in the same
manner; till in this arrive at the last fifth from mi-sharp to si-sharp, which should of themselves be
tune; that is to to he in such a state, that the highest note of the two which the
00 identical of §0llfld nM'f#;>kh•
fifth with the last sound im'"-~"'"""
54. ·Ramifau 's '.EquafiTerhf1etament Pfopd'sal
has be(:n already tuned. If this be the case, we may be certain that the harpsichord is properly tuned. But if this last
fifth be. not true, .in this case it will be too sharp, 13 an4 ·it is; an indication. that the other fifths have been too much
diminished, or at least some of them; or it will be too flat, 14 and conseqllently discover that th.ey have not been suffi-
ciently diminished. We must then begin and proceed as formerly, till we find the last fifth in tune of itself, and without
our immediate interposition. 15
By the above instructions, one could arrive at a very rough imitation of equal temperament. One was expected to
tune through the process one or more times until the last fifth resulted in being decent. If it was rough but tolerable
without too many beats, tuners of the past stopped at this point and considered themselves lucky regardless of whether
the last fifth was narrow or wide. Except by very rare accident, none of the eighteenth-century type of intended equal
temperament would pass for the excellent equal temperament generally tuned throughout the English speaking world
since 1917.
The following elements for tuning equal temperament by ear were lacking during the eighteenth and most of the
nineteenth century: First was the knowledge of an the test intervals and their beat frequencies. Second was the training
for listening to all beatings at the locations of the nearly coinciding harmonics. Third was the ability or training for
being able to temper fourths directly so that the bearing span could be reduced to an octave in size. By reducing the
bearing span, note duplications would no longer..impede the continual process of making corrections. These abilities
and conditions were not developed for more than a century after 1781 mainly because musicians were not anxious
to adopt equal temperament. Extensive demand for equal temperament did not exist until composers wrote atonal or
abstract music towards the end of the nineteenth century. Equal temperament is a true atonal temperament containing
no key center or key-coloring.
The reluctance of musicians to adopt equal temperament was verified by D' Alembert when he wrote, "All that re-
mains, is to acknowledge, with M. Rameau, that this temperament [equal temperament} is far remote from that which
is now in practice. " 16 Concerning the objections to equal temperament, he wrote,
It is true, that the thirds will be a little harsh .... It would be difficult in practice to tune .... It is true, that this
uniformity of modulation {modulation in equal temperament] will to the greatest number of musicians appear a defect:
for they imagine, that, by tuning the semitones of the scale unequal, they give each of the modes a peculiar character;
so that, according to them, the scale of ut,
ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si, Ut,
is not perfectly similar to the gammut or diatonic scale of the mode of mi,
mi, fa-sharp, sol-sharp, la-sharp, si, ut-sharp, re-sharp, mi,
which, in their judgment, renders the modes of ut and mi proper for different manners of expression. " 17
At the end of chapter 7, "Of Temperament," the editors of the 1781 Encyclopaedia added in a footnote:
We do not pretend to give any decision for either the one or the other of lhese methods of temperament, common
established temperament and equal temperament] each of which appears to us to have its particular advantages. We
shall only remark, that the choice of the one or the other must be left absolutely to the taste and inclination of the
reader; without, however, admitting this choice to have any influence upon the principles of the system of music, which
we have followed even till this period, and which must always subsist, whatever temperament we adopt. 18
Of course, the principles of music would not be altered, but the styles of composition would be greatly affected. It
is interesting that William Jones's term 'equal temperament' is nowhere to be found in the Encyclopaedia Britannica.
All of the above, along with William Jones's monochord instructions constitute the first serious attempt at introduc-
ing equal temperament into the English speaking countries. Chapter 7, ''Of Temperament,'' stayed intact through many
future editions of the Encyclopaedia, including the American editions through at least the year 1823. Other encyclopae-
dias copied this material word for word; for example, The New Royal Encyclopaedia; or, Complete Modern Universal
Dictionary of Arts and Sciences (London: William Henry Hall, 1791), and the second edition in 1797. Thus, the infor-
mation was widespread.
The year 1781 was a year of extremes. William Jones and the Encyclopaedia Britannica both proposed equal tem-
perament. At the same time, a Scottish writer on music, John Maxwell (1762-1806) published a 290-page book19 proposing
that organs should be tuned in complete just intonation. Maxwell proposed that there should be forty-four u"'''4"'"u
tones octave so that each of the twenty-four major and minor tonalities could be performed in just intonation. He
not suggest that or extra should added to he that the extra
organ should be organ Each ......- ...J
NOTES
l. Eitc:)'t~()Jr(led,i~ JJ~i,~~~nltiH or1 a Di~tionaryofArts, Sciences; .~t. Ori a ~yin entir~ly New: . . .
The Second Edition; greatly
lmpro.vedand Ent,a,rn~ti,·vol. 7 (~cii~burgh:). Balfour and Co., W. Gordon, J. Bell, J. Dickson, C. Elliot, W. Creech, J.
McCliesh, A. Bell, J: Hutton, and C. Macfarquhar, 1781).
2. Ibid.' 30.
3. Ibid.' 16.
4. Ibid.; 28~
5. Ibid., 16.
6. Ibid., 30.
7.1bid.
8. Ibid.
9. Ibid., 28.
10. Ibid., 29. Also see 1~7 of the present work.
11. Jones,fhysiological Disquisitions, 312-27.
12. Smith, Harmonics~ 113, 210. See also Section 31 of the present work.
13. By this is meant die original note C tuned in the beginning being too sharp compared to the note F.
14. By this is meant the original note C tuned in the beginning being too flat compared to the note F.
15. EncyclopaediaBtitannica, 2d ed., 7:29.
16. Ibid.
17. Ibid., 28, 29.
18. Ibid., 30.
19. John Maxwell, An Essay Upon Tune Being An Attempt To free the Scale of Music, and the Tune of Instruments, from Imperfec-
tion (Edinburgh: C. Elliot; London: T. Cadell, 1781).
'e'* ~ · ; '1t ~,,~ ,s ..\:; ,
·1a~r~).~~~···i~~4rt~;J\~.·1~;~eliond . ri~Aieuibert t~ be.Jl$ f9ll9w~:

:r~~y.~ · ;. )Yith lJti,n~e,rpjgdJe,~fUt~.•~Y!li>.~d . tllYY(l.~~eJ1\ll~Je>ur .(i,r~tfi~s sol, re, la, rpj. till they fonn. a true
third frotn l)li~()~\tt;; ~~~)."!W«~ 'ng .,. 9!~~.rW• 9;teY1 ~Ile ~e fifth& l!it.. fa-~hSW>: ~t~shli?~ ~ol·sJtaw,
bµt tlattemqg m.e~ l!tillJe,s,s th~n tll~ .·. . e).', , ..·. . . . ~ol~l!haij> way Mmqst fonn .a tnie third maJor with mi. When
tile,~ iuiye air{vid 5\t ~()~.::Stii!m~ ~~~ ~ \J!~~,;t~S~f!Ie m,~ fir~~ .t!t. a~d tµ!J" to !t Ute. tift4Ja in descendi9g, the~ !he
fiftft si-flat, &;c; and tliey tetfif . ~!llltfte fiftl:l~tilhliey have arri.ved at 1a-tfat, which ought to be the same
With tlle sql-shalJ>' i'lre,aqy' ..... "'' ' " ·· ·· " ' · · · · ·
«;,_>;
This wa~·drigmallypublished by D'Alemberlon page 48 of Elemens De Musique in 1752. The re-flat near the end
was &¢en to be an unnecessary ex.tr~ step b}''the Encyclopaedia editors. who changed it to la'-flat. This was a logical
f:drtectlt)h taniake i ; • l'7i n •' ,. '. i . . .. . . .· .···... .• • ·.• . .•. . ·. .
·•· At fitst glartt-;e, the ab(,1Xe)tUrti. '. i'I}stfi:t~tio~~ a tq b~ the same as those publish'M by· Jean"Jacques Rousseau
in'f7~~;sixleen:yejf$'1alli ~~1:JtMtt.s. · J:f4 of.the ~~ent work~) However, the Rousseau
t~mp~rament;wasifarre.. ···.····. . J)tAlembeh .· .· . · •. for thre~ ~asons. Fi '.~u tempered by using
sb sizes• of .tiftll~· In of . to:c9ilttofllle of)lt~se fifth.s, tbe!r &~es Ile . ·. 1J~tceptibly'. Second,
Re> · . . ~ttefiit~ tll~ \Vor~ 'just' with~w ' TIµrd, ~e a~oustical results of .. . varfing fifths combined
. ..Rous~ea~·s wfi~~~ ~tt,~lit~i>ns~ett . . .· • .... ··'t ~ous$eaU:'s·tefijperamenrwas well ~mperamertt. Also, Rousseau's
free usage of the wotd 'just' ~llowed this~ and h~ lived duifng a period when harmonfc waste was M longer approved.
!th~·D'Alembert;desGnpti<:ln coul~not.h~vc.b~~.~.well. n~ jn•.th~U!lilll\Ui!.
· .·.,1.··.·&1 . .'.·.··~.:m.·.·~. . i.'Ofalam.·.·.··".·:'~":;;
. ''..fA ...
.•
.... · ;•\}'·"·"""'~ ....
c.anno.t endllre, an.d·. . in.; wh·i·c·hJt .i.simpd.ssible
t~~."''
'~"'"'llltm.·:··. ·1.'.·m;.·.·1°~.··.·ti.mml.···
r . . . .
.,
.••. ni.·:·.wm.··.~.·
•··.··· .. ·.·~····•·('· "........
'to exe.
.
''.if'.·D
cute.·.·
:·..
anyth.
.
ing.
. •· .· . . ... . . ..".
wrote:··.·.
2. T
.. h
. us, th..
there
e.
...... D'
·
ate
• ............................·e
Al.em.bert
..
or.·
·
sue m es
. . . . .,
descriptio.n w..
w
as
en: Hanl,tel.
ich the ear
a. mean.tone
teJJ1~erament. Like !b~term. t~qual t ;' tlte.tetm~m!ant~ne tewpei:~enti.i~ now~~r~.to.,b~ fol)nd in the
'BtttrfliJptt'el!,f»'JJff~ilfOJtell·'dUri;f•l'J~ . .·. . . . . ... , ~ ~ist.l~~'·tlt~foN~ l'>n3, desc~iptivC< phrases were used.
in
'fhe English had adopted well temperament the 1120s, so elifier ilie Prench were far behind the English in tempera-
nient dev~fojJnteflt in t1'52 or DtAl~rn~ett was tept:Jrdng t:ondition~ftom .an·.ea:tlter peri~ of h~s.tory, wo~t likellf from
11~6 or before. The.F~ench c;atlghtup t~ t1te. ~rids~ b~: •. The Jtouss~~ut~mpei'amertt· waiffranstateCI into English
inJ?71 ~~WiJliariJ;1 )yatip ~~~~9u~~e~\l:teni~~!aril;e .. . . as a contllionty practiced temperament of the times .
e
..· . . . . ttte ~i,,piJ!i'.~~P"'~~~tf~e, . · · . . »~~lefti~ei'f ~ri~RotJsse~tri~strrrctfons must have deceived the Encyclopaedia Britan-
nica edifor'flitfof>elievirig that the tempemnefit~ w~te sfmUa?: ft ls appilfent thafihe D'Alembett description according
tu the prindples ofRameau1 e•SuivantUs Principes De M. Rameau") belonged to the year 1726. In this case, the
editors ofthe· EncyclofhteUia ma~ean. (lrt°'rbyqmitting to ~dda f~otnote near the end ofpage 30 explaining that in
tb~ . JJptjsh ~f9i~~ t~~le~~en~~~~oi,i!~j'JrircticM:.tlt!tr ~~re.~o •m()(}es w?ich ·the ear could ~ot endure (except
on: o~gaJis} ®¢~at Q!te c;g~I~ e~~c~~e ari~tJIDg ~~Y..~n ~~'l)S~~h?tds and pianofortes. N~t havmg d?ne the l~tter,
l):~leJl}f)ert;swords'Y~re nearlya~entqry ou~-o -.. a eby the sixth ed1t1on of the Encyclopaedia 1Jrltanmca, pubhshed
in 182~. The eait~r~ ditl aCfd tltf J1a~e 301 "ifiat M. Rame~u, iti his New System of Music, printed in 1726, had adopted
· · · · · Qt!~Wfittn11ry~iemp'enmrent:~•: .••• •····•· ~.... ·
Qn~way of iµterpretingl)' Alemberfs rules would be to use the word 'just' freely in the manner of Rousseau. However,
· · · · ···mt~·rtt~ is. negated by· D'A:mmbert's writing: on page•lS·n~·the end. Here,..t;).'Alembert very closely described the
'fhe l'~ifection Oj:E:tghtee'nth-Cenrury ·Teriipera'meilt
excellent one-f()\l,rtl'l syn tonk con;unaw:eH . te1l1peramen~~sed ft.g,eneration later 1'Y. tbeJ3erma11 theQristJohann Philipp
Kirn~erger ~nd hi~ fo!l(!~~rs.,Jil thii;..~ P '~lembett des<;Il~ed the; PytllagoreaP; Il1aJor third.s as being . ' 'extremely false,
and greatly altered;/.' 3 Jn•[)'AleJ11~rrt's wor~s, a.11''extreJ11~~y false'' m~jor.third EG,-shaw.could ?ever .have passed
for the third BG-sharp in the ordinary temperaJl1ent descril)ed by D' Alembert as being ''almost . ·.. . a true third major.''
Therefore; the maj()r thirdE9~sham was much .small.erthl;ln_ ~ fYthag()reap. th.iFd. WeimQst {(ondude thatthe D' Alembert
instructions· were meant to be followed literl'llly; that is, just Guste} intervals contained no beatings. The major third
CE was jUst, and the major third EG.'.shaw was <:tlniostjust.
The difficulty of intewretation is in the instructi()n that A-flat"ought to be the same with the sol-shaw already
a
tuned.'' 4 The original French ''ou tres-peu pres, aveck sol# deja accorde'' 5 is translated better as "or very roughly,
with theG-sharp already tuned.'' In either case, this instruction contradicts the usual acoustics of meantone tempera-
mentwhereby A-flatwas not the same tone as G-shaw and the diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat was a wolf fifth. This
means that D'Alembert's instructions were meant for a modified meantone temperament. Modified meantone tempera-
ment was a restrictive.irregular circulatingtemperament. It was circulating because A-flat and G-sharp were the same
tone, and there was no wolf fifth. Being circulating and restrictive at the same time is a musical contradiction, but
this evidently existed in France.
In the regular meantone temperaments, the diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat was always an extremely wide wolf fifth.
This caused· harmonic waste, but this was ~nimportant during the early Baroque period because the A-flat triad~ were
rarely played. In any modified meantone temperament, the diminished fourth G-sharp C was a false third because G~
sharp C was larger than a Pythagorean third or ditone. Also, in all modified meantone temperaments the harmonic
waste that was natural fo~ the wolf in the regular nieant(}ne temperaments had to ~e shared by two or more fifths within
the group C-shaw G-sharp; A-flat E-flat, E-flat B-flat, B-flat F, and FC. The purpose of modified meantone tempera-
ment was mainly to increasethe number of good majorthirds per octave from eight to nine or more while at the same
time remining the general harmoniousness of many of the major thirds from regular meantone temperament. The num-
ber of good major and minor triads per octave was increased· from sixteen to at least eighteen. The second puwose
was to create key-coloring to support the 'characters of the keys.' The price paid for these benefits was harmonic waste
in one or more.of the major triads on C-sharp, E-flat, B-flat, or F which previously in the regular meantone tempera-
ments never had harmonic waste.
'Le temperament ordinaire' can be interpreted literally and theoretically as follows: ln order to "form a true third
major from mi tout," the fifths CG, GD, DA, and AE must have a ratio of 1.495348781. Narrowing the fifths EB,
BF-sharp, . . ·. . the . so that . form a true third
major with mi" allows freer intefPretation. An excellent example for. the latter would be to use the fifth
developed by Gottfried Keller in aroundJ 700. This .had a ratio of approximately l.495953506. Distributing the re-
maining difference equally among the fifths A~flat E,flat, E-flat B-flat, B-flat F, and FC creates a ratio of 1.503633162
for each of the latter fifths. This conforms to the qualification that "they heighten a little (on renforce un peu) all the
fifths they have arrived at "They are indeed only a "little," that is, 4.188166 cents each which
any of of h~~e '
wP:~k"'nP'eant narrow. . . four must wider
were close to just intonation. Unfortunately, this creates
intewretation, other acoustical alternative.
~~~ ~~~~~~
and sixths involving flats are wolf intervals. Nevertheless, there
no extreme dissonant we.re used for color-
istic effects that were not necessarily meant to be beautiful; otherwise, there would have been no puwose in eliminating
the wolf fifth. A study of Jean~Philippe Rameau 's harpsichord pieces verifies the latter principles. The music published
in or .is heavily loaded with sharps. A few pieces D B-flats, but the major third B-fiat
Dis tolerable the abovetemperamenL There are a rare E-flats, but they are used as unessential passing tones
for which the was unimportant. Also, Ra.meau used the third F-shaw A-shaw, so the nine good major thirds
were necessary. Rameau's early may have been identical to D' Alembert's For this
temperament in an· authentic manner the instructions at the beginning of this section.
!he theoretically correct method of tuning D 'Alembert's temperament is unusually easy for a theoretical tempera-
ment of all equal-beating procedures that can used. In this book, the beat frequencies were calculated
for use with a C tuning fork at standard the C equivalent of A= 440 Hz. If a lower pitch is used, reduce the
beat frequencies proportionately. For of beat frequencies, the numbers and listen to
them on the metronome. tuning instructions are in Section 56.
· . n~~~Yiat-k !;~,~·
AC-sha~;,
EG-shii ·'"
BD·sha;".;k''' .
F-sha~ A-sharp
c~~l:iarp F 6t n-flat F
O~sharp C or.A·flatC discords
E·tlat Q
B-flat D
.FA
'CE
There are no wolf fiftl;ls. Cowp~re this table with 'table ~9-I.
Also~ compare this table with 'tabtes H-1·; t5-3, 1?:-1, 28-2,. 30:.2, and. 35~2.
This table is arranged in circular form for perspective in Figure 55-1.
t~e ra:rgest ttiird

..ti
e•c
NC
Wolf intervals
~ or dissortt&
.ft
Cl) (False thirds)
c:
Q)
Yd<!)
(3
;.
···'":·~····
-~
v%~
&~ CE GB
il
The smallest third
Figure 55-1: The. Form of Modified Meantone Temperament Tuned by Jean-Le Rond D' Alembert's Rules.
Compare with Figures 15:-2 and 39-t ..

NOTES
1..Encyclopaedia. Britannica, 2d ed., 7:29.
2. Ibid .
.l ....JPJQ.:.•. ~~-
4. Ibid. ' 29 .
. S... .D~Alembert. Elemens .De..Musique,. 48.
195
TUNING JEAN~'.LE ROND D'AEEMBERT'S
MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT OF 1752
IN TH:E THEORETICALLY CORRECT MANNER
A cco.rdin.g to.·.late eighteent·h.-century beliefs (see Section 5.$), Jean Phili.ppe Rameau practiced this temperament
through the year 1726. Rameau's actual words, however, are open to a free interpretation. Rather than specify-
ing that the major third CE must be absolutely beat free in a complete just intonation condition, Rameau only required
that it be tuned with exactness or justness according to the demands of one's own ears. 1 In other words, CE must
be smooth or pure sounding according to one's own personal taste or musical background, and this does not necessarily
mean that CE must have no beating. During the eighteenth century, tuners and musicians lacked the technique for
tuning just intonation thirds. Thus, Rameau could have tempered more like the system outlined in Section 58. If one
listened repeatedly to performances of Rameau' s keyboard music (published in 1724 or before) on two similar authen-
tic instruments, one tuned according to the instructions given below and the other tuned according to Section 58, one
might determine which of the two styles of temperament Rameau most likely practiced. Most of his keyboard music
was composed before he adopted the philosophy of equal temperament in 1737.
Test interval
TuneCto (Figures denote
standard pitch. Tuned beats per second)
t
Tune before beating
l just
i t 2.4
3.0
r
Tune
i
Flatten
i
just
56. TuningJeancLe.Rond D'Alembert's. Temperament
Tuned
l
before
Equal beating
2.0 --, 4.1

l
Tuned
before
2.7 LS
it:·rt -=e=---+f-==i 4--re= =1:--¥- -f=J

i
Sharpen
i
Sharpen

I
l.8 2.0 24 2.7 3.0 4.1
fr ~ ~
f
2.0 . 30
cf:~ =t= E E--~~

=g- -
~kL? -~=--=t-----·-- ----1----+-t--=
Tuned Tuned
before before
l I
l.8
Equal beating
l
i i
Temper from both
Tune D and E so that the major sixth D B beats at the same
just speed as the fourth B K Both intervals must be wide.
Equal beating
:---. 1
2.6 2.6 2.7
2.6 2.4
Sharpen G# so that
the wide major third E G# beats at the
same speed as the narrow fifth E B.
Tuned
before
I I
«-.. --i~~j
I 5.1
l.3 5.3 1.3
_--!f=_.
i
Sharpen C# so that the major third A C# beats at the same
speed as the major third E G#. Both intervals are wide.
Tuned
before
Flatten F# so that
the fourth F# B beats at the same speed as
the fourth E A. Both intervals must be wide.
,--- Equal beating
2.0 2.0 1.4

1.8
-~-----~---
------
56. · · Tuning JeavAL Rt!i!d D:,4lf!.mbert 's Temperament
Tuned
before
Flatten F so that F C must be wide. This

the fifth F C is wide and beating at the causes harmonic waste.
same speed as the narrow fifth E B.
A wide 7:6 ratio

small minor third
i
Sharpen D# so
that the narrow fourth D# G# beats at the
same speed as the narww fifth F# C#.
Tuned
hefore
Equal beating
I --------i
!.5
7.5 8.7 10.4
i
----- ---
i
Tune
D# G~ must be narrow. just
This causes harmonic waste.
Equal beating
-----i
8.7 1.5 1.5 8.3
~,_ 2:if~i~--·······
, ,._ ! ~1rp~l.S~~~·····..- c- -"~1~f~21--1----i
! ~~------!
i
A wide fifth
Tuned
before
7.5 8.7 l Equal beating

Wide fifths
irds ~ II~ ~
= i i
--=====---
Sharpen Bi> Bi> El> mustbe

so that the narrow fourth Bi> E~ beats at narrow. This causes
the same speed as the wide fourth Ab Dk . harmonic waste.
A nmTow fourth
Narrow !
2.2
Check the following intervals as a final test between the low D and upper E.
W =wide interval
N =narrow interval
Just intervals
Tert!J)ittament
® ® N N N ® ® ® w
1.8 2.0 22 2.2 24 2.6 2.7
~W1~1---b.v-·~~~.
:--1-1'2/--2.o-~*-=~~-
= =- -=#. -=: : =~~b]_-~-i..---++..-r-qf-===---------'~==-¥-==-+---------h------l_==J
-~ -
N w w N w ® w w w
Wide major thirds

r------ ------1
04
~ l.3 lf 1.3 8.3
~ _h_~29
12.9 22.9
~-·---=
l&=~--g________lj_~-. . F==;g .~
: .- . 0.6 • 4.8 . 109
Wide sixths
3.0 7,5 8.7

3.5 15.3
Narrow 6:5 ratio

Narrow 6:5 ratio minor thirds minor thirds
~---------------------
1-----------1
5.1 7.l 15.6 20.l
L _ _ _ _ _I
Wide 7:6 ratio
small minor thirds
8.86476
F 4.12155
E 3.42157
EAlat minus 8.16479
D· plus 3.42157
C-sharp niirius 11.58636
c ptus•: 1 • 10.26411
B minus 6.143l'7'
:B~flat minus.:· 2.02162·
Cpm.pare tl)is table With Tables 12-'I. 16~1. 18-f.29-1, 30-1. and 36-2.
NOTE
1. Ramea-u,: Nouveau $y~teme De Musique Theorlque, 108.
' ·. .
A ccording to, Section 55, the 'temperament otdi~aite~ des~ribecf~yJean-l..e
Philippe rutmeau in the early years of the eighteenth century before Rameau's philosophy changed to favor equal
Rond ll'Alembert was used by Jean-
temperament. Th(ough translation Into English, D'Afemberes temperament instruction~ for 'le temperament ordinaire'
were widely distrlb~teci ainopg th((, ~tj~i.!!,11) i~l78L 1 Ho\Vever, there is m:1 irldicatfon .?f this French temperament ever
as
being common to British praetice ev!<tencecf by thewtitings of William Holdei', Gottfried Keller, Roget North, Peter
Prelleur, William Tan,s 1ur, Robert Smith, Nicolo PasquaH, Robert Falkener, and later writers. Peter Prelleqr's temper-
ament of 173.1 w;isfar more advanced than 'le temperament ordinaire.' Handel's well temperament published around
1780 was four times closer to equal temperament than the 'temperament ordinaire.' (Compare Tables 47-1 and 56-1.)
The xnajority of the British, did not tolerllte the. hllrtnoni« itnbalance and the h.~onic w11ste of the I)';\lemberttem-
per<µn.eQh WhiJe fonowingD~(\le!lll?e~·s in,~t~s.ti9n~,. they ,xnodemized the temperament by reducing the sizes of the
f{ftll~ ~-fl,~t'.E-: ~::Pitt :a.:flat~ ~- Fg
, ~d to~e a\ least .as narr(jw as just intonation, fift~s. This action still
agfeed with tj• . . •'tiert's; wo.-d,s tfi,. . .· . Y, fe~~We tlfeftt'st Ut, ·~<t tune to it the tlfill f11 in (fe~cepdi,ng (order}, then
tb,e fifth sH1at. &c.,. and.they heigl\t~il aHttle .~ll th!1JifthUiltth.eY have arriyeg at la-flat. which ought to be the same
~i~.$~ soFsharp already·• fµjied. 'r2 lri"oifie~}ygrd,s~evei\ Uioiig~ the abqve fifthswer¢ pure or cl<Jse• to pure on the
n~rrow side, they woulClstillhave been heigllteped, ..strengthen¢(}, or widen¢(} "a Iiitfe" compa,re~ftothe first fifths
CG, GD, DA. and A~· }\c(Justi~ajlyt.thi~f(Jrced iJI~!fiffbS.Ell, ~F-shafp, F~sharp C-sharp, and. C:-sharp.G:-sharp also
t(J l.le P1Jfe gr. c~9!!,e !<J l?l.!~e· Jhi.~ ~~ti9~ al~o ~8f~~9; ~it~ I)'1Yexn~~i:t 's word~ ~lit ')etting out fr?xn ~is mi, they
ttlne the fifths s1, fa-;sharp, ut•s:Jiarp, s,ol,-sharp, bt1t flattening Uiem still less than Uie former. " 3 By this action, all har-
monic waste was eliminated; and the harmonic balance was corrected to conform to the traditional classical tonality
~s it ~a.d <fevelQpaj,··: . .•·. ···.·:·r····•'·········<"•·· •... :: :"·····"*""'"""M'•·····• ••... •·····"''~···•····>·;~. . . . . ,. ;.:..........""•....
·' lF1lfs~\!filEipiJl~iit;;Gr.mt00:.r~~ijlts:sooiw;;1t>·~ tiiipei~mit:'1dne by Uie cteinml'ttleorist lohann Philipp Kimberger
during tb,is same period of hist9cy. Tpe major third C.E was Pl.!re in just i,ntonation. The fifths CG,GD, DA, and AE
were ~ach one-foui:t}l syntonfo coxnma narrow, the same as in o•Alembert. Seven out of the eight te!llaining fifths
were injqstj11(unattQn:.1lt~ Jas;r~maJ~wg.J.\~ll·w~~!1Qt.;~it.e~~ temperaj;and:it te~lll~;W'.being 011e.s~his!lla narrow.
A schisxna is t\vo £ents in sfa~. This te~per~~nt along with similar varieties of it are. known as 'Prinz,' 'Kimberger
fll, t' ()r .~ Ai:on-;1\leidflardt~ . in twentie~Q.-c~ntufy •u11fu~ lite.rature. An.~sy way ~Q)Jl~~. ~~~ '.t1I~2re~j£;ij~ ~ortect variety
Rt it. is to foHo\V tlie. iI1~tm.£t~Rns ~ >~~~!i~11 ?§;,thf~M~~,jt;t~~~µ.:~ eight. Next,. begin agai.n ft~in middle C, and ~ne
all..of the Jon~s :E1••f.i:;i1~h. ll;~a~· 4;fl~~~ ~~Bat, ~.;(lat. ~d C-flat by means of JJ.lst intopat10µ fifths. and fourths w1Uiin
the g<,:taYe ~,j~ E, ·.1'.lle~·µ~!ll rexna"ifrii!; inte.-var fmm.1n9 ):\ \Vin automaticaIIy be tempered by two cents. even though
it is not directly tempered.English instructions producing results almost identical to the latter were published in 1808.
(See Sections 87-89 of the present work.) This is kno\Vn as Prinz. well tetpperament~
Th~re were two proble!lls.w~t,h th~ a~ov~ ~evelqptp~J}t .• Firs~ ••. it. <;lid Q(!tagr~e. 'Willi. D'Alembert's words ·'that sol-
sharp P11itY altpost. fol"!ll a tm~. thjrq ~lliRr. .wW1 ~111i 1 ·;~;.11!Ci.l,!9~,ipajor thirtj E;Q-s,tu!:tp. was a •.Pythagorean type ditone
thatwas Qnly qne:.schisma (t,Wo cel)ts) le.ss than ~e!t;Jg 9ne syQtoni<; compia wider thaQ a just intonation major third.
Second, D 'Aletpbert disapproved Of the Prinz or Kimberger type of temperament in 1752 because of the Pythagorean
.dit()nes ...MaQY '"r~tisfl agreed. with D 'Alembert that Uie Pythagorean type thirds were ''extremely false. '' 5 Therefore,
· m~·moCle'fllfii~·,or aajustin§ aevelo(!mentcqntinued·as·ronows. . . .·
·.JOOfiJ'~ues\ousseau"sDictz'onnair~Il~M(ISfq~ l\a4:tl~eu.~&ll!.ted iQto J:!;µgli!lh in 1771and1779. With Rousseau's
·· · · pfiifosophy irt~Judingflle"<fouble meIDiiif~'t'5ft!Ice:'Ytl~li: ·~r~:;·hme·•Britishwere:mtow¢d.to interpret D'Alembert' s word
......:iu.at~....in~oJ:te~ily,..•wiW..4. .tt~~! . m~~JAi.ni,tq,tm!lt~.hill~ti~lll.t~nmeJ:jng~
203
• • •• •
••
T!,tes~ ~. lnteryals
~a' ilit'l .......· pbe~ of
t t
Three different harrtmnic series
j
times per ~cortd when th.e
majottttird C Bis in•
··Just itifortation:
ttfHihftfi~ major six~ ~oTh must be Wicfo, or they both must be narrow inthe above example. Unless the
··~ rrf 9r si,CtJI in.th,eat>qve hap}!ett to be injust intonation, they will beat because they are altered or tern-
. ijie fo~ d tl;t~ m{ljor sixtf\ are 9eating ex~ctly the s~e spe~d, .the major third is then proven
: . lf the... . .· •si~ih ts Heiltirlg" eitheffaster or slower ihan the fcmitll, then The major third cannot
~!t~~·~v~~ \!Vht-l}i thet~ is[n6'· ap,areiit~bea1ihg On the major third. This latter· cofidition is most common
. ii1f~ryals ofi'pfa~OS call: b~ natfOWed .Or vvtdened by Sillall amounts Without causing apparent beating .
.) . ()J1!1I£aiig ~lte 1t1.aJgr six!!t ~~ppell ~o'be ~idertfi~ll in just inton:ati()n, and the major. sixth is beating faster
.. (ogrt. .pr()yes that tl;t.~ · · r thfr~.iS. ~lsq wider than it would be in just intonation.
a~gy1~ .. . info.ttllatfonvvll~ . Wll frt tl;t~ eigtiteenth, century. The. technique of listening to nearly~coinciding
at
hltflnMic$ lo ions oth~rittlan where orie was playing interval was not discovered until around 1887. Rather an
... tl;t~Ji.~!'i!1i112.10 tl;t~.11~.!£!~:£q!11~i~Ji~it~a!m211!~~~~i~~~~;!&·\~t!~~~f~~I~11~~~~;.i,~~~:~~r~~iift\ar i:tai:~i~~
't:heoreilcaftemp~ramentSby Piefro Aaron,Jean-teifoncI n 'Alembert,
{}f. mo~e jµst}!!!<:Jl.!!tton majof thit(}~ and .wer~ only tl;teories that rarely
· c;:if~ge,.s.~·: . .. . .
'th ofthe meaningof'the·word 'juste' as used by D'Aterribert could not be ap-
pHe~~ this, aloqg with Rousseau's freer 1Ueaning, allowed the British to fecognize ''a. true. third major from mi to
ut~•·as ~eing ~ ~ecent, sruootn.:souttdittg major tf1ird}n g~(ld !at;te thatwas "'.iderlha:n a major third in complete just
il1~$)n~tiqn .. f'~is ht~rn c~~s~.~.l~e 'th,irdg~:.s~arp(b·benartowed significantly (compared to a ditone) "so that
~ol~ . m. alm.Qst fo...m;•a·t~~.·. .. . .
t\Jor with''rrit"' Using the freer meaning of the word 'juste' or 'true third,'
. ~·......··• ... ;tnen'at'1e~totemp·erncctmtfng to D'Alembert's words. Of course, the results were vastly different
'le t(ltitp~rarrient ordihaire' as practi~r~l in theory on harpsichords in early eighteenth-century France. Compare
Fig1lr~.57-1 mid Table~ 57- l and5S-l with FJgure 55~ 1 aridTables 55-1 and 56-L.
·.~:With(!ut t~.~ ~\Ventieth~9entury t~W~e · •· ·· ~~fnti(J..qes,. it w11st11()st natural.fortuners to follow the old William Holder
~a~it1g'~!a~:·eitl;t~ti1p~e dtigi~Af'J1.6sitf6 ........ }moc't~y~·l1igher. Without published beat frequencies, it was most natural
f~r)\\:tf~!~'(9'rippfy>tffe ~q\i'af:beridng·techniques: FdlJbwfng is 011e interpretation that agrees with all of D' Alembert's
wot~sd' f~ the new way. ... . .· ·
:'tistng;.th~William:Holderbearing plan, let the fifths CG, GD, DA, and AE each beat L2.beats per. second. This
'lr~~te.~a. smooth-soµ~ding tnajor third CE that is q~ite dec~nt. etnper the ~~s EB,. BF-sharp, F-shartJ C-sharp, and 'f
.....,~$~.~~~~.:1~~$;..a~•.Q,;l .~~a~s . ~~c;qAd~ •. 1'~i~ cr;:~;g,~.~:;;t}W()s~ ~.~~~At-~oun,din; major. thir<J, ~(i-shafl? is that
tolerable: Also, the major third A- at C, althbugh it is·a little worse, is still tolerable, and it would be descrlb'ed
................. , .............. ,........ •• ....... , .. "'''·'"'~""~·:Pnf, {"°i··h·· ·" >"'d4·1"ci,,i·,,,.,."""·' ~· .--·..~J,,1\ ,\_.,,,g1·,r~f,\~-,c."l,;c;.;{'1:,".,"
57. ·The Ordindrf Tempefiffneflt Pt'ii<:ticedlfl the Lafe EigHtee11th~Century
in D'Alembert' s words as ''extremely false and greatly alt~rt1d '' which referred.to Pythagorean ditones. The remaining
fifths for the notes F, B-fiat, and E-flat could then eac}} beat less again at0.2beats per second, and A,.flaJcould also
be used as G-sharp.
D' Alembert's instructions supposedly for common practice temperament remained prominently in print at least through
1823. 7 The British followed D'Alembert's instructions in ways similar to the above interpretation until around 1885.
(Compare Tables 57-1 and 163-3 of the present work.)
The results of this interpretation ate a typical well temperament that is somewhat like the temperaments of Francesco
Antonio Vallotti and William Tans'ur in general musical effects. In the following tuning instructions, test intervals
and beat frequencies are added for the convenience of modern piano technicians.
Table 57-1: Equal-beating Well Temperament Tuned by Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert's Rules.
CE 391.07368 4.75996
GB 395.31939 9.00568
DF-sharp 398.15856 11.84484
AC-sharp 401.95497 15.64126
EG-sharp 403.86584 17.55212
BD-sharp 404.06390 17.75018
F-sharp A-sharp 404.02459 17.71087=a micrn-imbalance
D-flat F 404.46830 18.15458
A-flat C 405.06049 18.74677
E-flat G 400.61671 14.30300
B-flat D 397.81686 11.50314
FA 393.57673 7.26302
CE 391.07368 4.75996
Compare this table with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1, and 55-1.
This table is arranged in circular form for perspective in Figure 57-1.
CE
Li
The smallest third
58
TUNING THE ENGLISH EQUAlrBEATING WELL TEMPERAMENT
BY USING JEAN-LE ROND D'ALEMBERT'S RULES OF 1752
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. For examples of beat frequencies, multiply the given numbers
by 60, and listen to them on the metronome.
Test interval
l
Tune c to (Figures denote
l jlst
standard pitch. beats per second) Tuned
l
Tune
jlst 24
before Tune
I Equal be!tin;2
!~. ---;-~-gc--if-f~lfP~=-f~.=f;~~ 1i==~~~~l

i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
Flatten Flatten
f
Tune
Just
Equal beating
1.2 1.2 3.6

6.0
!r
1.2 1.2
~
l.2 1.2 1.8 5.1
JI': f r f f F I~ r ~ It
Tuned
before
l 0.6 . l.2 3.6 5.7
11,=.F [ ·- If·.
t
! .t . .J~= -l _ , F. f r eJ
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned
1
before
!
before
0. .3 5.0 10.1 . 10.5

# .~ # ~ # #
6.0
-====
107
Jl!l:_[_ f I r f I= I
l
fr= 5.1
p I f ~~
i
Flatten Tune
just
58•. Tuning

r
Tuned
before
l 0.6
~ #; 10. l
~a
5.7 10.5
#r;
~~+:-t.-~1
1f r0.3 .. 5.1
#i=_-.----'---hll--=-E-'--- =-i=-==--+-+-1e---+#r-~~F=---+11
~==----
90
--------
i
Flatten
Tuned
l.
before
~Eq.:cu__
al --=-----
-¥ .
-- - #~
9.0
--k-
0.3 6.0
i~~--·~--I--~~=t~~~= . ~r ~
9.0 0.3 9.0 10.5
i
Tune
just
Tuned
--------------------i
l 0.3
0.3 0.3 0.3
0.3
#.t2. ' 0.6
#·~if------+>--'~~==!= ff ~
The Petfectlan Of Eighteenth-Century Tetnperament
Tuned
before
Sharpen
~[2:
0.2
f iJlf
0.3
,,
3.6
r
3.7
Ir
5.0
5.1
~- ~~
7.3
#r
8.4
5.7
1f_£_____,
,,,,__..-
6.1 9.0
d
-==:::::.::__
Tuned
r- I
11.7
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Sharpen
58: Tuning The English Teinpiramint By Using D'Aleinbert's Rules
Equal beating
A~ was tuned a long time ago.

Tuned The exact beat speed is not important
before as long as Eb Al> sounds acceptably pure.
l !
~___,.~--++11--+-bcq-J~---1-*-·--f--l-1
9.0
lt®#F br
10.2 10.5
!
3
ri i-4
i
Sharpen
Tuned
before
7.5 8.8! ~. . 9.0 !0.2
!~~1=11~=~=·=~=-'~~
' '
=:c~=~~~]
i
Tune
just
A~ was tuned a long time ago.

The exact beat speed is not important
as long as Ab E~ sounds acceptably pure.
Equal beating
r------ l
Equal beating
·--i
t
9.9 0.3 0.4 0.3 9.9 10.5
~t2t- - +- - ~._Jf
__ llif_~--4! ~! _ ~==tf~ §JI u
1
Equal beating
Equal beating Equlll beating Equal beating
r .~.
06 06 1.2 1.2 2.4 2.4
fl9t#f
•.•
J#'
L~ F~.-2· . e
i·.
~ ·~i E E=
~~ ·1:1=w r-
Wide major sixths

~'ii';l'1tble;~IJ·~~,TheJ)ifferences in Cents between the Notes of the
Ft
Ji;qual-beatl:ng D~At~Ul... \V~!l T~dlperantent andEqual Temperament.
Equal Teltliierament · 'E4iilll~tJ~tibJ:D!iAf.iribeH Rounded Figures
rA zero difference 0 cerits
G-sharp plus. 2.65619 +3
•G PIUS 4.36979 +4
. F-sharp
F
\lfUs •
plu~.
6
a,._•.~
4 23tz7t,
Jk
+l
+6
B. niinus 1.20965 -1
E:..tJat. pigs · 3.75308 +4
n plti§ 2.1s11s +3
C-sharp plus 1;95497' +2
C plus 7.71667 +8
tr niinus · 0.31082 o
CQmpare this table with Tables 22...tf 25-J, 27-1. 40-1, 41-1. 47-1, 52-1, and 56-1.
A roµn4 the year l185. a 34-page book call~iJ,>7'h~ Prccei)ior For (he Piano-Porte. Organ,. or
Jfarpsit:hord ap-
. .. peared.1 This bo.ok contained all th.¢ esset}til:\l infonm1.tiotl: on the rules offingering and music reading. It also
coqtai1ted twenty-one ''Je,ssons'' or teaching piece,sinclllding two lessons by the famous James Hook. At the end there
were tuning rules. No illlthor's name was print~9;~~· the boQ:k;..but Mr. Preston [probably John Preston (?-1798), a
~uitar and violin maker} printed and sold the book·, 'for convenience, we will refer to the tuning rules as Mr. Preston's
temperament. With fe:wexceptions, he copied the.tqning rules n~te for note and word for word from the tuning rules
of Nicolo Pasquali that were published around 1751 ot before, but Preston gave no credit to Pasquali. The only change
Preston made in the bearing plan was that he restored the beginning tuning note back to the traditional C. Pasquali's
tuning rules strongly implied meantotle temperament. (See Sections 32-33 of the present work.) Preston printed an
addition, however. that shows that Preston used the rules for wen· temperament. Pasquali wrote; ''The fifths must be
Tuned rather flat than ~therwaxs:" In. the same place, Pr~ston wrote, ''The fifths must be tuned rather Flat than other-
wise.'' Bui then he added, '"l'he thirds mu!!t be tuned rather Sharp than otherwise.'' The latter statement was contrary
t~ Ul~:l:tm:!iq\J.e ni(lal,!t~ne.te:mperament pbil~s€:>phy •.fasq9i1JLdi4 not. mentiQn the thirds or sixths because he assumed
that bis re(lders. understood that they should be ''fine'• or close tojust. For Preston, the meaning of the word ''fine''
had changed to mean ''rather sharp" or quite wide. Proof that Preston meant the rules for well temperament is found
on.page· 27 of his book .. Here there are se~eral· A-flat C majot thirds that are sustained notes on the first beats of the
measures~ They are also at middle C where they are clearly heard. There is no way that these major thirds could be
satisfactotily played in traditional meantone temperament. The major third A-flat C must have been at least tolerable
in Preston's temperament. This means that A-flat C must have been not m?rethan a syntonic ccnnma wide. More likely
it Wa!! fe.ss wide. A se~ottd'Pr®f is on··p~ge··J;" where Pr($.tt'Jlt'\Vt<lte, ~'the··shtrtt··~ey·that·tg·between 6 and A serves
·· ··tmtl'rfnr"6"'sharp !'tttt··~tttrr;··me ·sftort•l(ey·tretween A arrtt··it·'Serves als<> for·A-stmrp and JJ.:.flat, &c. for the rest.''
Without the test intervals and publishe? beat frequencie~~ it was most n~tur~I for tui;iers to use the ~qual-beating
fuer;~i'ij~~~13t6!~~~~~ti~ia~~~ · ~~~ni~~~~N·l~n~fti\l~~~&:i:i:fL1!~a~reeo~et~ie:t,~~i~c~~~1~
at the same time tempering all the fifths "rather flat," one must temper each fifth to beat 1.4 times per second while
following the bearing plan. Mr. Preston must have tempered very similarly to this. In any Qase, the reader is free to
judge for himself. The completely authentic. way to tune Preston's temperament is to follow the instructions in Section
60 while ignoring the beat{requenc:Y advice. The bearing plan and other instructions are exactly as Preston published
them in 1.785 .except that the bearing plan is printedin modern form for easier reading.
The result of the above was a rough well temperament that contained faults. Nevertheless, the temperament is his-
torical. The worst fault was that the diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat was wide, causing harmonic waste. If the fifths
beatl.4 times per second, G-sharp E-flat will be wider than a just intonation fifth by 5.636 cents which is a shade
more than one-fourth syntonic cbmma. Pre~ton ac.knowledged this fault When he continued to print Pasquali's state-
ment.for meantone temperamefit that read, !'By this method ofTuning, the imperfection of the Instrument is thrown
in A.:.flat an::U; E-flat its fifth.,. In the more traditional eighteenth-century well temperaments the "imperfection of the
instrnment'' ~id not caus1;1 a11y wide fi{ths .
. Ttieother fauii 1ntliePreston temperament is seen in Table 59- t. Here one can see that the major thirds at the
1 n··•4° ~na~~1flt~,~~1!t~;~~Wa·!f~~ie£1g~f1:r~~f~~··~~~/~~;:ti!.ir!~P:r~~:~:~rder
•... , f r •• ~or,theconvenien~.of:,JOOdempiano,t@Ghnicians). the, theoretkally correct.version of Vreston's temperanient is given
· ·.. · iff ·~~tl51t~t. TJii~ ''fs''J>'.~~~1~nl1J'r~~l.ii!ll8'P't~st<lfi~s ongifiar'IliliJor third A-tt~r~~ Na ctt®8e iff siz~ of th~ ihirq A-flat
59. The Preceptor For.. The Piano~Forte, Organ, Or Harpsichord
C is madv from the equal~beating method. In Table 61 ~2 <>ne .can see that the harmonic imbalances have been corrected,
but a. new fault appears; that is, most of the color varfoty is
gone. There are only two colors remaining. Also, the
harmonic waste is a little worse in the theoretically corr~ct method. The equal-beating method is thus seen to be more
musical as well as authentic. The theoretically correct :version is in between the one-seventh and one-eighth regular
syntonic comma temperaments. descripec:l by. Jeaxi-Baptiste RQmivu in France in 1758. 2
Mr. Preston made an interesting addition to the title of Pasqualf's rules. Pasquali's title read, ''An approved Method
of Tuning the Harpsichord.'' Preston's title printed roughly twenty-eight years later ,read, ''An approved Method of
Tuning the Harpsichord, Spinnet, or Piano-Forte." It is significant that the word 'Piano-Forte' was added to the title.
Also notice in the title of The Preceptor that the word 'Piano-Forte' was placed first and the word 'Harpsichord' was
placed last. This is an indication that the pianoforte was not popular before 1757 but that by 1785 it was actually begin-
ning to surpass the harpsichord in popularity.
Table 59-1: Equal-beating Wen Temperament Tuned by Mr. Preston's Rules.

CE 396.22975 9.91604
GB 396.86248 10.54877
DP-sharp 395.64322 9.32951
AC-sharp 396.20648 9.89277
EG-sharp 396.96001 10.64630
BD-sharp 405.05412 18.74040
F-sharp A-sharp 405.73948 19.42576
D-flat F 406.19768 19.88397
A-flat C 406.81024 20.49652
E-flat G 398.08340 11.76969
B-flat D 398.61730 12.30359
FA 397.59583 11.28212
CE 396.22975 9.91604
Compare this table with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1, and 57-1.
NOTES
1. [John Preston?], The Preceptor For the Piano-Forte, Organ, or Harpsichord (London: Printed & Sold by Preston, at his Whole-
sale Warehouses, 97, Strand, c. 1785)
2. Jean-Baptiste Romieu, "Memoire Theorique et Pratique sur les Systemes Temperes De Musique," Histoire De L 'Academie
Royale Des Sciences (Paris: De L'Imprimerie Royale, 1758), 483-519.
.
T 1.111e the ~0110\ying q~il~etttOteS in the ~rdet Written. r~m~~rthe fifth$ "rathe~ flat" and the ttiird~ Hrather Sha~."
The ma.ior third A-flat C~ust be tolerable. A sugge~tt()D 1s to temper each fifth narrow so that 1t beats 1.4 times
per sec~;md. In this case,!fieJf!~t trial. will beat 1.2.0 timesp~rsecond, the.second trial will beat 10.1 times per second,
tile third trialwiU beatJQ,Q; ~!tnes per second, and the lower major third A-flat C will beat 12.3 times per second.
Tune C "with a Pitc1' Pipe,

or any other. wind. ltl$trUm~n!."
Tune
Tuned just
l
Tune Tune before Tune Tune
just just just just
Fiatten Flatten Flatten

f
Flatten
Tu11.e4
Tuned before
before Tune Tune
l
"first Trlat"
just just
l ! ! !
u~u J Ii 11J #J
i l
J i #d
Flatten ''a fine third" Flatten
The Equal~Beating Marmet
Tuned
before Tune Tune
just just "second Trial"
!
#d
1J
i
Flatten Flatten
i
"a fine third"
Tuned Tune Tuned Tune

before just before just
Tune
l ! just
l ! "ili"'[""
!
~i=:-··.I ______,__,,~-j-+---=DJ-+--=Pl__.,__.._ J~
!~
I
~ ~J
&J
i i i i
Sharpen Sharpen Sharpen "a fine third"
l
This shows "the imperfection of the Instmment."
Compare the above instructions with those in Section 33.
Equal Temperament Preston Rounded Figures

A 0 cents
G-sharp minus 4.76555
G plus 0.90889 +l
minus 3.55648 -4
F 2.40417 +2
E minus 1.72556 -2
D plus 0.80030 +l
c plus 2.04469 +2
B minus 2.22863 -2
Compare this table with Tables 22-l, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, and 58-1.
·Tune the following quarter notes in tfte: order written. For examples Of beat frequenci€is,. multiply the giv:en numbers
by 60, and listen to them. on th.e m~tronome.
Test interval
(Figures denote
TuneCto beats per ~~cond) Tuned
standltrd pitch. before Tuned
l l
before
1 0.8 1.3
l r
0.8
U~Jf If 11( r I~ f r ti
i i = i
Sharper( Flatten
i Flatten
.Tqned
before
o.s l U)
1.3 6.6 1.4 1.3
n2: f e f 1f II t r I~ f
r
Flatten
.,,, '" . ' \,'>;;, ~''·''';\'.'. f•
5:2;
l~t(
·\·?; ,.
u,:,'~ i ~ 11r ~
t
Flatten
Tuned
before
7.8 7.4 I 1.6
r
9.9 6.6 1.4
5.2
n2= ~ ~ .·.~ ! Ii ~ r I~ ~
i
Flatten
If the major sixth FD does no( beat faster

than the major third G B, then one' or more
of the previously tempered fourths and fifths Tuned
"a fine third" · are not beating rapidly enough. before
5.2
!
. ~:l.
7.8.. !
5.8 l
---=
Flatten
·Tuned
before
1.1
l.3 9.9
l
r r ff
1.2 8.3
J12~·f ~ff l [I~ 11 1

1 Ftatten
The Perfection Of Eighteenth-Century Temperament
Tuned Must be
before tolerable
l 1.3 1.3 t.4 7.8

!
12.3
l[fJ~ #r
i
Flatten
1f =If-== ~ 1'
---==-
bf A
Tuned
before
1.1
9.3 9.9
Sharpen
61. Tuning Pri:sto11;'s Ternperdmen~ In The Theoretically Cortec'tManner
Sharpen
"the imperfection of the Instrument"
and harmonic waste
ll.l 11.8 12.5

Equal beating
~
l
Tuned
before
-~ ---~#1--ffii...-!.--·--++-11+=+-----+----1""---r~---!+a
i
Temper E from both
B and A so that the fourth E A is wide and beats
one and one-third times as fast as the narrow fifth E B.

r·-------~- ----1
7.4 u
"a fine third"
6.6 0.0
6.2
4.9 5.2
----·
i
Just
A wide fifth
Wide fourths
!
2.7
1\r
Wide major thirds
6.9 7.& 14.7

5.& 6.5 11.0 12.3
4.9
Ht!:~
5.2
r ~r ~, t sf bur !f ~
Wide major sixths
6.2
Narrow minor thirds

r~\~~i~arp i' .
F 3.40512
E minus O.S5I2S
E•flat plus 5.10768
D plus 0.85128
C-sbarp Qlim,1s 3:.40512
c pfds·• 2:15~84
B minus 1l70256
B~tlat plus 4.25640
~ompare $is table with Tables 22~t, 25-1, 27-1* 40-1, 4111, 47-l. 52~1, 58-1, and 60-1.
.T$ble 61~2~ l'heoreti~ally Correct Well Temperament Tuned by Mr. Preston's Rules.
M~ot Thlttls Sit~ in Cents Cents Wide from Just
ell; ·~96.594'$*·'· io.28111
~;~sll~ ~i::~~!~~ ~g:~~~g
AC-sh~ 39<B9488 I0.28tl1
EGlshatp 396.59488 10.28117
HD-sharp. 406.81024 20.49652
F·sharp·A;~sbarp 406.81024 20.49652
D-tlat F 406.81024 20.49652
. A-flat C 406{8'.1024· 20.49652
::~!i·~ i:~~~~~~~ !g:;:~ g
FA 396.59488 10.28117
CE . 396.5948.8 10.28117
The diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat (A-flat E-t1at) is 7.4 cents wider than a just intonation fifth. This results in
harmonic waste. ·
~offiP,~re this table,witli Tables .2.Q:J.,.4tt;lf ~~.~ l •..J~.l.".AQ;i* 4~: l".~.kli ~l· 1, l!n~2.~::l·
. . . . . . . .. . . 1~~ ~~~IRVES;i•r:f('.i;BE
INmobucED INtO TJm•PRAtt1cE OF MtrslC'' IN. .1186
T. quo~tio.
he a.l)o·.. ve fr. t .·
1
n is o.m. a.it exten...sive art·icJ·e.()n·.~etnperanien. in the ~.~li.·opaed~~ p.ubli;~ed in 178Q. ~ The word
'temperature~ 1s. an alternate :spelhng for the worq 'temperament~' The temperament article was written under
th~ supervj~ion 9,~. l;t~.~,~~.Jong after the death ~f,JlpIJ~aiIJlChambers in 1740. '};'he first .six paragraphs of the
artfol~ were from . . . igin~.1728 Chrun:h~rs edition of~~ fyclopaedia. This was followed by three new paragraphs
explaining why tempe~~ro~iitor temperature was necess~rt. Next, there were two paragraphs borrowed from A New
a.nd Complete DictionofY. .!?f.11,.rts and Sciences. 2 These y~r,gra"ehs explained that ''the common or vulgar tempera-
ment'' was. the temperaw.ePt that is now attributed to Piefr<} ~~rotffrom 1523. Even though @is definition of the words
'cotnmon temperamenf. W$1~·· two-thirds of a century out10K7date by 1786, the Cyclopaedia continued to· refer to the
one-fourth syntoni<l cotnmaJneantone temperament of Aa:ton.as the .'common temperament.• l')iis definition was nearly
a complete century out:!)ftdate when it was printed agai~ it) the 1819 edition of the Cyclopa.fdia.
The rem11ining. forty::ninc.l f)a~agrapbs an .. ee charts ~~.the article were a dissertation proving that the temperament
of Christiaan Huyg~ bUsft~d, i~ 1661 wast. e best posiibf~ becaose ''it wm fa.cilitate the e~~ution of all the genera
oft.dttsiq; ~tl~th¢t d . cll~otI}~tic, .QJi ~.W;lllrmonic; ri~ll'4!-)eS the multiplicity of its parts render it impracticable."
By; @e .tft(yg~ns.temp~ritfiJ~llt i8: tI}~ant thirty-ot}e eq,ual tort~~ to.the octave. Each to}\e has a ~atio of 1.0226+. The
goal of such a temperament was unlimited. transposition or mO(lulation through all genera. The twelve tone equal
temperament was rejected because the·thirds and sixths ·were "'too inaccurate,'' and there was no provision for. the
enharmonic music of the ancients. Of course, .one was expected to build harPsicltor,ds with thirty-one keys within each
. l:fomV~:·1 . . ,.i. ' ' '·r'• . ., ;... . '.>. •.. • .A.>•• . . .· . . . . .
The Cyclopaedla article did not use the new term 'equal temperament.' It used the term 'geomt:trical terri{ierament.'
.n~·:~~1e·'¢~Pl.~ltl~!l''tltf!t·~11t~a~i~~:·~~~ttf~iQ·r~m~~it~!S·~uwn~b,,.mooilf~tS''thto~~i·l?'l8tj·WeY~th~systems
·ot:t2·;··t";31; 43, st>;··'';*amt5~equal"'si:ted'parts~ The articl~fftttHned. the authors,. acoustics, aed some of the history
of the latter equal temper~ent~. In one of the charts,, the fifths, major thirds, and J?linor thirds of the latter seven
~f~...~1.1. .tJ.s.iQ~. .. ·:t,Wo'.t~~P~ .. ~t~·~~ Salina~, the·~·.c~mrnon teml'erarnent•r (Pit!tro Aaron), aild just intona-
were ~ompare i ibeir a1llou of tirrrirs or.(~mperings ffom just intunatfon. The figure$ were given to three
decimal places. Of all tlte i.ntervals that contribute to the effects or colors of triads, the major third is most important.
From the chart, one can see that Huygens's temperament contains the best major thirds of any of lie geometrical cir-
culating temperaments. Thet."efore, the H\lygens temperament is the best. (For tuning it on standard keyboards, see
Se.ction 2,9 of the p.resent work.. ) .
Sothat. the Huygens temperament c.ould be introduced into practice, one of the Clharts furnished eleven figure logarithms
and also the monochord string lengths ush)g up to six figures. No practical instructions for tempering by ear were
furnished. One was expected to temper this theoretically correct temperament by copying the tones from a monochord.
J:)uring th.e years 1181 to 178:6, rna@e~~ti~ians al)d theorists were determined that the English speaking musicians
shoutdadop~ one or another of the equat(geometric1Jl)temperaments for common practice. Their efforts were a failure.
Forsuccess,. the~ should have published test intervals w:ith beat frequencies rather than monochord string lengths. In
1749 Robert Smith did publish the beat frequencies of fifths, but he neglected to include the beat frequencies of all
.tll.t? t:>9it!!"J~!t!rva}s.
'1'\ i~etius Cavalfo(174~"'-l 809) amateur was•~ I~lian
who: in in 1771. is known for
his A evmplete Treattse on Electncity zn Theory and Practice, many echt1ons of which were published. In 1779
Vfolin~st settl~. .Engfatt~ H~
C~valfo bec<'!111~ a (~llo\V of t1te. ~QY~ .So~t¢ty, for which, on April 3, 1788, he read a paper titled ''Of the Temperament
~f ihose ilius~<:al htsttt1in:ents. in wtifoh the Tones, Keys, or Frets, are fixed, as in the Harpsichord, Organ, Guitar, &c.' ' 1
.· · · Tiberius Cavallo wrote,
\Vhe~ tfie h3.rpsichord, {)rgan, &c. is to serve for solo playing, and for a particulatsort of music, it is proper to tune
in tfie
lls~hl triatttter, viZ: so as fo ~1ve the greatest effect to those concords which occur more frequently in that sort
of music; btlt that when the instrument is to setve'for accompanying other instruments or human voices, and especially
when modulations and ttanspositions are to be practist:d, then it must be tuned according to the temperament of equal
lillrmony. 2
: .~a'!lalfo dif,i n9t \lse:1he.n~w teim 'e~:o~~), tempe11a{llent'i that was used. iµ. El)glish liteiature a~er 1781. Jn&tead, he
0
c;,dttd ~ual te.mpeI~ent. ''the tempenu:llent of equal harmony,'' a poor term to us~ because of Robeit Smith's use
of:' 'equal harmony'• in· 1748 that meant a form of meantone temperament. This must have caused confusion. Cavallo
wrote, •1the0 best temperament in· a. set of musfoal. sounds is evidently sucn a part,ition of the natural imperfections,
as' will fender all the chords. equally the least djsagreeable·possible.' ' 3 This philosophy, when applied to all the choids,
meartt '•equal harm<>ny' • or ~ual temperament to Cavallo. Exactly the same philosophy also meant ''equal harmony''
to Robert Smith, but he applied the philosophy to only a few commonly used intel'Vals. This resulted in meantone
'.t~ltt~t3m~p~:::JQf:'·:~«x!~~,~~t1#f~i'K'.~fro;'~~;,:.,,-,, ,~ 'V'A,w,'.,f.!IJ(;c,'f110~(1,\\{1#;0:·"'' ·-~~:'.f _~:,~+:~J~;(\,~:1i~~"\~~~~~>'"1%;"A;J, "~n\i#~;xJ%£~:&~~~i%;#414,t4~·~''
'''""·'~'·•in·th~·lt'Stt!f"·mmmerit,wB"~seribed by,e&valtOj, win> wrote, "~At present; the harpsichords and organs
·are coriuhoruy tuned so, that ~ome concords are very ag11eeable to the ear. whilst others are quite int9lerable; 011, ·in
ds; w e'~tlte"pt~ormer plays i~' <:er~iii~~ys;tf1e harm,Qny is \rezy pleasing•;. .i~ others the harmony is just
•· r'st1iite.offier'l(iy~~·1&:~ffiiii:llony·i~•qti1te: disilgt~abte'. "'4 Cavrum explained mol'e spec!Jfically that the
"be&t" tonalities Wert~ the major keys of E-flat, B-flat, F, C, G, and D. The "best" minor keys weie C, D, A, and
Br·Why·did Cavallo omit the mmor keys of G and E? In any case; the major ton~lit!es.;1ba.t were "less agreeable,"
or those that were i11 betweel) agreeable ~d qi&agre~ablei we11e A~tlat, A, and E. The majm tonalities of B, F-sharp,
and;,D..,flat were.1Jlus"disagreeabte in a; greater or less degree." Concerning the agieeable keys or tonalities, Cavallo
wrot~,.gmost;of.the. niodem compositions in music aie wiitten in those keys." 5
• •.By·studying the harmonic bala11ce charts in the present wmk, one finds that Table 24-1 fits the above description
qUifo well. Table 2<1~ 1 also fits except that the tonalities for B, F~sharp, and D-flat· arn equally disagreeable rather
than ''in,:agreater or less degree;'' Also, Cayalfo explained that. equal tempel'anienthad the. same effec,t as ''E natural
ona harp&ichord .tuned: in the usual manner'• ' 6 Tlierefore, Table 24-1, wh.ich represents the tuning of Peter PrelleuI
t1"-l!:'75~1}·comes elosest to what Cavalfowas .hearing on harpsichords and organs in 1788. Prelleur's E majoI was
0
:fairl)t similar· tu equal temperament, Prelleut's well tempernment was not one of the well tempernments containing
~·············:·~~!!~lll.~t£()J!!!!l.~!~z.2~tC:.::~Y~!()!.~s a Y~!>!il!i~t~ niust have th()u~ht that any major thirds wideI than equal-tempered majo11
tbirds wer~ disagreeable. · · · · ·· · ·
'... ,''un~~·~;~~~~lfitl!£7~r~t:t e~y~~lfr~~;:io~f·~~!~llli>anying y~~~.~~ or other instruments, he approved of
' '' ..
cavauci ~hniina~a.·;
' .
T~is pr~cti.c~ cat111~t conv~niently be laid aside, viz. when the instrument is to be tuned for solo playing; and for a
c~rtmflicsty-fo ~f m:Hs1~. it fa. y~cy Pt<>~r tl:Y. tune. it so as to give the greatest effect to those combinations of sounds,
which are mostiy u.st)<l i.n ·those .comPos~tions;' '' ·
.; ': ,; ', ,,, ' ., '' :' "<: i <· v::·· .:.~.,
·cav~fo co1Jlplairl~ that the same common sfyte·of b.irting referred tC1 ~trove was:often improgerly used· for certain
compositions when he wrote,
\-Vhen tlt~ cotnpos1tjou~ ()fold master~ are ~rforirted in ~<>n~ert •• ~ct withthe ~rgan or h3rf~ichotq tuned in tb:e com~
mon m:a®er, tf1e eff~t is frequ~ntl~verrifi~a}ire~~let1'fiis Is pmtitiuiariy tile case with tlte ~ongs:cWf:l~t}el, (lalluppi,
Leo, Perg?lese;'. and Qthers, who: wrote in a great variety of keys, and very often in those, for which the Common way
of tuning is. not ·at alf calculated.!>
of
From this, we can assume that orie two condltidns must hf1ve been. true: Either the English tuners were tuning
a.modified meatttdne.tempeiament or Cavallo did not Ullderstaitd key-coloring or the intertded characters of the keys
in wen temp~rament.rCavallo did not mention key..characteristics or any philosophical, theoretical, or practical writ-
ings from a,ny. musicians, mathematicians, or acousticians before him. There was. no mention of Mersenne, Holder,
Robert Smith. Rameau. D'Alembert, or William.Jones, Jones very recently had also pmposed equal temperament and
furnish~d the calculations.
€oncerning the Handel songs, it is regrettable that the EJ,1.glish tuners may not have been using the Handel tempera-
ment outlined. in· Sections'45-'-'4? of theipresentwork. This excellent well temperament was so dose· to equal tempera-
m~J1t· tllat <:avall~· could.not: ~ave c9nipla,ined 11b~Wt itJ( .he had heard it. . . .....
· · ·,: tfi~'.fifst:fifteen pages oli'.:!~valldWpapeiwere devoted to a vezy clear and tho'f~ugh ·explanation·orthe basic acous-
tics and philosophy of equal temperament. He'did this without mentioning any comrilas or their ratios anywhere, not
even the ditonic or Pythagorean comma. This reveals that Cavallo (who was self taught in electricity) may have been
selftaugllt to suchan~xten& that he learned the acoustics of equal temperament empirically rather than from books.
liismathematics werepres"hted ina new way that·was much easier to· understartd compared to all previous writers.
For the ratio of the semitone, one took the twelfth root of two. For the ratio of the fifth, one took the twelfth root
of·tg&~hich re~resented·stwen o<.:taves&t9'··bezdividedintt)J.iweilve.~l.lalparts~..,"Jihis;Gulminatedina. cfuut.of.monochord
••Swi•t~-"'1ths.~V~·~·•Y••//h••~&CS•H••••0(•••••0/•'••·> • •
in
Cavallo's writing 1788 gives one the impression that neither Cavallo nor anyone else of the times had ever heard
e9l}~ temperament; He·wrote5
In order to hear the effect of the above-mentioned temperament of equal harmony, I had a monochord made in a very
a~c11rate lllanner, and upon it I laid down the divisions for the thirteen notes of an octave prO~flY tem~red in the
manner explained above. After a great deal of trouble in adjusting the moveable fret, correcting the divisions, &c.
I at Iastsucceeqed so wellas .to renqef thedivi~ions exact within at least the 300th part of an inch, and every part
of the instrument was rendered sufffcientl}I steady and unalterable.
This being done, I had a large harpsichord, with a single unison (in order to judge the better of the effect), tuned
v~ry.accurately by the help of the monochord. With this.instrument, in whatever key the performer played, the har-
mony was ~rfectly equal throughm1t, and the effect w11s the same as if one played in th:e key of E natural on a harp-
sichord tuned in the usual manner. 11
Of course, Bis roughly half way around the circle. This, along with A major and E-flat major which each contain
ac<.:identals in their key signatures, most often sounded similar to equal temperament in the majority of historical
... "1~~UJe!l!.P1!l.rnni~:n1~r,Jf!.e !!1Qrn iI<:<:icI~t1~ls th~re are in a key signature, the more altered the tuning sounds in well tem-
'"'11nn£•r<11rn"'1nt there is as much alteration in C major as there is in any other key. To have as much
,,...."',.,.,...••. .,..., in 13'.·~1;1j~r.was most!lf1!!.~!!:l,~ for eig~teenth~century musicians~except for Tiberius
," '{~,\~:~f~;_,
i. tit> ....•.· •. c~~~fo, ··cit ili~''ftfup~r~h1~nt

thca 81tt(>Sichord, Organ, Guitar, &c.,'' Philosophical Transactions of the Royal
2. Ibid.' 254.
3; lqldi~
4, ltiitft~ ....
s, Ilfid:; 1
; T
6. Ibid.' 254.
THEBR1TISll<RWECTION OF
EQUAL TEMPERAMENT PROPOSALS IN 1790
A round the year 1790, a new book of instructions for playing keyboard instruments appeared. 1 The publisher
Bland was probably John Bland (1750?-1840?) who was a friend of Haydn and published many of his composi-
tions. On page 35 ofBland's book there was an almost identical copy of "An approved Method of Tuning the Harpsichord,
Spinnet, or Piano.:.Forte," in John Preston's The Preceptor For the Piano-Forte, Organ, or Harpsichord, published
around 1785. This in turn was a very close copy of Nicolo Pasquali's An approved Method of Tuning, published be-
tween 1743 and 17 57, but John Bland gave no credit or acknowledgment to either Preston or Pasquali. (Bland' s tuning
must have been similar to that outlined in Sections 59-61 of the present work.) Six accidentals were used in key signa-
tures according to Bland.
The tuning instructions, the most practical for tuning by ear that were available at the time, were in a book of practi-
cal and popular teaching pieces. The pianoforte instructor was expected to tune his own instrument and those of his
students from these instructions. Since these instructions appeared in this pedagogical book, it appears that the English
were ignoring monochords, theoretical temperaments, and the proposals for equal temperament before 1790.
The only change that Bland madein Preston's rules was a significant one. Preston's original sentence "The
first Note C must be tuned a Pitch Pipe, or any other wind Instrument." 1790 sentence "The first
Note C must be tuned with a tuning-fork or Pitch Pipe.'' This shows that by 1790 the tuning fork had become an
important tool for musicians and tuners.
As far.as is presently known, the tuning fork was invented by John Shore (1662?-1752?). He was a trumpet player
for James U and William as well as other royalty. He became Sergeant-trumpeter in 1707.
NO.T.E
1. Bland?J, Instructions For the Piaf!o·Forte or B!and's Music
23 Oxford Street, c. 1790).
J.·
·
ohn ~ol(-Jert publisJ:t~d the one'-fiftll syntonic€c~Ulfut\ nt,e~to1te temp~rament in 1170} This contained the ~sual
number of wolf inter\tals in meant()ne temperament that rentlered 6ne'.-third of the keyboard harmony unusable.
BJ 1797, tuners had· Iearned to modify this temperament so that at least three-fourths· of the. harmony could be consi~
dered mtrsi~al,,1Th~En€J"lopwt(dia Britanniga, of 1'1,97: described thistempeFament as ''better adapted. than any other
ro;keyed'instruments, whenidtiefly designed,fof!lesson.:playing, or playing without accompanymt,mts. " 2 .The diesis
tl:tat causM;G'-sharp E~ftat to be a wolf fifth in· Ho}den~s temperament was divided .into two parts, and it was shared
in<an equlil~beating manner between< the. two, fourths E~flat A-flat. (De-sharp G-sharp)and G-sharp C-sharp. 3
During the eighteenth century, tuners assumed that if two adjoining intervals of like kind were equal-beating or
if.they sounded identical in quality then they were ,also. eqqally tempered. Of course, today tuners know that this is
not tru~; In any case~ by dividing the wolf (oi diesis) into two parts o:r destroying the wolf by sharing it among at
least. two fifths, thesetwonew highly tempered fifth~ (ol' semi-wolves). were considered within the range of tolerability,
and therefore they couldi be usedin tile: petfortnan~eOf mu~ici, Because of this~ some eighteenth.,. and nineteenth-century
m,usiCi~s considered ~at1 100 percent of harm~n~ frqm. piodified meantone temperament was tolerable and therefore
··us1lble'fn' th~ manfler':ot'W~U tempenm:tette Jtrdgment mt this' point' is upc'to the individual.'· The two highly tempered
fifths were wide; causing hai'nlonic waste~ The' harmony in the rarely used keys. was very harsh and quite dissonant
but at the same time. was not impossible.for mod~lation.
·~ompared· to the modified meant()ne temperament known as 'le temperament ordinaire'. from early eighteenth-century
F:rancef as published by Jean,..Le Rondn~Aiembert.inX1,Sl" the English modified equal·beating one-fifth syntonic com-
ma meantone temperament. published in 1797, was superior in its harmonic form which adhered to the traditional
ni1e~ °.~tonality,, T~~,~ats:,were.,treatt~,~~~Qllalba:~~,,1Ui\fll~~,,(&,\l-IUllit~J:.~91~,i,,~.~~l !n9,§~J.;) The most
al'.t~e.i;tw~Jur,~ds~Ul;..tll~lalalisk:ta~tied,.tn~l!ntqne.,:~~~~nQll!s. dissommtas tl:tose in. ·Je tepiJ;!~fapient ordinaire.'
:However, die most altered fifth in the English modified meantone was at the extreme limits of tolerability, and it was
twice as dissonant a:s the most altered fifths in 'le temperament ordinaire.' The key-color co11trasts in.the English modi-
fi~d meantone temperament,were,:not,as'gTeat ··!:is in .~1e,t€1mperament ordinaire.'
This is no doubt the temperament that Alexander John Ellis described as still being used in England in the nineteenth
century after the practice of the so-called equal temperament had once been established and then later rejected by musi-
cians. Ellis wrote:
J\s regards Mr. Jame§ Broadwood's statement that equal temperament was in 1811 'in most general use' presuma-
bly in England, Mr; Hipkins has been at some pains to ascertain how far that was the case, and from him I learn that
Mr. Peppercorn, who tuned originally for the Philhannonic Society, was concert tuner at Broadwoods', and a great
favourite of Mr. James Broadwood. His son writes to Mr. Hipldn's that his father 'always tuned so that all keys can
be played in, and neither he noF I (neither father nor son) ever hdd with making some keys sweet and. others sour.'
Mr. Bailey, however, who succeeded Mr. Peppen:orn as concert tuner, and tuned Mr. James Broadwood's own piano
at Lyne, his country house, used the meantone temperament to Mr. Hipkins's own knowledge, 4 and no other. Not
one of the old tuners. Mr. Hipkins kpew (and some had been favourite tuners of Mr. James Broadwood) tuned anything
like egt1111temperainent. Collard, the Windes, Challeng~r, Seymour, all tuned th~ meantone temperament, except that,
like AmolcfSchlick, 15H (see p. 546d), tney raised the G-sharp somewhat to mitigate the 'wolf' resulting from the
Fifth Ecflat: G~sflarp in place of E-flat~ A-flat. Hence. Mr. Jam.e.s Broadwood qid not succeed in introducing equal
iith.~¢fitufy~ 6
g~nt~ry) in its
id<ider modem mean .~· ile'-gixth~ one-
.. i;se,v~ntb1 e~c. ;.. sygtqnic ot Qi~on ·,·t~inperament as
being only the OI)e-fourtl) synt9~···· ,,.. ... . a va ·........ · .· · ;• ...• < .·· . ·• ).torically, endless
varieties .of meantone temperrun~'1t.were·u.sedinc9P1t11oniprac e,
i·• 9uesho\lld understand that if cqinprninising.9,.~~~rpbetw,ee11 .;.sharp and E-flat was all that was done to "mitigate
• ~e wolf,'~ this w~~ld filJ! . have; y(<l~~~:I)~ the one-third syntonic comma meantone temperament or Pietro Aaron's
. o~e~fourth syntoniq coinina tn~n~p\\1~~P1~.~~~!Jlel1t.J~ tl;tese cases, G,-sharp E-flat would still have been a wolf; there-
.• !l?re" one also rteeded to flatten }S:"'iJatHn ot<t~t toitia.f(e <l•sh~.·Q'-f)at tolerable. This proves that Hipkins was not
1,s•;f~.(~mng1 t0Aan>n 's one-fourth syiltoh:fo co.ntitia meafitort;e tembi1ain~~t: Withlhe one-fi{th colIIDla v~riety, however,
· · ilie lowering rlf E-flat .was not necessary. and the diminished siXth G_.sliarp E-flat was just barely tolerable, according
yv
to eightee11th-~entury ~tandards. ri~ers continu~ t() J?\lblish .varieties of the modified one-fifth syntonic comma mean-
··t't'!li~'tempetrutfent· intolhe'iti1'e,eerttlft:~ittfiJ1i sO:"ffi~~lis•sufi . thetY\)e•of itieaitfone tewperawent referred to by Hipkins.
tfhe tuning of this. tempera'inefi~ is''.'~uilirt~; in'Se(ttion1 , · , ..·• .•. . .· .•. •• · · ·
The modified equal-beating one~fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament in the folfowing fotnt was published
in 1797 i.11.. ~e Encyclopaedia Britannica. 7
Monochord String. Lengths from C

c 500
B 533.3
B-tlat 559.1
A 597
G-sharp 632
G 668.3
F~sharp 712.9
F 748.1
E 798
E-flat 837.5
D 893.3
C-sharp 951.9
c lOOQi.
Table 65-1: The .M°'ditied Equal-beating On~-fifth Syntonic .comma Meantone Temperament of 1797.
·· ·c:fttt~Ji~vinglt·ira~ro·JA~7~2'*"•~·1JS'e(I:; in eatcutatin~tfus tables)
Major Thirds Sizes 11J. Cents Cents Wide from Just
c~ 390.623535 4.30982
GB 390;623535 4.30982
DP-sharp 390.623535 4.30982
AC-sharp 390.623535 4.30982
EG-sharp 403.31015 17.00643
BE-flat
11•sb~rp ·B.c:fiat
4.18.n2~>J
418.75293
J· wolf
diminished [
32.43922
32.43922
C-sharp F 418.75293 fourths 32.43922
G-sharp C 406.05632 19.74261
E~tlat.G 390,623535 4.30982
B-flat D 390.623535 4.30982
FA 390.623535 4.30982
*Fifths having a ratio 1.49627972 are more authentic, musically, than are fifths with a ratio l.49627787. See page 118.
. the. diminished s.ill.th Q-sharp .E-flat was reduced to being .11.13367 cents wide.r than pure. This was no longer con-
sidered a wolf interval although it was quite harsh. Sometimes it is called a semi-wolf.
11••••C~!:UD«te .tJ:ti$ .t\\Ms:l'...~.i!!t'f.ables ..lJ: 1..J.~.~~. 11-1, ~~=~·'''"~.~:~. 35-1, and 55-1 .
231
1:'he:ditni)li§.be<i§i)tt!t G-s~~J~Hlat:,wq~.~. t~}?ejp:g,Jl~.1A·S8~9e~~§1Wider Vi~. pure. This was no longer con-
sidered.a. wolf interval alth<1ugh it·was quite; .· .· l Som~tinie~ it is salie<i a semi;iw<>lf•.
0 1
Compare this table: with Table~ 35~2 ~41 65· J..
l'he largest thirds
· the same size

G11c···.·.····.·.·· '.
~ ~.i;.......~... ---~..,.
tile same size
)$'
DF11 AC#
Figure
•..
6S-t! The Form of the· .Moilified
,., .'!;;
Meantone Temperament of 1797.
Compari wiili F1suie§'•ts;2·· and ss. t·

NOTES
l. Holden, An Essay Towatds A Ratjona£ f~WJ ()f M~{I~ 141.'.
2. .Encyclop<1.ed.i(I, J!rltan.ni~u~··~'tl ~it:'li'.tt . .'IJ.fl'fffts, · eS:, And Miscellaneous Literature, 3d ed. (Edinburgh: A. Bell and
c. Macfarquhar, 1191); 12:140, "$Ccortdcolumn" o chart called "Tempered Scale."
3. Ibid.
4. Affted James Hipkins (1tJ26~ 19<>3)was the most k:Jiowl¢~eable piano technician of the nineteenth century.
5. HelniliQltz, On the Sen.sr;tions <lf T~f.1.'f,1 .~~$..1 ..•... ••. " ' .•
6. Arµolt Schlick; Sp/e.gel'!(fii:i:~rgeln:t.<l~'lt.er U.ttd Qtg<lti#(~fi]Main2: Peter SchOffer. 1511 ).
7, Et1:cyt;lgpat1JIJ.g JiritanniM:.. J:d.1;191·• . ll;l~- ,,. · . "' ...
. ':tJAt.:BEATJN·G
'"'·ru ~· ~~i.ff~···~0:.rii.t
~~·~~Q;im
·s
·· ·
Tuner the following quarter notes in the order written.

This beat frequency is essential.
TuneCto C A must be absolutely correct.
statrdilrd pitch. Tuned
·!
Tune
just
!
!6.5
13.0
before
l Equal beatirtg
3.3 3.3 6.5 3.3
II~ ti 1 13 . . . ~ 113 II
t
Sharpen l
Crescendos denote increasing beat frequencies. Temper E from both C and A so that the major third
C E beats at exactly the same speed as the fourth E A.
Tuned
Tuned
T
befot"e
Equal beating
6.5
i
Flatten
233
1
Temper B froflll ~th·~~~ B so that themajo,r thjrd (113, ~!!~.a~ ..
exactly the same s!Jeed as the fourth B:lt ·Both inter\tlilsmilsfoo Wide~
Tuned
before
2.4 3.3 l Equlil beating
1.9 1.9 1.9 l.6

3.9
3.3
ll~ J i Ilg J IJ 9 19 9 !~ g
i =====- =====-
Tune
just
Tuned
before.
13.0
9.8 6.5 l 4.9 5.8 6.5 5.8 6.5
Flatten
Tuned
before
l Equal beating
2.9 2.9 5.8 2.9 1.5 I.6 1.9 2.2
J
···~
.'ftJill-~~.Jly~~~ff~ aj\~.g ~Q:iji~~iP:eml,ljqr tllmt.at;; l.looats at

. e~act~W~.sllffl~ speed l!S th,e f9\1!1b-P .G. Both intervals 11mst be wide.
Tunecl··
before
l
Equal l!eating
7.3 2.4. 2.2 4.9 7.3 6.5

7.3 3.3
Ii J II
i
Tune
=
just
Tuned.
before
l Equal beating
3.6
3.6 7.3
3.6 i.6 1.8 1.9
n~ a #J liM ~d I~ #~ IJ ij J
,J
from
Tell1J:lerfflf botl\ 0 anCf1'f~~ that the majcit third D:Fjf beats at
exactir the same speed as the fourth F~ B. Both intervals must be wide.
3.6 3.9 4.9 13.0

3.3 3.3 3.6 4.9 5.5 5.8 9.8 10.9
·! #====~i Ig ij
'--====··.·.
· ... J II
235
Temper Clt from both A ll11,dFlt ~o thll.t ~e f!flljor.tltjtd .!\ Clt ~t~ ai
•exactly the same speed as the fourth Clt F#. Both intervals must be wide,
A'wide 7:6 r11tio Tuned

small minor third before
! 13.0
l
~lJ ;#; q~J
2.9 7.3 8.2 9.8
II J
t
Tune
just
Tuned
before
.2.9 2.4 4.4
•.. ~
4.4
II J J IJ
t
Flatten F until the major third FA
beats at exactly the same speed as
the fourth AD. Both intervals will
be wide..
2.9
u. d
2.4 2.6
2.4 2.6 2.7
md lg
i
Tune
just
Tuned
befot¢
3.3 H 3.6
5.8
4.9 10.9 11.7 13.0
l
I~~ §i l#i ~j J llp #J
~
i
Tune
just
Equal beating
8.7
Tuned
before·
Equal beating
3.9 2.3 2.4

2.2
Flatten Eb until the major third Eb G beats at exactly the

.wm
saffie .~~!!1Lit~Jh~ fuurth G <;:, .J;l~~ intervals ~.~!~~:.
237
..
'Tuned Narrow
.Before Tuned
before
! !
J: 8.0
8.0
4.0
2.9 8.0 4.4
l
Temper G~ from both ii~ and C# so that the t'o~rth E~ A~ beat~ at exactly
the sarrle speed as the fourth 0# C~. Both interyaJs must be narrow. Tune
just
Narrow
Equal beating
2.9 3.9 ! 4.4 5.8
§~.
4.0 11.9
I~
4.0
..
I
····~· ...
II
Narrow Wide
Check the following intervals as a final test between G and D.
Just intervals
66. Tuning 'Fhe M'Mified Mecintone Temperament Of 1797:
Equal beating
2.3 2.4 2.6 2.7 2.9 . .·. -----i
~· >~ ~gfttT}. f-~~-,J j

i 1 Wide
Wide
Fourths wide and narrow)
Narrow
Narrow Narrow
Wide major thirds

r
4.9 5.5
4.4
Wide sixths
7.8 8.2 8.7

6.5 7.3
4.9 5.5 5.8
A wide 7:6 ratio
small minor third
Equal-beating tHads
The major thirds ~d fom1hs beat at the same speed.
The ifi~i9t ~1:~ms ~~.~)~1$.~!bU~l5~ ftS fast.
II
Table 66-1: The Ditf'erences in.¢ents between the Notes of Modified· Meantone Temperament of 1797 and Equal Temperament.
(Fifths having a ratio of 1.49627972 were used in cakulating this table.)
Equal Temperament Modified Meantone Rounded Figures
A zerb difference 0 cents
G-sharp plus 0.97603 + 1
G plus 4.68823 + 5
F-sharp minus 7.03235 - 7
F . plus 9.37646 +9
E minus· 2.34412 - 2
E~flat plus 14.06470 +14
D plus 2.34412 + 2
C-sharp minus .. 9.37(i47 - 9
c •••·•W·••·•••• ••·• ..1. s:•Aw·••w···""1··n~,,~~
.l)U . . .. ·t, ;IN
..· +1
B minus· ··· · ;1[6'8823 - 5
B-flat plus 11.12058 +12
Compare this table with Tables 12-l, 16-I. 18-1, 19-1, 30-1, 36-1, and 56-1.
Table 66-2: The Dift'erences in Cents between the Notes of Modified MtlBDtone Temperament of 1797 and Equal Temperament.
(Fifths having a ratio of :t.4962771J7 were used in calculating this table.)
J£qual· Temperament Modified Meantone Rounded Figures
A · zero difference 0 cents
0-sharp plus 0.97670 + I
G plus 4.69251 + 5
F-sharp .JWDUs 7.03877 - 7
F plus 9.38503 + 9
E minus 2.34626 - 2
E-flat plus 14.07754 +14
D plus 2.34626 + 2
c plus 7.038.17 + 7
B minus ···4:69251 - 5
B-flat J?lus l.!,73129 +12
t? ''-"''
~~- _,)\=:\>-
!-;,; ":'.-:;-
67
THE MODIFIED ONE-FIFTH SYNTONIC COMMA
MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT BY WILLIAM HAWKES IN 1798
A ccording to John Farey in 1806, a modified one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament by an anonymous
author was printed by the publisher Cawthorne in A Treatise on the Theory and Practical System of Music dating
from 1798, and this same temperament also appeared in Theory of Music by William Hawkes, published in London
by Clementi and Company of Cheapside in 1805. 1 The logarithms of the temperament are found in John Farey's article
"On Music, " 2 and mathematical specifications in another form are in an article Farey wrote in 1808. 3
The Hawkes temperament was the same as John Holden's regular one-fifth syntonic comma meantone temperament
published in 1770 except for the tones G-sharp and E-flat. The tone G-sharp was tuned higher so that it could make
a better dominant leading tone into the tonic A minor triad. The tone E-flat was tuned lower so that the wolf diminished
fourth BE-flat could serve as the major third BD-sharp in the needed dominant triad for the tonic E minor triad, although
BD-sharp was still extremely harsh. The traditional wolf G-sharp E-flat was tamed enough that it could be used in emergencies.
William Hawkes must not have been aware of the English modified meantone temperament published in 1797 in
the Encyclopaedia Britannica. The Hawkes temperament was primitive by comparison. His semi-wolf G-sharp E-flat
was more and he had one extra wolf major third. His temperament tended to be more like a regular mean-
tone temperament than like a trne modified meantone temperament. (Compare Tables 65-2 and 67-1.)
In 1806 John Farey complained that Mr. Hawkes
has left his readers without any directions for tuning fifths one-fifth of a comma flatter than perfect, as required in
the tuning of his system, except the judgment of the ear, which is to the purpose. To those who wish
to adopt or try this, or indeed any other tempered system, I recommend a careful study of that excellent work, Dr.
Smith's Hannortics, and the article in the to the third edition of the Britan-
nica, where the correct is and
In other words, for any temperament system that was expected to be theoretically correct, one was expected to calcu-
late his own beat This problem was solved for the Winiam Hawkes when Mr. J. Barraud
published the frequencies and beat frequencies for all the minor and major thirds and sixths as well as fourths and
fifths on 9, 1811. 5 were calculated for the old standard of middle was 240 Hz. On
the following pages, the best frequencies are for the modern standard of
Table 67-1: The Modified One-fifth Syntonic Comma Meantone Temperament William Hawkes.
(Fifths having a ratio 1.49627787 were used in calculating this table.)
CE 390.61497 4.30126 = Ys syntonic comma
GB 390.61497 4.30126
DF-sharp 390.61497 4.30126
AC-sharp 390.61497 4.30126
EG-sharp 394.91623 8.60252
BE-flat 414.46880 28.15508
B-flat 418.77006 32.45634
discords
F 32.45634
c 414.46880 28.15508
The se'riti-woifG~§harpE:flatwas 15.l513l cents wider than pure. Compare this table with Tables H-1. 15-3, 17-1,
28~2, 30-2, 35-2, 55-1, and 65-2.
The targest thirds
.9
~~----tile sartie size ~----~
:ntats' hnd 4 sharps
the· same •size.
FA <CE oa m=# AC#
Th~ imaJtest thiros
FiW!re 67-I: The Form of the Modified Meantone Temperament by William Hawkes.
NOTES
..... l, .f!!t~Y~ "'~.tl.._., M'!l.!!l~.i?~~,JZ!,....
2. Ibid., 173.
:t. ~()~ll :t:arey, ''On ~~..two Sy~fems o~ ¥u,~4c~ Temp¢raµi~pH~~<>,tplllende4 J>y §I!~~ S~op~i-¥r. H.awke~ 's $ystem, &c.,"
., .,,.,Jb~,J'.4tlos;!JPft.i£q~.M9&~iiU.'1:.~9,(f¢llJ!tm~¥aY!;, .§. ·.
4. Farey, ~·on Music;~! .175,
~- J. J{l,l,l1:'!lqd, ''.tln the~ts ()f M~. l{awkes'.sJ>ouzeave, or common System of Twelve musical Notes," '!he Philosophic(Jl Magaijne
· 31 (January-June HU}); 128-29. ·
·Tune the foUowing quarter notes in· the order written.

C A must be absolutely correct.
Tuned
TuneCto before
standard pitch.
1 J
6.5 l Equal beating
3.3 3.3 6.5 3.3

Sharpen
Tempe.: E from both C and A so that the major third C E beats at
exactly the same speed as the fourth E A. Both intervals must be wide.
T111J!ld
t;ef3t~ Tuned
before
l Equal beating
6.5 6.5 6.5 3.3 1.6 l

IJ 3 'J J i 11; g 4
i
Tune
i
Flatten
243
= i
Te111per !J frl>Ill both .9 and E so that the major third
GB beats at eiiif'ltly tile same speed as the fourth B E.
Tuned
/before
4.9 2.4 1.9 2.4 3.3 2.4 3.3 l

lf~ g J Ig g ~ '.J ~· llJ J
= = i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
1.6 1.9 6.5 9.8 l

[['J
~ J
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
5.8
6.5
5.8 6.5 l
I~ J II] &
J
. . .. ..
i
TemperDfmm both
Bfi. lllld 0 s~that the major thlid Dir ·Ii> belltS at exactly the
same speed as. the fourth D G. Botb. intervals must be wide.
68. TuningHawkes's Temperament In ·The Theoretil'ally Correct Manner
Equal beating
-----i
!14~ · ~~tj J--tf=j-=fE_JL~

-====-
1.9 2.2 2.4 2.9 3.3 2.4 2.9 3.3
!~~ g
1---- -
~ d ~
*t &1--~--=j
Tuned
before
6.5 7.3 9.8 l Equal beating

,----1
2.2 2.2 1.3 1.7
·~ =i···- ,--.---"-'---llLJ-------+-d 11==d--- tf~--]

i
Flatten F until the major third F A beats at exactly the
same speed as the fourth A D. Both intervals will be wide.
1.3 1.5 l.7 1.9 2.4 4.4 4.9
--
--=:::::___ _ _ _ ,_
Tuned
before
F,qua! beating
1 ,------------i
7.3
7.3 2.2 2.4
3.3
4.9
Tune
just
3.3 3.6 4.9
1.6 u 1.l}!l'~ 3;3 3.6
~1 43 ij g I~ ~s IJ ···~·
..
#@
Tuned
before
5.5 .5.8 9.$ 10.9 l

II~
i
Temper C# from both
••·v?!!~~ ~~~%f~t: tlttt~t~sl\:~!tl!~~te same

, Equal ~!1ti1!~ ...
'E1 2;7 5.S 2.7 2.4 2;7 2.9
ll~#J H lij #J lg H g 3
A wide 7:6 ratio
small minor third
2.9 7.3 8.2 9.8 10.9

!
11.4
&J . .•. •.·. .. ·.~· II

,. l
Tune
just
Tuned
befote
2.4 2.6 2.1 8.2 8.7 9.8 l

U~:g 3 ril liJ ~ Q
Equal beating
5.5 5.5 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.7 1.8 1.9
;~
:~;·1~·]1· .· ·. ~·=··.
'· ·~
'; ;.· .·~ .·
IF
... '
. ..·.•·.·.·.·;:
...·..·.·.•·.·.·...·.·.·.··•···. .·.·.·.·...•.·.······················.#··
·... ..· .. ,......•....··.··
·= '· ·.·.·.·.=r
·.····"···g·
..·.···•···•·.··.. .·· .· ·1'.'.·~ · · .· =.
'' . ~· ·.·.· =~.
.. ·· .#··· .··.' .
Tuned
before
3.3 3.5 3.6
. . . .,.#
Tune
. ,;:J1j~(
247
.• .;...;.-=====
1
'ftilm;E~ asa11tst~with theD.~ abOve,
lll:ia also aS' re just fi>lli'tlf wiffi'theli~ 1*tow: · ·
Tulied
.before Just Semi-wolf
Equal beating
1t7
11.1
!
0.0 i0.9 7.8 8.2
,J .•.
Tune
=
just
Tuned
before Just
7.3
9.2
!
0.0 9.2
Equal beating
9.2
,j;flfl,;\h;<<\\\'''i';<e'/'k(.,\-,.·, \,·,~···Al<i<-'if"W>f<"'°·'·' '',,, •
IJjli.'..
''"":'·' ,
<:r ,
Tune
just
Semi-wolf
Wide 7:6 ratio
small minor thirds
11.7
9.2 9.8 11.4 11.6
.Wide fourths
3.3 3.5 3.6
. . . 4.4 4.9 '
:r~s ~r ,i i ;J u; #i ~J ~ ~J ~i
J
Wide
Narrow
Wide major sixths
ti l
I
~ua{-beatlng triads
· ··· · · ··· · ·· ilie~~~.~~<J.
e11Hast.
Table 6~ h
'
l ~ a J
''" '.'<,. ',
The Differences in Cents between the Notes of the

#''
II
•Williiutt Hawkes.ModiffedMet111t9n~ Temperame11t and Equal Temperament.
(Fifths having a ratio c)f l.49627787 were used in calculating this chart.)
Equal Temperament Hawkes Temperament Rounded Figures
A zero temperament 0 cents
0-sharp minu§. 1.43003 - 7
0 plUS\ 4.69251 + 5
F~shaip minus 7 .03877 - 7
F · plus'. 9;38503 +9
E minus 2.34626 - 2
E-flat plus 9. 77628 +10
D plus 2.34626 +2
C plus 7.03877 +7
B minus 4.69251 - 5
B-flat v • plus''''"'"''l·l?/13129 +:1:2
Compate this tab.le with Tables 12-1, 16-1, 18-1, 29-1,. 30-1, 36-2, 56-1 and 66-2.
THOMAS t OUNG'S REPRESENTATlVE
EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY·· WELL. TEMPERAMENT OF 1799
T homas Young (1773-1829) was a natural philosopher, physician, writer, administrator of science, and master
of many languageS:. He became one of the first to translate Egyptian hieroglyphics. Most of his scientific work
w:;is in physiological optics where he is famous for his undulatory theory of light. As a gentleman member of high
society, his interests included music. In this field he mastered acoustics. He studied the works on temperament by
Atistoxenus, Pythagoras, Zarlino, Sauveur, Robert Smith, Kirnberger, Sulzer, Marpurg, and "other German writers."
Considering the thoroughness with which Young investigated and studied other scientific areas, the "other German
writers" no doubt included Neidhardt and Werckmeister. Young's writing reveals a complete understanding of tem-
perament and its effects on music performance. He also had an understanding of the practical considerations in tuning
keyboard instruments.
In July 1799, Thomas Young submitted his paper ''Outlines of Experiments and Inquires Respecting Sound and
Light" to the Royal Society. This was read to the society in January 1800. 1 Within this paper there was a section
titled "Of the Temperament of musical Intervals." In the first two sentences, Young explained that temperament is
necessary. He wrote: ''It have been convenient for practical musicians . . . if three times the ratio
of 4 to 5, or four times that of 5 to 6, had been equal to the ratio of 1 to 2. As it happens to be otherwise, it has
been much disputed in what intervals the imperfection should be placed. " 2 How could one explain the necessity of
temperament more simply? Young's second sentence is the basis of all history.
Thomas Young used William Jones's term 'equal temperament' from 1781. Thus, it required about eighteen years
for the term to become established in common practice. In Plate VII Young furnished logarithmic numbers with visual
circular comparisons intonation, equal Young's temperament, transposed Vallotti t""'"""''""'-
Smith's
teriiperamenC3 Evidently, the term 'ml:anfofte was stln not invented. called it ''the
meantones." He also referred to it as "the 'sistema participato' of the old Italian writers."
At the beginni.11g of the nineteenth c;entui:y, meantone temperament was "still frequently used in tuning organs. " 4
The practice of wen temperament on harpsichords pianofortes was "almost universal. '' 5 temperament in
1800 was still impracticable and impossible to attain on keyboard instruments "for, although many have pretended
to an equal temperament, yet the methods which have to attain it have defective. " 6 Thomas
Young was eminently qualified to know these facts. He was aware of the latest acoustical discoveries. Evidently, by
and were beginning to consider using equal temperament on pianofortes. In the 1807 edition
Young's paper, added that equal temperament was excellent for fretted. instruments like the guitar. 7
Thomas Young's reasons why the system of well temperament was ''the most desirable'' compared to all the others
including equal temperament were written as follows: The preference for well temperament rests
on the similarity of its theory to the actual practice of the best instrument-makers. . . . [Also,} the opinion of the best
practical authors. is, that the difference of character produced by a difference of proportions in various keys, would
be of considerable advantage in the general effect of modulation. But, when it is considered, that upon an average
of all the music ever composed, some particular keys occur at least twice as often as others, there seems to be a very
strong additional reasmi for making the harmony the most perfect in those keys which are the most frequently used;
since the aggregate sum of all the imperfections, which occur in playing, must by this means be diminished in the greatest
PQ$Sible degree,. and the diversity . of character at tbe same time preserved. Indeed, i~. practice, .this method, under
gifferentmodific~tiqns, has been almost. u11iversal. $
we find th¢ stat~m,ent: '~JJ1e Jourth iS, so1n~~imes re~koned a Concord, and sometimes
in a transitional peripd ofd~y~lopment between discord and ccmcord, By I 799,
that consisted of a circle of fifths and fourths. 12 It was the first bearing plan
mc:mc1e .,,..",,.,, ..,n,,.•o"'t"""' · 1Hs listed below in modem form with correct note spellings.
Tune to pitch. Tuned Tuned

before before
l ~e
l l
~~: n
e
~.o
tzn ~e
~1U
*rr n 0
n
Without using fourths or major thirds, bearing plans were a minimum of eighteen notes wide. The basic abridged William
fe
II
Holder bearing plan was nineteen notes. Occasionally, eighteenth-century bearing plans were twenty-four notes wide.
Thomas Young, by using fourths as inverted fifths, reduced the bearing plan to twelve notes which is the smallest
number possible. By reducing the span of the bearing section to the minimum, the efficiency of tempering was greatly
increased. One could make interval comparisons within a close proximicy, and this increased perspectives. Also, one
did not need to retune the many octave duplications while· refining the temperament or correcting errors. Both speed
and accuracy were thus increased.
Thomas Young gave important advice concerning the tuning of fourths; that is, fourths should never be narrow;
they should be either just or wide. 13 No twentieth-century tuner would consider using bearing schemes without fourths.
Many of the bearing plans for the theoretically correct versions of the historical temperaments outlined so far in this
book have included fourths. During the eighteenth century and before, none of these fourths were used, but twentieth-
century tuners need the utility of the fourths in order to easily imitate the effects that eighteenth-century tuners acquired
by other means. Twentieth-century tuners lack the require.d environmental conditioning for using the original seventeenth-
or eighteenth-century methods without fourths.
Thomas Young was concerned about the practicality of tuning methods. He was even willing to sacrifice some of
his theory in order to p\lblish tuning instructions that were easy to follow with consistent results. After outlining the
idealistic perfection of his representative temperament, Young then wrote, "In practice, nearly the same effect may
be very simply produced, from C to F, B-flat, G-sharp, C-sharp, six perfect fourths; and
G, D, A, E, B, F-sharp, six equally imperfectfifths, 14 Plate VI, Fig. 52." 15 The "Plate VI Fig. 52" referred
to the bearing plan outline(f above. Notice Young's reluctance to give up the centuries-old spellings for
the short keys which were all flats as Young tuned them. Young's sentence above should have read "C to B-flat,
six fourths and ''
thl:oretli~altv ''"""i·prt version of Young's ' temperament above ·was identical to the the-
oretically correct version of Antonio Vallotti's temperament described by William Jones in 1781 except that it was
transposed upwards a fifth. Therefore, Young's "simply produced" is named 'the Vallotti temperament
as Thomas Young it.' Vallotti because the tuning fork was in common use, and this
was another of Young's considerations for practicality. The results were that the harmonic balance was distorted a
little. (Compare Figures 51-1 and 69-1 of the This, in 71-1,
are the sacrifices that Young exchanged for practicality and easy tuning.
During beat frequencies and testing intervals were still not mentioned. Therefore, Young's "simply
produced'' VaHotti transposition really was easier to tune at that time. Now, however, when one can use the twentieth-
century techniques, the original idealistic representative Young temperament is actually easier to tune in a theoretically
correct manner than the transposed Vallotti.
In this book, The VaHotti temperament as Young tuned it is given first in Table 69-1 and the pages following. After
this, the idealized representative temperament of Thomas Young is outlined. Both temperaments are given in the theo-
retically correct versions but Young's original bearing is not followed. More efficient modern bearing plans utiliz-
ing techniques are used for more exact results for the benefit of modem tuners.
·~
l~~~i~~~·
11.59~2~
21.50629
21.50629
21.50629
17.59629
13.6S.629
•.·... ::\9;?7t$28 .
5.86628
the; aame site - - - ; : , . BO#

s flats and 5 stiarps
the .same size

2 flats ,anc;t 4 sharps
FA t.hei..same. size
1 flat and 3 sharps
Figure 694: 11te Form of Tnmspased Vallotti Well Temperament Tuned by 1h4Jmas Vonng~s R:ulf8.
1:he plltp(jS~ Of this teffip~~~rit'~W~~ easier funirig;' lioweVtft, the original balance between flats and sharps was
~~stroyeo (see Figure ~1~1). For the greatest perfection possible, see Figure 71-1.
· Compare with Figures 20-1, 24._1, 26.:1, 39-1, 40-1, 46-1, 51-1, and 57-1.
NOTES
) ..'l:tiqw.as )'qp~s~.':Ql,l!lt11esofE.xp¢rifuqrlts.$11d lrlquirie~~~~~~~ting Sound and Light," Philosophical Transactions 90, Part
1 (January 18oi:J): 106-5<1
2. Ibid:.~ 143 .
. 3•.;.lbfd::.,..•l50f.Jig.. 53.. . . . .
4. Ibid., 150•
............... .,.~,J!~i~t,.l:+5'
69. ··Thomas Young:v EigftteentM3entury Temperament
''Qf the'femper~tmt qf musical Intervals,'' ACourse of Lectures on Natural Philosophy and the Mechanical
Johnson, 1807), 552.
8. Young, of Experiments and Inquiries Respecting Sound and Light," 144.
9. Ibid., 145.
10. Ibid., 146.
11. Bland, New Instructions For Playin$ the Harpsichord, Piano-Forte or Spinnet, 13.
12. Young, ''Outlines of Experiments and Inquiries Respecting Sound and Light," 150, fig. 52.
13. Ibid., 145.
14. Young here meant to include both fourths and fifths as verified in his figure 52.
15. Young, "Outlines of Experiments and Inquiries Respecting Sound and Light," 145.
255
70
TUNING THE TRANSPOSED VALLOTTI WELL TEMPERAMENT
OF 1781 ACCORDING TO THOMAS YOUNG'S RULES OF 1799
by 60 and listen to them· on the metronome.
Test
(just)
t
-----+----- ---+---~_..___·-f bt_. ~CLH t~
L.~·---~--·--·--·---------------------·-·---·--·····-··------·---------------·-··--·---·-----·--.!
Tuned
before
Test for zero beats.

---------~ --·-·-· ···-----·- • --- .c.. . ------.~--_,._,_,__~,-··-·-·--"• -- --·-~ __ ,____ ________ , ____ ,.., •"" ·- -~~~---~--------·~-----·-----1
Temper A from
i
both F and C# so that the major third AC# beats one and one-fourth
times as fast as the major third F A. Both intervals must be wide.
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
1.8 11.9 ! l.3 2.0 1.3 l.8 2.0
1r r
12.9
br ~r ll:f'
r
Temper D from both G and A so that the fourth A D beats one and one-half
times as fast as the fifth G D~ A D must be wide and G D must be narrow.
Tuned
before
ii
6.2 9.2 1.3 1.8
·c~c:1~~ ·. ~·
1.1
-'~!lJlP·!"'l·*''""'" ', , ,,
·r If If f
Sharpen
i
Tuned
before
8.3
l 1.5 2.2
r tf e r
3.3 7.4 11.9
4.9
___Jl~tf_ br
II -r ' ' If f
. Temper E from both A and Jl sQ tbat the
foUrth B E beats one ttlld one•half times as fasta~the
fifth A It B E must be wide; and A E mtm be IlllttOW.
Check the following interval~ as a n1lllitest wi.thlit the F to F octave.
Just intervals
1.3 1.5 2.0 2.2

I.1 1.8
n'= f
..
f. !F f f f
Wide rttajol'thirds
4.4 17.2
3.3 4.9
62
. .
9.2
11.5 12.5 12.9 . b
r ··~~· ! ~& r '·*

..... Wide majoqi<1,Ws .
5.5 12.9
6.9 11.5
-
Narrow minor thirds
13.8
7.4 8.3
. ····· ...................·. {i.;z."'•· ..... .
0 .·· , plus, . +4
F-sh~' i mffius'' . c'..2()
F plus +4
E minus -2
E"flat zero difference 0
1l plus l .95500 +2
C-sharp nlinus 3.91000 -4
c plus s.~§$00 +6
~4
B minus 3i: 91000
:B-flat plus 1.95500 +Z
Compare tftis table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1,41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1 and 61-1.
OF 1'799 tN tmi'.....~~,,.~~_. . ....,3.lutv ~'id.~
comet MAN~
by 60 and listen to them on the metronome.
Test interval
(Figures denote
beats per second) Tuned
TuneCto Test for equal beating,
l
before
l l
standard pitch. provided that O is in Tuned
reasonable tune (the beat before
l 4.1
speeds of E 0 and 0 E must
be slow enough to comprehend).
10.7
n2:f f Ir 11f r f 11F 85 '
i
Sharpen i
Tune
just
l Crescendos denote
increasing beat speeds.
Temper G# from both E and C so that
·" the ft!ajt!l'thW'lt~··e'ff!!ts' l'ine attd of!e-fdtittlt times as fast
a& the major thir& E G#, Both intervals must be wide.
Tuntid Tuned
before before
4.l
! !
r
10.7
#r· #[
8.5
M?r #r !f 11#r
'r I~F ~~
Test for zero beats

s.s
1! 1'f r
i
Temper D from both
B~ and F# so that the major third D F # beats one and one-fourth
times as fast as the major third B~ D. Both intervals must be wide.
Tuned
before
6.6 4.1 6.6

8.3
l
I! ~ '& 111 r
8.5
~
i
Temper 0 from both
C and D so that the fourth G C beats on~ and one-third times as
fast as the fifth GD. G C must be wide and GD must be narrow.
Tuned
before
1.4 1.8
5.3
8.5 9.3
l
f 1f ff tp 11 F j
Temper A from both
E and D so that the upper fourth A D beats one and one-third times
as fast as the lower fourth E A. Both intervals must be wide.
2.0 1.4 1.5 2.0

1.8
L5 1.5
261
The Perfection· Of Eighteenth~Century ·Temperament
8.8
I0.7 8.5 115
~-
8.8
-~~ it
8.5
~g ~b ~
Tuned
before
==±
'
Temper B from both F# and E so that the upper fourth

BE beats one and one-third times as fast as the lower
fourth F# B. Both intervals must be wide.
Equal beating
r-------1
~ ___,___·o.'------5----tt-1'""---os -~~ i=----~-~-~=-i=~==~i

Tuned
before
l 9.9 0.7 l.l
irx i--~~·~i~=l*· *==-:I-=·=[. ~

i
Temper F from both B~ and C so that
the fourth C F beats one and one-half times as fast as the
fifth B~ F. CF must be wide, and B~ F must be narrow.
0.7 0.8 l.O 1.1 11.5 1 l.8

Tuned
before
Equal beating
11.7 1 L8 11.8
Equal beating
r--
0.7 4.1
-------~-----------
----·-----· ---~-~------
~--·---·-------
Check the following intervals as a final test within E and F-sharp:
Just intervals
0.8 l.1
LS 2.0
1.5
Wide tnajot sixths
5.3 8.8 11.8

5.9 11.5
'f tr
71 ·. .3 ~.9
Narrow minor thitds
'
t
5.3 . ' tU .. 9· ...••••.. '·
f · ,~ br.·
Table 71-tt The Dii'ferences in .Cents between the Notes of
Theor4i)tfcally Corr~t Young Represen,ative Temperament a:11d Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperame:nt Theoretical Young Rounded Figures
A · zero difference 0 cents
a2sharp plus 2.07743 +2
G plus 4.15486 +4
F-sharp minus 1. 83257 -2
F plus 6.10986 +6
E nili1~~········2:01143 =2
plus 4.03243 +4
D plus 2.07743 +2
C"sharp plus 0.12243 0
c pluS' 6:23'229 +6
B minus 1.95500 -2
Compare this table wi'11',fables 22~li,.25-l, 21,,tJ.40-1. 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-l, 61-l, and 70-1.
Table 11~.z: Theoretfcally Correct Idealized Representative Well Temperament Tuned by Thomas Young's Rules.
CE 391.69029 5.37657 =~ syntonic comma
g;_sharp i~~·:~ci ~:~;~~~
AC-sharp 400.12243 13.80871
EG-sharp 404.15486 17.84114
· BD:sharp 405:98743 19.67372
F-s~arp A's~<lll'
or· G-~~flat 407 .8200&· •b· :H;50629 =one syntonic
comma
continued
)>,,,1,,,Gompare'thistabte with;ff~bl~s/:20·k24.:.1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-l, 57-l, 59-1, 61-2,. and 69-1.
1'f'fe' fargeSt' t~ird

,u. .
GbBb = F#A#
flat$ and ·11 sharps
"' ::')•"·''!•: .•. '
the same size

5 flat$ and 5 sharps
the same $ize -----~

4 {fat~and 4 sharps ~
Sl:
.s
3
ttte same size
fla~ and. 3 sharps
AC# I
5·
the '!lame size De# Ct.>
i\J"
2 flats anrl 2 sharps
I
0
.S·
the same size --~.,... GB · ·:Se
1 nat and i sharp ~·
~
d~.
~o'\!i
Figure 1:1;..~: The· F.,rm of· tile Idealized Representative, Eighteenthooeentury Wen Temperament Tuned
Young·~ Rb:feihi ther~htlJteti~any Qattetf Mlttttet: t'Nm 1799 is the Mt1st Pel'feet That·fs Possible.
'liy 'l'lium~
Compare with Figurts 20-1, :24:..t, 26-1, 39-1, 40-1, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, and 69-1.
265
F:.~~~~.~:~~~t"~t;i;:~~:·.~7e'>1: ~r.n~.=.· ~~~·.~
offend the nicest ear; E:G-sharp, and·A~flat:C, ~qq~; F-sharp:A-sharp too sharp by a comma; and the major thirds
of all the intermediate ke $ qi:ore or less perfect, as. they approach more or less to C in the order of modulation. " 1
(This temperament is. ou . in Section 71 of the present work.) A quarter of a syntonic comma was the magic number
used by the theorists for c~nturies. According: to Young~ .tll,e ni~jpr third CE being a quarter comma wide was represen-
tative of what the best instrument ma~ers. were.using in.11'19. Me .was accomplished enough in science and acoustics
th~t w~ c~. believe his jijdgm,~nt. The average Of the.~~nts-alteration figures for the major third CE. from all the tables
(not induding the B.ou1lilJutfourreenth~centrtrytefl1ijet,~ID,el1~l~:utlined in this book through 1799 is 5.50507 cents. This
is very clo.se to Young's quarter syntonic comma at 5.37657 cents,
The practice of well t~rllper1;1me1lt was almost uniwrsal during the last half of ttJ,e eigh~eenth century, but it was
~ft~n ~ritten that no tw~lt111e~~'lt111e.'\.~li ~~i~l!V':.~~·~~11%~~ t!~dit~gpal,style. ·l'~erefore, for th~ sake of authen-
ticity It must be actrno\Vl~Cf~tjd tll,at.~~ch . .·. Jeip:pered,: Mcordmg to his or her own ta~te .and experience rather than
to e5':act theory. As alle~ample,. in d.te twelve we1! teifiperaments outlined·tlms far, the major third CE has ranged
fro~ being 4.75996 centstci;•.o:2;S11'1 cents wide. '!'Ile major third CE has always been the most significant for deter-
mining the basic qul;llity ~nd col()t-c()11tr~~ts of the whole temperament. The temperh1g of CE was the focal point where
most of tll,e.. instit1.ctive.and aesthett£J'!~gments.were applied.
The form ofTh0mas Yo,ung's idealizec:hepresentative.~~mpetament was.the most perfect ever published both for
its conformity to the rules of modulation and tonality and also to the unequal design of the keyboard as it developed.
The basic desig11 of the keyboard is in(; major ' as lik.e'Yisein C major. Specifically,
noti~eiliat.w .. Qn;;:·"ra:·;~~ont~a.:··;mqueD;'~lt .. SC. es rom . ·p1votfoiies'DorG..:sharpthatwhenever
.. ·me1e1t'liancfp .~iitirnand'"ddesliEewise:·Atso, without exception, when the teft hand plays a white
ke,y, so ~~es ~ ~n Yo pel"a t all 9ft11e ;c()lltra~.-pairs Qf:,il}teitval~. ~k~n from the pivot tones
qfl)...()t;1,Q:\.sh.a; . ~.\t ..... :~~' .·..... ··.· !>•'··. 4'1.flatA.ini~.e~. Als~•.~~st.~.~iihaniequalsA-flatJHlat, FA-
tlat equals G~sharp 8; E sharp equals AAlat C, e c. The same holds true for all pairs of intervals centering on D.
Thus, in proceed,:ing in. contrary-tnotion Jrotn either D or G-sharp, the visual: a11d pl)yskia\ n~lati()pshtpsil}cluding the
sizes of paired intervals in the Young temperament are identical. The keyboard desi~n matches the Young temperament
interval design, and .this is why the ~9W1~teJ'1jte,tametlt 11C)nformed perfectly to the rules of modulation and tonality
asevideneedinFigu:re11 ..·1~Jttcontfa~ttothfs, equal temperament is atonal. It conforms to no tonality and is therefore
most':unnatutal as it is. applied to the modern standard keyboards. For equal temperament to be natural on keyboards,
thebl11ck keys nm~t a!tewate with white kt;!YS wit:ll~u.texceptions. Such keylmards appear as if a black key were in-
serted between E and F and also between B and C. .
Thomas Young'~ perfection of form can· be ~?thpletely preserved while amending Young's instructions in order
tocreate a set of universal rules whereby one~~nJt~J'1peraccording to one's own taste in an authentic manner. Young's
instructiort.thattherllajor third CE must be a quatteftomma wide is excellent if one is restricted to only one choice.
Ho\\feVer, this shQllld be amended to include all the. widths for CE ranging in beat frequencies from zero to seven.
Ibis. is.Iegitintate.~f~:C:the eighteenth. and nineteenth. centuries~ especially since.Young furnished no hints or instructions
tothefr own ell1pirically devel-
C should be the same size should
by . · ..•.. personal and instructions· in Section
73 is exceptionally to do. The easier a system of tempering is, the more one has in its likelihood of
having been in conunon pra9tice ill: the past, \ . x . : < .. ... .· .·••.. ·. . > . . . .
It does not matter how one tempers the major third CE, for as Thomas Young wrote, the aggregate sum of the
imperfections does not change, 2 Basically, if one tempers CE dose to pure, the siroplest keys will sound best, and
the whole temperament will contain the greatest key-color or modulation contrasts. If one tempers CE quite large,
the color contrasts are reduced, and pieces with many sharps and flats are more harmonious than otherwise. In Table
72-1, the amounts that all the major thirds are wider than just intonation are given depending on how many beats per
second wide middle C to Eis tempered to produce. The table is constructed considering that a standard pitch C tuning
fork is used and that the tones C-sharp, F-sha1J?, D-sharp, and A-sharp are tuned in just intonation from G-sharp. When
the.standard pitch tuning fork isused, Thomas Young's major third CE beats. at 4.1 per second. In the lower pitches
of Young's time, this was probably an even4 beats per second. In any case, the fifth column under 4 beats at standard
pitch represents a temperament very similar to Thomas Young's. (Compare with Table 71-2.)
Notice in the t~ble that the perfect harmonic balances are destroyed when one reaches 8 beats per second. The limit
for applying the rules at standard pitch without distorting the harmonic balance is 7 .4079 beats per second for the major
third CE. Thus, an infinite number of perfect-balance well temperaments is possible within the limits of CE beating
between zero and 7.4079 beats per second, The original Thomas Young major third CE was thus a good average be-
tween the extremes possible. The limit of7.4 beats per second conforms to the limit of vibratos for voices and stringed
instruments when they are musically played. Vibratos beyond that limit are offensive. Therefore, it is doubtful that
anyone in the eighteenth century who had acquired genuine taste in music would have allowed the major third CE
to beat much faster than 7.4 per second.
When one chooses to tune the major third CE completely pure in just intonation, the results are similar to a tempera-
ment described in 1752 by Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert. 3 Many modem harpsichordists are using this type of tempera-
ment, and they call it Prinz, Kirnberger III, or Aron-Neidhardt temperament. (For tuning the Prinz temperament, see
Sections 88 and 89.) However, by following the rules in Section 73 in the theoretically correct manner, superior har-
monic balance will result.
When one tempers CE to beat about 3.5 beats second, the results are somewhat like William Tans'ur's t"'"""'"""''-
ment if he had tuned in C rather than It is also a little like the D 'Alembert
as practiced by the British (see Table 57-1). If one tempers CE to beat about 4 beats per second, the results are most
similar to the Thomas Young and would be fairly similar to three varieties of Francesco Antonio Vallotti' s tempera-
ment presented in this work (see Tables 20-1, 51~1, 69-1, and 71-2). If one tempers CE to beat around 6 beats per
second, the results are a little like Peter Prelleur's temperament of 1731 (see Table 24-1). When one tempers CE to
beat roughly 7 beats per second, the results are a little like the temperaments of Rousseau and Handel (see Tables
39-1, 40-2, and 46-1), When one approaches 8 beats second, at the extreme limit harmoniousness for
are to the Preston around Tables and
From all of the above, it should be dear that by following the universal rules (amended Thomas Young rules), authentic
eighteenth-century temperaments can be easily and quickly produced by modern tuners. The infinite varieties that are
following these rules truly the of the whereby no two tuners tuned
exactly alike. (The rules or instructions are Section 73.) Following these rules results in theoretically correct tempera-
ments that are in the degree of for harmonic balance.
It is doubtful that any tuners in the past acquired the degree of mathematical exactness that tuners
easily manage; therefore, it would also be authentic to ignore all the instructions in Section 73 that request one to tem-
per a note between two tuned notes to the proportions. In place of the one could
apply the much easier equal-beating methods. The results are then a complete new set of an infinite number of excellent
temperaments. However, equal-beating temperaments tuned by these rules do not contain the perfect harmonic
balance that was specified by Thomas Young. The balances are good to but not as in the theoret-
ical temperaments. The closer to theoretically perfect the temperament is, the better the harmonic balance.
In conclusion, when following the instructions in Section 73 , one is free to follow them exactly as or one
may substitute equal-beating methods. Also, one is free to apply tempering methods in between the equal-beating methods
and theoretically correct methods. In the latter case, how to temper each note would be dependent on the aesthetic
taste of the tuner. This is art.
The Results of Tuning the. R~p~~sentative ·EighteeJ1th.(!entury Temperament
Ac,1mrdin1!!' to Own<PersonakTaste Wheli C•Sba:rp, F-S~arp~. D-Sharp,. and A~Sha:rp
A.re .Tuned in Just Intonation from G,-Sharp.
The Number. of
Beats per
Setmld for the
Major Third.
CE at Middle C -+ 0 l beat 2 beats 3 beats 4 beats 5 beats 6 beats 7 beats 7.4 beats 8 beats
Column Numbers -> I u III IV v VI vn VU.I IX x
Major· Thirds
CE 0 1.32294 2.64487 3.96579 5.28570 6.60461 7.92251 9.23941 9.77628 10.55531
GB 4.88814 5.54961 6.21058 6.87104 7.53099 8.19045 8.84940 9.50785 9.77628 10.16580
DF-sharp 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628
AC-sharp 15.15286 14.82212 14.49164 14.16141 13.83143 13.50171 13. 17223 12.84300 12.70879 12.51403
BG-sharp 20.52943 19.86796 19.20700 18.54654 17.88658 17.22713 16.56817 15.90972 15.64129 15.25177
BD-sharp 21.01786 20.68712 20.35664 20.02641 19.69643 19.36671 19.03723 18.70801 18.57379 18.37903
F-sharp
A-sharp 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629 21.50629
D-flat F 21.01786 20.68712 20.35664 20.02641 19.69643 19.36671 19.03723 18.70801 18.57379 18.37903
A-flat C 20.52943 19.86796 19.20700 18.54654 17.88658 17.22713 16.56817 15.90972 15.64129 15.25177
E-flat G 15:15286 14.82212 14.49164 14.16141 13.83143 13.50171 13.17223 12.84300 12.70879 12.51403
B-flat D 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628 9.77628
FA 4.88814 5.54961 6.21058 6.87104 7.53099 8.19045 8.84940 9.50785 9.77628 10.16580
CE 0 l.32294 2.64487 3.96579 5.28570 6.60461 7.92251 9.23941 9.77628 10.55531
this is a table of harmonic balances created when one tempers the major third middle C to E at various beats per
second from zero to eight .. The figures given are the amounts in cents that each major third is wider than a just intona-
tion major third. Compare this table with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 59-1, 61-2, 69-1, and 71-2.
The first eight harmonic balance columns are perfection, and they are all represented by Figure 71-1. Column IX
under 7.4 beats per second is the limit for the largest major third CE tuned by these rules while still creating an ac-
ceptable wen temperament. Column X represents an unacceptable temperament because the major third DF-sharp is
smaller than GB. Also, B-flat D is smaller than FA. Ideally, one should never allow the beats of the major third CE
to become faster than seven per ".........,"'"·
NOTES
"Outlines of Experiments and Inquiries Respecting Sound and Light," 145.
...
4'1
73
INSTRUCTIONS FOR TUNING THE REPRESENTATIVE
EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY TEMPERAMENT
ACCORDING To ONE'S OWN PERSONAL TASTE
All tempering variations in this section conform to Figure 71-1. Tune the following quarter notes in the otder written.
Tuned Test for equal beating, Tuned
provided that G is in before
reasonable tune (the beat
speeds of E G and G E must
be slow enough to comprehend).
---i
i
Temper E from C so that the major third CE Temper G~ from
sounds proper according to your taste (sharpen Tune both E and C so that the major third Ab C beats
or tune just). just one and one-fourth times as fast as the major
third E G#. Both intervals must be wide.
Tuned Tuned
before before
L J
By tuning these fourths and the fifth A~ El> in just intonation, according to Thomas Young's
rules of 1799, well temperament ls formed. By tempering these fourths slightly narrow and the
fifth A\, E~ slightly wide, modified meantone temperament is formed. (For tuning the
nineteenth-century Victorian temperament, temper these fourths the smallest perceptible amounts
r wide and the fifth A~ El> the smallest perceptible amount narrow. For Victorian temperament,
the major third CE must beat four or more times per second_)
Test fot zembea.ts.
=-----
Temper D from both B~ and F# so that the major third D F#
beats one and one-fourth times as fast as the major third B~ D.
Tuned Tuned
before before
l l
Temper G from both C and D so that the fourth G C Temper A from both E and D so that the upper fourth
beats one and one-third times fast the fifth G D. A D beals one and one-third times as fast as the lower
G C must be wide. and G D must be narrow. fourth E A. Both intervals must be wide.
Tuned
before
Equal beating
r-----1 l
l~~~f~-f~Jf~-*=~1=4{-==t=1
i
B from
intervals must be wide.

t
. .. . . . , ·. · . . .. . . .·.·... / . . . 'J'~mp~r Ffrom both
&~ rutd C sinliat tliiff'ounffC :ftbeat~Hi:tetand one~fialf times as fast
as the fifth. B~ F. C F must be wide, and B ~ p·must be narrow.
Tuned
before
l Equal beating
Jtflf .·11_8•. •. ~.~-J., . ·.-·~Jt~·····-·•""_!. •·.

.t
Tlme
just
i~r #r II
=
)his completes the beating section from E to F-sharp.
J <lhn R.o.bf·s·on·.· (1139~ 1805·)··.·. a pro·.fessor·o·f n. atural philo·····s·o.p.hy; at the University of Edinburgh, wa.s a prolific author
. of scientifiG works. He "'as the principal q:mtributor oi:!lrticles to the third edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.
As one of the<Jounders of tti~. Royal Society 0 f Edinburg.ht he becameits first secretary in 1183. He was 11warded
an honorary degree by the. College of New Jeirsey,. whieb later became ~rinceton University. In his early life he also
had a fiaval career. It was John Robison who wrote about the Newcomen steam engine and who inspired his close
friend James Watt to research steam engines.
In 1801 John Robison wrote an extensive and thorough articte ofi the 'Te:inperament of the Scale of Music' 1 that
was twenty-two large pages long in small, condensed print. It was published again in volume 4 of John Robison's
System of Mechanical Philosophy2 where it was seventy-five normal-sized pages long. This article was also included
in the 1803 American version of the Supplement to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, published by Thomas Dobson in
Philadelphia, This shows that the Americans were only two years behind the Europeans in learning about the most
recent·devefopments in natural science and the arts. John Robisofi•s article still existed in an abridged and edited form
in.tbeJ823 . siitth .edition. Qf .tbe E.ncyd()pt:Jedia. Brittmnic.4•. 3
In an explanation of how. specific numbers of vibrations per second could be created artificially by various devises
or machines and how these vibrations corresponded to certain musical pitches, Robison described the basic principles
underlying ~e modern electronic Hammond organ. On this idea he wrote,
The inteltig~li\headtt. will see titre an opening made to great additions to practical music, and the means of producing
musical sounds, of which we have at present scarcely any conception; and this manner of ~roducin~ them is attended
witllthe· pect1Har ady~rtfl'fge;··thatan·inStrttmenfiso ~nst11lef~·el!fn ,never'g6'0oo~'fttne in dte""smallest,degree; But
of,fltis en0ugh,at~ii:sent;}.~+
Perhaps if John Robison had notencoutaged,James Watt to develop an improved steam engine,: he might have inspired
him to frivent the Hammund type urgau insreatt:.
John Robison wrote:
To be able to tune a harpsichord with certainty and accuracy, seems an indispensable qualification of any person worthy
of the name of a 'musician.' It would certainly be thought ,an unpardonable deficiency in a violin perfonner if he could
not tune his instrument; yet we are well informed; that many professional performers on the harpsichord cannot do
it, or cannot do it any other way than by uncertain and painful trial, and, as it were, groping in the dark; and that
the tuning of harpsichords and organs is committed entirely to tuners by profession. This. is a great inconvenience to
persOQs residing in the country; ~d therefore many take lessons from the tlfofessed harpsichord tuners, who also profess
to teaih this art. We have been present durin~ some of these Ie~sons; but it did not appear to us that the instructions
were such a.s could enable. the scholar to Hine a,tdnstrument when alone, unless the lessons had been so frequent as
to form the ear to arr instantaneous jttdgntent oftune by the same habit that had instructed the teacher. There seemed
t0; be little principle that. could be treasured up and recollected when wanted. s
"tbl.s was ilie'lriipression iliat.fohn Robison acquired in I801 concerning the state ofilie art oftiinfog. As an accom-
plished scientist who had thoroughly studied Smith's Hannonies and who had applied Smith's theory of beats in acoustical
.eipetiments, John RoliiI<5ii ·may riot liave' appreciated tl:IF'iisp~Ci 6t te:inperrutteiit setting that was guided. by musical
. . ,.W'~erienceand~.the,~e&g,f'*mtJdul~tion,and·:tonalit~,rather"thml.e:l!.act mathetnatical. principles.'.~n al\Y Gaso~Sroith and
·R'cJ'Bisonlil.1\f.t)ft~ begi~~ifil'9f s~iettcfreP'tttelng·art iasetUng ~emperalfl~nt~:, lf~tdre ttte W'ritftl~s <lf ffi~se·· meit, beats
14. John Robison 's Proposal Thlit Harpsichords. And Pianofortes Should Be Tuned lJy Beats
temperament setting, The absence of exm;:t known beat frequencies was apparent to Robison when
he·'observed the harpsichord tuning lessons, and this was the basis of his statement that "There seemed to be little
principle that coukl be.treasured up and recollected when wanted." According to Robison, "To tie able to tune a harp-
sichord with certainty and accuracy'' required the counting .of beats. 6
Even though the ratios of equal temperament were well known by the since Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert's
Elemens De Musique was translated into English and included in the second edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica
in· 1781, the practice of equal temperament was still a failure in 1801. The reason was clearly the absence of any beat
frequency information in the D'Alembert treatise. Concerning this, John Robison wrote:
We shall only observe, that what is there delivered on temperament by M. d' Alembert, after Rameau, bears the evident
mark of uncertainty or want of confidence in the principle adopted as the rule of temperament; and we have learned,
since the printing of that article, that the instructions there delivered have not that perspicuity and precision that are
necessary for enabling a persori to execute the temperament [equal temperament} recommended by Rameau; that is,
to tune a keyed instrument with certainty, according to that system or construction of the scale. If such he the case,
we are in some measure disappointed; because we selected that treatise of D' Alembert as the performance of a man
of great eminence as a mathematician and philosopher, aiming at public instruction more than his own fame, by this
elementary abstract of the great work of the most eminent musician [Jean-Philippe Rameau] in France. 7
Equal temperament is the one temperament that cannot be tuned in any way except in the theoretically correct man-
ner by comparing the known beat frequencies. The purpose of John Robison's long treatise was to furnish a complete
background showing that beat frequencies can and must be used in a theoretically correct manner "with certainty."
Using this philosophy, John Robison wrote that "any person, of a moderate sensibility to just intonation, may, without
much knowledge or practice in music, tune his harpsichord with all desirable accuracy. " 8 This statement by Robison
marks the beginning of the separation between the professional tuner and the professional musician. In previous cen-
turies, the two professions had been inseparable. The same person was both a musician and a tuner.
Organs had been tuned in the theoretically correct manner since the publication of Robert Smith's Harmonics in
1749. At that time, the application of Smith's methods was considered difficult and impracticable on harpsichords.
(See page 93 of the present work.) The tuning of harpsichords and pianofortes by using only Smith's instructions is
still difficult and impracticable on pianos. Nevertheless, the purpose of Robison's treatise was to suggest that Smith's
methods could. and should be used on harpsichords and pianofortes. 9
The first section of Robison's treatise dealt with the basic acoustics of strings, and scales
with the ancient Greek theory created at a time when ''The attributes of the Divinity, the symmetry of the universe,
and the principles of morality, were all resolvable into the harmonic ratios." 10 This was followed by the acoustics
of beats and Robert Smith's formulas on how to calculate their frequencies. 11 Unfortunately, the beatings among the
nearly coinciding upper must still have been unknown in 1801. According to both Smith and Robison, all
beating took place only at the fundamental pitches which are the most difficult locations for judging beat frequencies.
one of the earliest He wrote, ' a
which has two to tuning both at once; the back unison of both notes
of the concord must be damped, by sticking in a bit of soft paper behind it.' ' 12 An important advance in tuning accuracy
was his recommendation to use the 4 to 2 ratio octave test in tuning octaves; that a fifth above an fourth
should beat exactly the same "This is even more an octave to g than can be estimated
by a good ear. " 13
Robison's 4:2 ratio octave test:
The 4:2 octave
Test for identical beat frequencies.

I
This is a4 2 octave because the fourth harmonic of the lower tone coincides with the second harmonic of
the upper tone. 1n modem which 4 to a
tables of would have been without a standardized
wen standardized !801. The for
Reg~rdles~~ Jfobi~on ~xglained. thatwhen thepitch~e"'.ia,ted from C 240 by;a,s.1lll1Ch.as a .. ''quartef of a tone,'' the
beatfreq~encytableS\,\rere sti)lvalid. Hewrote, ''Theusµal concert pitch and the tuning forks are so nearly consonant
m 240 pulsesc for C, that ~his process is scarcely necessary)' 14
The ''process''Robison referred to. was bow to determine the frequency of a tuning fork. He wrote:
We must know the number made in a second by the Cof our instrument. For this purpose we must learn
the pulses of our tuning fork. learn tl~is, a harpsichord wire must be stretched by a weight till it be unison or octave
below our fork: then, by aqding one-fqrtieth of the weight to.what is now appended, it will be tempered by a comma,
and will beat, when it is sounded along with the fork; and we must multiply the beats by 80: The product is the number
of pulses required .. And hence we calculate the pulses of the C of our instrument when it is tuned in perfect concord
with the fork. 15
The tuning fork and beat frequency tables being determined, the next task was learning to count the beats. For this,
Robison wrote,
This process of temperament will be greatly expedited by employing a little pendulum, made of a ball of about two
ounces weight, sliding on a light deal rod, having at one. end a pin hole through it. To prepare this rod, hang it up
on a pin stuck into the wainscoating, and slid.e the ball downward, till it makes 20 vibrations in 15 seconds, by compar-
ing it with a house clock. 1n this condition mark the rod at the upper edge of the ball. In like manner, adjust it for
24, 28, 32, 36, 40, 44, 48, viprations, making marks for each, and dividing the spaces between them by the eye, notic-
ing their gradual diminution.. Then, having cakulated the beats of the different Vths, set the ball at the mark suited
to the particular concord, and temper the sound till the beats keep pace exactly With the pendulum. 16
The numbers referred to the numbers of beats in fifteen seconds. Some of Robison's tables of figures were for beats
in sixteen seconds.
Without the pendulum, two men were required for setting the temperament or laying the bearings in the theoretically
correct manner. Robison wrote:
It may be proper to add to aU these instructions a. cau.tion about the manner of counting the clock while the tuner is
counting the beats. lf this is to continue for 16 seconds, let the person who counts the dock say 'one' at the beat he
begins with, and then telling them over 'to himself,' let 'done' instead of l7. Thus 16 intervals will elapse
while the tuner is counting the beats. Were he to begin to count at 'one,' and stop when he hears sixteen, he would
get the number of beats in 15 seconds only. We do not hesitate to say, that this method of tuning by beats is incompara-
bly more exact than by the merejudgment of the ear.17
Concerning the pn:tct1ce of well temperament, Robison wrote,
cmls111er:a1He c~1ef:e. of but slow oa§:Sa$!e 1n

info Nay, add, this cm.mot be deviated from without nec·nrnmo
very offensive, We may remain ignorant of the cause of this uniformity; but its existence seems to prove that it arises
from some natural .pi:inciple; and therefore it ought to be complied with, .and our should be accommo-
dated to it. The ofthls unifonnity in tht!c music of our times that the on some is much less
frequent than on others, and this frequency decreases in a certain order. Supposing that we begin on C. A piece of
plain music seldom goes farther than G and F. A little more and leads the D, or
&c. &c. It would therefore be desirable to adjust our temperaments so, harmonies in shall be the best pos-
sible, and gradually less perfect order of modulation. Thus we shall, in our general practice, have finer harmony
than if it were made.equal octave; because the unavoidable are thrown into the least fre-
quented places of the scale. practical musicians add to this, that by such a temperament the different keys acquire
characters, which fit each of them more particularly for the expression of different sentiments, and for exciting differ-
ent emotions. This is very perceptible in our harpsichords as they are generally tuned. The major key of A is remarkably
brilliant; that of Fis as remarkably simple, &c . . . . With respect to the variety of characters given to the different
keys, we must acknowledge the fact. We have tuned a piano forte in the usual manner; but instead of beginning the
process with C, we began it with D, An exceUent performer of voluntaries sat down to the instrument, and began
to indulge his rich fancy; but he was confoundedat every step: he thought the instrument quite out of tune. But when
he was informed how it had been tuned, and then tried a known plain air on it, he declared it to be perfectly in tune. 18
forte tuning instructions il:1duding how to determine the frequency of one's tuning
thatone ·
art
<!lets~ "· .,·rfi'"' ". ;; '!" ,, .• ; . :;·;f. .. " . . ..• ;;, . .. ... .. . . ()'
ison wrote fii~ pl\ilosopJ1Y in }$01. . gre~t sur1'rise is that equally tempered regulaf. syste~ !b~tih~ alJ-
d of was not the equal temperament of the future but the Pietro Aa1on meantone temperament ofJ52$• along
'(iottlij~q·.l(.eJ~e1'~s'Jate s;ventee~th-cen:tury meantone temperament using the ratio 1.495951506 fifths. Rol)ison
that tlte Ke11~t.'!tet!Itier~~~l1:~is ~ $f~atrepute. and indeed is generally practiced. " 21 He probablymearit prac-
on organs.but<rarely9~fiilrn~ktt~i~~~~~p · .~·. ifi..~~O\. R,ol,)ison gave all credit for the latter te1l1Pef~ent
ert S1!1ith rather thM to Kelter: ~o~i·s°'fi ..•....11 .... y~~'iJl,~e;.9!d'!Ja,E~q,~~ t~,l'~rtim~nt philosophy22 ·rather than
· .Phil~Phy. of IGnleau which Robison considered' 'a me~ whitri. '.1:t:t llithis wa}iJ,JoM 'Q:ob:isofiw~ ~;~~onism
extrem~ concerning temperament style. 24 Jle published beat frequencies for only the Aaron and Keller tempefa-
ts.2~ The~figureswet"e s.iven accordms to h()W tnanY. beats:; there sh,ould be in sixteen seconds. Rather than using
·son1s .m~tltods ·which are !~e(ficJe!J~ on ha(pskhords and: P,ianosfl. the reader is adv.i~eq. t<t f9llow the; illstrtictjons
epfes~Iit: w6rk ta·sectf8n ·12 f6f ilieA'ato~·1~mpefam~llt"~ttd til'S~~ddn·1g fof the l(.ellet fompefamt$br; f'oit com-
u~entlcity acc?fdifig to Robisorl*s \'itch standard~ one should use an antique C tuning fork at 240 Hz and then
:'. <· . the &ea~ fr~u~tic~ nufilb~rsltft}\is1'9~t by ~.26585: percent; . . . .. . .......... ·.. . • ,
... · '.·J~ addition ta the iloove, i:<oti!~<)lfP,l}tiI!s~e~.~fc!!te ~91:!0~.h()t,d sttjpg leiJgths and loga(ltltl;n ftgbl-e~ for t~~idel\lized
• r~presentative well te~p~rameri,t}tlat; 'fftO,mas ~otittg had: pubfished hi 180(>:26 Robison did not publish the b.e~t fre-
1!~~ci~~ t9~. you11s'p (e~~~.r~~P~~~~c~"'~e 11~· Yijti~~ .i.~ .....~~pi~?J!.~!Qt~: .• ·
qµ.
W~ presu~e;no! t~d~cid~· t~e fu~its~?~M~i ~eme~~~¢nt {Y<lung'sreptesentative temperrunentJ: Only. we think
tliat th~. tettip~~~ents of; S¥}'eral third~r whi~h ·g~()Ur yecy frequent)y, are ttitrch tQO great; and many instances Of the.
· 6th/which is ffet}tient in tii~ flat key; are. still more sttongty tempered •. Atemperrunent, however, which very nearly
cointideswiOtDr. Yqqng 1 s~ has $tt}at1 ~t>Utation on th~ con.tj~t}:qt, 'l'his i~tf.tt"l teml'¥(runent by ~r .JGrpbergher, pub-
lis)Jed at Berlin in nnf iti his tiook me. kunst des• reinen Saizes .in de.r Musik.. ·the elJ1inent mathematician. Major
"'.,.:Jlemt>l¢1\qffJll,\s.JJ!ldg..s.(l!!!~Jmll(l.U.!Wlil!!s.€l~ • ~rru!Jel,lt; l:\lld on tht"l subject \n gc.meral. J11 an essay
published in 171.5•. Bt}rlin. Di;.. Young's is ..cert • .2'1 ·
~"mstfttfollowed thi$,W~tln~·chart HstingiK\intberge~tsmonochord string lengths, 'Ihere were no beatfrequencies pub-

lisf1¢d for the Kirpbetger. ..... •. . .· ..· . . ....
·. The reason th~t ~pttison:preferred Ymmg;s tentperament to Kirnberge(s was no doubtbecause the fifths DA and
AE in the Kirnberger were tempered a full half of a comma each. This was exactly twice as much as the quarter comma
· · .~.~!1t'.J~·~\t:.. g!)~:;f~t:~~!i!'! · . . ·• ; $~~!ii'fi~tge1<tto~cj11t ~ontained.seven;By,thagorean type
. . '"'fir~ttfe' . g·f~~ntic ntitilted·t>nly three, lolui Rabison wrote that.. a.By,tbagorean third was
'.~!1 cii~i:orci~nce altogether int~!erable.,' ' 28 He preferred the old meantone temperame~l~that contai.ned no such thirds.
· ·':f:Ji:~.Kii'fi~e~~~rtem'1~ri).me11twasquite inferior compar~ to'fhomas Young's representative temperament in harmonic
'Druanc~ arid form:· Also; Kirntlerger"s teffiperament aru n()t ·~ontaln the fine gradations of major third s~es that are
found in the Young. The Kirnberger temperament contained shocking bumps or contrasts in modulation sequences.
(Compare Table 75-1 with Table 11-2.) · .
Tiberius. Cavallo (1749-1809) disagreed with Rol}iso11's philosophy that tlte best system was the one "which gives
the same harmonies on every note of tl\t} octa;ve.;" 29 111 1803, Cavallo wrote,
..
It must be observed, with respc;lct to.this temperament, that if the imperfections be divided equally, viz. in such a man-
ner as; to render tile effect thesame, whether one. or another of the 12 sounds of the octave be considered as the key
11ote; tlten that effect wo~ld n~t be ple~~ant~ d1e~efo~~ the practice. is to divid~ the imperfections, but to divide them
unequally; v.iz. so ,i~sto.render t11esect)n:<J:·third•. fo~filt,fiftft,·&c· of some key notes, in which most pieces or music
are Wt'itten, less imperfect than other$. An equal tempe!amerit, therefore, is impracticable; and it is impossible to fix
the limits of an t1nequal one, or such a$ may be commonly used; for almost. every tuner of instruments uses a tempera-
ment a little different ftom the rest, ofwhich he judges by his hearing only; and some capital performers sometimes
have· their· instruments tuned with a peculi~ temperament, for . the. purpose of giving .a greater.¥ff¥cUoJheir particular
compositions. Ihave a set of tuning-forks, for all the 13 sounds of an octave, which were tuned by one of the best
······~. . pianc:t.7forte.mak.er~.itl!2~n:. acc,~rfl!ng..1Q.J:1!~ ~empe~~~!.t!L!t~! 9n com ari them with instruments recently tuned
by other persons, I find that they veiyseldoni, if ever, agree perfectl ,31>.
Of Ninetee11thcCenturY Tetnperamenf
NOTES
l{cibi~l)ff, ''Tell]~epm~~nt ofth~ S~ale of Musk," 641-63. .. . . . . . .
John Robi1;on, Syst~~ of~echatri~(l.l fhUosophy (Edinburgh: Printed for John Mttrray. London; 1822), 4:376~451.
3. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 6th ed., 20:273-80.
4. Robison, "Temperament of the Scale of Musk,'' .650.
5. Ibid., 641.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. Ibid., 642.
9. Ibid., 660, column IL
10. Ibid., 646.
11. Ibid., 656~51.
12. Ibid., 660.
13. Ibid., 657.
14. Ibid., 658.
15. Ibid.
16. Ibid.
17. Ibid., 660.
18 .. lbid., 662.
19. Ibid.
20. Ibid.
21. Ibid., 660, column I.
22. lbid., 646, end of column II; 648, column II; 661, end of column II; 662, end of column Il.
23. lbid., 652.
24. See Muzio Clementi, Introduction to the Art ofplaying on the Piano Forte (London: Clementi, Banger, Hyde, Collard & Davis,
1801), 7. Muzio Clementi (1752-1832) was a composer, pianist, and piano manufacturer. In the same yearas Robison's treatise,
Clementi wrote, "Temperament . . . renders the instrument capable of satisfying the ear in every key." He also outlined on
page 1 the usage of 7 sharps and 7 flats. Thus, neither of Robison' s recommended temperaments could be used on pianofortes
in 1801.
25. Robison, "Temperament of the Scale of Music," 659-60.
26. lbid., 663.
27. Young's temperament was "preferable" to Kirnberger's temperament, not meantone temperament.
28. Robison, ''Temperament of the Scale of Music,'' 656.
29. Ibid., 662.
30. Tiberius Cavallo, The Elements of Natural or (London: 1'. and W. 2:388.
75
THE JOHANN PmLIPP KIRNBERGER WELL TEMPERAMENT
INTRODUCED TO THE BRITISH AND AMERICANS IN 1801
J ohann PhilippKirnberger (1721~1783) was a German theorist, conductor, composer, and student of J. S. Bach. John
Robison did not approve of Kirnberger's temperament, but he nevertheless included its monochord string length
figures at the end of his treatise because he was aware that it enjoyed a "great reputation on the continent." 1 He made
no other remarks about it except to write that Thomas Young's temperament was "certainly preferable. " 2 Young's tem-
perament did not contain as many Pythagorean-type major thirds as were in the Kirnberger. Robison calculated the monochord
figures from tuning instructions that Kimberger publishedin 1771.3 Robison made an error for the note B which should
have read 5333 and not 5313, but this did not prevent anyone from understanding the basic theory.
The Kirnberger temperament contained some extreme advantages. First, it was exceptionally easy to tune. Only
one tone needed to be altered while tempering. In contrast to this, equal temperament requires that eleven tones must
be altered for the tempering of twelve fifths. Thus, the Kirnberger temperament is eleven times easier to tune. Second,
the C and G major triads plus the E and B minor triads were in complete just intonation. The price paid for these
advantages was that two fifths DA and AE were each one-half syntonic comma narrow. These were twice
as narrowed as Pietro Aaron's which had been considered at the limits of tolerability for centuries. However,
Kimberger insisted that fifths narrow by a half comma were fully tolerable. 4 Also, the Kirnberger temperament con-
tained seven Pythagorean or nearly Pythagorean major thirds per octave, This is more than half of the major thirds.
Kirnberger insisted that Pythagorean thirds or sixths are altered from intonation a syntonic comma were
tolerable. 5 The Kimberger temperament contained some of the purest harmony acoustically possible, and this was con-
trasted with great harshness. It was a temperament of extremes in coloration.
The Kimberger temperament is classed as a well temperament, but at the same time, it could also be called modified
n:tnagorean tuning or even intonation. It Cl'.:ltl:tained the of an three Unlike the Thomas
temperaments which were based on common the \Vas
at the easiest methods of tempering possible. Kimberger's bearing plan is listed below: 6
Tuned
before
Tuned
before
!~~If-¥ .=r==E r L fJtr ~-~-~.~ ~

,___________ J
i
Temper A
from both D and E so that the two
resulting fifths are equally narrow.
on
ttet~ent
ual-beating
9!tt~: qqalJty of the fifth
I)A, se:metl ·e sal1le as AB. this w~uld• have resulted in the same num er of be~ts . . ... fifth; and the musician
~~~owJedg~able about advanced. acoustics would have assumed that the two fifths were the same size. 7 In most of
·· ··· . etat1le11t~ this process was acceptable, ?,ut the Kimberger temperament was an exception. Kimberger
fit\i!~~~J!QW.bY ?ll,~~ll~l.(. synto~ic comma were at the extreme limits of tolerability. 8 Unfortunately,
eq~~l1.t1~~{,iri$iM~~~<J ~.J~. 'nl{imb~~~er's original bearing plan, the fourth A below
~L .u .})above becomesa 1wo1H ... ·. ~.ir ...·..· . i>~t~ll;t~·IJe~~~·~-~~per se~o~d and it is 12,81169 cents
··~.. .. . .}~~1!~;~(),!e yi~n ·~·half comma. Therefore, the theory of Kimbt1tg~t·~ t~mpetantenf ·wm not admit such an
equal~ eating fnethod because both. tempered fifths were already at the limits of Kimberger' s tolerability. This means
thatw.hen u~ing J<.irn.berger's origill:t\11'~(. lall: the sttjct theoreti.ca1ly corr~ct tempering methods must be used.
'}'~ift~(l~~e~ ¢p~nt~g ~e,l:\t~, b~~ KJ ·· JF . no~ P;u~l1~~ any beat tr~qq~!!~Y . ~s .. Thi~ i9~~c~t~s t!tat .in 1771
9~e;stilln~~ded amo1tbch(Jt4't~ tµne .·...· 11~~ger~S'·tem\1ermnenr, tlhis: d~featiifg ·K .. l!ergel"~purpM~·ifi: tlrtam~ easy
tunmgmethods: John Ro6ison must .~ave"kfiown this; and that is '\vhy he published only the m()rioch'ord·figures .
. : ~v~n(tlall . "ft\berger 11ll!St h1rve:~oriteho\V arriyed at. close to theoreticajly correct temperament on his own harp-
~lcnpro: ··· .· · 'fsJ:mer~, i~ evetg·~~i~~tid~'tfJat. kirfi~tg~t·did' not·~~ treat~ i>r' compar~1 tiear frequencies. If
~~hag, . ,.•. )d . .. ·~\~c~'that ~Wffi~ot tfiitqs FAllM AC2$fio/P were eqtial·b~tfog; He could have tempered A
Witltfilt g~eatet e~~~ ~~ a~~qrttC.y ff~~ '.d,iti§~e<J·A pntj\J!{\:· attq At'::~s~~ ~elf bea( th~ .s.~me s~. {\c(tl;;tlly' when
the fifth OA and AE:·~~ terifpeted exa ·.· . me:sarilesize j\s iff the0reticaity c'Orr&t temperamerlflitstandard pitch. AC-
sharp doe§. l)~f051S~~~f tJe~.•. ~~99dfa~~~iW~ FA;i.h\Jt•fuis is. too. small· a differeil~e. to. b~ considered. ·Instead of the
latt~r tr~ttmimt. of tfie to~e, A, ~b Wl'Ot~· that the t1laJQr sixth CA was in)usHntonation With a ratio of 270 to
l~f W})j~J\·iffiplied that <itte cd~Itf . · . 'tfii~ [tom a tn.onbch.or~P This particular A wasslightly flat compared to the
~~reti~al.W <t9fie~~.A.·)tfi(tplitg Wt'?te; ttJa:t1~~ '>t1t~t ~mes;1l.(irn.berger us~ the ratio 16 ~ t() 96 for th~. majc>r sixth CA. 10
1r:Hs ·att. A that wa~ asHla]f@Jbtlilt Qn ffie· sh~ ~id'e; 'brtt the. resqtt .created fanfil$tfo advantages that Kirnberger
1
.efi'i~i!O<r~~ti~etirtl'ttte~ts~f; he•"obl~:ifol;~1Ve}Sublisfiedbi~ beating·pJa.n··as it a}Speated .in his book.
BY:l~sin~ tlie Jn,aJoli sixtfi CK witff.$1~1:96 ratio, it happens that the major third ~A· and the fourth AP beat exactly
the sa1lle spe~;· Also, die tnajot thi.rds FA an(J AC-sharp: beat almo$t the sawe• speed~· The major third AC"sharp beats
o~Fteiiil't ~(a:'6eatpeF"Sec15'n~·r~ste~~·1n·ten:secqnas•i\t'sta'·' . . ·Ifcli;·pN···roMa 6ear~5 innes·while ·Ac:~liarp would
6eat So'titfi.es, ifnegligible dissilttilarfty. \Vlte)l
a,fouft11 6eats . same speeci as an adjacent lower major third,· there
is a tremendous advantage in.the fact tfiatthe nearly cdinciding harmonics of the major third, fourth, 'and major sixth
all beat at one single harmonic locati(:m. T · makes e tern .er· · · olved. $e ea~ie$Hhat is a~ousti-
c~· ~:·t\l:coJrrrast'l'Q.~§~. . . e'ttieneat-Tfcomcicting har-
1t·1a:rm~1e11r118~rtrom;.,;1 . atiOnsare·rroifi eacli'oth'er' ilie more difficufr ff iS to compare
t!te beat frequencies. ll,fote: t!te .eiample lYelow for l{imberger's fifths.
Locations of the
Tuned coinciding harmonics
before
r.. ..~
! l
/
,. _.t !'Iii
I:_
•
~
.,
El:
~
..::!J!':_ ..::..
:.:1:
t
•
<
I ~
-1!: r;>-
e
i...-
I~
P"
. ··"':?
~
I'""' ± '-
P"
~ ~
is
When me A. tempered correctly,
these intervals will beat at exactly
Temper the same rate of speed.
. In most temperaments, the maj01: sixths are wide. This in t1;1rn creates the tendency that the major thirds and fourths
are also wide. When using an equal-beating techfiique; ltoth'fontiguous intervals involved must be wide, or both con-
tiguous intervals 111ust be natrow. One ©annot apply the~qual:·beating method to; a pair of contiguous. intervals whereby
pne is wide and the Pther is narrow. I1;1.the example abc;we, Written for the Kimberger t~mperament, .both 'the major
· · tflird' atilt the fouftll'afe Wf<fe;' ffi:thts: cmie"itfs extremely ·easy·to adjust A until both the. major thifd and the fourth
beat exactly the same speed. There is one and only one point where this can happen, and it is easy for amateurs to
achieve perfection in this way. In altering A, noti.ce that as the major third slows down the fourth speeds up, and vice
versi;t. W\len F,t\}.nd AD P,roduce the same beatf':e.9.u~~cy'. the major sixth FD wiU then beat exactly twice as fast
as FA or AD. These ruie8.are i},\~ependent ofpitc11. Ittnatter& not wtiatthe bask pitch of the instru:tllent is. It also
does not matter what the beat frequencies are as long as they are identical .
.. Johann Philipp Kirnbe:tiger eviden~,ll~'!lef.n()ti~~""tll~ih9~)1,,~.~o\\sl,\!il~PA~!l9:tll~~l'li,.~i;u;1.~~iJ!&Jh!~.• ~'l¥al-beating
techniqu~ ~long .witb,..3.mo¢em beuing.pian~t(lt·his ~eil1P:er~ent creates a tuning method that is at least twice as easy
l!~,t\le'tnethod Kirnberger P:Ul;>lished in 1771. It is the easiest temperament to tune that Was ever published. and the
fourth.•AD.is not classed.asa wolf. Kirnherger's primixrypui:pose was to create the easiest temperament methods while
at ;the same ·ti111e preserving the diversi~. of t\le lt$ys.
Table 75-1: Equal-beating Well Temperament Tuned by Johann Philipp Kirnbergerts Rules.
GB 38<013'71 0
DF-sharp 386.31371 0
AC-sharp 395.07974 8.76603
EG-sharp 405.86628 19.55257 '
BD~sharp 405.86628 19.55257
F-sharp A-sharp 4(}~.86628 19.55257
D-flat F 407.82000 21.50629
A-flat C 407.82000 2l.50629=one syntonic comma
E~flat G 407.82000 21.50629
B"flatD 407;82000 21.50629
FA 397.10025 10.78654
CB 386.3l37l. .0....
GB 386.31371 0
Figure 1S~tiTl:tef'Qnn()fti.~.<>,n~·i.aJf.Synto~!c .comma Well Temperament Tuned by
Johann PhililJP Kitnbe~e:r•s Rules is More Rectangular than Circular.
There are five basic colors.

Compare with Figures 20-1, 24-l, 26-1, 39-1, 40-1, 46,.1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, and 71-1.
NQ'.IJIS
•1. Robison, ''T¢mperament of the ~cale of Mustc;i• 663:~
2;. lbid~
·•~•• JOh• J?hilippKimllerger;Die KU1fSidi!S telnitlS'11zes in. tier M~#<. (Berlin; (;hrtstian Friedrich Voss,· 1171), l: 13, 14.
.4. Thid, .
5,. lbld.
{bid., 14. . . . . '
f'.Qr ~.~x~µ1ple. Qfthis. ty~ of ~J'l'Qt, 1'¢~ pag~ p, paragi;11p~ !Wo, and also page .14, pa,i:agraph three, of Ch11tles Earl Stanhope's
attMe, "Pfinciples of the Science of Tuf!i . ~truments with Fixed Tones~,. The Philosophical Magazine 25 (June-September
1806): 291-312. (Page291 of The Philoso al Magazine is page 3 ofStanhope's article which retained its own page numbers.)
. . lk .Kirnberger,. Die. Kuns~des~ reinen . Sa~zes.Ji~tler;. Musik,;.1,;1;l."''''••·· •
(.~~:Jltilf;~''.' r> .· ., ··.·· ) · ' •• <• ···•··· ••:r '.;
10. Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg, Versuch uber die musikalische Temperarnr (Breslau: Johann Friedrich Korn, 1776). 184-85.
76
TUNING THE EASIEST TEIVIPERAMENT TO TuNE
THAT WAS EVER PuBLISHED, THE ONE-HALF SYN10NIC COMMA
TEMPERAMENT BY JOHANN PIDLIPP KIRNBERGER IN 1771
TuneCto Tuned
any desired pitch. before
l !
~r:tt,___-+--~-----=:::=-r
-·~+===--. a-t-~----F-- 'r
---~----J
-
Tuned
l
before
Test Test
' !
Tri"'" w"h um "''"
n~= _f _~~ti-i4~=f~ft-=t~~
Tune in just intonation. __J i
fifth
should be virtually in just intonation. However, according to matiiemz<fa~al
Gb D~ will be narrow by a schisma, which is
This is an small of tempering.
. Te&t.fqr q\Jasi,:~qqal beating
(No real difference should be perceived.)
Temper A from both F and D so that the major third FA beats at
elli\~tly thtj Slime speed as th.et fourth A D~;· Both interval& must be wide.
Check the following intervals as a final test within the F to F octave.
Just intervals
Quasi-just
Ju&t interval&
One schisma narrow

(2 cents narrow}
The tempered intervals:

The '(rescendo sig11s denote groups of beat frequencies that increase with the intervals listed below.
Equal beatm&. '

No matter what pitch the instrument is· tuned at, the relationships between the intervals and their corresponding
beat frequencies remain constant in the orders given above.
Table 76-1~ The Differences in Cents between the Notes of

Equal•beadng Kirnberger Well Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Equal-beating Kirnberger Rounded Figures
G plus 6.80975 +7
F-sharp minus 4.92154 ~5
F plus 2.89975 +3
E minus 8.83154 -9
E-flat minus 1.01026 -1
D plus 8.76475 +9
c plus 4.85475 +5
B minus 6.87654 -7
Compare this table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, and 71-1.
C harles Earl Stanhope (1753-1816) was am~ni of science,.;~.inventor, .. and ~active pol\t~cijpl.in Parliament.
He was also a Fellow of the ff.oyal Society and the Philadelph,ia Philosophical Society. Politically, he was against
the slave t.rade amt oUter iniqstj<,:~s. As an inventor,;rilUch oflds creativity was spent on developing steamships without
masts or 11aHs. Othefi inventions· include<lf· ilill)roy~ prjnti:ng appliances, printing presses, stereotyping processes, cal-
culating machines, telescopic tensest lightning r@s. iitid improved steel wire for pianoforte strings. :ffe wrote on the
princ.?iples of electricity·: and al.so tempeJ(arilentif,) \ . { . ..
On Kirnberger he wrote, "If the interval o:
J!,i)e(as in Klrriberger's method of tuning) divided i,9to one perfect
qµint [fifth}, and two eq1,ially flat quints;. such-; f9[)9~~ce,. a~ tpe perfect quint G, D, and two equally flat quints,
:0, A, and A, E; then, each ofthose two flat quints, by becoming too flat, is offensive to the ear.'' 1 the tw9 Kimberger
fifth~ :QA,~~fi 4~~wer~.~c~.9~e:-haJf.sy9t9Jiic.c9~a11~tr9\¥~r tbanaju~t intonation fifth,, andJ9rnberg~r admitted
thai .these Were· at ihe limits of tolerability. Lor~ Stanhope''s p~qposal in t 80~ was that the fifth G:O in addition to DA
anq AE sb()uld be tempered. In this cl,lse; ~~f( of the thte~ teinpeted fifths W;ouid be only one7third ~Ylltonic comma
n!t°!~W: ·. T~»S:~ ~~ ~"wn~r~§! fi{ths W;o;~!~~~ ~we~oved llY 3~~ .percent in qu~li~ or harnioniousness. The beat frequen-
cies of Kimberger's fiftbs DA and AE would be reduced by 33 ~ percent, but the pew temperament proposal was
not quite as easy to tune as the original Kirnberger.
Lord· Stanhope sometimes tempered by using his monochord built with micrometer screws included for extremely
fine adj'ustments, Also, his monochord. string Wl\S not distorted by pressure from the mpveable bridge. The wire was
steel tathef. th.an brass or ir!.ln. The •stl;lnbope Monodtord' was the latest development in monochord engineering. 2
Another tuning aid was the 'Stanhope Tuning-Glasses' which consisted of thirteen slips of plate-glass. Stanhope wrot~
tl).~t:tb~~e,~~re··~or~,~~~u't~'·a,!J~·~~si~!~t~lle'b~' ~~'t'"~t·of,·~!,lnjfi~,,f6f~~2 WhcAk'~''using;·these1,1u1lfng aids,
· ·one·:~~~'tune~y~~r:"'1\:•tiUils1'·~Ml~~~pe·wrore, ·'"too much atte»tion.•cadt>t be paid to the beatings.
a&'.that.isb)i'tar ilie most accurate way of tuning by ear.. " 4 However, according to Lord Stanhope, the ability to hear
· audt:ontrol beats Was ~of' only' tWtl' l"Utptlses; ··'fhe fitst Was ~O hear beats slow: down and disappear while tuning just
.fi1tofialiotfiiltezyals:·A peiS(Jn .Who ftltl'ftiiltilb'Uity was: ilssbtW thathe·coultf t~aUy mneinju$t intonation. The second
purpose was to hear the beats of two adjacent tempered intervals become absolutely equal in frequency when using
the equal-beating method of tempering.
In tempering A-flat between tbe lower :E' and ~pper (),, Stanhope wrote that ''its pitch may be ascertained with great
precision. if th.e tqner pay eJiac• att~nti4>~Jo the equality of the beatings of the two successive major thirds, E, G sharp,
.w.fl.ic}\ J.~ .~e .s~e tey as A fiat; and A Flat, C ."s In tempering botb D and A between a low G and a high E, Lord
Stanhope wrote that ''it may be done with great accuracy, if he attend properly to the equality of beatings of the three
successive flat quints, O; D~ :Q, A; and A, E. That fact ha:s been ascertained by repeated trials. " 6 Stanhope used only
the equal beating method when tempering by. ear, and that is why he did not mention anything about standard pitch
or beat frequency .nllrilbt(rs~. Jhey were.. not needed. Stanhope c.iid not use beats for comparing any intervals other than
the equal-beating ones. ·
Lord Stanhope made an error wf!eV+ he. wrote, •'And, from th;e equality of the })eatings, equal deviations from perfec-
ti<}nJ:nay be correctly ascertained ...1 In other words, he thought that equal beatings meant equal amounts of temper-
. · · ·· ····1njs:·TlielffiftiisthatwlieniwcYaClJacenf or successiveintervais-ofa kirid. beafequally fast,· the··1nteWats are ofdifferent
si~es and are tempeted differently. Conveli'sely; if tbe two adjacent succ.essive intervals are e:s.actly the same size, they
.... H••musl~Beaf'atdifferenf'speeas. Tlie liijftW.fffitmt'va!biats:··mster·thultte1oWei''iftlef\tal When l>oth afeihe same size.
. .,'.llius,, Stanh9pe...W!i\~. .~pi'1~l•.. 9t~~.•J:&J..UeI.S..J.lQdi.mµ~i~i~1i.ui.f)as~ <:eJ1tu.ries ..whu ~liev~. tbl!t.. i! We.~QlOI qualities of
·. · ·.· fWo·m~zyatsl)f'aRJftl:f'!'~M\fal'~t::ttffifft"~linfS"'WtW·~;
S'('\y/-'',' </
,'"~ '.','"><"}";'.,';}>/', :
then the tw<tintel'VDIS1were tempered·mbi the same size.
, , , ' , , , , , ,,
mu•r . rd
. ... bentinif,obe at~
.;>.th. . . .df~,. ~ t,o, 4 xafio,
ti() fifths in temperament
upper harmonics, but he
did not mention dfis phenptil~it!J,fl, lJis Q!a~§fe(? . .equal-b~~fiitg medfMm~t!e the.11. ..· .. at,hejudged Kirnberger's
tempen~d fifths to be so '"o~fensive. '' AS. ~xpfained on page 218 of this work, Kimberger•s theofy cannot accommodate
equal~beating fifths without creating a wolf fifth or fourth.
Lord Stanfi<Jpe~nblisli~ . cnl~ti?ns ~dcbarts for his proposed temperament. His figures were given to twenty-six
decimal places! AU oft)\~~fc ... 1'St~fe~e~·9~~.to ~ thee>retically correct method of temperament whereby the
t)\~ fi(ths, GJ). DA, at!~ AE, were each exactly otie . .·. sjlntt)nic conn,na n~wer than a j~st iittonation fifth. From
this~ as well a$ from. hi~·.tupjng. instructions, it is certain that when Stanhope used his ruon&~ord Ol" his. tuniitg-glasses
he tempered in the theotetitally correct manner by imitating the tones of the tuning aids; but when he tempered by ear
he used the equal-beatin~·fl.1ethQ(I, ,11tet"efore,• bQdt. m.ethods will be oudined iit the present work.
The theoretically correet method is outlined below and in Section 78. In coruparing Tablt( '17-1 with Table 75-1, one
can see· that the color chMges in the Stanhope temperament are much smoother than in th6 I\.irnberger teruperament.
Also, the Pythagorean type major thirds are not quite one syntonic comma wider than jlist intonation major thirds in
the Stallbo~e; Like Ki.rnbet'gerf..it. see1I1s that. $tanhope ne.ver noticed the tremendo,us. advantage when the major third
FA beats the same speed as the upper ~djacent fourth AD. These two iµtervrus constitute the easiest form of equru-beatiitg
technique that exists. Neither Kirntierget µor Stanhope realized that equal-beating techniques could be used on their tem-
peraruents to effect the desired theoretically correct n~sµrts,: ~inc~ tl1e readers of this book will not be usiitg a monochord
or tuning-glasses, modern instructions for Stanhope•s tlieotetically correct temperament are given in Section 78.
Charles Earl Stanhope, when tuning by ear.,.~used a more difficult technique for equal-beating temperament, but
this co~td have been i11teridQn1:1l. Tlle results aSi seen in 'fabfe 7'1~2 heavily favored the tonalities written with flats. 9
The keys of E and B 1majol';;with many• §harps w~m ~xce:ssively brilliant or. harsh. One advantage was that the major
third FAf one of the primary diatonic thirds, was greatlyimproved to better match the colors of CE and GB. In Figure
79-1 one can see that the.hannotik balance wassgreatly improved over the original Kirnbeliger or the theoretically
· ···· correct Stanhope; "fhm·is· evident by the faet that the thirds B-flat D and DF-sharp were nearly the same size. The
prices paid for these advantages were that Statihope's equru. .beating fifth GD was almost as narrow as a Kirnberger
fifth; an~tSta™19pe's, fiftl1 nF-s~a,rn Wa.s,.~.4 ~ents.~i~~r fl).~~ a just inton~tion fi~h, resulting in a small amount of
ba~f)J1i9.waste'. Neye*the,le~~~·blJ~ of S#oe~'s'(einpet"anients cQtn:paroo t,ette:r than Kimberger's with the tradition
<>Uthned ~n Tal:Jle 12.,,1,. q,ot'-1l1ln. L . .. .
Lord. Statihope's equal beating temperament techniques required an extremely large bearing section of t).venty-nine
. ~. ··.·.'~
. en. . .o. . .te. s..t~~ .·.".·.·.·tin
.· j·.t.-h. · · ;marutell~ · . . .J. •·.a.-.·.--.~,.
. e.,•...t. .·.u. .•. .Q. .e..~·.· ·.· .t· · J.-~.·
}:1ttertwo·.;i~o~'ililiCis·were·almosf:p . . .·.m. -..·.· .- ~.-J·.•. 10. • x. ·.· ·1· ·r· · · P· · ·.·.·.C......P. . pu. .r.e•. .• .and
.t·.·h•·· · ·e. ·.·.().,.·.!i1
·.····1·;··..".·.·
•.·•. .v . . th.-
..•·.·•.. . . h.·e· · .·.· tel"ll·····.p·e···r...ed...... EG.-
lliir'orean'OU:rds. . sh . .•. ·. and....A....::·.fl.·a.ttoc. reduce
Tlleref6t~·-inoNiet
..aro in .the
th~i;·be'aiins~·towithfu
the range ofcomprell~nsibnity(tessilian twefve r!ats per second). he had to place them low
in the ba.ss deff. Howe:ver, sihce he tempered the three fifths GD, DA, and AE also in..the equal·beating manner,
he needed a range·of an octave plus. a.major sixth staning .fl;om G above the basic low Cfor these fifths.
Stanhope gave several choices concerning the order in which one could tune the notes of his bearing plan by ear.
One of these original orders is given in Section 79.
Table 77-1: Theoretically Corr~t Kirnf>eraerWeU T(lmperament as Improved by Ch~l4'8 Earl Stanhope •.
l\faj()r Thirds Size8 in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 386.31371 0
GB 386.31371 0
DF-sharp 392.5Q562 6.19190
AC-sharp 399.67438 B.36067
BG-sharp 406.84314. 20.52943
HD-sharp 406.84314 20.52943 =less than one syntonic comma
F-sharp A-sharp 406.84314 20.52943
D"tlat F 406.84314 20.52943
A-flat C 406.84314 20.52943
E-flat 0 406.8.4314 20.52943
B-tlat D 400.65124 14.3'.J753 '
F:,.\· · '""393f4S:il4S 7.16&76
CE J8'6:31'37t 0
285
the same size
~
CE.
GB
~
The sm~flest thirds
Figure 77-t: The Form· ot the. Thooretfchlly Correct One·tbird Syntonk Comma
Weir Tetnperame~t (itnl)'to:-vec:l Kitnl>~J,-ger) Accotding t.o Charles Earl Stanhope.
Compare with Figures 20.. 1. 24-1 .• 26.. I, 39~1. 404~ 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, 71-1, and 75-1.
NOTES
1. ~h~Ies Earl S!anh?J?e, ''Principles of the Scienc~ .<?f.Tuning Instrulllents: with Fixed Tones.'' This treatise was printed in. the
new st.ereotype on a. new itqn press invent~d by Stanhope; It was inserted between pages 290 ~nd 313 of The Philosophical
Maga:.zine 25 (June-September 1806)~ This was done so that the readers could compare the new stereotype with the old print
of The Philosophical Magatine. Since the prates were loaned to the Magazine, the treatise retained an its original page numbers;
~~[~fore an r~f~J:~'!~.~~•.!2..R~g.e.'!umb · . , rr,es~9t"~2!~,.,~~!SFJ9~tan,~QJ?S;:1.9fl~~U.~J?~g~~.l1mb~J:~· ~~;!n ~xarnple, the
g,.11otationis Oil nage. ! 14 OF the origin, . . . . .. . . .. ... . . .. . . . . . .
2·:· ··n;1a·:·:··2s.. ···· . .If'.-;:.......,.···#· •• · •· · · ·· ·: ·• ·
J. Thid.
4~ IT:Ud., 13.
5. Ibicl:
6. Thid., 14.
1. Thid .. 13.
8. Thid.
9. Thid., 18. See Stanhope's footnQt~.
')tNT.itS
11\IPl{OVEDBY··tllA~tsEARt Srt~ePE··.1\,.
IN THE Tl1EoREriCALLY. CORRECT MANNER.
TuneCto
standard pitch.
1
11':f r r
II
Test interval
Tuned Tuned (Figures denote
before before beats pet second)
l l l
9.8
Equal beating
12.3
12.3 14.6
)ltJf if ~~
····· ······Tune in just intonationr.
Tempel' A~'" irom.\Klth

i
en!sc:endos denote increasing beat speeds.
E and C so that the major third A~ C beats one and one-fourth
.··trm~~.;1~'..f~~.~:~~.~e:~rt~~t~J:.!.€J~·· Both.i~~~s must be wide,
287
These foul"thit shoukl be
very close to.just intonation.
L______~~~~·~~~
Tune
just
Tuned Almost
1@=~ ~-~·~~1~i·~1~~~~1i=~ I
i
f1atten
Tuned
before
l
Equal beating
1-----,
6.1 9.7 3.6
Temper A from both F and D so that the major third F A beats at

exactly the same speed as the fourth A D. Both intervals must be wide.
Check the following intervals as a final test within the E to E octave.
Just intervals
78. ·Tuning Stttrihope's Te#ipefamehtlrtThe Theoteti&illy Correct Mtmner
intervals
0.5
0.4
The tempered intervals:
Narrow fifths Wide fourths Wide thirds
Equal beating
--i
2.4 2.7
i---
Wide major sixths
----,
____
Narrow
___ minor
- - thirds
" ------
l
7.3 11.5 6.l 16.4 18.5 19.5
Table 78-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of

Correct Stanhope
'h<>••wll>ti•'''n" and
Theoretical Stanhope Rounded
G plus 10.42752 +IO
minus 2.28062 2
F plus 6.51752 + 7
E minus 5.21376 5
E·flat plus 3.58438 + 4
D plus 5.21376 + 5
minus 0.32562 0
c plus 8.47252 + 8
B minus 3.25876 3
B-flat 4.56252 + 5
cornpare this table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, and 76-L
TUNING THE IMPROVED KIRNBERGER TEl\tIPERAMENT
ACCORDING To CHARLES EARL STANHOPE'S
EQUAL~BEATING BEARING PLAN OF 1806
.Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
Tune to the "tuning-fork, Test

tuning-glass, or monochord." Tuned Tuned just
before before
I ~
-- + ··-
I ~~
<
@J
t
~
-rl ~
~
t ~ ~- _a_
-'}: ± • ._ ± -¥
'
i--/L .
fl·
T
+ -fl- ±I ±
_Ill!!_
J. I --==
--
I I I
L----------·--------·---·----------------- J
Tuned Test for

before Tuned "equality of the beatings."
before Tuned
before
L _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _~
t Tqne in jtist hitritiation. Tue~einterviµ~ ~hould be
"very nearly petfe'lt."
If a, sta11dard C, fork, is use~ •.. each fiftb. in measure three above will t>eat 3 .44 times per second.
Following are eleven octaves that must be tuned. The first notes of each measure are the notes that are already tuned.
Tune the second notes. of each measure. This will make the twenty-nine note bearing section complete.
Tuned
before
I' ~··
t ....."' "'v -· Jr•
·2
~
L.:::·
.rt· ...
•
L.
I~ - --
~
_:_ :ii.
~ • -
t"""
tr-
tt ·"«)
~
t) .~CJ ~ ~
-"'- 11
3t !"""
<
'~· ~
\·I~
-.._.
z ~
.l
···~·~
....
!'!'!"'.
1iii0.:±
~.
::H:-_
-T
-.:J"'."
±-
.llllll!!l:
=tr-
2'f fll!!!",'."
t_h:L
- -
1
l
-!'-
.l
Tune
just
Table. 79--1: The DilferenceS: in Cents between the Notes of

SU.nltopets Equ~·beating·IJbprovel) Kirnberger ·Temperament and Equal Temperament.
£qu31 Temperanh!llt Kirnberger-Sta:nltope Rounded Figures
G-sliatp plus 6.64941 +7
G plus 13.04639 + 13
F~sharp plus 2. 73941 + 3
F plUs 9.13639 +9
E minus 2.59489 - 3
. E~flat plus 8.60441. + 9
D plus 4. 84750 + 5
~-Sll!l,lp • ;}ii~ ·1i::~~ :~1
m~u:u.s... . . 9.J~3289 1
plas· ·• 7.18139 1
291
CB 0·
a' •.
g'·sharpl' u;~1s19
18.38069
AC-sharp
E(tsbatp 22.93059
BIJ..sharp 22.93059
G~t1at B~flat 18.12827
IHlat F lS.12827
A.~tlat C 18l~1~821
·:E~liatG 1s.i28f1
B-flat D 11.35240
FA 4.54989
(E' 0
COlllPaJ."'1: thi~ table with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 59-1, 61-2, 69-1, 71-2, 72-1 column
l, 1s~1. and.11,-Ji;.
similar sizes ------4

2 flats\ a.net 2 sharps
the same size

~
25 CE GB
~
.· 1]TE:J ~rnaH~st ..thjrda,
flggte 7«j..li T(te .fort1:1 of Charles Earl Stap,llope'~ Equal-beating Well Tempe.-ament (improved Kirnberger).
Compare with Figures 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-l, 40-1, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, 71-1, 75-1, and 77-1.
8()
''THAT ILL CONTRIVED·MODE OF TUNING
CALLED THE EQUAL TEMPERAMENT"
T he above words are from the treatise on temperament by Charles Earl Stanhope (1753-1816).1 By 1806, British
musicians were seriously considering the application of equal temperament on keyboard instruments. At that time,
the only examples that musicians heard were the crude imitations taken from monochords. No one had published the
beat frequencies for the testing intervals needed for tuning equal temperament by ear.
Lord Stanhope wrote:
I had the curiosity to converse with sixteen or eighteen of the most eminent musicians in England upon this subject.
Half of them did then approve of what is called 'The Equal Temperament' .... The other half, on the contrary, reprobated
that mode of tuning, as never satisfying the ear perfectly in any one key whatsoever. A science is evidently in a very
imperfect state, when the first proficients in that science not only differ, but even hold decided opinions diametrically
opposite to each other. 2
Notice that Stanhope used the words "did then approve" and not "now approve." This is later in his
treatise. After he promoted and established his which was an version of Johann Philipp
Kirnberger's one-half syntonic comma temperament from 1771, Stanhope wrote:
It is evident that this new mode of tuning [Stanhope's well temperament] must be excellent for transposition, and for
modulation. This fact has been established by regular and repeated experiments, made in presence of many of the best
judges. Between and seventy of the very first professional persons, of both sexes, and of the ablest connoisseurs
in England, have to this 'New Temperament' their decided approbation. It answers well, both in the and
in the
In other words, the nine prominent musicians who had formerly approved of equal temperament must have been over-
whelmed by the vast number of professional musicians who remained loyal to the well philosophy, espe-
cially after hearing Stanhope's new version of it.
Lord Stanhope wrote:
The Object Of Temperament is to adjust the relative pitch of all the keys or fixed tones in such a due proportion as
to render the instrument and melodious in the highest degree possible .... The Equal Temperament is,
however, a mode of tuning which I very much disapprove. According to that erroneous system, there is not a single
perfect third, nor a single perfect fourth, nor a single perfect quint [fifth], in the whole instrument. That charming
and delightful harmony and melody which a proper mode of tuning enables fine to produce, is thus rendered,
in every case, impossible. All those chords, which nature has rendered perfect, are, this objectionable rrn,tnu<unr"
rendered imperfect. And in those instruments where chords are made to sound for a considerable time, such for in-
stance as organs, the imperfection of The Equal Temperament is most Perfect chords are pleasing to the ear,
they strike to the heart, and they are founded in the very nature of musical sounds. But, by that mode of tuning which
is called The Equal Temperament, all those regular coincidences of those duly proportioned vibrations which prc1am:e
true concords are destroyed, and everything is discord. . .. 4
But, to have, in instrument, nothing but discords, is abominable; and that is always and n,.,..,, ••.,..,.,1"
m11,,..,,,...,,,.,. that which is denominatt>Ai The By the scheme of
1frtning .and essential· Variety
.n the ~i . . •..•.. . . . .. • . . .. . . . ·. .. . . . ·•instrument. " 1 He described
weUtefilp~i. .fi~~.fle'Wrote, !'~vety key ..•·ba!i'also a p¢(:uliar charactet whi~h)elqngs to it.. Some keys are
fitted ft)r chearflllifiu~i£; some, for grave. Some, fQr martial; some, for pastoral. Some, for soft or melodious pieces;
·.•·~ ~d·s9tite;;f<tittfi~~.w~i~h'1fe !!Ole11Ul, piaintive,. ort:rtajestic. ••a Since most of the eighteenth-century keyboard music
· hadbt7enwri.tte~•fol•Wel~(~JJ.1. ~~~!·ie~~~p~as~ed·~concerning equal temperament, ''How is it possible that the
same .key, or twMv~NteYsw·'1f~ .·. y'tll~ ~ani~·t ...
*11$,~(l"tJ!d lJe cavable Of giving to tompri~itions of directly oppo-
<
ter~ . . f~~t \Vhi~f} is; the· &e~t.s1J . ·... 1l~le1fci .·. ·•· . .•• . sitf<lfi t~S}le~t~v , '' 9 lbe answer was that it was
.. . . . t~~. t~!np~~~ent to serve lliis ttitt~ic: N!tre eless, w'e are us1 . . · . . erament for alt music
lh this w . , . . . . ·'thajority of musiciart!itoday .~e not expressing the sound of the eighteenth-century music. We
h~ve great pe~()*1lets, but wehave lost tf1e.soun · ·
sz·z§~op~·pµmo~ely>~~. the:Jl~!lj).ii.!hirt$:~~ R~~t~~JJ:t9 ~r~t\t~ ~. )V'l1t~mP~.tament·t.ttllt·.~ajiiJ:>iteq.tl}e.greatest
cotitras.t~ i~ colQr or .vad€Jty.•1!."l'nis.~n; d,t;te. turnr
/ that the major thirds EG,.shar1t and A-:tlat.C . must.J:>e. of the
~thl1~9~!i~:1¥»e· In Stalll1Qpe's, tet:rt~rament \P~se t)V9111ajor thirds were each 20.~79 c~nts wider th~just intonation
111aj:<lF tlii~~~: i~ .~e ihet1re.tical™··.C{Jp-~~'~€lr~i~p.~.,~"t'~;;i~ ~ sb~4e lt;s~. thll!l. a. pure \fyfbas9rea.n. major third .or .ditone
wt:dch is 21..506 cents wider. Concerning the 2t>.529 cents wider major thirds, Stanhope wrote that the;y
w~~~li::~~~r11~~~~~~~:·: . <•·}t9,~~~~~~f~~tl~ 'Z;~~~h1t~~~~~t1!11i1&1°::·eithe~ ~l:~iz~ ~~!e~~~

t,l\a~.l)iltve
1,,,~,'" '"·,
•. fol'Jhi;l s~e. ot a~Gµrlt~i
'';<,,''\"''''''),~ ,,;
!!Jlq metl19dic.a1
·,,,,,·,/,<:1·'''«'·,
\:(•,<(/',,, ,. '"''.'
"''
discriffimati\:!o,.
. ' , \ ' ',>·?> '.,•.' '/ ;,'1,j
given them a <listinct name ' ... Bi-Equa1 Third~ 11
.; .,,·;··,«,•,•' ' ,:
Ott the 'AfaJc'.it 'fflifds' of equitl. tethp~tafuerlt; St~filtope wr6te,

1
.•.of thb$e ~o str¥ng charac~etswhich ,are to. be foUl1d in an instru-

:F<1r, nQt oit~ of ~ose tliree e.. · ·· sharp thirds has eii:her the beauty
t!narlcler' dfthat' other7 . llidithave atfeady derioniinated
a. 'f>i:equalthifd. •This is, tl1etefd . 'e~ltlhetent defect b'efon.gingt<tthat methOd wliich is cantid The Equal Temper:..
ame11t; inasmuch as tiiat.defect n~essarily extend~ to all the twelve keys, in that ill contrived. mooe of tuning. 12
table111"'1}~a Fiifi~e··11h ~(·di~ present.wotkar~ ajso fognd in Lord StanhopeJs, treatise in a different fQrm. 13 The
reason that'ruJ.1of these chatts;on harmonfo form and balance list only the relationships between the major thirds is that
~~~~d::::a\~2!~~1ori~~~*rik~X3~···~ e~ interve~··M;t~~ 0 ·:;,r:~r~~;:~!~i=~d~~:~:
·~n~e'~iW~n·:·:·~lCey~:·~1ifch~zy"pt;;S'Qil'\v1~a goOd~r'must feel, results.principally from the thirds, a:d from
.~~~il!~.·~:~~:~~P~ Il1~~~~1<~ftiit~~t~;~~~~ing .that ~J.O,~tht!~s ~ere mostre~pon.sible.fot the characters of the keys. 15
NOTES
L Stanhope, "Principles of the Science of Tuning Instruments with Fixed Tones," 17. This treatise retained its own page num-
bers ev:en tho:ugh it is found betwee11 pages 29(). and n~ o~xoltµne 2:5 of.The .Philosophical Magazine (1806).
2. Ib"d: 3.. . .; .· ... · . ; .;;.\•... .• ·..•·. .•.• ; •......• ;:; ··'·""'··
3. Ib}a/:•1g~ •·· ··
4. ~1ii::·1d. ·· . . ·. ·
5. TiforW~fq~ ''.w.elltu1,1e~jnstf%11ent'' a~ usedhere tneana1,1 instrument temper~d with key-coloring that supports the 'characters
Qf ~~ ~~Y~'. • tills me~njng o{ t\1e words 'we~l (:un.¢9' ()(. 'w.ell te1llPere9' eventu..Uly deriv.ed into the twentieth-century technical
:."Yell,,tem~ra:tnet1~;:..
tet;W . . • ·.•• · , .•.·.• .... · . , . •. • ·•.
6. St~q~. "frincJple$ of.tb¢.S<;ien~e.of'N~!.~g]~~'ru1lleJJts withFixeg TQnes." 11.
7. Ibid.~J~. . .. ·. . ·. . .
~:· m!~:r·J~i
.. tfi;·
C harles>Earl Stanhope's treatise, "Principles of the Science of Tuning Instruments with Fixed Tones," created
much interest and controversy. Immediately, negative reviews appeared. Some of these were caused by Stanhope 's
statement that half of the musicians preferred the idea of equal temperament while the other half were diametrically
opposed to it. This divided the musicians into camps, some of whom were offended by Stanhope's extreme criticism
of equal temperament and also by his implication that everyone who hadheard the Stanhope temperament was con-
verted to it.
Numerous writers came forward to express their views on the controversy. From these reviews, much can be learned
about the temperament practices of the time. The practice of meantone temperament was still strong on organs. Those
who still favored rneantone temperament condemned Lord Stanhope's view on the characters of the keys and varieties
of key-coloring in the order of modulation. They maintained that the characters of the keys were purely psychological
and were not founded. on any varieties within a temperament system itself. These tuners believed in the theoretical
regular temperament. Regular temperament is any temperament whereby all the fifths are tempered by the same amount
so that variety in key-coloring does not exist. The pro-meantone temperament tuners, as well as the
theorists, rejected the Stanhope .· .for the three highly tempered . also the
tempered major thirds in some of the commonly used keys. The reaction against Stanhope's criticisms of equal tempera-
ment caused some eloquent writing on the advantages of equal temperament.
A review by John Farey (l 766-1826), a prominent geologist, offended Lord Stanhope, and this began a series of
letters, and in which the two gentlemen tried to humiliate each other in print. Each made accusations
that the other lacked the bask of acoustics necessary for understanding the phenomenon of beats. Stanhope
went to the extreme of tables for men of letters to read This
those who this material
for beginning this study:
~v,n.vu, R. and Lo:mpimy

the Science of Tuning Instruments with
291-312.
The Monthly Magazine; or, British Register 22, part II (September 1, London: Richard Phillips, 1806.
C., "Observations on Earl Stanhope's publication," 112-15, Mr. C. could have been John Wall Calkott,
the and authority on musk
The Philosophical Magazine 26 (October 1806-January 1807). London: R. Taylor and Company, 1807.
John Farey, "On Music'' (November 4, 1806): 171-76.
Retrospect of Philosophical, Mechanical, Chemical, And Agricultural Discoveries 2 (October-December Lon-
don: J. Wyatt, 1806,
Reviews of Lord Stanhope, ''Principles of the Science Instruments with Fixed Tones,'' and John Farey,
"On Music," 412~-2L
The Philosophical Magazine 27 (February-May 1807). London: R. Taylor and Company, 1807.
John Farey, "On the Stanhope Temperament of the Musical Scale" (March 28, 1807): 191-206; and "On different
Temperaments of the Musical Scale" (May 8, 1807): 313-22.
The Philosophical Magazine 28 (June-September 1807). London: John Murray; Edinburgh: A. Constable and Com"
1807.
~Per fela~ve to Dr. Caikott's Pamphtet on the Stanhope Tempera-
''u~fy;..A~~~1'ir
'· 1 y. 1809. ~c1l1ta r!l~Tt'.Jt~d,~{?!J1
, . .. . ...· ...·. 1 Sfiinhfipe;; oti .his' .. . . of cemirr P'ti1ld~tei'attd ertonoously stated in
' hfs:<$~t~fNwNnvfple$';b/:tlt'B''Stti!ttee o/Tuning lnstmments withftxed Tones'' (March 14, 1809): 292-99.
The ~W~opJiic.tllltffl& W!~Z}81J>}. !-<>P:d~ll' ~chard '}'aylor and Company, 1810.
. . J~bj1 • ~~,t~~g~;.~E:O!~ttti~s:Q~ ~~~M«!riittJ<t'~ qf,, cettain ~u~cal Interyals''
.., . (MIU'chJ. . . ·. . . . .
. ·~:JI);,~;
··8ltf)~;lbfittlih: R1chard T~ylorattdCompany, 1810.

··· . . · . . ~t:mc!iQns iJiven in all jJll<m,ymo~~ Pamphlet published in 1809, for
... , . . . .....· · • . . . · . e;·M111 .....·., ate*' {'Ail~ust 6~'1s101:;161~n,
~; M~t'tict'~ .,, . . .· .. . . .. ey. O.;J. Stnyth~s :teuer oill ~stems Of TUiling Musicallnstruments, Vol. X'X:XV.
p. 46f8~· ;~Atilif!it:'l:1;.;tl9fQ)~:tM..:.:($;?' "', . .' i '·~;:, ...
C;. J, S~ 1 •!~eply tQ.Mr•,M•.~sRem;u-ks:.Qn Mr,. Smyth's Comparative Table in vol. XXXV. p. 448" (Decem-
~i'5~,18191r~~s:..~1~:.: '
. ,: '.":·. 1
, • •• . . ··. . ....
. . .. ,tft.e•..ff:~i,f<J.~'lf{1 >t.!-<>tt~~n.: ,JU~~~~~ '1'~.l°'~+a.nd ~oll;lp~y•· 1811.

~·,Me·· ..\~.s ~eply. on Mooes of Tunmg l(eyed. lhsffuments '' (February
,l~\~>J.:. .'~Wi~~~po~~~;\;e: ot' ~o~mon ~ysteirt of t"1~Ive irtusical Notes" (February
9/t8t ' . ...
No Ffi~ttd To tunihg !lCks, "Qn'1\Jlling' MusiC::al Instruments'' (Marc}l 81 1~11J: 18S-87.
foltJl;,~i'~;~'On~ 'sal!WJ)l'oy~ment'i!ltheHarntopy 9.f Mt)sic,lll hl~.. ents; b:Y the Introduction
ofth~geyi:)l'e~ 1'tiS~ ...·.....··· lt~i;Jnl1ni'1tQrga'n;·Witb·tlt~ Nameirnftheimx .... · Sounds which it produces
·111 eai!h'Octave, trtitn20· :Pl~s; afld the rntetVats·cfilculated" (April 12, 18tl): 273°-''78.
J9W1.:f ....~"~ils'1•!l~~ by
. ;;.::~;~:i·;z;:~)~~ 3.
. .. . . ey stiuments, wi!h Copies of the Specifi-
ein musical
cations of three .Patentslatefy granted for tJiese:Pu:rposeS', to Mr• Hawkes;. Mr.. Loeschman,.and. Mr. Liston,'' 325-32.
·n,··· ··· · · · ti · ·· . ··. ... · ·· ··.· · ·
11:1\(~~ • . ·. . . . ·M·1~,~~e1lt''tfii'ifuillnS.;'iifk~vt~i6~t4lires~1lonaefiiH;<May f, 1s11>: 3s8-60.
The P~ilqsophical Magazine39 (Jaiwa.ry-JUne 1812). London: Richard Taylor an<t Company, 1812:
~qltn f'~i:e:Y.Sepi1:1i:~ ''o01'"the Rev: ~17. ~iiitq!l~~.J~l!l!a,rm(lpj_c. . . f ~n~·Nft.~f~Y•.llfi.JJe.t(e:t:ilniohd.tion, just
publis4ed, fo( exi>laifiin~. ~iy ~e Pzri~~ft>l~s ~f: •• .· . ·..· 'd (lf' pe~ · ·: g upon t111s Organ '!ith perfect Harmo-
nies, inatin<lsteve~llos~{~J~~aJ;ie~;dlKeysafld . ssages" (Mi\yl~.1812): 373-76. (!ohnFarey began adding
'Ser.tior' tq, lli~ ·
.ltt. t~p.> . . · · . . . . . '· . ·. · •.
·. John F8fey . ... ; "Further Reinad:s on the Rev. Mr. Liston's Essay <Jn perfect Intonation: and hls Scale with
~9 i~.the Q.cfl!'Ve: alld on ot?t~r ~cales ~rf~t andtempere<l) for 12, 14. 16,)7, 19, 21, 22, and 24 Notes
ifi tave res~tlveiy, &c." (Jttne 4, 1812}: 414-23. ~
In orde~;to ~eftletht.qu~Jtlonohemp~~~~i.:Johii~~hy on February 1, 1808, appealed for help from any ''gentle-
man, possessed of good f1t$trum,~n~s an<t Ute n~cessary kfio:wledge and experience in making experiments and calcula-
tio:qs in . bar~onics. 't1 He requested Utat·this persofi should
eniptay the be,st {ltofessional Tuners to tune his: illstruments, without anyb1timation to the Tuners. of his intentions
~. i:m.4.t!.~or~.sY~.b . ir.tStIJtn!~l}ts
....................,..,.,., t(lf'..~e~t1~.l!~~· qrs~flin&~toa.scetta.it1 exactly, b.y .the beats of
cofichords, by it moni:>cl:to her methods also for further satisfaction, the exact value of cevery
,,.,,,,,,,.,. . ,., ., . . :;~;~; ,,,,;::;:~!:~~;~;i~:~~~~:!~;,~ ~=~e~~nt&viU'ied ~~:.~~t~d,~:~~~2~~~~;.~~~~~Fortes.
NOTES
7~zl'IJ()lJ:n Fat~y. ~!On tbe two Systems of Musical Temperament recommended by Earl Stanhope,-Mr. Hawkes's System, &c.,"
· ;1£/Jil~sophical Magati11e: 30 (1808): 7.
Ibxct.··· · , ""' .0,j , •.. .•.
Helmholtz, On tht:. Sensatfttns OJTt>tt.11. • • , S:t.ecmdEnallih ~tlition,;48~7:'"8.5.
297
THEMODIFIEll·MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT
IMPROVED IN 1807 BY WILLIAM HAWKES
A reviewer, possibly John Wan Callcott, the composer and authority on :music theory, wrote in 1806 that Lord
Stanhope "objects to the two sorts of unequal temperament adopted by some tuners; the one, of throwing what
they call the wolf between G sharp and D sharp. The other, of dividing this imperfection equally between the two
fifths G sharp D sharp and D sharp A sharp. " 1 The first method of throwing the wolf into the diminished sixth G-sharp
E-flat (G-sharp D-sharp) was the centuries-old meantone temperament tradition. The practice of William Hawkes in
1798 to 1805 was typical in this way. If a wolf diminished sixth (fifth) exists, then the temperament is a meantone
temperament. The second or "other" method was a transposed version of the modified meantone temperament out-
lined in Sections 65-66 of the present work.
Evidently in 1806, there were still "some tuners" clinging to meantone temperament. Lord Stanhope disapproved
of meantone temperament and modified meantone temperament as much as he disapproved of equal temperament. About
the meantone temperaments adopted by "some tuners," Stanhope wrote that "Such temperaments are, therefore, un-
satisfactory in theory. They are also defective in practice; for, they render some keys too bad to modulate into them
without offending the ear extremely. In my new method, there are none of those defects. " 2
The practice of sharing the wolf or defect with the adjoining fifth E-flat B-flat (D-sharp A-sharp) referred to above
was considered an improvement over the conventional meantone temperament. Concerning this practice, the above
reviewer wrote, "I think this the best method of tuning." 3
The wolf di:minished sixth Q,.sharp E-flat in Pietro Aaron's one-fourth syntonic comma meantone temperament of
1523 was 35.68229 cents wider than a just intonation fifth. If this wolf were shared equally with the adjoining fifth
E-ffat B-flat, then the fifths A-flat E-flat and E-flat B-flat would each be 15.15286 cents wider than fifths. One-
(2 x I5. 15.15286
cents are than pure 1798 to 180.5.
However, the proposed modified Aaron meantone temperament would contain two semi-wolves whereas the Hawkes
temperament contained only one. It is therefore illogical that the modified meantone temperaments referred to by Lord
Stanhope and the Monthly were the one~fourth comma . Much more was accom-
plished by modifying the one-fifth or syntonic comma meantone temperaments (see Sections 65-66 of the
William Hawkes wrote in September 1807 that his new temperament was created by "subtracting one-fifth of a
comma from a certain number of perfect fifths . . . and to tune perfect, or in a small degree sharper, some of the
This seems to me to be the best principle for tempering our present scale. " 4 Previously in other than
the semi-wolf, there were no sharp or wide fifths, according to Hawkes. In 1805 there was one semi-wolf, two just
intonation fifths, and nine fifths that were each narrow by one-fifth syntonic comma in the Hawkes (see
Sections 67-68 of the present work).
William Hawkes wrote that he read the temperament review in the September issue of The Monthly Magazine in
1806. 5 He that the knowledgeable and respected reviewer praised the method of compromising equally
between Gcsharp and A-sharp {Bcflat) as being the finest type of modified meantone temperament. This must have
influenced Hawkes. In 1805 he had one wide fifth, the semi-wolf G-sharp E-flat. This was wider than a just intonation
fifth by 15.25131 cents, a large degree sharp. By 1807 "some of the fifths a small degree sharper
" 6 "Some of the fifths" meant more than one fifth. Hawkes's temperament had changed in two
I!1terpt()tit!ji/; an above made
7.62566 . cents.~~ch), This aiilou~t~f al,terat~?~ .~~ a•ufth is less than theon~..halfco~ma . amount aUowed
""'·'""'" Philipp Kirn berger in the commonly used keys, .ani,litis 011Iy 0 .4569' cent more than the onesmifd syntonic
cornnia amount allowed by SU.nhopein the corrimonly.used keys. These two highly tempered fifths in the Hawkes
teti11pe~raine111t had the great advantagethatthey werf{ placed.am9ng the rarely used keys. Since they were only half
as the original Hawkes se1J}i;.~olf fifth and since they wefe less tilan; a fourtil as much altered as. the original
Pietro Aaron wolf fifth, they were considered only "a small degree sharper" than "perfect" when conventionally
placed among the rarely used keys.
The improved modified meantone temperament presented in section 83 of the present work adheres to the words
of Williain Hawkes in 1807, It is representative of the temperament style described by Stanhope and the Monthly Magazine
reviewer in 1806. William Hawkes wrote, "I am therefore fully persuaded that the method I have acted upon is good,
being nearly the same inits effect as that now in general practice. " 7 (Compare Tables 65-2 and 82-1 of the present
work. See also Section 102). In addition to the temperament of "some tuners" in the Monthly Magazine review and
the temperament published in 1797 outlined in Sections 65-66 of the present work, Hawkes may also have been refer-
ring to the century-old Gottfried Keller temperament possibly still used on organs ''as that now in general practice."
As a man of the Church Aston in Shropshire, Hawkes was concerned with organs. Meantone temperament on pianofortes
was less common during this period.
The improvements of the new Hawkes temperament over the old Hawkes temperament was that there was one less
discordant major third, and the diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat was no longer a semi-wolf. It was now a tolerable fifth
(compare Tables 67-1 and 82-1). Also, Hawkes's new fifth A-flat E-flat was significantly better than the A-flat E-flat
in the mooified meantone temperament of 1797 (compare Tables 65-2 and 82-1). More than half of the intervals can
still be tempered by using equal~beatihg techniques with theoretically correct results. There is still harmonic waste, however.
As a meantone temperament tuner, Hawkes strongly disapproved of both equal temperament and the Stanhope or
well temperament idea. He doubted that any temperament that was designed to satisfy modulation completely through
the seventh flat or the seventh sharp could ever satisfy the ear because of the increased dissonance. William Hawkes
predicted that the only solution for keyboard instruments would ultimately be at least twenty-one tones to the octave
and that this could be done without adding extra keys. 8 This would involve special stops or pedals.
Concerning equal temperament, Hawkes wrote, "To some theorists it is known, that by tuning all the fifths one-
eleventh part of a comma [the syn tonic comma of ratio 81 to 801 flat with respect to that tone [B-sharpJ, it will be
reduced so near to the original, C, as to an imperceptible difference to the ear. " 9 Here, Hawkes was explaining
twelve fifths that are each syntonic comma narrow miss seven octaves by only a micro-amount. This
amount is 0.0013958 cent; therefore, one-eleventh syntonic comma regular temperament passed for equal tempera-
ment which is really one-twelfth ditonic comma regular temperament.
Hawkes understood the acoustics of equal temperament; however, his great dislike for equal was re-
vealed when he described the effects of equal temperament. He wrote, ''But what then will become the major thirds,
and their replicates? The answer is ready: not one of them will be tolerably in tune; every one of them nearly a comma
too shocking to a musical ear. Chords, too, that most frequently occur in duets and trios, the semi-tones
a an the who was accustomed to
thirds that were only 4. cents wider than the Inajor thirds of which are each 13.68629
cents wider than pure and more than three times more altered seemed "nearly" as bad as true Pythagorean ditones
which are each a syntonic comma or 21.50629 cents wider than pure. No wonder that the harmonies of equal tempera-
ment seemed so "disgusting" to many nineteenth-century musicians who had fine "musical ears."
Table 82-1: The Improved Modified One-fifth Syntonk Comma Meantone by WiHiam Hawkes.
(Fifths having a ratio 1.4%27787 were used in calculating this table.)
Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 390.61497 4.30126 = Ys syntonic comma
GB 390.61497 4.30126
DP-sharp 390.61497 4.30126
AC-sharp 390.61497 4.30126
EG-sharp 394.91623 8.60252
BD-sharp 406.84314 20.52943
F-sharp B-flat 418.77006 ] 32.45634
----,ma1Lu F 418.77006 . discords ( . 32.45634
0-sharp C 414.46880 28.15508
G 402.54189 16.22817
B-flat D
FA 390.61497 4.30126
CE 390.61497 4.30126
ttiesrtlallest· thirds
Figll~ s~~l:. The fotgi of i1ie Inier()V,ed Modified Mean.tone Temperament by William Hawkes.
·°Cotnpare1with Figu.rescts.,2. ss~i~ 65~1. and. 67~t
NOTES
J;··~f ¢.;~ <:t()~dns oriEarf~e])e*'~ lam publicaftan;'' '.lhe Monthly Maga:tJne; or, 1frl#shRegister 22, part Il (Septem-
· · bet l, 18ij{j)::iH3 ...... .. . .
2. S~qve.~ ''Princiet~~.<>fthe Science 2fTtming Instruments with Fixed Tones,'' The Philosophic.al Magazine 25 (July . . .September
~~QtWUj! l~ ~iween 290 an& 313}. .. . .
3HMr~ ~;~ { 09li~~tvatio11~~n·.satt·stanhope'St fate publication," lB. . ·
4, .. Witt(ani Ul\wk~$. ''(lfi•:tft~ Musi~ill. tem~rament of Keyed. Instruments, j ' The Philosopht<;al Magazine 28 (iune~September
1807): 305.
~:·::!J?i~:. ·~ 3~
•...,.•..,~.41~, ~8. i.
7... @id.' ~06.

&;.Jl;)i4••.. ~Q$"-fi.
. 9,,..Jbidi•• 303, ..
10. Ibid.
83
TUNING THE WILLIAM HAWKES
IMPROVED MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT
l
C A must be absolutely correct.
Tune C to Tuned
·-T"" ., l
before
EquaI beating
3.3 3.3 6.5 3.3
l~-¥ k·-t~~=-_ -1--+---+-T~= %¥0tf=~=t~ _,___j
i
Sharpen
i
Temper E from both i
C and A so that the major third C E beats Decrescendos denote decreasing beat speeds.
at exactly the same speed as the fourth E A.
Tuned
before Tuned
before
-·---·--
Tune
i
Flatten
just
The lesi)(ff OjNirteteifnth·Centur}· Tem(Jt!taltleiti
Tuned
before
1.6 1.9 33 4.9 6.5 l I

Equal beating
2.4 2.4
Temper B from both G and E so that the

major third G B beats at exactly the same
speed as the fourth B E. Both intervals
must be wide.
Tuned
before
4.9 2.4 1.9 2.4 3 .3 2.4 3.3

l Equal beating
1.9 1.9
1~-J=Flf+ d*t=~i II$__§~-+~ d·~

i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
1.6 l.9 6.5 9.8 1 4.9 5.8 6.5
~
-========-=
Flatten
83. Tuning The Hawkeslinprifved Tifhperarrrent1h The thedretically Correct Mamll!r
Tuned
before
5.8 6.5 l 2.9

Equal beating
-----,
2.9 5.8 2.9
i
Temper D from both Bb and G so that the major third Bb D beats at
exactly the same speed a& the fourth D G .. Both intervals must be wide.
2.2 2.9 3.3
-r 9
1.5 1.6 1.9 1.9 2.2 2.4
!~t ~---tJ g J , __ [ -==l
Tuned
before
7.3 9.8 l
Flatten F
the major third F A beats at exactly the same speed
as the fourth AD. Both intervals will be wide.
Equal beating
,--------1
2.2 2.2 1.3 1.7 1.3 1.5 1.7 1.9
Tuned
before
Equal beating
2.2 2.4 4A 4.9 l ------,

7.3
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Temper F# from both

D and B so that the major third D F# beats at exactly the
same speed as the fourth F# B. Both intervals must be wide.
Equal beating
-,---·---,
3.6 7.3 3.3 3.6
3.6 3.6 1.6 1.8 1.9
4.9 10.9
3.3 3.6 49 5.5 5.8 9.8
83. Tuning The 1fuwkes Improved TetfJperanu:mOri<The Theoretically Correct Mannet
Tuned
before
l r
Equal beating
2.7 2.7 5.5 2.7 2.4 2.7 2.9
Temper C# from both A and F# so that the major third A C# beats at

exactly the same speed as the fourth C# F# . Both intervals must be wide.
A wide 7:6 ratio

before
2.7 2.9 7.3 8.2 9.8 10.9

l l
11.4
it@lj --
#J bJ
Tune
just
Equal beating
-.
1.7 1.7 1.6 1.7 !.8 2.4 2.6 2.7
Tuned
before
8.2 8.7 9.8 l Equal beating

,------~·--i
5.5 5.5 1.3 1.4 1.5

Tune
just
Tuned
before Just
3.3 3.5 3.6 10.9 11.7

l 0.0
!I~ g ~d iijd Ii~ ~i 113

Tune
just
Tuned
before· Just
•.• 7.3 1 !
0.0
Equal beating
9.2 9.2
. r
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Wide 7:6 ratio
9.2 9.8 · H.4

small minor thirds
H.6
11.7
l
. . . . . . 11.@••i .. ij.
:'', '
113
. Tempey Dit fwm
·bOtff B and G so that the major third B [)#·beats at exactly the
same speed as the majot tllird E~ G. Botll intervals must be wide.
Narrow
3.6J
! l Equal beating
~.Ji 5.4 8.2 14:6 14.6 9.2 13.2
uf~d rf 1,Q ~ai I~ II

A JJ i
Check the following intervals as a final test between F and B.
Just intervals
Narrow fifths Wide fifths
1.5 1.6 l•7 1.8 1.9 2.2 2.4 2.7 4.1
Wide fourths
Narrow fourths
3.3 3.5 3.6
2.4 2.6 2.7 2.9 4.1 5.4
Wide major sil!ths ·.
6.5 7.3
5.5 5.8 9.2 13.2
Jl~i g
4.9
~ a3 ·~
3
f ~
Narrow minor thirds
In this triad, both the major third

and the minor third beat at the
Equal-beating triads same speed.
The majof iliirds imd{olll11\s bea.t .al. the same &peed. The fifth is in jusi intonation.
The major sixllis beat exactly twice as fast.
l
II
"' ,. >-1,~·:+:\";i.,·'. ·.', ,·.,
A ().cents.
9~sharp
- 1
(J . .
4'. . i +s
F-shitrp "OiJ3fi/11 - 1
F 9jg5()'.} +9
E:. 2.3'4626 - 2
E.~tlll.t 2.15063 +2
D 2.34626 +2
C-sharp 9.38S0:3 - 9
Cl· 1.03sn +7
B . minus 4.69251 - 5
B;-t1at plus 11. 731.29 +12
EQUA~ ..BE~ . ....· . . ·.· · . . , . . .,.
11mORETICAtt¥·'toWct'TEMPERMNT
1\Nll
.. . .. ciARIFIEDIN 1807
·1···.·•n ~everal pfaces in this.work; thea1ldfoiihas st.r¥~s@atJuit.dtusiHans, tuners~·.aml:· e.Veri'iheorettda11s· of.past centuries
were npt aware that when two adjacent intervals of a kind seemed to have the same color-quality or their beat fre-
qµenties W~re equal thl\t the interval~ were not the same size having the same ratio. In equalizing a D between a low
0 ami upper A a ninth higher. the int\litive. instin~tive, and easiest manner of tempering was to average out D until
the qualities of the two fifths GD and DA seemed identical. Equal qualities also included equal beat frequencies. Tem-
pered fifths were usually narrower than perfect. The tuners of the pa~t did not know that in the latter example the
fifth GD was narrower than DA when both fifths so.unded the same. This method is now known as the equal-beating
technique.of tempering. VntU.180? the term 'equal-beating temperament' 1 did not exist even though it was the tech-
nique that tuners used. when tuning by ear. Some organ tuners were the exception. They applied the progressive beat
frequencies published by Robert Smith in 1749; but without the knowledge of calculated beat frequencies of all the
testing internds, Smith's technique was impracticable on harpsichords and pianofortes.
Ro9ertSmith's book, Harmonics, Or The Pliilos.ophyOfMusical Sounds, was highly academic and only mathemati-
cilln~J.J,!l.4e.-sto9djt. M~We®e.l~s, it )'las the ~~sis of w~at•is nQw known as the theoretically correct or scientific man-
ner ~~ ~eniverin~ by ear. The great value .of Stpith' s bo.ok and the knowledge of. how to tune theoretically correct by
ear. did not reach the average tuner of pianofortes for many generations. Meanwhile, these tuners tempered by using
equaJs.:beating techniques. N<J name existed fot this technique because very few were aware that there was any other
way of tempering. Since all temperament before the twentieth century. was unequal temperament to some degree (ex-
cept in som~ organs}, it was !lot important whether or not adjacent intervals of a kind were equal in size. This matters
only when tuning equal temperament which contains absolutely no key-coloring .
. . M9ttp~ho~d~,,. set~.9f~tmitmt fo!lc~; ·set~:qf·tu~ing·~l~~tt:'s':~et~;,w~re alw~~··'C~tclllated ·~y··gedmetricmean propor-
. ti()llat~rby·mathematicrimN';·'1ftrd· they·were·comerueted to··emit sounds accordhrg to scientifi~ theory. Irr other words,
they were theoretically correct. For centuri~s, amateur musicians imitated the sounds b:om.monochords or other tuning
aids,. but the results of tuning ~arp~ic~<;>!~ ~!!~'!S~ gr orgf!I1J?ip~sjn tJiis m~nne.r were crude .and rough ..When the tone
qualities oflwri 'iilstfumeiiis. vazy;:~it' isttiffftuiil'ann' dlten'1mpossitiI~ fo tune them in exact 1he theoretical pat- unison. ·
terns of beat frequencies transferred to the harpsichord were as a rule so changed or veiled. that the trmsicians of the
eighteenth century and before never knew that there was a distinction between equal-beating temperament and tempera-
ment that was correct according to theocy. Music;ians who used mon.ochords.did not listen to the beats of intervals.
T~ey assumed tJiat the mo~o~!iofd auton,iatically SQlved this. problem for them. This was the purpose of owning one.
· ~Qt~ Stanhope was an interesting example. He was an accomplished inventor, a capable mathematician, an acousti-
cian, and he also had a fine ear for hearing beats. Proof of the latter is that he noticed the two beatings for fifths;
that is, the b~ats of the. 3:2 ratio and the 6eats of the 6:4 ratio. He stressed that ''Toomuch attention cannot be paid
to the beatings, as that is by far the most accurate way of tuning by ear. '' 2 Nev~rtheless, even though Lord Stanhope's
monochord was constructed in the . theoretically cor.rect manner, he used the equal-beating method when tuning by ear.
This was revealed. by the thorough and complete mathematical explanations in his essay, ''Principles of the Science
of Tuning Instruments with Fix~ Tones.'' His tuning instructions and his bearing plan also revealed this fact. Even
. . tJi.?~~~ ~()f.~~l~~()P~.~l}S·l1(:C01Tlplis~~~ elloug.fl t() ~l!il~ tponochords a11d. sets ()f tuni!lg glasse~ according to mathe-
matical theory, it is certain that he was. unaware that equal-beating temperament differed from theoretically correct
!~!j~1ri:~¥:~··~bt~~1Uir~~r~u~.~fiiji~:2~1~2~i:~~;i~g!£t~lliJi~t!~if~~'lfi~fii;:~Je~~~atJ t~:sc1f~~:;~~~c~:~
········· · · .........
... tween.the:. two. methoo.s•..•:to..show. the. .truUM)j. \his>' Farey.4Jafoulated .the string fn~quencies for both the equal-beating
'<'' ·· ·. ,, ,,,.,•.,\)«;T'''''·r<'''""''"''·'·, ,.,.,"
"'.",' '"t'.k\''"':~!h!'t~.h'i;F(;,"1,\f.\f1'%;17$;tfjpd1+t'i'.' ···: :-'·'
•\"»' ,. ·"•'' · ·. .,,. ·, ·,.,,,•••.. ':' ."' ,. , · ,.•
based on the standard pitch of C =240 Hz.
frequencies in both cases. 3 His calculatibns proved the
"'"'"'.,.'""''"" of equal-beating temperament. ln a letter to composer

Lc•t<;l ..~t:~w;~gpe rebu~alwlJich.Callcott forwarded to the Duke of
n1"irttArt As a foundation for his rebuttal, Lord Stanhope
difference "beats'' and "beatings." He explained the meanings of
the words in great detail. was by a very thorough and clear explanation of the theory of beats as under-
stood by Stanhope. Anyone who read these words and who also did not have the acoustical knowledge of beats to
the extent of the mathematician Robert Smith would certainly have been impressed that Lord Stanhope was correct
in assuming that if the three fifths GD, DA, and AE were each tempered or narrowed by exactly the same amount
that they would then each beat the same speed. Even Dr. John Wall Callcott, the eminent authority on music theory,
thought that Lord Stan.hope's rebuttal was ''triumphant. " 5
Unfortunately for Lord Stanhope, his acoustical basis was in error and Farey's explanation was correct. It is clear
that his lordship did not understand or believe John Farey 's methods of calculating beat frequencies according to Robert
Smith's formulae. In answer to Lord Stanhope, John Farey published a new paper entitled "On the two Systems of
Musical Temperament recommended by Earl Stanhope,-Mr. Hawkes's System, &c. " 6 The first system was the
''Monochord System'' (theoretically correct temperament), and the second system was his Lordship's "Equal-beating
System." The title of this paper, written February 1, 1808, proclaimed that Lord Stanhope had really published two
different temperaments. Stanhope did not acknowledge this fact. In his new paper, John Farey published more detailed
calculations showing the differences between equal-beating and theoretically correct temperament. The calculations
were done correctly, and they included the frequencies of an· the strings within an octave for both systems at the stan-
dard pitch of C:;240 Hz. The calculations also included all the logarithms, lengths of strings, and the sizes of the
intervals given in micro-units called m's. One m was equal to only 0.015356 cent! The cent used in modern acoustics
was not invented yet. More detail concerning the beat frequencies of the intervals was also included.
On February 3, 1808, Lord Stanhope wrote that there is "no merit in his [John Farey's] calculations. " 7 He also
wrote that John Farey "envelops even the most simple ideas in the mysterious garb of hard words and scientific jargon." 8
NOTES
L is not to be confused with the German term 'gleichschwebende equal temperament.
2. Stanhope, "Principles of the Science of Tuning Instruments with Fixed Tones," 13.
3. John Farey, "On the Stanhope Temperament of the Musical Scale," The Philosophical Magazine 27 (February-May 1807): 201-3.
4. Charles Earl Stanhope, "Letter to Dr. Callcott," 1he Philosophical Magazine 28 (June-September 1807): 144-52.
5. Ibid., 144.
6. Farey, "On the two Systems of Musical Temperament recommended by Earl Stanhope-Mr. Hawkes's System, &c.," 3-8.
7. Charles Earl Stanhope, "Letter relative to Dr. Callcott's Pamphlet on the Stanhope Temperament," The Philosophical Maga-
zine 30 (February-May 1808): 35.
8. Ibid., 36.
TUNING E(ltJAL TEMPERAMENT
BY USING JUST INTONATION TECHNIQUES IN 1807
O .
.n June 21, 1807, John Farey wrote that he discovered that five just fourths minus two just fifths minus one
just major third create a fifth that is almost identical to an equal temperament fifth. 1 Today, this type of fifth
is known as a 'schisma fifth,' and it has a ratio of 16384 to 10935. In decimal form this is 1.498308185. The decimal
ratio of an equal temperament fifth is 1.498307077. The difference between the two fifths is only 0.00128 cent. This
diff~rence is so small that Farey suggested that it could be ignored in practice and that pianofortes could therefore
be tuned in equal temperament by ear using just intonation techniques without beat rate tables and without monochords,
etc. What a tremendous discovery!
John Farey published this information so that for the first time musicians could tune equal temperament by ear and
compare the results with their "favourite systems" that they had been using. Farey used two names for equal tempera-
ment: 'equal temperament' and 'isotonic scale.' At this time he did not write that he approved of the equal temperament.
Farey titled his paper "On a new Mode of equally Tempering the Musical Scale," because he thought he had dis-
covered it. However, by referring to the beginning of SectiQn 76 of the present work, measures two, five, and six
(disregarding the low F), one can see the pattern of five fourths upwards and two fifths plus a major third downwards
all in just intonation creating the schisma fifth G-flat D-flat. (Measure two should be read backwards.) Johann Philipp
Kirnberger was aware of this phenomenon which he discovered in 1766. He suggested to others that equal tempera-
ment could be tun.ed this way. Heinrich Lambe11 published the idea in 1774. 2
In the following tuning instructions, all the fifths have a decimal ratio of 1.498308185 except for the fifth FC which
has.a ratio 1.498294891. The beat frequencies were calculated for the pitch A =440 Hz. From a study of the follow-
ing figures, it is dear tha~ on the just intonation is almost exactly identical to equal
ten1pei:a11ne111t. In can see that there are
,1;t'l'••,.it,,,,."P·~ at all. This r11cans and
temperament.
Unfortunately, this technique of tempering proved to be impracticable. For setting thirteen notes within the
octave it was necessary to tune a minimum of ninety-six notes. Thirteen notes within the bearing section "'"""'m"•.r
remained as a permanent basis for tuning the whole instrument, but not until after many notes had been retuned one
or more times. The notes outside the F to F bearing section used in this plan also to be retuned. Kegaircm~ss
of the work involved, it was difficult to tune ninety-six intonation intervals in a sequence without many micro-
errors accumulating. can be a micro-amount wide or narrow without causing any obvi-
ous beating on pianos; therefore, to close the circle between F and C was as much up to chance as ever. This method
did not serve the world of music any better than did the crude results of imitating the sounds from an equal-tempered
monochord. Usually, just intonation is considered easy for amateurs, but here the degree of perfection that is required
is more difficult than the modern, theoretically correct tempering methods.
Table 85-1: Just Intonation Quasi-equal Temperament-Cents Values from Low F to High F.
Cents Values of Just Intonation Difference in Cents
Notes Quasi-equal Temperament fromEqual'l'PmITT~rlnn.Pnt
F 1200.00000 0.00000
E 0.00896
E-flat 999.99744 0.00256
. .
~·~~ ~~,~·~~~~ .
fro~ ~l!Bl r~ml)(!tament
o.OUSl
o~oo~t~
c 2 o.01408.
B 2· 'b.00768
B-tlat 4~9::99$7t 0.001.2&
A 39'1:98976 0.01024
0-sharp 299.99616 0.00384
0 199.98720 0.01280
F·sharp 99,~~® 0.00640
F 0 0.00000
NOTES
. l. John Farey, "On a new Mode of equally Tempering the Musical Scale," The Philosophical Magazine 28 (1807): 65-66.
~. Johann ~hllipp Kimberger,. The Ari ofS~rict M~:Skal Compo9ition, translated by David Beach and Jurgen Thym (New Haven
and fond<:Yn; Yal~·Univetsify Press; I982J; 200~
313
DAit}.
;'FORfElJNJNG;'E~UAh~ S~NT;. .
THROUGH.JUST INTONATION
Test interval
(Figures denote
beats per second
1'uneCto when C is tuned
any desired pitch. to standard pitch)
1 !
0.9
n~= S .~r j f ~r T qt 1f I
i
Wide
Test
Narrow
·Tuned
····before·
!
r 0.7
1f II
Tuned Test
before Wide
II
86. Instructioils Por Tuning f!.qilal T<!mperament Through J11st1ntonation
Tuned
before
l
i~·~r·~r-b-r-~-k-~ft4fl~
Test
Wide Tuned
before
1
LI
Test Test
Wide Tuned Nsrrow
The Lost Att ·OfNineteenth'-' Century Temperament
Tuned Test
before Wide
l !
0.9
Test
Narrow
Tuned
before
!
0.7
i~--+------------+-'----~---+---tl...a-~--'--------tf-~]
Test
Tuned Wide
before
l t
1.i
Tuned
before
'· .~heck the following intervals as a final test Within the F to F octave.
Just
Narrow f"Ifths
0.7 0.8
0.6 0.6 0.7 0.7
If '-E f f f
Wide fourths
*
1.2
r
1.0 1.1 1.1
0.8 0.9 0.9
~r f If ~ ff f
·. WfdlMa.J'ltlllirds
·~0·">», .,.,,, , , ,
10.4 11.0
8.2 8. 1 .. 9.2 9.8
1.3 7.8
·~
tt
6.9
n2=·. r ~r r !~ bf ff f
Wide major sixths
8.9 9.4
1.9
317
Narrow minor thirds
9.4
lf!J: ~~
Tune the remainder of the instrument from only the F to F bearing section.
1 }:!~a!~~~r:t!!P!!~e~~~~;c!~~~ :~r;;'a!f!i~::d~~~~!!:~e~~ ~ ~;~2~~~ei~~e~t. !fe~:~:~i~z~~[~~r:~!
.·;::••
• ()F. tbis temperament becaus~ EG-sha!P and A,.tfat C were Pythagorean type major thirds. Nevertheless, it contained
' · •.many adv'antages. Presentc<fay harpsichQrdjst~tefer to this type of tem('etament as 'Kimberger Ill' or 'Aron-Neidhardt'
·W.elJ. temperament. It was a perfect blend. between two of the longest~Iasting keyboard tuning systems-the ancient
t'ythagorea11 tuning and the centuries-old quarter syntonic comma meantone temperament first published by Pietro Aa-
ron in 1523. The tones C, G, D, A, and E were tuned according to the rules of Pietro Aaron. The remaining seven
.· fo~es were tuned \)Y just intonation fourth~ and fifths, and they were in. Pythagorean tuning. There was one schisma
fifµl th,at was two cents narrow, the. same as an. equal temperament fifth.
;t~chnically, the one~foµrth syntonic comma Prinz temperament was an improvement over the one-third syntonic
cqlMla Stanhope tempe~llfnent in·~xactly the. same way 'hilt the Stanhope was an improvement over the one-half syn-
. to11ic comma Kimberger temperament. In this way, the Prinz temperament was a double improvement over the original
· ...~on~"balf synt<mic comma~ftl:berger tem,penun;ent. Tfle prin:z;. temperament divide9 the syntonic comma into four equal
parts·. Thus, the narrow fifth~ tempeted. \1y one-fourtl:t· synt61lic. comma each were identical to the fifths that were tradi-
tionally used (at least according to theory books) for many centuries. These fifths were considered the model for tolera-
l:l~licy. Regardless of the improvement over Stanhope•s tempered fifths, the major third CE from the original Kimberger
t~fileerament was still retained injust iqtoJ:}ation. This assured that the Prinz well temperament contained as much color-
coritrast as the original Kirnberger temperament. The fiftfi CO was no longer pure, however. ·
. ;. J;:.,:.•
. . ;.;,1 ,~\t;, l;•· ··' • · :.··.n. ·.·~.~"'· ·.·~.·.~:. .t.·1.~~~.e~.~~fi~t::~!~.·~~c;~~~~·a.tn:~;~. ~~·(fd·th···;tY~.··.·~.·
. °:~~~~~.·.~e:;;~;;r:~~~~ ~~;t:!!~.~~~~~~:~:~;~~;
. ~~flti~i~~~~~~.~;,;'.; '~tm1tt·•rn:·t~i·JofntNfitttetr·me:cfifth synmmt"·~ommtr1me~ffe',C>'the William Hawkes modifiel~eantone, the one-half
syntonfo comma Kimberger, ~d the one-third syntonic comma Stanhope well temperament. In all these cases, includ-
·• . . . . riin~· th~r~.~,\lf!~.~!~·lh~oreti,~~!¥·~{)f!~ct. -~~ ~.11 ~!~gll:al~bea~iJ:lg techni9ues c~n be utilized, tJ:ie bea;ing
·pJ tftetheoret1cally correct version includes s1xtee notes from D-sharp to F-sfiarp. (This temperament 1s outhned
below and in Section 88.) .·
···Most musicians of the past used the style of equal-qeating technique p\lblisl\ed by Lord SWilioile 1806. Adhering in
to this authentic procedure, the Stanhope twenty~ni11e note bearing plan for ilnother well temperament called the 'equal-
~ating .,rinz temperamenr is outlinedin Sectio.n 89. Ctlm,pare Sections 79 and 89. Note that.the only significant differ-
.· • .~~ce ~t\Veen the Stanhope and Prinz temperaments was that Prinz tempered the fifth CG in addition to the others.
· •';flltli'harmonic balances and forms of these two Prinz well temperaments are not as perfect as those of Thomas Young's
id~alized representative well temperament of 1799 (see Table 71-2 and Figure 71-l); However, they are superior to
.t1te.Kimberger and Stanhope balances.
Table 87-1:~ Theoretically Corred Prinz Well Temperament.

CE 386.31371 o
Gll 391.69029 5.37657
DF~snarp 395: H·'.H4· 8. 79942
A~.-~~~[l?......... 400.48971 14.17600
continued
eents Wide &om Jllst
•. •.'.'.19;5.~tl.~'f
. •·..,;·~i~:ss~S1,"
~a!t~at L·~·~.21.50629' ·.
J)-tl'tlt F •. ·;· 2~,~{)§29
.A-:ftaF o·•"'' ;,.. !ti2~~29
1!-flatO 16.12972
B-flat D 10.75314
FA 5.37657
CB 0
Co~pare this table with Table 72-1, colunufl. Also compare with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1,
57•1, 59-1, 61-~i 69.,.1, 71-2, 75-1, 77-1, and 79-2, I
The largest thirds ·
DF#
$·
~the same size ~-..,,.GB .~
t flat and 1 sharp q..
f.:>'l>.~
CE ~o~
C~mpare with Figure 71-1.

Compare also. with l'igures 20-l, 24-1, 26-l, 39-1, 40-1, 46:1, 51-1, 57:1, 69-1, 75:.1, 77::.1, and 79-1.
NOTES
L John Farey, "On the Stanhope and other Temperaments of the Musical Scale," The Philosophical Magazine 29 (1808): 347.
2. D'Alembert, Elemens pe M&ique, 42.
TUNING THE PRINZ WELL TEMPERAMENT
Tune C to Tuned
standard pitch. before
Test
Zero beats
..
:-------·----·-----··-··-·---~---,------. ---·-----------c-cc---------,----------:-----------------------~--,
Test
Zero beats
The Lost An Of Nineteenth-Century Temperament
Test interval
(Figutes denote
Test beats per second)
!
Just
! 0.8
12.9 13.9
17.2
iW I!
0.8
~ 2J
11.5
bf ~
9.3
1f !#& jjllr
i
Narrow
i
Wide
schisma schisma Crescendos denote increasing beat speeds.
fifth fourth
Tuned
before
12.9
l Quasi-equal beating
7.45
i~~~JE . . . _t==ti=-r· ~l'i__~

9.3
i
Temper D from both Bl> and F~ so that the major third B I> D beats
almost as fast as the major third D Both intervals must be wide.
If the major third D Ft beats faster than the minor third B D,

then the just intervals contain errors and must be retuned. Tuned
before
Temper A from both F and D so that

the major third beats at exactly the same speed
as the fourth A D. Both intervals must be wide.
2.0 7.5
2.7
88. Tunihg ThePnnz·Tempetametlt• Jn.· The: Theorencally•• Correct ·Manner
Tuned
before
Sharpen G until
the minor third G Bl>: beats at exactly the same speed
as the minor third D F. Both intervals must be narrow.
Also, the major thirds El> G and Bi> D should beat at
approximately the same speed.
Equal beating Quasi-equal beating

~---·
I
10.9 7.45
~
.+f~
1.8
~
10.9
e7.24
ba ft
2.4
==r=~~---~r~??J +=-t1fc--------1_--_.___1s----if-~-~
l.1.5 7.26
n9=
-==--
7.2 3.0 5.4
3.0 4.1
2.7
--·--·---------- -----
Check the following intervals as a final test between D-sharp and F-sharp.
Just intervals
Just intervals
\Vitfe wajor thirds
17.2
2.7 ·. 3.0
..:.7.24:·. 9.Q . . . . . .. .. .. . .. 12.9 . 13.9 ~
~
t ~~r#r~rt
1.'16 • . 93 11.5 .
r
Wide major sixths
3.0 9.0 12.9

5.4
r
9.3 9.7 11.5
n2: E 1 'r t ! tr
Narrow minor thirds
Equal beating
·········• . . ; . . . .· ·4.. 1·························'·
lit): & 0
. f ,g c
r·~r -?~ wr ~r·bp; i ~ i II
Table 88~1: The. Differences in Cents betw~n the Notes of
Theoreti~~I Ce>r!'~ ~nz }Yell Teml'!'rament and EqUal Teml'!'ramellt.
kqu-1 Tempetlmiit . ..The<>retital Prinz Rounded Figures
0 · plus 6.84314 + 7
F-sharp minus 1.46529 - 1
F pt\Is . 8.30971 + 8
E minus 3.42157 - 3
E~flat plus 4.39971 +4
. P.... plus 3.42157 + 3
C-sharp plus 0.48971 0
C plus 10..26471 +10
B · miftli§'•··1:~51 - l
JHlat.... p1\J~ . 6.35471 + 6
Tune the foll:owing quarter not~s in the order written.
Tuned
Tune to the "tuning-fork, before
Tuned
l
tuning~glass, or monochord." before
r
Tuned Wide
before schisma
Test for ''equality of beatings."
l If a standard C fork is used, fourth

each fifth will beat two times per second.
-
I I
/
~
~ ::.£.
I ~ I u
" ';JI_
r
'\: tT
.J t p
<
"'
- -
l ·~· a
P- ti':>
~
I\ -i.·
7 -J:f r;t
~.
itFi"'
..
t
l J
Temper
This interval should be
, .'.'..Y~n\c l!~~l~ perfect."
325
Tune
just
Table 89-1: The Difterences in Cents Between the Notes of

Equal-beating Prinz Well Tentperamedt and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Equal7beating Prinz Rounded Figures
Gt~harp plus 5.15989 + 5
G plus 6.03393 + 6
F-sharp plus 1.24989 + 1
F plus \ 11.02490 + 11
E minus · 0.70639 - 1
E-flat pltis 7.11489 + 7
D plus 2.02943 + 2
C-sbarp plus 3.20489 + 3
C phis 12 .97990 + 13
B plus 1.24861 + 1
B-flat plus 9.06989
~'
+ 9
)."'·'''i·J"Y.4K'l>+>F<
··e<1mfi.tn•e't.Ms·mble
·.t' . Wft1'>·ntble'S
u !li~'.!1
"'-'•, 15::J''27.
, ~1 , 4"'-1
u·, 41~1·, 47~1 , 52-1 ,. 5°-1
o ,Q.:0~1 , 61-1 , 70-1 , 71-1 , 76-1 , 78-1 ,
7()..1, and 88-1.

CE 386.31371 0
GB :11J5.21468 8.90097
]J}'f~shlltJi · 399.22046 12.90675
AC-sharp 403.20489 16.89118
BG-sharp 405.86628 19.55257
BD-shaJ:p 405.86628 19:55257
.G-flat B-flat 407~82000 21..50629
D-flat F 407.82000 21.50629
A-flat C 407.82000 21.50629
E-flat G 398.91904 12.60532
:B-:t1at D 392:95953 6.64582
FA 388:97510 2;66139
CE 386.31371 0
similar sizes _ ___,.
3: frats and a sharps
~
FA CE
~
The smallest thirds
Figure sg~1: Tlie Fortii of tlte Equal-beating Pttnz Well Temperament.
Compare with Figure 71-L Also compare with Figures 20-1, 24-1, 26-t, 39-t, 40-1, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, 75-1,
77-1, 79-1, and 87-1. · ·
327
fill'·PfTIB.tl;/ ·. . ·. .. ·. · · .. · . .. . ·.·. ·. . ., . .
USED As $wsnrmis.FoR EQUAL.
A nton ~ehtetzrieder (174a~ 1817) was a Frencbnmsic teacher and theorist wMsettled in London in 1781. He
wrote music instruction books,. composed much musfc~ and also wrote on philosophy and mathematics. One
of his books 1 was devoted entirely to the subject of mning. Since Bemetzrieder was capable in mathematics, it is sur-
prising that there was not one mention in his book of beats, waverifigs. or clashes between upper harmonics. The tech-
nique of tempering was approached purely from•a.musjcal basis" In other words, the tuning and tempering was done
melodically rather than harmonicaUy by listening to beats. In preparation for this. the largest portion of the book con-
sisted of instructions for sqlfa.sit'Jgiug.· r~e11t .as1 a.. sQl~a, singer ~as consi~ered to be· ~e ~asic requirement for mning
pianos. This was the extreme opposite of John Robison's philosophy of 1801. According to kobison, the basic require-
ment wa~ a knowledge .and application of sc~entific PPtJ,<:iples.
On August U, 1810, Mr::. A. Merrick describect. melodic tempering:
As to the generality of tuners (and many of them are. vezy conceited men), I believe they know but little or' nothing
of harmonics. Theyleam one method by ea~ only, and remember it as they would a tune, without knowing a iule
on wl'!ich either ts founded; That the ear and the memory alone are sufficient, after proper exercise, I am well con-
vinced; for l can tune my harp with the same accuracy diatonically and without sounding two strings at a time, as
it can be tuned in th.e us.ual way by consonances.. , . I know one tuner who, after studying ratios a little, thinks with
~ximeno:...-.''Qual sciocchezza none questa, supporre la musica fondata in certe ragioni, che.bisogna guastare per
ridurre la musica ad es.ecuzione1 Almeno insegnasse la matematica a far questo guastamento; ma dopo un grand' ap- .
parato dhagioni matematfohe, ciascutt Ie guasta per la pratica a modo suo. I Francesi ha11110 fatto per il temperaritento
del cembalo difusissimi calcoli; ma tutti egualmente capricciosi che inutili, poiche in fine l'istinto senza riguardo a'
nu,me:rl c'inse~~ad;~~t!~:~i sl!'untm~·.~mec'inseg~•··ntotteJi.inideme.J~letteref@& formar0leparQlej,&Q.'.' (p. 71. )2
Antonio Eximeno (1729-1808) was a Spanish theorist and mathematician who was against linking music with mathe-
matics; It was rare for a mathematician to judge that ·temperament should not b~ guided by mathematical principles.
Consequently, tempering· was·tf1t'.'1fe 'dune ;ffi~tiifcd:velY"~i:dftr·metmtica:)Jy:by·~ar:'·Trte above quotation by Eximeno is
translated as follows:
Is this not foolishness? to suppose that.nmsicis fo~ll:de,d9Jl:. Certain calculations, which are necessary to alter [guastare=to
ruin] in orde~ !~ redui.;e tbe.mui>i~ for its pe#'otfi\~l:l~e1 W~mld that only mathematics could teach us to make this altera-
tion; but. f~!l9~ini il large apparatus .of mathematic~ calculations, each person alters it in practice according to his
own manner. the French have made innumerable calculations for the temperament of the harpsichord; but all are equally
as capricious as they are useless, fot in the end,· the instinct; without any consideration to the numbers, teaches us
to tune the instruments,. as it teaches us to put.letters to~ether fo form words, etc. '
Mr: .A. Merrie~ wasquiteknowledgeabfo aboµt temperament and its history. According to him, mathematical and
scientific principles were not applied in the temperi,ng: process. Tempering was based on vocal talents. Equal tempera-
ment could ndt have been tllned by the melodic method. Nevertheless, Merrick preferred quasi-equal temperament
··for·· pianos andmeantone .temperament for organs •...
Befiletzrieder furnished several. bearing plans in his book, 3 The first was for use with a B tuning fork, The first
st@~,was.to tune all theti:s.in the. pianofo~e, The secondM$tep..was to. tune .UL the following notes Jn just intonation
using ratios of 3 to 2 and 4 to 3. The voice was the guide.
0)(l'j\·'':''P''~i''''i1 • W.·\JJJ'0\e,"-~>·'1;~1!h~ 'C· '0 (.· .,~., >·'<> 1· "1 • • '"'''" '1¢'""'Fi?0-\\\>1{4!/1tq·>i<w'-'VA :,,, ,. .·,0~·'¥"~1~'':1·'~;"-'•'·' •1'.q;y,.,;
Substitutes.For Equal Temperament
c~
one ·Pythagorean comma
flatter than B.
.. . . .. . I I
~---__J
This "is what German
Tuners call the Wolf."
The C-flat at the end was to be compared with the original B tuned from the tuning fork. This could be done on
separate strings of the unison. Bemetzrieder nowhere mentioned any wolf fifths or fourths caused by the ditonic or
Pyth1;1gorean comma. His only concern as a.solfa singer was that there was a difference between the enharmonics C-flat
~!ld B. This difference was the ditonic comma with a ratio of 531441 to 524288. Bemetzrieder explained that this en-
harmonic difference existed also between all the pairs of flats and sharps in Pythagorean tuning; that is, between B-flat
a,ndA-sharp, E-flat and D-sharp, A-flat and G-sharp, D-flat and C-sharp, and finally, G-flat and F-sharp. Bemetzrieder
called this enharmonic ditonic comma difference the "differential Coma." He wrote, "the differential Comas dis-
appear under the hammer of the Tuner, and both chromatic and diatonic half Tones become equal, the one loosing
whafthe other gaines. The notes of the Octave of such instmments can only be measured by equal half Tones. " 4 The
fatter statement might deceive one into believing that Bemetzrieder was here describing equal temperament; but, a study
of his work reveals that the semitones BC and EF were not included in ''The notes'' mentioned above. Proof of this
is found in his tuning instructions. It is also found on page 3 of his book. Here, he explained that the diatonic semitone
or "little Second" (limma) had a ratio of 256 to 243, and the "Chromatic half Tone" or semitone (apotome) had
a ratio of 2187 to 2048. He further explained that the difference between the two semitones was the Pythagorean comma.
dear that Bemetzrieder;s equal sized ''half Tones'' were meantones between the chromatic and diatonic Pythagorean
semitones. Therefore, they had a ratio of '19+8. In decimal form this is 1.06066+. The decimal ratio of an equal
temperament semitone is 1.05946 +. The difference between a Bemetzrieder semitone and an equal temperament semi-
tone is 1. 955 cents which is one-twelfth ditonic or Pythagorean comma. ·
It is evident from the instructions that Bemetzrieder was concerned with eliminating ''the r11t·~"''"'ntt<>!
only on black keys of the pianoforte. This had the effect that ten semitones within each octave were
ten1pe~rm:ne111t while the between E and F and also B and C were smaller. To acc;on1pll
in the tuning scheme was to go ''back over the flats as and each a very little
for the without the flats. too will
cmmppe~1r " 5 In other was to comma . This is
way to create mean semitones whereby no enharmonic differences exist between the flats and sharps on the short raised
l>\rttrn.crorp~"' tuning. Thus, this temperament could be called temperament or it could be called
:me:an1sen1mme In this was for many This
explains why so many musicians strongly objected to the sound of the so-called 'equal temperament' in the natural
'"""',.."""' ditones and then this on Tables
90-1 and 92-2).
After listening to the "differential Coma" from the last. example, one estimated half this amount (one-half ditonic
con;ima) and then all the flats by that amount higher in pitch according to the following bearing written
in sharps. The note B was first retuned to the B tuning fork. The final E-sharp then proved to be in perfect unison with F.
The srune tone

i-----------,
1t u-i(-#Fllr =if~ --f-=ffr-·=F· --1

I
.;~.'l1lis.was,recom-
,~ r r 'T''r''f'J•--''''c' ·-•
_ ·nn·\1earing plan
ilea '.ttiniqgR:f4iJl~'J'¥'f ___ _ _ __ _ _ __ -tk~dlth~ r~g<J J to
~t, _ _ ~Nle~~~~t¢dlt'~s'te9.~<lt1 ·.mall\f#iliins.the . liatur~.di~tqfil . trite: _ olthe pi®oforte:,in
rellll' tuning;- Be:metzrieder•insfsted tff~t on~ ~sn :must be able ·to :modulate freely through· a11- twenty-four :major
amJ min~r.;f(ey$.lt For thi~t th~re must be no enharmonic differences between the flats and sharps on the black keys.
!hus1 tllis _nt $uf'st~t;qt~r..f~t ~qual tetl'lperament in 1808.
The ll'e .
tempe~~¢11t·~o:1t~is · _,t~_ _ • ~,.j itti.<>n ~fth~ and two one-half ditonic comma narrow fifths
e wo narro'Y: fifills were _ .F.aji _~F• < > "lllfd t~e~ )Ve,t~ each one ~ent narrower or worse than
•s_o~e~half syntonic co1Utl'la,n~~w ti~s. 'l'en setnitopes,h~d aratiov~~V:9;Y ~.aIJ.9,two semi-
taiI ____ a . __ 'J . ____ . 2l:JJ.•Tht§~t"®ct dfttte twelVe seifiitories was 2:0. · · ' ·, ··· · · · ·
,Anton.Bemetzriede'r inusttiave.b ·· ·· tradition,,for.his temperament was identical to
6tie ·of dil' . · ·• ~~'<tf1~e · · .ip. the fourtee.nth
~ . .... .. •' .• ·.. , ., .. . ·.•.. ·• ·.·•. . . . . .. .. . .. . -~~1;ifsli ....... · .· '''irahe:mperament
b~ . .ffetr~ci Iut~s fiiM \){t)is Qf l 51.a·anv4 t~tet,:~ Tftbs/tle~etztiedet' s temperaw~iir was mhre ilianfour c~nturies old
ijtl8Q8,(lt • called ~~flrl~~s~Q~teus 're_~ tem~flll'Jl.etitbecause Grammatetls
}it~!. ·~~t>J1~ . . . . ...... ~~:;'t~~m ·· · · .. l~~ . . .''.'4~fii r~§hfitq~~s: '; : ....· ··
· Like~..· .,_. · . .· B~me!Ziiede_ru~9w_i~gI •.... ·.· •.... two d1ffer~ntlt!mp~r~ments.1rt his firsttwc, bear-
fn~ pia11s:· • . ,. . . . . :l~1tef. . .. •. . tea··m,anr·was <$M~)IJ~:~~t~ ots~~~:111ar.w~t~ tQ be ~~ised or Iower:ed.. J'!<?!hing was
·ipentiotl~d 9~mc~fit'.ill~·: tht ~et1ip~tf11~ ?ft~~ fiftl}s bf fcn.frtps'. lfi hiS _Iasf 6eaHng piart. ·however. Bemetzrieder wrote
· ••'furt~ thd fif!fl's.td~tl1i·. •.. •. • ·~haros:n.?i qqite'.s'1.fu11.as,¥ou~.Ef1t c.an beafthem, you will make_ the differential
f
Cort1asdisapp~ar, \'Viilicml'any . ~efTeriiperdtg~ ¢and flats will tolricide Willi B artd B; and E and B Sharps will
eoincid~1 wn11 F•·fin&·c: 1 •t()i ·• · ·'·· · · · ·• · · · · ·
11}1sis a an·r~renl p~riline_~f· re r,~~~f ~anteiµ11!~gfiye ~ccide_ntf!lst(}a differen(J?itch, Bemetzrieder in-
srtll.ctecHhat tl1~'si ....... ,,.sJtt~~tiifi·~~ .,, 1 • , ·~· a~~taefi. 'fu'uWeadi 6.e tempertd'to a similar degree. A fifth as "full
as your· Bar e-rul:;bear!•!~ifs~·~:just fntd~lfofi: fiftli. ·. . · . . .. . . 't~' so ftlll' • W,as: a one-si~th ditonic comma. narrow fifth.
Tll~~ temi;>ert<t:nfUi~ w~re, &~tQ~9J cefi($ rt~~w~tm,~~~~~wh.i.£~ \Vas cott§!de,te<t ~very s.mall amount in the eighteenth
a!ld e~x.ly:~i , . tllse.u!Y~.!~,~~V~,~~f,!1!1~.ptfa F;.a~~!~~te~perin~1~?~~~ilr~throu~b a s_eries o~n.arrow fifths
thJ."dUI!ll tf1e ..... ts, th~ si~th: fif$. ett~~ O!l ~s
1. ... ·.
~~0tJ1g1aes with. _the Q ttaJiJt~I that was previously tuned from the
~;~g. (ott,~i4 ~(J~nes:of s
. fo~~tjqii .. 9~tl\~· t1l:i~t~: 11,iat~hic ~bite,)i~Ys.rone~from A of the f?ianoforte.
'fhus~C"flatandBwere· ~0 tc:lrte, soitw~stinnecessacy·todh ''aily ftlrllier.Tempering.'' In this: case, F~flat
ij.~. · j-~~. · · ould co· · · ~e ~ay, B~lJ.1etzrieder
. . • n:§flarp"w"<iuttr<:oincide
Wt . ""S arp wou co
· lif iliis · · r tern' etariient dhl'. · · ··h th ,,;g:;;g · ·
.diis~·~ann'· '' •·· .ie••••. ,e. .,;,.,.,i••i..•..:t. ··:1fa1n~-~~i1~1~trlllwr~t~a~~raft1~11~· -~~i:!~~~
ifrt~.r<fllirtnH~ h · .. . .. .. . . .. . . . . ·~iititiefr~~;s·~~~(iniJ•'iiin~~thindrtt; the semitones are·
of ~~:"eral vatying size_~'. This secoqq tempe~awent was idetitical to the V~llotti-Y~UI\g ten.iP:~latl'lent of 1799 transposed
down one semrt8ne in piidt Thts h'ad the effectdf t?:mp1ere1y·reverstng all th~t'faditranal k~y~colors for the characters
of the ~eys that had been d · in• Euro e · ce ~tt(ffeas Werckin.eister first published his well temperament in
168'1 '. !~r·ilH. . ... · .. . . . ,. . . , . ~ery fieely through all the keys ifi the second Bemetzrieder tem-
per~m!iu;··tt cani'I~t·t>e" ..... · . _ a:s'~\V~ll;temteramettt. Bt:lmetzrieder mentioned nothing concerning key-coloring or
key~cit~ci¢r. All tfie.natutal teys ail(\ ino&t cotrµnorily used chords in_ both of h,is temperaments were in pure Pythagorean
tuning. The second temperament was PythagQrean. in. spirit, and it is therefore classed as Pythagorean temperament.
not well temperament. . ·
Lord.~taJ,l}tQ}le ~id, !19~ tec9~n~e .the ~ifferen~~ between theore~ically correct temperament and equal-beating tem-
P~ramen~, l!l\th~ §fillie..}Ml,lY:, A.nto~ ajefi¥t'l<fel (lid ttot understand th~ difference between one-half ditonic comma
af!(l;one..:s~x,tJ'ttli~9n;ic c9lJ1l:rul.Pyth .... · · te,mperamertti Pei-haps as a solfa singer who tempered melodically by ear,
·· · · ·· ltff~~~.~~e~t•hlitu:metablfirvai:iettes.. b~tweenilie one~half and ()ne~sixth.ditonic comma temp.eraments and .then called
thell_l.eql!~ .st";miton~_tell_l};1er~ents. (Bemetzrieder's second temperament is outlined in Section 92 in modern form
·· · -.u!ilii~~Qdg.rµ.:, tectjlll.que~~J..,,..,., •. ·.· ·. . . ..,•.••-,..,•.. : . ..•. ·~·····"····~····•..,"·•····· < ..•.... , ,. "'"~····-.
In conclusion, any musici11n; \Yhodesired to Jt.me an imitatiott or substitiite. for equal temperament in 1808 had three
· ,•·:rr"'··'•"'•"n:~c:<l'"lfl'·1m1~w"'a·-"'"'~sonfV1:s:•""f:'~"-atrn~hurct··ir.~·c.nnttt·'"
~ ~1c~s •.•.1.1.e\ . 1~ ~ •••• .ui.li!!lu•ll!.\-~....... "~••~ ..~~--·''•'*····.· .• .•. ui... . • ... • ·~.l1 ..u sin Jo"---·F
... g ......•~m... ~teY:'.s )q$.f.
·· •inJqJl.~t~~-
· · · te., chn'
.. 1ques., or
he.coutdfolltiw~nt"~B~filt!t~riajet's.·•ilfStru~tion.s-for wningm~l!ldicallyby.ef!f~· Bemetzfjajer's methods are the most
fable 9Q..1: Heilrfcils Gratnmateos 'P§thago'rean teili~erament (MatcJl'I Bl!metirl~der Number 1).
l\fajorci"ll'iirds · tS&es itlCents. Cents Wide from Just
CB 407,82000 21.50629
GB 40'1;82000 21.50629
DF~sharp 39~.09000 9~17628
AC-sharp 396.09000 9.17628
EG-sharp 396.09000 9.77628
BD~sharp 196.09000 9.77628
F-sharp A-sharp 40'i:S2000 21.50629
D-flat F 396:09000 .. ~.77628
A-flat C 396.09000 9. 77628
E-flat G 396.09000 9. 77628
B-flat D 396.09000 9.77628
FA 407 .82000 21.50629
CE 407.82000 21.50629
Notice that the traditional chord-colors (interval sizes) are ruined for the major thirds GB, CE, and FA. The har-
i ~onic bala'ilce for the order of modulation is qesttoyed; therefore, a circle of graduated sizes of major thirds cannot
:tl~.9r~"'.n: and this. is not well temperament. In this way, the Grammateus temperament predicted the ideals of atonality
:Uml#tned l~ter b}' eqi,Jal temperament. . .
· ···Compare this table with Tables 7-2 and 71·2.
NOTES
l. ·Anton Bemetzrieder, The Art of Tuning our Instruments made Interesting and easy to all Students in Music, And Dedicated
l!> ~fl~ Amateurs who like to tune occasionally their Piano fortes (London: Goulding, Phipps, D 'Almaine & Company, c. 1808).
2; M~rrick, "Remarks on the Rev. C. J. Smyth's Letter on Systems of Tuning Musical Instruments," 166.
·3·. Bemetzrieder, The Art of Tttning our Instruments, 9-11.
4. Ibid., 7 .
.s::. Ibfd:,·9'.
.• . ;~;.:.1'w," t:Oj
!']: IJ:]id:, 10-H .
. . At •. Ibid., 7.
·~:.: (i)rammateus, Ayn new kunstlich Buech.
ro.:Bemetzrieder, The Art of Tuning our Instruments, 11.
331
TUNING THE HENRlcus·· GRJ\MMATEUS
PYTHAGOREAN TEMPERAMENT OF 1518
(ANTON BEMETZRIEDER NUMBER ONE)
Tune C to Tuned
l l
!~E F ==£- ·-------i----t--r-F;---p--?f--=t d
Test
Zero beats
Tuned G# B must beat

before faster than F Ab .
· ·•·•· ·•.····/•:. :';;~~fiitl·~lbt~~'2 ..
1..· . ·. • . •·.•·..•·. •··· · ~!;~-~,}. '.''' 1. o.·• ·. .
t! ; •~~; .
5.9
•~ffl ..
t
Tune
just
10.9 9.4
5.9 6.3 4.7 7.0
10.9 12.3
'11~~····· ~. lB >f
f, /' ·.
•.ii
.~,"' >... ' "
·~ I#~ ' 9~ II
Tuned
before
! 0.0
I~~f
7.0
n~J:~r - 11f
5.9 6.3
II
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Equal beating
~ 6.3 7.0 10.9 11.6 12.3
Ih: Iff ~ 'i If f ~

t
Tune
i!!~t
333
t
Tune
just
63 6.6 7.0
)~ -~-+t~= - - 'l".J- ·-~~'~.f:=--±i--i~

~_-
·---+-Of -~i iJI 9
Just intervals
[--------------- -----·
Wide fourths Wide major thirds

I I
Equal beating
~-----------i . 16.4
59 61 6.6 7.0
5.0 4.7 4.7 . • .· ·- ~ 10.9 J l.6 12.3
ff~l-~--+--=tL J!g~~~~~ff-. 1f~= t.-a

I
91.··· Tuninl!tli'e flenifcu.r:Grahimateus Temperament
Wide major sixths
10.9 11.6 12.3
Narrow minor thirds
Table 91-1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes of

Grammateus Pythagorean Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Grammateus Rounded Figures
G minus 3.91000 -4
F-sharp minus 5.86500 --6
F minus 7.82000 -8
E plus 1.95500 +2
E-flat zero difference 0
D 1.95500 -2
c minus 5.86500 -6
B plus 3.91000 +4
.,.,,.,.,,.,,,,r,.. this table with Tables 8-1, 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1,
88-1, and 89-1.
92
TUNING THE VALLoTTI-YOUNG TEMPERAMENT
TRANSPOSED DOWN ONE SEMI10NE ACCORDING TO THE RULES
OF ANTON BEMETZRIEDER'S TEMPERAMENT NUMBER TWO
Tune C to Tuned
l l
1wf =1-1f-~4---+-r-=r=-f~.--+--r--.~
Tuned
before
Test
----------
Zero beats
l
i
Temper G# from
both E and C so that the major third Ali C beats one and one-fourth
times as fast as the major third E G~. Both intervals must be wide.
1.0
4.1 4.1
#r #~
l
1)€\crescendos <fenote decrea8ing beat speeds.
1*r ' II
Tun~d
before
l 1.7 7.0 11.3 12.3
1#& 'F ~r II
1
Flatten
Tuned
before
1.3 1.7 1.9
1ifF If
Temper C# from both F# and G# so that the fourth G# C# beats one and one-half
times as fast as the fifth F# C#. G# C# must be wide and F# C# must be narrow.
Tuned
before
5.9 8.8 6.6 10.9

l
tt
10.9
ritt r 1$ .11 f.
i
Sharpen
337
2.1 1.4
¥:
1.4 1.3
~tr
1.6
l
1*i ff' lb~f bf
i
Temper D# from bdth 0# and Alf §!l that the fourth A If D# beats one and one-half
times as fast as the fi(th G# D#. A fDlf must be wide and G # D# must be narrow.
1.9 2.1 4.2 5.3 6.6

3.2
n~:' ~ ~ I~
4.7
1111~ *~ i II
Just intervals
Narrow fifths Wide fourths
1.3 1.4 2.1

1.9
re
1.6 1.7
112:b~f % IP[ tp *!f

Wide. majoll thirds
11.9 16.4
10.9 12.3
··~~·
rF.
92. Tuning The Vallotti~Young %tnpetallle11t Transposed Down One Semitone
12.3
__··.-f
5.3 6.6 10.9
>~
u~1iE ~ttH
·. .· · · • · .· .... · · •· •· ·. •· .· · . . . · ·
Narrow minor thirds
sJ rt f --f=__t=:sJJ
12.4
~
13.1
·. 1~4
18 4
.
r
123

Anton Bemetzrieder's Pythagorean Temperament Number 2 and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Bemetzrieder Number 2 Rounded Figures
G minus 3.91000 -4
F-sharp plus 1.95500 +2
F minus 7.82000 -8
E plus 1.95500 +2
E-flat minus 3 . 91000 -4
D minus 1.95500 -2
zero difference 0
c minus 5.86500 -6
B plus 3.91000 +4
B-flat minus 5.86500 -6
Compare this table with.Tables 8-1, 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1,
78-1, 79-1, 88-1, 89-1, and 91-1.
Table 92~2: Tr:rm~:po,gcd ''"'""'h.··'"""'"'" !l"w1Urn•cn1r<•,...,, T'"m,.,....,,.,."""v'* Bemet.zdede:r Number 2).

Major Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide f:rom Just
CE 407.82000 21.50629
GB 407.82000 21.50629
403.91000 17.59629
AC-sharp 400.00000 13.68629
EG-sharp 396.09000 9.77628
BD-sharp 392.18000 5.86628
F-sharp A-sharp 392.18000 5.86628
D-flat F 392.18000 5.86628
A-flat C 396.09000 9.77628
E-flat G 400.00000 13.68629
B-f1at D 403.91000 17.59629
FA 407.82000 21.50629
CE 407.82000 21.50629
Notice that the traditional chord-colors (interval sizes) are here reversed. Compare this table with Tables 69-1,
and 90-1.
me same size.......;.;.._ _...,,.
equal temperament thirds

~11G ""4'i'"".,~1-.--~ the. same size
3 iratS. ami 3 sl:l~rps
the same size

.4 flat~ a.net .4. sharps
The ·smalfest thirds
Figure 92·1. The Form of Anton. Bentef2rieder Pythagorean Temperament Number 2.
The form of the Antqn Bemetziedet TempetamerttNutrtbetTwo is almost as perfect as any possible; however, the
orders of major third sizes are reversed from. traditio1L therefore, this cannot be classed as well temperament.
Co:t;tlpare with Figures 51·1, 69~ 1, and 71·1. · ·\
THE Forni TWENtv.-.FIFTH.s SYNTONIC COMMA
MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT· BY JOHN· MARSH IN .1809
J ohn Marsh (1752-:1828) was a prolific composer and writer on music. His book on temperament was published
. in 1809. 1 He preferred meantone temperament although the term 'meantone temperament' was still not applied
in 1809. John Marsh called his approved temperament the "system of mean tones and limmas." He was against equal
temperament, and he criticized "those instruement makers who, by their own authority, take upon them to explode
the wolf, and direct their tuners to make every key alike, not knowing that if they were really to do so ... they would
infallibly spoil them all. " 2 In other words, Marsh's philosophy was that it was better to have only two-thirds of the
keyboard harmony tolerably in tune and most of the time to stay within those limited resources than it was to attempt
to use tonalities such as A-flat, D-flat, F-sharp, and B major as often as the other keys which in tum would require
spoiling all of the harmony equally and rendering all of it out of tune. Marsh also wrote, "I am told that some of
the modern piano-forte makers, stipulate with such new tuners, as they have occasion to employ, that 'they will have
no wolf.' This puts me in mind of the renowned Capt. Oakhum's orders to his Surgeon, on board the Thunder, Hark
ye, mind, I'll have no sick on board my ship.' " 3 Thus, to attempt to eliminate the wolves in temperament was
co11l.s11dex·ea as unrealistic as Captain Oakhum's ideals, forin equal temperament dissonances existed everywhere.
Marsh concluded that the ''imperfection in Organs and Piano Fortes can only be partially obviated in tuning.' ' 4 There-
fore, meantone temperament was the only solution.
John Marsh liked Pietro Aaron's classic regular one-fourth syntonic comma meantone from
the most. 5 However, after explaining the acoustics of the four diminished fourths and the wolf which was
really the diminished sixth G~sharp E-flat, he concluded that "at least 21 sounds within each octave" were necessary
for proper modulation in this The first solution to this problem was to add more sounds to the octave
by either on the He r0v·u,,'\Jv00
ailthe latest then concluded that most for the use
ing musicians. Also, these customized instruments were expensive.
Marsh ackn0 wledged that the other solution to the wolf problem was what twentieth-century tuners call 'well tem-
"·""'"""'"'"t ' He called it "the common mode tuning." He wrote that there were those who were
pleased with the variety occasioned by the characters of keys, to the common mode of
organ and piano forte; reckoning the dissonance of the wolf, 7 to be particularly appropriate to the expression of
tive sentiments. 8 This is indeed to make a virtue of necessity. But I cannot myself be brought to acknowledge any
beauty, or advantage, arising from Imperfection .... Neither can I see any occasion to resort to the distortion of thirds
and fifths, for the sake of producing contrast, in musical expression. 9
In the dedication pages of John Marsh's book, he clarified that he, along with Lawson Hudleston, of
tempering for the sake of the characters ofthe keys. Marsh also disliked well temperament because many the com-
used major thirds such as E-flat G, EG-sharp, and AC-sharp were too distorted. He disapproved of equal tem-
perament because in this there were no thirds or sixths of any kind in tune at all.
John Marsh judged that equal temperament was too dissonant, that well temperament was too distorted, and that
Aaron variety ofineantone temperament was too limited on standard The solution was
a modified or advanced form meantone temperament that would serve the realistic that one be allowed
ii::··~::.:>:.,•''" 1-n to modulate
oci;as:ion as as
tonalities such
were the extreme ""'''"'"'""'
Marsh ~ecommende~ the a~option of regular ·fot1~.:\\'e~ty-fifi1?s(orneadyfour.twenty-fifths) syntonic comma· mean-
fohe te1lleerament. ·Mor~ accurately, the ratios of his fifths .~ere 1.49700?455 in decimal fonn: This information was
derivedfrQm. Marsh's }'7igqre VI in;lti~ Plate IV. ~0 Here, )l.e considered th.eoctav~. as containing .150 units. Thirds such
as CE and BG-sharp contained 49 .25 units each while the remaining diminished fourth G-sharp C contained 51.5 units.
From this one can ca,IcµIateJl~ follmv~: ~9~25 ~iy~~~·~y 150 ~$}l1a,~,s 9.32~333333..·T})i~ is. the decimal portion of the
octave for the Illi,ljort:hird CE. The ratio ()fthe octave is 2,to l (or 2). Two taken to the.0.3283+ power equals 1.255562054,
the ratio of Marsh's maj 0r third CitAdd twQ octaves. to the major third CE by multiplying l.255 + by 2 x2. This
creates the number 5.022248216 which is the ratio of Marsh's major seventeenth. The fourth root of 5 .022 + is the
number 1.497009455 which is the ratio of Marsh's fifths because four contiguous fifths create a major seventeenth.
According to this temperament, two out of every three major thirds were made "as sharp as the ear will permit,
in order that the remaining third may be as little offensive as possible. " 11 The major third (49.25 parts out of 150)
was "supposed to be the utmost degree of straining the major third will bear, to a well cultivated ear." 12 Thus, John
Marsh established that a major third that was tempered 7, 686 cents wider than pure was at the limits of tolerability.
In Marsh's temperament, there were two tolerable major thirds plus one offensive major third per octave, and one
could modulate with a fair freedom. This was considered better than using the three equal-sized contiguous major thirds
in an octave of equal temperament whereby all three major thirds were considered offensive because they were each
13.686 cents too wide or 6 cents wider than what the cultivated ear could bear. In other words, two-thirds of the har-
mony being tolerable was better than none. A further advantage of Marsh's temperament was his placement of the
"one offensive third in each octave, which indeed is rendered more tolerable, from our being able to throw it into
the keys less generally used.'' 13 These keys were the centuries-old traditional locations for the diminished fourths in
meantone temperament; namely, G-sharp C, C-sharp F, F-sharp B-flat, and BE-flat. Marsh's temperament was con-
sidered a meantone temperament because the wolfdiminished sixth G-sharp E-flat was 14.545 cents wider than a just
intonation fifth. This was more than a half-comma too wide, but this was a great improvement over Aaron's wolf diminished
sixth which was 35.68229 cents too wide in 1523. John Marsh's wolf fifth was a shade better than the poorest fifth
used as a tolerable interval on the earliest tempered organs in the fourteenth century . 14
John Marsh's bearing plan was thoroughly rooted in history. !twas copied from the John Bland bearing plan (see
Section 64) published around 1790 which in turn was copied from the Preston bearing plan (see Section 60) published
around 1785 which in tum was copied form Nicolo Pasquali's bearing plan(see Section 33) published in the middle
of the eighteenth century, which in tum was copied from William Holder's bearing plan (see Section 13) published
1694, which in turn was based on Marin Mersenne's bearing plan(see Section 11) published in 1636. Marsh's plan
was still in use as late as 1902. 15 Except for being an octave higher, the first nine notes of Marsh's bearing plan are
identical to the abridged Holder bearing plan listed on page 38, and sections of the remaining notes are also identical.
The words published by Jean-Le Rond D'Alembert in 1752 describing "le ordinaire" also fit the Marsh
bearing plan (see Section 55). By restricting the notes of the bearing section to a minimum of nineteen between B-flat
below middle C to E an octave and a major third above middle C, one finds that Marsh's bearing plan was identical
to Preston's except that Preston's first trial major third was GB instead of the more and historical CE as in
the 1785 Marsh
also and third trials" in proper
places. all the previous copiers, Marsh gave no credit or acknowledgment to Bland, Preston, or the others.
The evolution of titles is interesting concerning how at first there was only the harpsichord, then there was the harp-
sichord and pianoforte, and finally there was the piano without the harpsichord. Note the following: An approved Method
of Tuning the Harpsichord by Pasquali from around 1743 to 1757; then An approved Method of Tuning the Harp-
sichord, Spinnet, or Piano-Forte by Preston from around l 785; and finally, words by John Marsh that read ''The most
approved method ... for tuning Organs and Piano-Fortes" in 1809. 16
John Mar~h's bearing plan and tuning instructions gave no hints on how one was to arrive at major thirds that were
to be exactly 7 .686 cents widened from just intonation as derived from his calculations in his Figure VI in Plate IV 17
that specified the eight major thirds that were to each consist of 49.25 parts out of 150 parts in size. Marsh's deficiency
was that he furnished no twentieth-century type testing intervals or beat frequencies so that this could be done others.
Marsh made no mention of beatings or beats, and he did not tune by fourths, thirds, or sixths. How he determined
that his good major thirds consisted of 49.25 parts out of remains a mystery. Nevertheless, this size of major
third conforms extremely wen to his philosophy. It is now 182 years late, but instructions for tuning Marsh's tempera-
ment in the theoretically correct manner are given in Section 95 of the present work.
According to Marsh's philosophy, advanced meantone temperament was the only practical solution to the wolf problem.
He admitted, however, that on keyboards solution was only partially successful. 18 This was caused by natural
nmnot~r "'·""'."'"'~ of or five ever each other. Marsh that afterlife
not
rcan ~ee 110 re~son why petfe~tion is .more tq be .exp~c~e~ in nmsic tha~ i.nany thing else, in this subhtnary state,
and amtherefore induced to think, that compleat satisfacti~qjn this respect,must be reckoned amongst the blessings
ofa future state, .wherein we may doµbtless reaso11ably !lope. to. enjoy tht( ipost perfect harmony and. melody united
together. In the meantime however, we 111ay make such approaches towards perfection, as to satisfy our limited facul-
ties. For although we cannot e~tirelyexpeltlJ.evvolffro111.cmrorg~ns and piano-fortes, we may yet so muzzlehim,
as to render him comparatively innoxious, and shall therefore still nave cause enough for thanks to our great Creator,
for the fortaste he has given us of an innocent gratification of so permanent a nature, as to be capabl~ of being extended
to that state, in which we have reason to think it will be part of the employment of the blessed, to chant the praises
of their Creator, in extatic Hallelujahs, when systems of tuning shall no longer perplex us, and Temperament Shall
Be No More. 19
According to this, John Marsh is now composing and enjoying music in the best just intonation. If there will be no
need for temperament in the hereafter, then Marsh's statements were a fitting conclusion to the temperament battles
of 1806-1809.
NOTES
1. John Marsh, A Short Introduction to the Theory of Harmonics, or the Philosophy of Musical Sounds (London: Goulding and
Co., 1809).
2. Ibid., Preface, 2.
3. Ibid., 21.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid., 10-11.
6. Ibid., 12.
7. John Marsh regarded any major third that was as large or larger than an equal temperament major third as being a wolf-type
interval.
8. According to Charles Earl Stanhope, the 406.8 cent major third A-flat C was "particularly suited to solemn and to plaintive
music." Marsh must have read Lord Stanhope's pamphlet.
9. Marsh, A Short Introduction to the Theory of Harmonics, 23.
lQ. Ibid., between pages 12 and 13.
11. Ibid., 13.
12. Ibid.
13. Ibid.
14. See Table 7-2 of the present work. Compare Bouliau's fifth EB with Marsh's G-sharp E-flat in Table 94-1.
15. John William Hinton, Organ Construction, 2d ed. (London: Weekes and Company, 1902), 41.
16. Marsh, A Short Introduction to the Theory of Harmonics, 10, and Plate V between 16-17.
17. Ibid., between pages 12 and 13.
18. Ibid., 21.
19. Ibid., 24.
THE AtirHENTIG WAY TO·TtJNE
JOHN MARSH'S MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT OF 1809
John Marsh's bearing plan is listed below in modern notation whereby the quarter notes are tuned in the order written.
"The fifths to be tuned rather flat, and the thirds as sharp as the ear will permit. " 1
"a fine third, but as sharp as

"Tune to a tuning fork." the ear can well bear ... if not, go 2
over the whole again from middle C."
l !
r i
"first trial"
Tuned "A good, but shai"J.l third,

before like that aHhe triaL 3
if not, tune all again from E"
"second trial"
94. The Authentic Way To Tune Marsh's Temperament
Tuned "a gooo. and proper third, which Tuned

before should it not do, then tnne 4 before
the three last fifths over again."
l
i
"third trial"
Tune
just
Table 94-1: The Theoretically Correct John Marsh Meantone Temperament.

CE 7.68629
394.00000]
GB 394.00000 thirds at the
(
7.68629
DP-sharp 394.00000 limit of 7.68629
AC-sharp 394.00000 tolerability 7.68629
EG-sharp 394.00000 7.68629
BE-flat 412.00000 25.68629
mildly
F-sharp B-flat 412.00000 [ 25.68629
"offensive"
C-sharp F 412.00000 25.68629
thirds
G-sharp C 412.00000 25.68629
E-:flat G 394.00000 thirds at 7.68629
B-:flat D 394.00000 the limit of ( 7.68629
FA 394.00000 tolerability 7.68629
The semi-wolf G-sharp E-flat is 14.54500 cents wider than pure. Compare this table to Table 61-2. Also compare
with Tables 11-1, 15-3, 17-1, 28-2, 30-2, 35-2, 55-1, 65-2, 67-1, and 82-1.
NOTES
1. Marsh, A Short Introduction to the Theory of Harmonics, Plate V between pages 16 and 17.
2. Ibid., 15.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid., 16.
5. Ibid.
?-;
Tes5 interval
TuneCto
standard pitch.
..
(Fig~t.,s denote
~.T-ld)
Tuned
Tuned
before
l
before
l . 1.6 1.2 1.6
n~:f r ff . :c·.• ·. 1f f 11r r

i ---= i
Flatten Flatten
i
Flatten
The major third C E must beat just a

shade slower thaµ the major sixth G E.
Tuned However, the minor third A C must beat
before noticeably faster than the major sixth G E.
u 1.6 8.4
l 1.2 1.3
1.6
5.8 6.3
8.4
1r 11r f 1f f E 1' fr II
l
Flatten
If your,€Eiiuignifieantly slower than your GE, you have been tempering your fourths and fifths to beat too rapidly.
If yQur CE is as fast or faster than your GE, you have been tempering your fourths and fifths to beat too slowly.
95. Tuning TfieiMarsh Tempeh!Jtfrentfn The Theoretically· Correct Manner
Analtemate plan:
Tuned
Tuned before
before
i
Sharpen Sharpen Flatten
The major third C E must beat just a

shade slower than the major sixth G E.
However, the minor third A C must beat Tuned
noticeably faster than the major sixth G E. before
5.8 6.3 l.3 1.2 1.3 1.8

8.4 1.6 1.6
i
Temper D from both G and A so that the fourth AD beats
one and one-half times as fast as the fifth G D. A D must be
wide and GD must be narrow.
Continue from either of the above plans as follows:
Tuned
before
l Equal beating
~
6.3
I
Equal beating
--i
1.3 1.2 1.6
Tune
just
'"--'-jJ~i:jt~f' ~--' -
-;;~:~1-~
t::.:
The• h>st ·Art· QfNineteehth·Century· Temperament
Tuned
before
8.4
! 2.0 1.8 1.2
~H!Hb--12=~&~--r--~4·~1
f
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
5.8 9.5
l
r
4.4 8.4 1.5 1.6
1P r
1.3
R21 r
~~~_i_-~11~r-~
-=====
1 t--T-1~f~*-·-~f_g
======--
i
Flatten
Timed
before
1.2
i
Flatten
5.8 3 6.3 9.5 10.6
i~~4--t-J~-+-F----+-I_·-3# --==----··~
Flatten
Tuned
before
•• 19 &4 l 1.0 1.1
Jt'='--=~ =· #r=== ==t 11' r· ~ 1
Tuned
before
., ~·i;#.ic' •i; · 1r2= #& H • t ~~· Im . . . . F F II ~ br

t
Sharpen
5.2 5.8
1.4 1.5 4.9 7.5 7.9
1.3 7.1
b~ ~~ !~ ~ br ~&
n~;
~ ' 11F II
Sharpen
Just'
Narrow fifths
l.O 1.2
Wide fourths
1.8 1.9 2.0

1.4 1.5 l.6 1.6
1.3
ll~J=f
~
f ~f f #'f f Ip f
Wide majgr thirds Wide major sixths
5.8 6.3
r
4.9 5.2 5.3 5.6
4.4
Pf qr
3.7 3.9
lit>:#& E ~~ *E l~f i
Narrow ~not thirds
9.5 10.l 10.6

7.5 7.9 8.4
! tt
6.3 7.1
~t tr~~-"' 1
95. Tuning The Marsh Temperami!fttlti The Theoretically Correct Manner
!
5.2
The,''offensive" intervals
18.4 15.6
lf~=-~ ._Jt~f' _f ----+~*-~-··.

_,____5A ==:_._I$£+>-!"---··-·-
- ---1---1----t!--b~==gj
Table 95-1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes of John Marsh Meantone Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament John Marsh Rounded Figures
G plus 3.00000 +3
F plus 6.00000 +6
E minus 1.50000 -2
D plus 1.50000 +2
c plus 4.50000 +5
B minus 3.00000 -3
Compare this table with Table 61-1. Also, compare with Tables 12-1, 16-1, 18-1, 29-1, 30-1, 36-2, 56-1, 66-2,
68-1, and 83-1.
· ':bA1::.1•.1:> .,11~11:.R\'&b'£1l~ltl"lt
y c/W~l:~~~~1t8Jo~vmn•
I n June 1810, the Rev~rend C. J. Smyth, mirt6f·'~~dn rif''tltt1cathedral irt Norwich, had the 1Ioiiot of beirtg the first
. irt the English.:.speakittg world. to publish the· b~~. frequencies for the mirtor thirds, major thirds, fourths, fifths,
mirtor sixths, and major .si}{ths of equal temper~~(1~ 1 r The~e beats .were given for the octave from middle C to the
C above. They \Yete calcljlated for the old stand}ii:~1 pit~h ofC=240 Hz. The figures were given~~ beats per fifteen
seconds fo~ the convenience of organ tuners follo\yii)~ Robe~ Smith's beat counting instructions of 1749. These calcu-
lations couta have been done in 1749 by using::i~.y~ert1Smith~s formulas, but they were not. No one bothered to do
the calculations until 1810 because there was no' demand or need for equal temperament until then.
In 1810, Augustus Frederic Christophel'. Kollmann (1156..,J829) praised the Kimberger one-half syntonic comma
well temperament as "one of the best hitherto lotown. " 1 KoUmann was a musician, composer, author of theory books,
and Ba:chi scholar who migrated to .Londonin 1·782: .wHere he remairted for the rest of his life.. J. S. Bach's permanent
reputation seems to have first developed in England, and Kollmann laid the groundwork for the Well Tempered Clavier
being first published. ·
<;, J. §~yth disaaI~d wi!Ji. KollmlW1 IPld pu:blished a·l'l~gative review of the Kimberger temperament. At the end
of the review, as a:n afterthought, Smith irtcluded the calculations for equal temperament. To Smyth, these calculations
were of secondary importance to the negative review and to the exaltation of the classic Pietro Aaron meantone tempera-
ment \Vhich he predict~ ••organ-builders and or~an·tuners will, in spite of any charges of obstinancy, ignorance, or
policy~ continue to tune,as their ~ce.stors did before them.' ' 3 This prediction proved to be true for most English organ
(QnerS: throughout mucir ott11e runeteettth century. The· practice· of meantone temperament on organs died out very
gradually. "The organ at Wells Cathedral was still tuned to unequal temperament in 1895." 4
l'ltec ¢quaJ tem,pertt1Jle,nt·ca1¢µ1ations wer~:pttb)islie<H<!r'~ft~· s~e of tf1ose't'Jfganists of •'little genius•~' who needed
tenrmdulare,,excessively;'~)ith·wrote'tnM'd'lere·was a ~~rage·,for modulation at present exerting its energies, to their
utmost possible extent; a rage veryfavourable to the talents of those, who have not invention sufficient to produce
novel ~~···b~uti~l m,et~es •. and ~et~~~ire t(}. th~·. c~a~ct~r ()f •. interesting· co1llposers.''6
. Withlhe publfcatlolf offfie equal temperam~nt beatftequencies along with the' availability of standard pitch tuning
forks or tuning glassesin 1810, it was possible to tune organs in equal temperament from that period on. However,
the practice of equal temperament on organs remained rare in England until the middle of the nineteenth century. The
Smyth figures were not meant for piano tun~r~. 'fhey were catcu1ated an octave too high for the convenient and practi-
cal listening to the thirds and siX:ills• l'heywere given in periods of fifteen seconds rather than the usual one second
of time. Piano tone ls t(IO fleeting for the practical application of Robert Smith's beat counting methods. Most impor-
tantly for piano tuning, the skiU of listening to the upper nearly coinciding harmonics still needed to be discovered
and developed along with the interval testing patterns. In· fact, it is impossible to tune pianos in equal temperament
without the latter techniques. These techniques w~re discovereq gradually, and that is why the application of equal
temperament on·pian<>s.la:gged a whole century b,::hind: that possible on organs.
NOTES
1•.. ~th. !~Comparative.Tables of the.Beats,'' 452.
2. nmr:,
44g.
3. lbtd; 450.
»i«'"'"/),>">"J<&'C"-"<>'<f'o1'"'~'"'""'"'~!-'~"' , •, •• .,_.,0 ~'"""'''"''''""~'-''''""'C'''~i '•'-'"''
4. Hinton, Organ Construction, 96n .

...5.. Sm~dl..,~!CQmparativei . :kables.. of.the BeaiSjt'.! . 4Sl.
6':·•wta:;·'44,; . .. . . . ···:we•·••··., . . • ..... ···c···· ... .
· <i'.,.~:·;~
'·~· · .:.;.•~.~.'.i.;:l·1•·..·\ by .. usica.1 S.. cale." a. pam.phlet by an anonymous.. autMr~ was,. published
uning an Equal Temperament of the. M
Becket and Company in 1809;V:fhefollowing nineteen-note bearing plan was furnished. This bearing
(fmaiI1ed popt1lat.i~ England through the 187()s2 and. 1&80s.l It is still in print at the present day by Vestal Press
s~~tions 120 and 147).
Tuned
before
' N~tiee that the first three ilotes and the last several notes were identical to John Marsh's bearing plan of the same
ear (see Section 94). AU the fifths were directed to be tuned a ''little'' narrower than perfect. As an examvle, ''From
·· .iµne . Q.~ nef(~abO\re jt. ~ ll~';fllJ,tter: ~~~ ·iJ,:lJe.tfe<:t·fifth~ and i~otdel"·to ascertain whethet it i~ too flat or
qug])., tfyit'ina~ftd'ftf with'ttre·two C's alrem:fytaned. If it make a tolerably good fifth, with C below, and
e tiine a tolerably gqod. fo~rth, with . the C above, it is well tuned.'' These instructions were repeated for
.. . s,. ~s '§OqtJ; a~ tn,~ ndt~§ w~re ~!l,lc~~ fqr e.~ch oft~~ following thirds or sixths, they were to be .tested to insure
ey were "good."
~2%
Jtf i ffi ~j ~i ~g §Mi J
iJ ~
II
Of Nineteenth-Century Temperamefit
By<tfle. ~pqve instructi(Jns for teIJlpering fifths, there.~~sp.p way to .detetm~ne th~t the fifths would be exactly one-
twelftlrdit()nic coI001:;t narrower thanjust fifths. The fif!h;Grs)iarp D-s~arp was not played, so there was no provision
for provingwhether or n()t the circle was closed, Notice that the only thirds or sixths that were .tested as being "good"
were the traditional selection of thirds and sixthsfrom meantone temperament. The diminished fourths G-sharp C,
C-sharp F, F~shatp •.ij-flat,ang, ~Ec. flatwere not~lay~~.or teste(l, Ttu~~rs foUowing.theseinstructions. in .1809 no doubt
produced temperaments very sill1ilar to the well temperament of Mr. Prestonfrom ·.1785 (see Table 61-2). Instinctively
or intuitively, it would have been extremely difficult not to ~emper in the Preston or John Marsh fashion, especially
since only the meantone test intervals were applied. Half of the test thirds were too high in pitch for practical testing
for equal temperament, and the minor sixths were of no benefit. It is most unlikely that any tuners of the past created
equal temperament in this way. Nevertheless, this method was called 'equal temperament' in 1809, and the pamphlet
stated that organs were "universally tuned according to the equal temperament.' ' 4 For centuries, meantone tempera-
ment had been and still was the common tuning on organs in 1809. In other words, the anonymous pamphlet writer
called various meantone temperaments equal temperament (see page 594 for similar misnomers).
In August 1810, an anonymous correspondent to The Philosophical Magazine wrote that if the above mentioned
pamphlet's thirds really were in equal temperament, they could not be classed as "good thirds." He wrote that equal
tempered thirds "must be tried a long time, so that all idea of perfect chords is forgot, before any musician would
pronounce them good thirds." 5 About the minor third AChe wrote that "no organist in England would, I think, call
[ACJ a good third [in equal temperament}. " 6 His proof for the latterjudgment was that AC above middle C beats
326 times per 15 seconds in equal temperament at the old standard pitch of C=240 Hz. 7 Concerning tests for the fifths
in the pamphlet, he wrote that they were "inapplicable and ridiculous" 8 and "nugatory and absurd" 9 and "useless
and faUacious." 10 Modem piano technicians understand the latter truths and agree with the negative descriptions. The
anonymous correspondentto The Philosophical Magazine charged that the anonymous writer of the equal temperament
pamphlet "had no proper conception of the nature of an equal temperament, and that it is extremely unlikely that he
had ever heard or calculated such a temperament. " 11 The present author agrees. The anonymous correspondent further
explained that it was common in I 810 for unqualified writers to call their tuning instructions equal temperament. He
called the pamphlet writer a "Musicus Ignoramus" because the tuning could not have been equal temperament.12
C. J. Smyth was the first English writer to publish the beat frequencies for equal temperament at a known standard
pitch. As a knowledgeable acoustician, he was wen qualified to suggest in December 1810 that "A person disposed
to cavil might raise arithmetical and philosophical doubts whether a real equal temperament has ever been heard." 13
'"'""""'""'""the promotion ofthe equaltemperament idea by Marpurg, and many
other eminent philosophers, Smyth wrote, ''Can any man living prove, that there ever was one organ in Christendom
tuned according to the equal temperament, in consequence of a peremptory order from any one of these gentlemen,
and suffered to remain in that state?" 14 Even though Smyth was the first to calculate the equal temperament beat fre-
quencies, he doubted that equal temperament would ever become common practice. He wrote, "an organ, with com-
pound stops, will not admit of the major thirds being tuned sufficiently sharp to ameliorate, in any considerable degree,
those greatly chords which I wish breed were extinct.'' 15
corresp(Jndeny . 1Jitf the
altered thirds sixths in the diatonic keys. review the equal temperament pamphlet was totally negative."'
In order to illustrate that all the thirds and sixths of equal temperament
' who wrote the never or heard
all the fifths, fourths, minor thirds, and minor
rn•'.,-""' plan. He made remarks aftet every By so
the first instructions in the English-speaking world for equal in the correct manner.
(If this temperament is not done in theoretically correct manner, it cannot be equal temperament.) The beat frequen-
cies used were acknowledged to be C. J. published in June 1810.17 The numbers were given in beats
per seconds according to organ beat counting tradition. While reading the review but ignoring all the negative
""''""''r'"' and observing the beat frequency numbers on fifths, it was possible for tuners to tune organs in the theoreti-
cally correct equal at the old standard of C=240 At this time, sufficient did not
exist for applying equal temperament on pianos, however.
In conclusion, the history of equal temperament is as follows: Marin Mersenne published the ratios of tempera-
ment in 1636 so that monochords and fretted instruments could be constructed in equal temperament. Copying or imi-
tating the tones from these instruments onto organs, clavichords, and was a failure in practice.
Since and theorists equal should be on. keyboard in-
struments. In 1809, the published by Becket and Company furnished an equal bearing
with beat the
ofC
theJuinirtg .,." ...,,,.,~the temperament war of 1~()(:)~1$12. While no one seemed to be thewinner.at that time,
was . . . of. equal temperament in Pr.a.cti~~·on organs. Ironically, it was created by the()rists who
to equal temperament. Jhe sontroversies began with Lord Stanhope'sessay of September 1806. There
no more againstequal temperame,nt thanStanhope, but we have him to thank for causing the rapid develop-
m~nt of acoustical study ·leadingtothe·beatfrequencies of equa! te~penm1ent. Lord.Stanhope ·died in 1816.
The original bearing plan and testing patterns are retained in the fo,llowing instructions. The first.test third was the
minor third AC above middle C. This was quite useless because of its extreme rapid beating, At least half of all the
test major and minor thirds and all of the test minor sixths given in these instructions were· also impracticable for the
same reason. Nevertheless, the basic technique of checking the progress of the fifths and fourths by listening to the
results on the thirds and sixths did exist here. In 1810 none of the tuners were trained to listen to rapid beating thirds,
sixths, or tenths at their nearly coinciding upper harmonics. In 1810 all the test thirds and sixths in equal temperament
were therefore useless. The reason the instructions were ''workable''. on organs was that by listening to the beats of
~ach fifth for fifteen seconds on organs with steady wind, equal temperament was possible. Since it was the beats of
the fifths that were the main foundation of the temperament without relying on the thirds and sixths for their beats,
it was appropriate that the bearing plan was so high in pitch in 1810. The faster beating fifths were easier to control.
The original beat frequencies from 1810 are given in the following instructions. They were calculated for the old
stand.ard pitch of C=240 Hz. They are given in numbers ofbeatsper fifteen seconds for organ tuning. For Robert
Smith's instructions written in 1748 on how to count these beats, read page 92 of the present work. The beat frequen-
cies as given in 1810 were not perfect. Much of this was caused by basing the calculations on John Farey'sjust intona-
tion equal temperament published in 1807, rather than on exact theoretical equal temperament. This was unimportant
because "the difference in practice would be imperceptible between these two systems. " 18 Nevertheless, the true beats
as calculated on a Texas Instruments TI-60 calculator are given in brackets above the original beats when there is a
difference.
NOTES
1. A correspondent, "An Examination of the Instructions given in an anonymous Pamphlet published in 1809, for Tuning an
Equal Temperament of the Musical Scale," The Philosophical Magazine 36 (July-December 1810): 167-71.
2. See Edward John Hopkins and Edwaro Francis Rimbault, The Organ, Its History And Construction, 3d ed. (London: Robert
Cocks & Co., 1877), 183.
3. See C. A. and Organ "The Bazaar" 1880), 178.
4. A correspondent, "An Examination of the Instructions given in an anonymous Pamphlet," 168.
5. Ibid., 169.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. Ibid., 168.
9. Ibid., 169.
10, Ibid., 170.
Ibid., !7L
12. Ibid.
13. Smyth, "Reply to Mr. M.'s Remarks," 435.
14. Ibid.
15. Ibid.
16. A correspondent, "An Examination of the Instructions given in an anonymous Pamphlet," 167-71.
17. Smyth, "Comparative Tables of the Beats of the Tempered Consonances," 452.
18. John Farey, "Six Theorems, containing the chief Properties of all Regular Douzeave Systems of Music," The Philosophical
Magazine 36 (July-December 1810): 48.
,....... reat~~Y 4li'~~~~!tlou~~i( latet jcn~ ·· . ··~Osn9tltmus, Mo~g ~ith ~otll~l' anonymops al\tfior who
~· wr~(e a n,igaflye reView or· e ,ri~in,atJ . 2 emp~fairlerit, what was thought to be a joke in 1810 tiirned
o\it,to.·~~ ~e~ffi~el1ajv,~rsitl temperatti~11t~f,Jfie wcu: .... (see Section 97).
,.•.Tu11~ .•the,f<>t,1~wiji~. q1"~et .no~~i~. ~n ·th~ q{.v~l'. ~ril!e~q· ··
1'est interval
(Figures denote
beats pet 15 sec~11ds · • ..
Tune C to an antique in rounded numbers, witli
l
tuning fork at 480: Hz.
1:.·.
the author'$ c~ctions:
m7~l
Tuned
b<lfore
! '.p .
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
I 9 18 l (14)
13
(327)
326
J lg l lj II J J I ~· J
U'g t
l Flatten
t i
flatten
Tune
just
Tuned
Tuned before
before
1 15 (245)
244
214 l 183 214
~
11~ ~ I~ Ii ~ II ~ J 14 8 II
t
flatten i
Tune
just
Tuned
befote.
l (11.5)
11
(23)
22
160 l
!I~ j
Flatten
i
Tune
just
357
Tuned Tuned
befote before
l (q}
12 180
308 l
u~p ,~
1/l ii~ 1i 111~
~
i
Flatten
i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
l 16
Equal beating
(191)
190
I~ ii
. l5A."' · .. ' .. 16
·····r1:~:•·· •=f
»'.\•'.wi.•<'S·'iV{<«-1'»•, '···" ~
I~ g I ~ ..
, •'CJC>'°•''•'\"'•'\••'"'"'~'"'' > .,, "'''''
II
i
Sharpen
Tuned Tuned
before before
l .. (10.9)
10.5 127 l (22)
10.5
_.JI~ ~· · · · ~~
~
[
s ItJ II
&J
l
Tune
I~~
just
98. The First Wvrkai>lelnstrltttions For Tilning Equal Temperament On Organs
Tuned
before
Equal beating
r--
14 (!70)
169
Sharpen
the original anonymous editor in 1810 made errors on FB-flat and DB-flat. He wrote the beat frequencies as 10.5
respectively. Tuners in 1810 probably realized that these were errors, especially on the fourth FB-flat.
""'""''"u anonymous reviewer wrote at the end of the above· equal temperament instructions ''that the wit dis-
played therein, vastly exceeds its science, or its usefulness. " 1 What he meant by this was how absurd it was that any-
one could consider such fast beating thirds and sixths as ''good.'' He also meant that there was no use for equal temperament
the world of music.
twentieth-century tuners would not trust the results of the above temperament method. They would need to prove
that equal temperament was really acquired. To do this, they would listen to the following test intervals and make
the necessary corrections.
9.7 19.3 154 135 154 135
--===---- -.--
Just octaves
,-----·-··---·-·-------------··----------·
Narrow fifths
II by in the patterns below,

increase in frequency. The exact frequency of each beating is of secondary importance.
Wide major teilffi~> .·.
Wide major thirds
Narrow minor thirds
J II
NO'l'E
..
,r. .:>.: . . . .. . .· ,, . :: ~·.;\ .·_, . ':'.·~ ~/ ·:.:~,·:.·l.:.::~-~~::'~·~!::·':.,:<if>·.;·1"·~···":\,,h.: ·~.l ·>:··~{·~· -\~:r ;:\{ ]: ..,,· :·:,: ."' :- >.<, ""<; <. •
ii J?... Merrie¥: .w!ls i11~ere~~ing.Jl,is. *1ri!~htt~ ~~Y~e~ a cgmJ>J~t~ µndersjandi11g of te:nt\)et:~et!~ a~o~.s~i~~. !lJ!d
... t he believed in ''the P()Wer «:>(the rr~cHsecf ear. 'to judge ()f intetvals'' .melodicaHf as being dioie. practical f
ng them by beats unless they were on the organ. 1 He wrote, ''Tables of beats furnish the most certain means
any system on. the organt if adapted to the pitch of the instrument; but for instruments with wires, they are,
~ntirely uselessj' ' 2 In ()~er, W()rds, pi!lJ!ofortes ~nd ..h~rJ,>s were to be. W1led ntelQdically by ear. In 1811, it
'known that l;l,11 tl;\bles. of b~~t~ \Vere ~ea~t for counting beats per fifteen seconds while tuni~g organs. This
•very ex.act resUits on organs: Tlte'bl!llfs on pianofortes were not clear enough and they did not last long enough
· e latter method, especially since all tuners believed that beating took place only at the fundamental pitches
also among the upper hatmonics •. Therefore, much piano tuning was still done melodically and not harmonically
811 the piano-tuning profession had developed into a new and· separate profession from that of being a musi-
; Mt. Merrick wrote that ·
many, who are mere tuners; !lte guided, in the operation of tuning, by no theocy, by no calculation ...• I have seen
a ... little book on the suljject, by A. Coblenz, a professed tuner and teacher of the art; wherein the author says that
to rune is. nothing more than to know how to play a ru11e right, whlch,jvhen once learnt by heart right, will be the
repetition over again. I have ~sistes met with some tuners who were ignorant even of the possible number of common
chords ... as this is the.case pretty extensively, I suspect .•. they are seldom musicians. 3
~s.pon~~ci!°M7::cE~10t:~~fr~~~~ret~iti~~;~~~~lit~'~;,~;!:~~~~~al~1i~~r~~~,1~·~!~:r~~.~
.. IL..... . .. . . Y g
• ....•....•.•...•.•••..•••.i ...••....• t ••.•••..••.•.••..,....... • . ........ . .....•...•.
o the correspondent, tuners were aw~re of beats, and they relied upon them even if they did not "actually
m. This is. true toda~. TunerfcOrI1.~ilre the rel.atiVe rapidities of beatings rather than being concerned with
. . •.·.··· . numbe:r*oiH>eats.ipet seco11d1that~au~ht: to ex.ist on each int¢tval•.'fhis is especially tflle fodliirds, sixths,
enths whereby it is the comparative beat frequencies of these intervals that is most essential.
Merrick was quite accustomed to tuning his equal temperament by ear on the harp, but he decided to try it
on the piano. He wrote:
I have endeavoured to fttnethat system on a piano-forte, by the melody alone, striking the finger-keys singly, and
succession only. I have tried the experiment but once. Twenty-four sounds, near the middle of the general
of the instrument, were so tuned within fifteen minutes, in the presence of two experienced tuners, who after-
wards compared the sounds in one octave with the sounds of a monochord having a scale divided decimally, and found
the corresponding lengths of the wire to be as follows: 5
c 500 F 749
B 530 E 793
B-flat 559 E-flat 836
A 596 ..D 886
G-sharp 628 C-sharp 939···
G 664 c 1000
·F-sharp 704
361
1Vfr. A. Merrick wlls aware that his telllperament \V1'1S ''nearly the equal'' but not the exact theoretically correct
equaltempt'\rament, 6 •Therefore(he also published the·monochord.stringlengths for exact equal temperament so that
one could cofi1pare the differences which looked very minor on paper. This supposedly proved the point that the ear
was superior and that it c()uld temperwelodicaHy \Vithout the help of theotY or beats. Mr. Merrick deserves our grati~
tude f?r publishing this tempef3lllent ~Afy~is)~ exact ll1?J}ochpr~ ~gures ..so that we can know how accurately the
so-called ''equal temperament'' was tunetlin the past. woulditn9thave been truly wonderful if Bach, Haydn, Mozart,
Beethoven, etc. had done the same type of analyses of their temperaments?
FoHowing are more detailed analyses calculated from A. Merrick's monochord figures. These include complete
instructions for reconstructing the quasi-equal temperament as Merrick tuned it. Any modem piano technician will
immediately see that Merrick's temperament could not possibly be called equal temperament today, even though it
was quite atonal. There is no chance that Mr. Merrick's temperament could pass the entrance examination for becom-
ing a certified member of the Piano Technicians Guild, Inc. In the piano technology courses taught at Michigan State
University, Merrick's so~cl1lled equal temperament would .be.graded a failure.
It is interesting to reconstruct Merrick's temperament so that one can hear how much the science of equal tempering
has developed since 1811. In fairness to Mr. A. Merrick, the present author suspects that the tone A was analyzed
incorrectly with the number 596. If not, Merrick's A was excessively flat, and it is surprising that he didn't hear this.
Therefore, it is optional whether or not one should raise A about 9 cents. In the following analyses, this was not done,
and the tuning instructions are based on the original Merrick figures as published. Note in the analyses that the altera-
tions of intervals are not calculated from just intonation; they are calculated as alterations from theoretically correct
equal temperament.
Table 99-1: Mr. A. Merrick~s Melodically Tuned Equal Temperament

Semitones Sizes in Cents Cents Altered From Equal Temperament
BC 100.87712 + 0.87712
B-flat B 92.22711 - 7.77289
AA-sharp 110.95686 + 10.95686
A-flat A 90.54267 9.45733
GG-sharp 96.50242 3.49758
G-flat G 101.27062 + 1.27062
FF-sharp 107.26835 + 7.26835
EF 98.82618 1.17382
E-flat E 91.41849 8.58151
DD-sharp 100.56451 + 0.56451
D-flat D 100.58215 + 0.58215
CC-sharp 108.96352 + 8.96352
Table 99-2: Mr. A. Merrick's Melodically Tuned Equal Temperament.

Fifths Sizes in Cents Cents From
CG 708.89382 + 8.89382
GD 700.65185 + 0.65185
DA 686.39324 -' 13.60676
AE 705.58976 + 5.58976
EB 697.59421 2.40579
BF-sharp 708.50032 + 8.50032
F-sharp C-sharp 701.34033 + 1.34033
C-sharp G-sharp 696.43272 3.56728
D-sharp 704.71394 + 4.71394
E-flat B-flat 696.78559 3.21441
B-flat F 693.45908 6.54092
FC 699.64515 - 0.35485
is a 22.50058 cent difference between the smallest and largest fifths.

!?i~:fg,Jttlf~''r''\l:':!:~,f~c~'
AC~sharp +13.02461
. ~G~sharp + 3.66757
BD"sharp +10.98130
F-sharp A-sharp 399,27251 - 0,72743
.D,.flatF 391.39133 - 8.60867
A-flat C 394.60376 - 5.39624
E-flat G 39~.1S3M - 1.21636
B-flat D 402.64990 + 2.64990
FA 395.5840'7 4.41593
CE 401.52867 + 1.52867
. 'fhe form qf tonality and the order of modulation for the characters of the keys are destroyed; therefore, this is
~})Qt. a well temperament even though this is an unequal temperruttent.
· · there is a 22. 79555 cent difference between the smallest and largest major thirds.
NOTES
. t. A. Merrick, "Rejoinder to the Rev. C. J. Smyth's Reply, on Modes of Tuning Keyed Instruments," The Philosophical Maga-
zine 37 (January-June 1811): 111.
2. Thief. ' 113.
3. tf>id., 111.
· 4 .. No friend to tuning quacks, "On Tuning Musical Instruments," The Philosophical Magazine 31(March1811): 187.
Merrick, "Rejoind~r to the Rev. C ..J. Smyth's Reply," 11.3.
Ibid. ..
363
100
TUNING THE MERRICK QUASI-EQUAL TEMPERAMENT OF 18ll
T
Tuned
Tune C to before
i
'~Tioch 14 14
1~f ~-~~-~~f~~-f~i
i
Sharpen
i
Tune
i
Sharpen
just
Tuned
before !
(causes hannonic waste)
4.7 =-=f ~ 8.8 .~

l 1!.5
88 4.7
14
itt!= r==f-===rt-~--==~=~-=t==~ - ·ill

i Sharpen
QuasicEqual remperament
Narrow
before Tuned
before (causes harmonic waste)
1 2.5 1.4
3.2
2.5
i i --
--=-
Flatten Sharpen
Semi-wolf
Tuned
Equal beating before
r--··---1
4.7 0.4 7.9
0.7 3.2
-===---
- i
Hatten
Tuned
before
12.6 4.7 4.5 8.8

25.2 l
i
Flatten
4.1 11.5 22.l 25.2

17.1
--=-=::::::::::::=- - - - - - - - _- -
________
Flatten
4.7. 6.4 22.l

I 12.6 .. 4-~ 8.8 15.1
i f
6.4
!l~:J rt ~r ~~ #~ ~ II
Wide
(causes hannortic waste)
Tuned
before
!
1 i.o·
'r
. 17.7 17.1
0.7 ~
If ~J: ~··
Sharpen ·
Tuned
before
l
r i
4.5 5.0
~..
~
·· ~s
F
3.2
JOO.••- ·runing The_--Mernck•QuasicE:qital Tempetarnent
11.l
---==::::::::=_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Tuned
before
8.8 11.0
12.0 15.7
l
i~= ~
bbf
1 #~ II bt= ~~
i
Sharpen
Narrow
(causes harmonic waste)
i--
0.2 0.4 2.8 3.2 5.0
6.4 9.8 22.l

12.6
15.7 17.5
Narrow
Narrow Wide
r-------------------~-------1
0.0 1.4 3.4

0.2 0.4 0.7 1.0
Semi-wolf
Wide
Narrow Wide !
1.4 2.5 I
)~__ f __ t[
2.8
Wide major thirds
4.1 11.5
5.0 H.1 17.1 17.7
bf. d--Jr
2.2
!~ ~
4.7 7.0
~ ~~
=1
~
' d
Wide sixths
4.7 6.4 9.8 12.6
Narrow minor thirds
5.0 22.l 25.2

l 1
THE REsULTS OF ''NEARLY THE EQUAL" TEMPERAMENT
TUNED ON ·A PIANOFORTE ANALYZED IN 18ll
Semi-wolf
Wide major thirds

r - - - - - · - - - · · - - - - - - · · - - - - ·- - - - - - 1
4.1
Wide major
4.7 6,4
12.6 9.8
'1,'al>le 1ot~lLThe: Dilterences in. Cents l>etween.the Notes of
. . . '", ~~·M~~~~~·~ .~.~y@l Te~oe:rament Attempt and Equal Temperament.
Equal·Temperament A., l\ferri(k Rounded Figures
A zero difference O cents
JG-sharp plus 9.45733 + 9
G plus 11.95491 + 13
F-shaI'}f plus H.68428 + 12
F plus 4.41593 +4
E plus 5.58976 +6
E-flat plus 14.17127 + 14
D ph:rs: 13.60676 + 14
c~shllt}j plt!S: 13.02.461 +13
C plus 4.06108 + 4
:S plus 3.18397 + 3
.B~flat plus 10.95686 + 11
Comparethi; ~bie with Tables 8-1. 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1,. 41-1, 47-l, 52-1, 58-1, 60-:1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-l, 76-1,
78-1, 79-1, 88-l; 89-1, 91-1, and 92-1.
~ ri 181'.i, fienry Listop..wrote,, ''':{'he p.earer we: ~pproa~h toJhe systeiµ Qf '2
eqµal sem!t(.)11,e~. ~n~:ffi():t:~.~e :mµst,
p.ecessa:i:iJ)l, untune the. wlmle instrument; so that. we must either be contented .with a very ba<;l .sut?stitution fot the
:~iµe sharps:aP.d ij~fSc• wf:tere they.do qc;c:qr, .9f•· ~()Walse thi~ substitution.t?lerable, we must tune tl;le whole instru-
;Very ill~•' 1 f9:.othell w9rds., eqµa! !epiper~en!w~s ill temperament. :He further wrote th~t 111t m~.m~rds f111<;l sixths
,: JJ1\ .e9'\l~ tetµpef~tµent 'Ye.re. ''iJ! every case, ext,reiµe,ly disagreeable. " 2 This was typical of how musicians of the. early
nineteenth century who still had sensitive ears.Je}t,.tib,()ut.the examples of equal temperamenton organs that they had
~eard. It was possible that they could have he11rd.e,qual temperament on organs after 1810;
:. l{enry ListQn clarified. tbat altho11g!l, theJ)~e~ di,ssµsseq stanqard Pietro Aaron one-fourth syntonic comma meantone
t¢iµperament was called tile common or. ''yulgaf1'• teiµgetaiµent,)t was really the one~fifth co~a va.-~ety that was
Jfiqst popular, 3 •T~i.s inch1ded. the . te,iµpe,rame\lt.Q( .Q~iifri,ect J(e,Her published iri 1707i. the John Holc1en !emperament
~KJ!JO, tl;le ~nglis~ m,.9<!~ftec\ iµeaJ>~oP.e 9f~J.,"{. ll.9~ m~i.m~.difie~ ffiean~o,ne !emp~~a1Ilent of \Villiam flawkes pub-
lished in 1.801. Qn·organs dq:i:i11gthelate,;sey~pt~~mth cMtury tht"()ugh the early nin~teenth century,. the. one-fifth comma
.:...v~eties.Qf.tµe~tqn~.!~tnl\~~~~11.t..'!V~te.~~P!ID9,11t;~.l!~.~~.ll!:':rpsic,h,ords .~n9 pianofortes the well-tempered alterations
~KJt. . ~ere prac,tjced.,as .~vW'1~c,ed by. the iµus,ic pqblisb~t;J:. · . . . .·
. · ·All the one-fifth comma varieties of meantone an4; well temperament pr.oduced exquisite, harmonious sounds on
!lje. natural diatoniq.wbt,te keys, of the pi@qfqrtes an~orgal1s· The craze for extreme modulation, however, had bec.ome
~~pepnanently established, custom. Sip.ce ni.ost. key~oarc\ inst:i:uments h~d only thirtee:.n. sounds per octave, the tones
f()t;.sharps b~d t(). al.so serve f()E.:flats pec~qse.of this extensive modulatioµ. Theorists, therefore, preached that equal
temperament must be adopted. In equal temperament, the differences between shai:ps and flats are reduced to zero.
· '' •· · ~ti9~1 ~~.~\l~::cb:~l'.~~t~~~ q~; . . . ~!!u;?i,~f!~!b·;Ji>U,~ tbes~:Et~l?!~~ w~re not to be. needeciin the future
ebrc~sy;'~:'.~;~imtttttter''e~S'el'S · tmt:rroyed ext:tieme. modulations to the po.int of atonality. By l 812,
5qp:ipo:siti9nal pra.~tices detetffiined (hat tlie ()ne~fi~h coiµma regµlar meantone tem11erament could no longer be used
.. ~P:f~it!~1Wi~ie~i1;·~£~da ~r~~~h~ $ •~~~~~fa;i~ of cl~ss,lc~ ref~ement during the eady nineteenth
c. •. etl,~ry.
to They.soencou:raged
the octave that equal the scientis. ~s arid.in.
temperament wouldve . nto.
be ·r.·.s... w
unnecessary... h·o . bu.iltl<:
. e.f y·...b·.. o..ar·d··· instru
•. ~kperiments ... m
...ent•. s. w
addiQg;more ... ith·.·· m.···o.·tllirteen.J:(ey-levers
tlla.n r.e. ··.t·h·an.· th
. ·. i.·rt
.. ee.n. tones
to
the .octave had beeJ:.l done. since the,sj){teenth cetit,u.-y ~4, organs; such as the Foundling Hospital Organ. were well
.\llowll~~ 1if~~~¥rr?.J.>yJ,JUl\t,.•was fi~y· a.c!fn~il~dged. ~hat aqding more keys was highly awkward and inconvenfont.
'l;he.r,efore, the goaOti the nineteenth c.enf1Jry . w11s. to.~d.q many .mQ:t:I! soun,.ds to the. octave but not to add more key
levers. The extra sou11ds w?re activ~ted by means of foot pedals and hand stops.
William Hawkes was granted a patent on July 25, 1808, for his organs and pianofortes containing seventeen sounds
withi11; the octaV:e (eighteen sounds i11cluclj1lg.t1Je ~ta¥~):.~ 011 bi~ pian~fortes, two complete sets of strings were neces-
sary. Technically,. twenty~four. separate sounds within t~e. octave c9uld. have been produced, but the sounds on the
white keys were duplieatect: There were no more than twelve fixed keys, but the action was moved by means of one
pedal so that either flats or sharps could be played from the two sets of strings. For these instruments, the one-sixth
. con11nameantone tempera.me11t was intended. 6
One problem with Hawkes's instruments was that onecoufonofplay a shai:p and a flat atthe same time which was
·· regyir~<f for some tµ0dulatio11s and interval combinations. In order to correct this situation, DaVid Loeschman invented
·asystem of twenty~four'~biiH<ls withfiitfie ocfave fot wlifcR1fewaS'granted'a'patent on July 26, 1809•;'1 On Loeschman' s
:•·:i~~·t;'~en.ts., modula.~~,··~aS:\lllre~triGted".xn~ti tile siiµpli4¥ity of having onfy one aµxi!iary Pedal a.itin ~a"'1kes' s piano-
···"fortes was lost. ·navlctt'~es~llmaJi riee{felf''sfx auX:iUaey·p~ffais, not counting tit~ other usual pedals neated for dampers,
371
·v,s.•;;;n~§~~~iifytJll.Qrde,r
J •..•
.·.·r~a~t~,~earttone
an~-.fomihcomma
cf hat$:]lis choice
~t) ~'91\lptete, sets
, ·Re was granted a

Re shared the pat ton:' itt~ t'iiit3natl ~ed ~ o~~~g:~ ;~~!ili~
twelve keys within the octave were installed and even though modulation was nearly unrestrlcted. 16 To make this pos-
sitile, sixty pjtc:hes to thei't1(!taVe were used that were activated by ten extra pedals. Only twenty pipes per octave were
needed becaust\,;¢a9JtP. le. af. h,ayflla its int9:11at~()ll ch~mged by means of the pedals. LI;tter. Liston intended
to increase this to twe · 'd .Wlllt~e:: ·
·. ·. . J~ c~P:cllJ,s~o~~ ~a~kes. Loeschfi1ant 81ld tiston ty'.'.'fau,:t 01ga11pip~ wi!f.ifll each octave for each
set of tonet{qfilt(fes~>J;i~to11's i11tended seventy-two so® s to e ve activated by twelve,:~xtra ~dals allowed that
complete just intonation could be used for unresfrict~<:l. ll1odulaticm. Loeschman's twenty-four sounds within each oc-
~ve activat~ by ~ix eX:tr~ t)ed~s allow~ that J?ietrq;,,A~cnt' · lat one-fo~ ~yntonic comma. meantone tempera-
tfi.entcou~d ·b~· fdr1 unt~trfcied'.~~<Jdtilt1tl'bit~c;"~,. ....·.· . sotliYds' within eac~ u~utve aetivatt<l. by only 011e
ex~a ~al •· 't one-sbdb coiruria meanto~~ . e€Jntd be used f-Orurirestrlcted modulation depending
o~·one•s inte of'whatcofistifutes trt:~ ·an ..... ·. ·... ctect mddulatioll. The twelve sounds withiri each octave
of' stadqanfkJ ·. . . . .Hi~fits · · ,. ~xttlt~tils'~xlfit(UJ'Yecttrires that either equal temperaipent or any of
th~·w~Q;' . .. . . . . •. eHts . . . '~'fis~ .· . . . 'ctive·1matutatlon~'Rtfwever. the thirds and siXilis of'equal llintperament
on ·organs ·wet'e&consfde~J~x~~tfi.eiy·distt~reeable· bf ·mostm~si~lans.
}Jeruy Liston and the' ofl!e~s received muth pfaise•and ert~Oum~~ment fortheir efforts. u Howeve1;as history later
pr()v~. · the· idea of elfmin.atJng the . · . intpeffection of keyboard ·instruments by adding more .tones to the octave
µltimateiy tMl.,'."lqJ8f2~Wil11hltif.#t ... ''wf<;lticonceffiidgUlese·eJ(~enmental instruments that.~ 'In fill these the bulk,
. nse; an~ . . JM of the iiistriitnent are in~rea~ed mg:fopo:ttion t9 the number of notes add~." 11 Experiments
m' . /e~H. .~vef'C~~sea. 1 P~'rliaifswltlf tlf~avMta6dftybf mddem elect.tonics the .instim:ttents might not need
ttf6~'sobq1~~ . ~s!Ve';1µf<t':c<l' 'at~. lifid·~~W:'ex·· 1 rffilenr~migftt therefore !Jrove to~ successful.
William :Raw es .. ~q'a~op(ed~'iW. .v~rl~ti.es ·or the ·· • .. ~yntonfo conupa m~antone temperament in 1805 and
18<JT-,·~l808, Wilffwn}J~wke~~~d4dopt(UJ .the ~ne~sf .. •1JHfttiameanforie·ten1P'Criiliient for his patent organs and
piafid~ortes confu. .. .~eventeeif tolteS:;withj~·~acli &~\re. 'l'be ·eomma ~ivided was not the. syntonic comma or the
drt<1nfo comm~. btit . . dhima: itt6et\veeii the fatteflwo sizes'called the Me"1ator comma. 13 The Mercator comma was
()Ilefifty4hJril~fllJl~\re{~cH<lfflli nat'f()W~ ti~ one~sixth Mercatdtoomma. The ratio for his fifths was 1.496734.
Tfflswas•-ifetjfiifillar t~•wtmt Gottfn. ... ·11l\ermarln ~1683~1753) an?. nlalltothers on the Continent had used. It was
also similar to the tempered fifth published in 1800 by Thomas Young for the transposed theoretically correct version
of.the.Francesco.Antoni(l.lfatfotil •.tehipcram.ent*tba•ffelMi:llmuwones;•bad'publi&ll•il:( m 1'78t>'· VatJotti••liYt<f.•front 1697
1
.to.:1~s~.:su·:tt~!«'.~'m.UL.~b~~!~ltvi~:lt~t:\11l\\ir::nt1~1ras.·······. ··
····· The mning of Rawbs~·one•s:bl:th Mercator comma meantane temperament is oudffi,ed ()n the following pages. Since
the modem · doe5c not cohtafll sevent~n tones within.the octave (eigbtetntoneS: including the octave),. wolves
~·. · ... ... . e~·~~:~~i~t·s~~~uf~~,'~ems·um~mg.one~foutth ~omma(PietroAaron),
arli:f ·... ..... comma .· .. ''.Ho1deti), artd one·sbcth comma(William Hawkes): Infinite varieties between the latter shades
~fte'ntpetantehtWtte ffOS$!Jlfe~ ~llWft:es' frequencies of the eighteen pitch~s ftom C ~o· C ~ccordmg to· the Ufd standard
of })itch whereby tl11~dle C was ~40. Rz were • in··18Jrff>y C. J. Slnyth in The Philosophical Magazine. 14
The ~~atiri:gs of atJ the n)ititil'thii'd ';W . . . . . . .. . . . . . .~:: tifihs. tninor sixths, and major sixths were also published.
litthe:'following'pii~es/ru . . . ~cl ii~ie~. Wefe c~(;uJate~ to be used with a modem standard pitch C tuning fork.
If the original pitch of C=240 Hz is used, afftfie b~at frequencies must be reduced by 8.2658 percent.
Table 1CD-l. Tf1eTireot~tically Correct Will~ Ha~k~ One-sixth Mercator Comma Meantone Temperament.
:¥~9(-ij(~~~ . :~4'~:in Cen~. Cents Wide from Just
Clt 392.12566 6.41195
GB 392. 12566 6.41195
..............~l'::&bi!f]:l..... .. 392.125.~ 6.41195 ..
.J\C~.~han> 392 •.72566 6.41195
~~:~!!!I?"'··~ . .~92,:11.~~"'~~~·····~· 6Al 1~$
continued
;i~olf Q-sltatp Ji~ffat JsJS.04942 cepts wide: th'an pure.
mpare this table with Tables H-1~ 15-3. 17~1. ,f8"'2, 30-2. 35-2, 55-1, 65-2, 67-1, 82-1, and 94-1.
NOTES
Liston, An Essay on Perfect Intonation, 24.
dbidi
··:23. . ·: .. : . . . .. :.. ·. . . : . . . .·... . . '
ta description of these instruments, see Farey, "Further Remarks on the Rev. Mr. Liston's l!ssay on perfect littonation,"
414-23 .
... Tyloch, "On the recent finprovements made in musical keyed Instruments," 325-26.
~:Ibid.' 321.
Ibid,. 326-27.
a~ .n>td., 322.
9.Jbiq., 328-32.
IQ~: Fll(ey, "On a grand practical finprovement in the Harmony of Musical Instruments," 273-78 .
.:'ll• Farey, "On the Rev. Mr. Liston's Enharmonic Organ, and his Essay on perfect Intonation," 374; A correspondent, "On
· the Exhibition and Harmonic Effects, of the Rev. Mr. Liston's.Enharmonic Organ," 213-15; A correspondent, "A :further
Acct'.>unt of the Exhibition and Harmonic Eff~ts of the Rev. Mr. Liston's large Euharmonic Organ with Compound Stops,"
1hePh.~losophieal1Ja~azine And Journal 49(January-Jun~1817): 266-69; and Farey, "On Mr. Liston's, or the Euharmonic
Scale of Musical Intervals," 441. · · ·
, .~William Crotch, Elemenls oj Musical Composition (London~ LQngman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, & Brown, 1812), 136.
,: J3~ Farey, "A Table of the Beats," 321.
•'· 14. Ibid.,. 323.
373
:~n!wrms,<;). ··
ib:G~AJi:ONE~~I~'}'~ .· .....· ·. . .. . . ···€oMM:A MEA.Nn)NE
. nMJ»EttAMENF· OF lK(l~;:(}iUlJLISlmD IN'J8Il)' •
JN THE THEORETIC~LY CORRECT MANNER
.'r:i:t,11~.tht:{Jolld~j~g q~~.rtli1!rt<lt~s in t,11.e ~r<Jer.•~ri~e!l· }"or. exj:troples of l;leat frequen~ies, roultiply the giv¢n nm:nbers
by 6o;·and listen to illem on the roetronome. · · ·
Test interval
(Figures .denote
TuneCto beats per .second) Tuned
before
l
l
before ·
! 1.3 1.7
lf~=I :'~ t If f ,,r f

i
Flatten
t
Flatten
= i
Flatten
1.4 4.9 5.8
r et
l.9 1.7 1.3 1.7 7.7
f 1f f f I . II
t
Flatten
103. tunfng HaY,:kes One•Si;tth Mercator· Co111111a 'femperameru
Tuned
Tune.C to Tuned before
1 4 ·9 1 7.7
4.9 1.4
ii'? r -+f--- t 1t8·-----'-r--'--1---~

-
i
Sharpen
j
Sharpen Flatten
Tuned
before
Temper D from both G and A so that the fourth A D

beats one and one-half times as fast as the fifth G D.
AD must be wide and GD must be narrow.
Continue from either of the above plans as follows:
Tuned
before
l 5.8 1.4 L3
Tune
just
Flatteµ
Tuned
before
36 ; 86 7.1 1 14 16 1.7
u~i ~ · L · · rf f · 1~ r 'r · f 1 1F f . 1
- = = ~. i
Flatten
Tuned
before
··1rrE · ··i·····•· i~ rr1i·=··:'ffi ·:rF ,j ·f

i
Flatten
4.9 5.8 8.6 9.7

3.6 4.1 4.8
~ ~ ~
·~
~1~: & ~ I~ ,~ II
103.
Tuned
before
+-----~--J!t"""==-~--1~i---.--4·-·_i;___Ji~=i~i
HlllHF--f-
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
6.5 7.2 1.7 l l.l I.I -k

~~rf!-~'+----#+--r--r+---· f___,__r: ___,__,. ., _F---------'-t~~
·---tt-t-11 ,
i
Sharpen
A wide 7:6 ratio

small minor third
5.2 5.8 9.7

4.8
~-,=----
--==-----
Tuned
before
Sharpen
Sharpen
1.9 2.0 2.1 8.6 9.2 9.7
1 4
Ch~t:k
'
the followillg intervals as a final test witfiip ·.the E to E. octave.
II
Just
!0.0
Narrow fifths
1.3 1.4
1.1 1.1 I.2
n2:F I r f ~f f f
1.9 2.0 2.1
1.5 1.6 1.7 L8
1.4
#f E Ip f
~·.··
I ~r
~12: f r f
Wide major thirds Wide major sixths
4.9 5.8
. F
4.1 4.3 4.8 5.2
3.2 3.6 > .·
3.0
~ l'E E ..
103. Tuning Hawkes diiit-SPith Mercator Comma Temperament
Wide 7:6 ratio

Narrow minor thirds smaII minor thirds
r--
Wolf
20.2 17.2
q~
af -~
the Hawkes One-Sixth Mercator Meantone Temperament and Equal Temperament.

Equal Temperament William Hawkes Rounded Figures
G-sharp minus 9.09292 9
G plus 3.63717 + 4
F plus 7.27434 + 7
E minus 1.81858 2
E-flat plus 10.91150 +11
D plus l. + 2
c plus 5.45575 + 5
B minus 3.63717 4
B-flat plus 9.09292 + 9
Compare this table with Tables 12-1, 16-1, 18-1, 29-1, 30-1, 36-2, 56-1, 66-2, 68-1, 83-1, and 95-L
104
THE SUCCESSES OF HAWKES, LOESCBMAN, AND LIS10N IMPLYING
THAT EQUAL TEMPERAMENT "MUST BE ABOLISHED"
A ugustus Frederic Christopher Kollmann (1756-1829) was a German organist, composer, and J. S. Bach scholar
who settled permanently in London in 1782. He became very prominent for his music theory books. He had
once praised the well temperament published by J. S. Bach's former student, Johann Philipp Kirnberger. As a modem
music theorist, he approved of equal temperament also. Modern music theory was being based on the philosophy of
equal temperament even though the practice of equal temperament did not exist on pianofortes.
The publicity resulting from the successes of William Hawkes, David Loeschman, and Henry Liston obviously
threatened the reputations of those musicians or theorists who had been promoting the adoption of equal temperament.
Hawkes, Loeschman, and Liston solved the problems of imperfection that had always existed on keyboard instruments
having only twelve key levers within the octave. Henry Liston eliminated temperament completely by means of his
sixty to seventy-two tones per octave managed by ten to twelve pedals. In 1812, it appeared that it would be only
a short time before all keyboard instruments would be built with many extra tones per octave so that little or no tempera-
ment would be necessary. After all, great strides in science were taking place. Steamships, railroads, and an kinds
of machines were developing rapidly. The pianoforte was only another machine in its infancy.
On the success of Henry Liston's Euharmonk Organ and its approval by prominent musicians, John Farey,
on June 4, 1812, wrote in The Philosophical Magazine:
The commendable disposition shown by the people of this metropolis, for encouraging an extension and improvement
of the Musical Scale of Keyed Instruments (for with Voices and Violins, &c. Mr. Liston's scale always has and always
will be in use) ... seems in a particular manner to have alarmed the German Organist Mr. KoUmann, for the fate
of his modem "scale of nature" or.12 sounds only in the Octave, at distances,
which his ''new tha.t he so pompously and compares the best writ-
ings of British Musicians, to disadvantage, in his Quarterly Review; which ''wonderful compound of twelve Dia-
tonic Chromatic Enharmonic Scales in one!" [Equal temperament], it is admitted by Mr. K. must be abolished, as
the first consequence of the establishment of the «artificial Temperaments'' [just intonation and the meantone tempera-
ments] of Hawkes, Loeschman, and Liston!, and therefore, he takes especial pains to cry them all down as useless
and absurd.
What a lamentable case! that the progress of Science and in one of the most of arts, should
render the sale less certain, of the voluminous works of this profound Theorist!, who, to the honour, or disgrace rather
of the age, broadly asserts, that violins, violoncellos, and voices, ought not to make any difference between A-flat
and G-sharp, D-flat and C-sharp, &c. !! , but should use, "as nearly equal a temperament as possible," or in other
words, "follow the (his) true standard scale, on which all modern music depends." Not doubting but the scientific
and demonstrable principles advanced in the Essay on peifect Intonation [by Liston}, wm make their way, con-
firmed as they are in every case, by an appeal to experiment, by and not
to say interested, opposition, as that I have been alluding to. 1
NOTE
1. Farey, "Further Remarks on the Rev. Mr. Liston's Essay on peifect Intonation," 421.
THE "ESSAY. ON MustCAL TEMPERAMENT''
BY ALEXANDER METCALF FISHER. IN 1818
Iexarn:ter Metcalf Fisher was an American born in Franklin, Massachusetts, in 1794. He was a student of promise
Who graduated at the head of h:is Yale College class at the age of 19. He next studied theology and later returned
a tutor where, at the age of 23, he became a professor of mathematics, natural philosophy, and astronomy.
later he became.a full professor. f{is success in gaining an early full.professorship was in part due to his
on Musical Temperament" 1 which had gained much interest and favorable reviews from Europe. In
decided to do research in Europe. Tragically, his ship went down off the lrish coast and he was drowned.
could have lived, he probably would have become the nineteenthccentury equivalent of Robert Smith. He
•uu'•u•1i.::11 understanding of both Baroque and modem temperament philosophy. His paper was based on a com-
i'>r<)mtse. ""'1t""""" the two philosophies. 2 He reviewed Robert Smith's work and then proceeded to outline methods for
o:isc~ov!l:rrntg another basis of "equal harmony." He did not use Smith's formulas for calculating beat frequencies. He
modem method of obtaining the differences between the nearly coinciding harmonics of the intervals. 3 As
ex~tmt>le. to calculate the beat frequency of a major third, he multiplied the frequency of the lower tone of the major
He then the result from the result having multiplied the frequency. of the upper note of
by four. Although Fisher did write it anywhere, his method of beat calculation was an acknowledg-
beats were caused by differences between the frequencies of the nearly coinciding harmonics. It only re-
ma.tni::ct in 1818 for someone to inform tuners that they should listen to the nearly coinciding harmonics for more clear
ou1liiiJLed up to this in present work. published charts cornp~1nn

He understood the philosophy of wen temperament and
these To Fisher, the the
instruments not nineteen or more pitches the
a theorist, Fisher contemplated equal temperament. He wrote, ''If all the concords of the same name, in a scale
of twelve intervals to the octave, were of equally frequent occurrence, the best of would be that
of equal semitones.'' 5 He furnished mathematical proof of the latter statement. Fisher discovered, however,
that organists were not for equal He came to conclusion after how often each
coinrr:toninterval was in 200 scores of organ music plus another set of 1600 scores "for the organ and voice,
European composers. " 6 All the intervals and chords were used, but Fisher's charts listing their frequencies
oC'•mu·re-11.-."" revealed a strong dependence on the pure ''simpler keys'' of meantone or well temperament.
··"'""yu.:.u Fisher approved of equal temperament he also believed ''in giving the greatest temperament to that which
occurs most seldom.' ' 7 He reported that instrument makers ''make the prominent chords of the simplest keys the nearest
to perfection, whilst a greater temperament is thrown upon those which occur only in the more complex keys ...
The instrument makers ... lay the wolf, .. where it will be most seldom heard. " 8 In other if there were
no intervals that were used more seldom than others and if there were no chords that were more than others
in common usage, then equal temperament be However, in 1818 the 1mpre;ss1on1suc,
·"·'!-""""'of future not been small were
treqm!nt!.y used. since most musicians considered it
1/:. m~jor ~iffer~nc~ b~t\1.'een th.e philosophies 9f simtl} and ~~sher was that Robert'. Smitltplaced prinnu:y importance
on the .eql}al-beatin~sq[ two intervals gf dissinlilar kind~ '~(~r~!neasure of equ,~lity of the harshnesses of the two inter-
vals where.as Alexand¢r Fisher placed primary importafice on the equal-temperings of the two differing intervals as
the measure of equality of the relatiye .h~rshnes~es of the· two. intervals, The question was as ·follows: If a tempered
fifth shares .a. common . lo'Ye~t?t?e ·.'Yi!.lf··~te}DP~red ~~jor .1>ixt~i~ ·~() .tJle tw~jntervals. !?OIJ~d equally. harsh· .when their
beat frequencies are identical, or do they sound equally harsh whent}Iey are both temperedby the same identical amount?
If the latter. two· intervals were. ~empere(i by th.e same degree, the major sixth would beat J. 667 times faster, but the
beats of the fifth would be more prominently heard. Smith and Fisher both agreed that the quest for ''equal harmony''
was to temper the important commonly used concords so that they would all be as equally harsh as possible. In this
w~, there would be ''the least possible injury to harmony'' as a whole. 9 It was a question, however, as to what was
considered equally harsh among different kinds of intervals.
Both Smith and Fisher promoted equal harmony temperaments that they considered optimum for organs capable
of playing the enharmonic scale; that is, organs that contained more than thirteen pitches to the octave. Twenty pitches
were considered fairly sufficient,. but the more the better. For Robert Smith, this equal harmony temperament was
a regular meantone temperament whereby the fifths and major sixths sharing common lower tones beat the same speeds
(see Section 30 of the present work). For Alexander Fisher, the best equal harmony temperament was the regular two-
sevenths. synt~nk comma.meantone temperament.of GioseffoZarlino (1517-1590), p~blished in.1558. 10
Zarlino and Fisher sought to find the temperament thatwould alter the tones of the natural diatonic just intonation
scale to the least degrees rather equally for the concords. The discords were not considered. Fisher proved mathemati-
cally that this opti~um temperament for equal harmony was when the fifths were tempered narrow by two-sevenths
of a syntonic comma, the major thirds were tempered narrow by one-seventh of a syntonic comma, and the minor
thirds were tempered narrow by one-seventh of a syntonic comma. The beat frequencies were not considered. The
reason that Fisher considered this temperament better than the regular well-known Pietro Aaron meantone tempera-
ment was· that in the Aaron, the major thirds were not tempered at all while the minor thirds and major sixths were
tempered by a whole one~fourth comma. Fisher considered this to be an imbalance. For the purposes of "equal har-
mony,'' it was deemed far superior to have the major thirds, major sixths, minor thirds, and minor sixths (the imper-
fect concords) all tempered by the one single small amount of one-seventh syntonic comma (much less than one-fourth).
Thus, the imperfect concords were equally tempered by the same amount, and the perfect concords (the fifths and
fourths) were equally tempered by twice· that amount.
The Zarlino Smith harmony temperaments were both recommended for the ideal experimental keyboard
instruments containing more than thirteen pitches to the octave. They could also be tuned on standard keyboard instru-
ments containing only thirteen pitches to the octave. This resulted in the usual restrictions with a wolf diminished sixth
between G-sharp and E-flat, the sameaswhentheone-fourth syntonic comma meantone of Pietro Aaron
was used. Nevertheless. David Loeschman chose to use the standard Pietro Aaron meantone temperament for his piano-
fortes containing twenty-four pitches to the octave.11
The reason that David Loeschman used the Pietro Aaron t,,..,.,,...,r<l
Aaron
total minor were a more har~
monious than triads in the Zarlino or Smith temperaments. Alexander Fisher would have disagreed with this last state-
rnent .. Fisher believed that the Aaron was less harmonious because the intervals were more unequally Below
is a chart the aggregate beatings for sample triads.
pe:r
Za:rlino Smith Aaron
Fifth AE 2.32 2.26 2.03
Major third CE 2.32 1.81 0.00
Minor third AC 2.32 2.70 4.07
--
Minor Triad ACE 6.96 6.77 6.10
Fifth AE 2.32 2.26 2.03

Minor third C-sharp E 2.90 3.38 5.09
Major third AC-sharp 1.94 1.51 0.00
--
Major triad AC-sharp E 7.16 7.15 7.12
(~~~~fi~~~~~~resi~~·fl'i~~f Even
wh@n·tlleyi are·1 equ~..U~ting.
. Zfil'fittG are also equat-
ht"St~idvei~M1f'1fi{~~'mi'J§· ar' the thru parts•.Thus,
th~~Pl'~tt~~~µ3:\; ·~le\llf~{~e,~~~hi~~gq :was ·......•..•. ·. t minor ~hol"ds or com-
mOdes~ In the Pietil on temperament, ont)lthe iilvetglart nlinor triaas have equal-
•·
~y~·~c¢.oi'.f:tijig;fo\;l;l!t~in()l:l:Ji~Pi$1ter,.tf.te fifths itt the above temperament were each tempered narrow
.nths ()f.ll syntqni~.~t:!\ll~··'.J'lt~ ...•·~.fjt°tf.t"\\'as t1ten 1.494685499. Constructing a temperament on
es produce the above men~joti¢tf . . . be~tfriil ~f(~~ts. ~s Ionglls: t<>() W~Y ~~~tm3:11W~Jits,for beat fteque~-
t compated; According to exact equal-beating theory, the equation 2X"+3x1 ~2&::::.0ml1se.be sa~isfied for
1
g 1.494684821 for each fifth; This micro-change for the fifths makesno differences in the practical rounded
'.€the beaHrequencies in the tunfug instructions. Nevertheless, the ratio 1.494684827 was used in calculating
tred ~e~t fi:~qµ~n~ittS ~
till tnr
f9119~,:.
wments on Fisher's essay 3:re conttnu
~~~.~•. ~~i,S i.~. wµs~c~~ym9te1 J;>rOJ;>eT.
n page 391.
Table 105-1: GioseftQ iarlino's Eq11at~)tt!atiQg ~~~l11r

Two-sevenths Syntonic Comma Meantoij~ ')'emperamtnt 1558. of
Majo~ TWrds .... Sizes in Cents Cents Altered from Just
CE 383.23827 ..... 3.07544
GB 383.23827 - 3.07544
DF-sharp 383.23827 - 3.07544
J
AC-sl1arp 383.23821 - 3.01544
EG-sftarp 383.23827 - 3.07544
BB-flat 433.52346 wolf
+47.20975
F-sftarp B-flat 433.52346 ( +47.20975
diminished
C-sftarp F 433 ..52346;
fourtfts
+47.20975
G-sharp C 433.52346 ·+47.20975
E-flat G 383.23827. ._ 3.07544
B-flat D 383.23827 - 3.07544
FA 383.23827 - 3.07544
Th~.wolf G-sharp E-flat is 44.13976 cents wider than pure. Compare this table with Tables 30-2, 11-1, and 28-2.
'''"'"'''· • •,'Jc<""""y;,1,\~•+f;~'fc.iJ> ''"'"'--~":', , .,,:1··~)F1°o/1'ii-""•'
NOTES
383
TUl\(JNG T~ GIOSEFFO ZARLINO
EQUAL-BEATING MEANTONE. TEMPERAMENT
OF 1558 PROPOSED FOR ADOPI'ION IN 1818
by 60, and listen to them on the metronome. The major thirds must be tempered narrower than just intonation major thirds.
Tuned
before
Equal beating
- - - - --i
2.3 2.3 2.3
Narrow intervals
Flatten Sharpen
Tuned
before Tuned
before
t
Flatten
i
Temper D from both G
and A so that the fourth A D heats one and one-half
times as fast as the fifth G D. AD must be wide
and GD must be narrow.
1()6. Tun1'ng The Gioseffo Zarlina Temperament
sixth G E uiustproduce slower beats than the other intervals.

the case, then one or more of the previously tempered fourths. Tuned
<tifrlc fifth<' are beating too slowly. before
2.3
2.8 3.1 l 0.0
i
Tune
just
Tuned
Equal beating Equal beating before
r- I 1·------1 Equal beating
2.3 l.7 ------i
2.8 2.3 2.3
"""~ ~
l~f__f___ --==i~-f
2.3 17
Temper B from
both E and G so that the major third G B is narrow and
beats at exactly the same speed as the narrow fifth E B.
Equal
2.1 3.5 3.1
1.7 l.7 1.7 l.7
l.7
L __ _
Narrow intervals
Tuned
before
2.3 2.6 2.3 l I

Equal beating
2.1
------i
Tune
just
Temper F from both
D and A so that the major third F A is narrow and beats
at exactly the same speed as the narrow minor third D F.
Equal beating
l
,
1.6 1.9 2.1
l.6 1.6 l.6 1.7
1.6
F =i ~ -]
fr
W?* r r t~ ~
--.
Narrow intervals
L7
\~i £ ~~===--==-~-:---·--+=
l ?- -~--~--~==--=
-------
·--i==J-~."'-~tf'--- ~-=3
---~ ===---+---===_3
Tuned
l
before
Equal beating
ru --1-.3- 2.3
2.6 2.8
)~:::;; ~-~~~--------l"~;J---• ~--£----f

-
f~--r----====t==- --F I ·~
___
::__•
__
_l ----= H =i
3
r N.L
Flatten F# so that the major third D F# is narrow and
beats at exactly the same speed as the wide major sixth D B.
i
Temper C# from
'both F# and A so that th~ major thircf AS#Js nan-ow and
beats at exactly the same speed as tile narrow (ifth F#. C#.
Equal beating
1.9 1.9 2.1
Narrow intervals
2.3 1.6 2.6 2.9

1.3 1.4
Equal beating
l 1.4 2.8 2.9 3.1
t Narrow
Hatten G# so that the major third B G# is narrow and

beats at exactly the same speed as the wide major sixth E C#.
Tuned
before
! 2.l
Equal beating
2.1 2.1 2.1

2.3 2.5 2.6
ll~ f If pf I qE
l Narrow intervals
Temper B~ from both 0 and D so that the major third n~ Dis narrow
and beats at exactly the same speed as the narrow minor third G B~ .
Equal beating
1.9
2.1 . 2.3
2.1 2.2
!
2.1
1.9
~
Jr-rfe . ~& I~~

..
Tuned
·before
Narrow 7:6ratfo
small minor thirds
~·, bbr
l Equal beating
1.4
1.4
1.6 l.7 1.7
II f bbf q~r
If
t
.J:~µtpe~J:i:~.fl'()Jll ~tl\9.andC::s() that the maj()r tliird E~ 0 is m1rrow
an&Mts at exactly the same speed as the wide major sixth Eb C.
Narrow 7:6 ratio
small minor thirds
i
Tune
just
Eq~al beating
'
2.8 2.8 2.8
k the foUqwiug ip.t~ryals as a fi11a1 test between p. and E.

Narrow fifths
Just octaves
2.1 2.3
1.9 1.9
E if f ,
Wide fourths
3.l
Wide major sixths
1.6 1.7
tA l.4
!E F
Narrow riJinor thirds
Equal beating
2.3
1.6 1.7 1.9
.~.
Narrow 7:6 ratio
small minor thirds
Wolf intervals.
15.3 33.7
28.2
~~t
R!:f trt
Tabie 106-1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes of
the Zarlino Meantone Temperament and Equal Tempei;-ament.
Equal Temperamt;lpt Zarlino Rounded Figures
G-sharp minus 20. 95216 -21
G plus 8.38087 + 8
F plus 16 ..76173 + 17
B minus 4.19043 - 4
E-flat plus 25.14260 +25
D plus 4.19043 + 4
C pI~s 12.57130 +H
B mmus 8.38087 - 8
·plus•·····,···•2t>:952:16 · +21
.:'.;::~0011>ue·'this.iftli1;;.;;;iii;.fat>l~s.•~~1;:aJi~;·,1::1••.
)
s. major th.i . · ~ . ,. .....
h~hereby9~j40)b.1 . •. . ,.. . .. > ..
ftt~r·s string leif~$:.~JlkJ1 fepres~~ted the .•exact ipt~~al ratios, the ipformatidnif . ~{~$ IQ6--2. and.106~3
. This coii.stit\lte.s the{first tem[t~tameri~ itt history that was calculated from musical composition ele-
J~ar. t}}at se\fe~aLq!.t}}t;.majpttTt!~~~. wete sa close to pure that any tuner woui6.tune them completely
ing;t\1¢s~H . .fsheJF.wtote* ''':('fie major thitiis i.)fi.e. D. and A,. might be made penect, without produc-
tia); cftang · el)l'.~.':('fiis.~9~~ r~ Abour of counting the beat~· to,ei~ht degrees ohly. ''
to mentio . • ·• .··.· B whkhwas1tlittle: fotthe order oflll?dulatio~. Hi~·mention of ''eight
s ,an ind~ca <··• ,1•• ~~t he meantto include G of the pib"e irltertfaf§~ Jn ~ny ~l~~! it is required to
the sake offfanndnk balance. ·· ·
,.WirigFisher's a~Vlte• Y!e cal'fl,dations.in tables.106~4 lilld 106-5 were don~ ..This rep~esents..Fisher's tem-
in idealized form;; Comparing Tables l06~4and 10~-5 with the original c~cula~iQns Tabies·to6:.2 and in
e can see that no :eat changes i!l musical e;f(ects, wer~. done~ :r?.nre$e~x~ .th~;qriginal musicalintention as
ossible, the fifths between the toqes ~-sh,ati>. G~shari>~ E-t1at. and B-flat were foft unchanged. Tbe remaining
e· changed into equally tempered fifths. This conforms to Fisher's philosophy that equal temperings create
rinony.~
modified meanto11e temperament, Fisher's temperament was more primitive than the Jean-Le Rond })'Alembert
· ent of 1752 (compare Tables 55~1 and 106-5). flQ:weve-'"• the tonality form in the Fisher temperament was
perior; that is. the.diminished fourths C-sharp F and F~sharp B-flat were the largest which was proper for
tt~l harmonic balance. This design of form and tonality was similar to that of the William Hawkes temperament
(~ompare Fig~tes. 8~-1 and 106-1). Fisher was. a~are of
this; and he wrote.that the tem~erament "of Mr.
a
is the best, arid~ in'many respects, has remarkable analogy to the one derived from the preceding investiga-
One w,ond~rs i~!\Ie~ander Fisllerhad weightedh,i~,.calculations with a 1.ittle more mod~ration would he have
···temperament that' w~uld have been identical th ih~ Hawkes. Organists will need to determine whether the
usfo. of l 81S.or:.~~fore sounds best in. the Fisher' temperament or in. the improved IJ1Q.d~fie4. one-fifth comma
}me temperament of. Hawkes outlined in Section 83' ()£ the present work. . .
..ewmusical analys~~ modeled after Fisher's methods should. be done on the piano music commonly penormed
Jn order to determine whether complete equal temperament is stil1 needed for modem piano concerts.
Table toi-2: The Fifths of the Original Alexander Metcalf Fisher Temperament •
Fifths..••....d ••.,...... . . Siz.~.m"~enl~0,. . .~!l~~ .t\I.tete~ f~91Jl . ~µst
1'696.~i:f§~~;
C6 - 5.37578
GD 697.71457 - 4.24043
DA, 696.22174· - 5.73326
AE 696A4152 - 5.50748
EB 691.65229 - 4.30271
BF-sharp 696.26334 - 5.69166
F-sharp C-sh11rp 695.53798 ~ 6.41702
C-sharp G-sharp 704.Q1890 + 2.06390
G-sharp E-flat 717.41724 +15.46224*
E-flat B'-flat 707.37139 + 5.41639
B-flat F 697.76766 - 4.18134
FC 697.00815 - 4.94685
*This fifth is "somewhatharsh."4
<L•·cornpare this table with Table 106-4.

't~bf~ 1@6..4;.' T1telrirt~ ~it~e ¥~rre.4 'Meanto11e Te~perament
. . of: Afexandetl\f.etcalt
' ,,,
' ,'\,,' '
Fis.Ile.r iiildealized.. Form.
,',,·,, ,\,
Fifths Sizes in Cents Cents Altered from Just

CG 696.57843 - 5.37657
GD 696.57843 - 5.37657
DA 696.57843 - 5.37657
AE 696.57843 - 5.37657
EIJ 696.57843 - 5.37657
.J3ll,,s}i~ ·69(i,57843 - 5.37657
.~~6,51s4:t
·~~~~~·~~~~~··
- 5.37657
7()4.018?0 + 2.06390
Q-SbM£l. ~-flat 1J'l.411Z.4 + 15.46224
n:.:rra:ts:l'far · ··101.~1139 + 5.41639
B-flat F 691.57173 ....: 4.38327
'FC 697.51173 - 4.38327
Compai:-e this table with. table 106-2.
Major Tfdtds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just

CE: 386.31371 0
OB 386.:H3:7Y 0
DF-sh!lfP 386.31371 0
AC-sharp 386.31371 0
~i~:~~~M)··
. BG-sharp. 7.44048
BE-flat.· 28.2792.9
F-sha~ 1f1fla:t ; 425.38596. ( 39.07225
426.37927 ·. discords
C-shafll F 40.06555
G-sharp C 419.93210 33.61838
E-tlat G 399.09328 12.77957
B-flat D 388.•30033 1.98661
FA 387;30702 0.99331
CE 386.31371 0
J'h~,~g!LG:slt~m~~flat !~J5:4tiiZ4 c~J.lt~ wid~r thM pure,. . . . . . . .. . . ..

Compare this table with Tables 11-1. 15-3, 17-1, 28-2, 30-2, 35-2, 55-1, 65-2, 67-1, 82-1, 94-1, 102-1, and 105-1.
Ute same size
~
FA CE GB OF# AC#
~
The smallest thirds
Figure 106-1: .The Form o~ the Moditied ¥:eantone Temperament by Alexander Metcalf Fisher.
·pare. with Figures 15-2, 55-1, 65-1, 67-1, and g2-1.

NOTES
.· det Fisher, "Essay on Musical Temperament," 195.
!1, 23.
199.
.,.198.
393
TUNING THE ALEXANDER METCALF FISHER
MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENT
by 60, and listen to them on the metronome.
Tune C to Tuned
l
Equal beating
l 2.4
r---
3.0
----·_ J
Tune in just intonation. i
Flatten
Tuned
before Tuned
l
before
Equal beating
I I
2.0 2.7 1.8
4.1
Sharpen Sharpen

r-------------1 ~-~----------1
1.8 2.0 2.7 3.0

2.4 4.1
Tuned
before
Equal beating
1.8
i
Tune
Tune
just
just
4.5 4.1
Tuned
before
2.3 2.4 4J
2.0 3.4
i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
_____ ____
,
Tune
t
Flatten
a micro-amount
T~tld
before
Equal beating
3.0 3.2 3.4 0.5 1.8
f
t
Flatten
A wide 7:6 ratio

before
. ''~:1·
!·
q?
4.1
~~r
i
Flatten
A wide fifth
1.4
!
1.5 1.5
1.3 8.2 3.2
~·
~E--
107. Tuning the Alexander };letcalf Fishet Temperament
Tuned Narrow
A wide 7:6 ratio before A narrow fourth
small.minor third (Wolf)
i
Sharpen
-
A wide 7 :6 ratio A wide 7:6 ratio
small minor third small minor third
Tuned
before
l 2.7
i
Tune
just
Wide
(Wolf)
Just intervals
Narrow fifths
·---------·-------·-·-----.
2.0
l
1.8
1.4
Wide
i
A narrow fourth A narrow fourth A narrow fourth
(Wolf)
Wide major thirds
"quite harsh"
Just intervals
l.3
r· .·. ~· . m 3.5 5.8
Wide major sixths
3.0 3.2 17.9

2.3 2.5 8.2
RtJ= r fR e f t IE
Nmirow minor thirds
3.0 3.2 3.4

r,,
4.1 4.1
i
A wide 7:6 ratio
i
A wide 7:6 ratio
i
small minor third small minor third A wide 7:6 ratio
small minor third
plus 12.69298
minus 3.42157
plus 7.74986 +8
plus 3.42157 + 3
. ;tninus·. 13.68629 -:-14
plus> 1€):26471 +10
tfiiltu~ 6:.:s4at:4 """'.'. 1:
plus 15.12125 +ts
J. . :ha~ C~ristian (1?67~ _8~~)~~
®Jtlle.b Oraupiler · 1 a~
known. in history the father of An;iericm orchestras. He was
born in Germany, and he developed high sk11Is m performmg on most instruments. In the London concerts of 1791
and 1792 he was first oboeist inHaydn•s ?rchestra, He traveled to America in 1793. and became a citizen of the United
States Jn 1.807. He op.~ned a m\l~ic stote,where he,engraved,~ printed, and sold music, i~cluding his own. He also sold
CJemeoti pi~o~ and advertised ''P~ano Fortes to let and tuned at the shortest Notice.' ' 2 Graupner founded the Boston
Philhahrtottlo Sodety in 1810. He wasJts president and conductor for many years. Under his leadership, the Boston
Philharmonic became a great orchestra. He also was a cofounder of the Handel and Haydn Society in 1815. In short,
he was a key figure in the establishment of great musical performances in America.
Except for one important change,. Oraupner's tuning instructions were copied from John Bland's instructions pub-
lished around 1790:. Graupner's bearing plan was tJie sipne7 except that he added· a couple of notes and he changed
a few notes in their tuning orders (compare Sections 60 and 109). Graupner's words, "the fifths must be tuned rather
ftat. . . .. the thirds rather sharp thair otherwise. . . . . The first Note C must be tuned with a tuning. fork. . . . If the
firs~tr~al gives a f"?-e Thirg •.. wha~ h~s beeA done Dia:~ be de,:pended on .•. ifotherwise it will be best to begin
a iresn, atia tune aU overaijjin .• .. the secotf<f trial'' were exa~ily copied from th~ Bland instructions. 3 John Bland,
in t1lrn, copied these words from John Preston's instructions published around 1785:* John Preston, in turn, copied
most of these words from Nicolo Pasquali's instructions published in the middle of the eighteenth century. 5 Graupner' s
instructions for cheddng th~bass notes, induding the words "the Ear is apt to be deceived," were taken from all
these latter books. Oraupn~r fin111ly secured the above Words with his American copyright. .
The changes in titles reflect the changing popularities of the various keyboard instruments. In the middle of the
ei~hte@nth centu'Yrthei~der,oj.~e;~niil!''.iftsuucti~ns·~aS'~h&,aPIJloveds~tffeaof>:Jlmin!f·theDarpsicoord. '' In 1785
· • .,t,'.J9Q,.,it;.w~,~f.:A,9~1wed.llfetk~;ofi,'iiun:i11gth~~iclroid. Spinnetl or·Piano~Forte. ''Finally, in 1806 it was
'•ptain Direction To. Tune The Piano Forte.'' The popularity of the centuries-old harpsichord was over. In his preface,
Graupne:r abriclge4 the,word 'pian&forte; t He wrote aM-ut the ''piano. '·1 ·
:Itttfre ®'dHle E>ftft:~e:tgbt~~~th'ce~Nff~tnete"was'~th~ fitst'Nf1te O.t~be tuned by a pitch pipe or any other wind
Instrument" In 1785, "The.first Note C must be tune.d with a Pitch Pipe, or any other wind Instrument." In 1790,
'"flle'first Note C mtist. be (Ufied with a tuning-fork or Pitch Pipe.'• Finally, in 180'6, •'The :first Ndt~ C .must be tuned
with a tuning Fork." By the nineteenth century, pitch pipes had lost their popularity. .
The important C~ang~ meµfiol!«i~lJ;ove in Graupner•s otherwise copied tuning instructions was significant for reflecting
the tim~s. Rather than stopping at the traditional 0-sharp in the bearing plan and then beginning again from C and
proceeding through the flats, Graupner kept on going through the sharps until he arrived at E-sharp (F). He then ex-
pected that the fifth ~C would result in being ''a good fifth.'' This strongly implied equal temperament, or at least
a serious attempt at tuning it: However, Graupner realized that few tuners could accomplish this except by happy acci-
dent. Therefore, if the fifth FC did not result in being tolerable, Graupner reverted back to the conventional bearing
plan of Pasquali-Pt"eston,-Bland whereby the :tlats\vere tuned from C. In this case, "the imperfection of the Instrument,
is thrown in A-flat E-flat.," the.traditional wolf fifth. 6 Thus, one was expected to first attempt tuning equal tempera-
ment. When one failed, then one was expected to tune a well temperament, a modified meantone. temperament, or
. atleastaregnfarmeanlonete:iri.pefament.Grauprier's furling instructions could therefore be universally used for most
aUforn;is. <;If temperanient.
. . . Ttle·wc:wds ''tfteflftlr§·mnsl be tunecffatlief flat thm'fotherwise.. nad cllanged their meaning in history. According
.. tQ.Jl.tatU2U.¢t ••.. Jh~.~Xet~, ..tlf,l,t'1e$~Q$•.narr$l.W.1less fot~(i;hfff'thwas 2 1;euts,. the same 11s.inequal.temperamen~. For
0
:i•~fiyei's~~~l.... . n
fined'drdshadgrt>Wtr .. .· . . . . . ..... . ·. . ..... ·. . . ·... · .·· ..... ··.· .... ./·. . . . 6,
:·~o~thifds•:·°*~ltJV~gli~W~~n.11l~ft~'~ag~tqi;~~·i"1~•:·!~~1t~~~t~k~t\tt~1ij(~i~di~~jptona-
as lll gq J~weer~~nJ. l •.• ; ; ; . . .... ; •..••.•.. ·. .. . .. ··. ;
ing Graupner's tuning instructions, it is essentialthat one heed the results in the first ~d second trials.
ly impo twentieth-century amateur tu"~f~. :ryt:ost twentieth-century musicians ~d amateur tuners
ksense·of 11:e. third' 'should sound lifc'e,As .~professor of piano tunin~.~t ¥kliigan State Univer-
sent author . ¢d coun.iessi s~~ · wit ·· ·· · · quest to tune equal tempetam1mt. tune the fifths
justcintonatiqn .. .. . . y had previou~ly . (t t on. ~OWJ~a)l ~.~ . -tempered fifths
ttqwed. Ou,,~f,(~ for tempering the fifths ...... .. . .. rapidly, they~ft~n . . ~P,l~~Iy pure .
..part caused by th~ loud, abstract'-sounding, false..beating strings found on the modem piano.. Also, the beats
mtb' an~ foufth.hatm~nics become pfQµiinett••wbelJ!.:.~t»:ts•aPPfO~ch just intonation. These. higher beats,. along
fals~-beating strin~s~ ~eceive the S(Ud.entsb~tQ' asslJillintr•that they have tuned equal tempe~~ent fifths. The
···major thirds' r~s~lt ht beirtg very' harsfi Pythagc>rean ·~itones does not. seem to Mthersffially. beg:inning stu-
ears have beett conditioned to the moderately harsl'f thirds and sixths Of equal tempe1ament since birth,
, tY in!erestfor them, is ~o ac~'Uit~ sm,09th tifihs·and fourths. For many of these beginning twentieth-century
in
'Wing t:}raupl,ler•s instruc~ons result! Pythagorean tuning in A major. After hearing thewolfinthe fifth
~jJer continuing to follow Gtaupner' s instrttctions f<>r tr~sposing "the. Itnperfection,. of the itistrumefit into
· · 'd A·flat/' 7 they change the results into Pythagorean ltining inc major.
the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the amateur tuners would not have had the above problems.
orte strlngswere less fiilse and more clear. Th~y heard ample examples of fin~ just intonation or nearly just
,· ds in church. Also, Graup~e~'s \Voros f~rfifilis being (•ratfiertlat" created a different impression even though
swere meant to be only abouttw'"dceb.ts nafto'W'ea'ch:Foroorly nineteenth-century tuners, Graupner's first and
· ·~s were a :ve~ serious matter. Itis most unlike~:, the(efore~ that any of these earlyifuners would have finished
·· ents with tf\e. fifth PCresulting in being narl:9'W to any marked degree. No doubt, the fifth FC was almost
dinllnish~sl~th E·shMp e; Graupner allo\\tid.,for this natutal tendency. Either the fifth FC resulted in
bte oritwas not tolerable. If it was not tolerable; then one was expected to retune E-s~arp, A-shrup, and
s F, B-flat, and f..-.fi&t. This had the effect of tralls1>9sing the wolf fifth FC into A-flat E-flat, the proper place
If diminished sixth G-sharp E-flat. This assured that the meantone type temperament would be in the traditional
of C major, This was essential for matters of tonality, modulation, and the proper characters of the keys.
ner did not metttiort ·beat frequencies or any of the other necessary information fot tuning equal temperament.
indeed Per~g9!\!Jl..i!~<;fO!llpJ!~h.,~. !Q~g!J:. ~\l~~i-e ual tern e,ram~nt\\'~ereby the fifth ,FC .-was "a good fifth"
.bel . o:fkno . beat . enefes,anithe·m
,...•11': ..........,.~.....l!'!l.'*-·'''''''·"· . . . . ·. . . . . tvaJs'''nemustna-Vefiistin'c?f{rel'"tf§~the
. • .. . . . . .. .•. . ·. . y . . .equal-
thod. In this case, flie 1 s m bearing p an eac would have hact a beat :frequency of 0. 773858 per
the old• stttnd©:g,pJtc:fi of C =:; 240 Hz .. At the m~q~pt sfimdard pitch,. Graupner' s equal-beating fifths would
Q.,843S8'7838;;~~··SecOnd •. ·.. .. . ;.\; .,
culatiorts in Tables 108-1, 108-2, and 109-1 are based on Graupner's philosophy. This is idealistic theory.
itis doubtful that anyone achieved these results. The truth of how pial10S were. really .tuned in 1819 was
reported as follows:
~ 1 ~qst~ve.ry man Who tunes'his ~~n ihsi:u~~iithas a· system of his own; we shall only observe, that the greatest
musicians in the course of their lives have often changed their method. In our cathedrals and parish-churches in gen-
eral, where the natural keys are made as perfect as p0ssible, at the expence of A-flat, D-flat, F-sharp, and C-sharp,
keys that have nev~r been admitted within the pale of the church, organists that hear little other music, are extremely
,~(fendect by equal participation 0f tile scales; when the. pure lnutllony of theif' favourite keys is det'brrlted b~ tempera-
ment: and those accustomed to the levelling system of equal harrtiony, on the conttary. hold the Wolf in as much abhor~
rence, as they would the destructive wolf in the Gevauden. At present, our tuners mitigate the extremes of equal and
unequal temperament,. by favouring the natur!tl keys, and making the extraneous or transposed keys somewhat less
perfect; but devoting the wolf to total destruction.
" "Ills ifhagin~ by1l)mly; thatth:echaracter()f keys, parfamlarly the minor, depends on the imperfection of the scales,
.oc~a.sioned by Ul\equal temperament:. As F minor is plaintive, E-flat solemn, and E-sharp brilliant .... whatever may
e general pitch of thec instrumentr whether half a 11ot~.t.Qo.,W,gf1, or half.a.l:l.Clt~J~low, these keys atill i:e~in their
racter. 8
T~~1~"}.os.;~~slfifth~.int{t~lJ<l'1~lfllJ',~hij~tf1'~:~9\&l•'&;;Gt;ulif\~1'1l~:qJJ~t~tieatt..i;Q~~~~9r~~:remperament.
Fifths Sizes ip Ceitts C'ents :Nlitrow t'r«Jm .tu~I·
1\C, . 7;99:~§%),J 1.39499
.:&tiotPfl!~. ,. '
c~sharb o:.8Jiarp
709 :1mi
f'f''
!'Eli
l.75782 .
'CO' . . . . ' 100:0 6 Jl'.861174' .
BP1's1farp''··'''·' 699:98258' · 1.97242
B'-flat F , 699: 8646~ 2.09038
AB ~9g:,lf:4t160 2,2~~40
O:shln'p·· D-sharpn · 69g·.6tl846> 2:34654
qo. 699A6951 2.48543
.F~sh1:trp. c;csharp .(j99,32.161 2.63339
Notic~ hQ:W th~ sizes oi'.the fffths''~hang~ gtad~!iily. Coin.pare this table with Table 99-2.
The above table is theory. In pra~*eftli~ teSQlts woul~ have been more like the results in Table 162-5 based on
EIUs in 1885.
.Table 1a$'4:
Major Thirds in the.Johann Christian Gottlieb
. (j~qpper.~qu~~.IJ!:Jl!Jing .Qyast~eqyal 1'.emperament.
Major Thil"ds
. .. · .· ... .
Si~e~ i1n Cents .
'"~(
. . .. Cents. Wide from Just
CE 399:~995U. 13.~8578
··6ti· .399:98339 13.66968
m:~sharp 400;4964'1 14.18270
AC~~Jj~tp 399.52196 13.20825
EO-sharp 399~97854 13.66482
Jltl~~arp 399.10984 12.79612
F,.sharp A~sharp 399.51612 13:20241
D-flat F 400.05913 13.74542
·A:.ftat"~"'' 1 Ms·?6825
•••••••·••••;.'••>' ·•· .\.·••• ~~~~•>'W\ 14;59306
H-flat.I) 399.9$747 13.67315
FA 400.418.90 14.10519
CE 399,i;99so 13.28578
'l:hefonn of ton!llity a!id t&e ord~r of modulation for the characters of the keys ar~ W:<:\Stly destroyed; therefore,
this is not a well temperament even. though this is ~.uneq:µl;\} temperament. Compare this tablewith Table 99-3.
The abov.e table is.theocy,.~J?~M!i~e, th~ re~:cilts w9urd have been more like the results in Table 162-6 based on
Ellis.1nt88S; .:• ···· · . ,.•.• ''•'P':':'··•' · · ··· ·· ' · .·· • ·
NOTES
I. Johann· Christian Oott1i~b Graui:mer, Rudiments' of the Art of playing on the Piano Forte, 2d ed. (Boston: Gottlieb Graupner,
1819), 51. The first edition; wils·in 1806<;:
i, Thiel., covelt'.. page.
3. ~hind, New lnstrnctions For Playing. the Harpsichord, Piano-For"t; or Spinnet, · 35.
4. Preston, Th.e Preceptor !!or the Pian~Forte,. Organ, or Harpsichord, page at the end.
?. Pa,squaH:>'. The·Att<tif•Fingering the Harp~ichord; Plate XV. this was written around 1743 to 1157.
b. ·Thi&. .. . . . .
. . .•. . . . . . . .. . . . 1•...(JJ~tipMxt:. R.f!l/t7n~'!J{i,:attlJ~.4i:t olP.(f!.~ilJ&. <Jti .tfl~, ftquq . lfq1£t~f,..s1.
8. Abraham Rees, ed., ''Temperament, Temperament<l'; in Music,'' The Cyclopaedia; or, Universal Dictionary ofAns, Sciences,
:.:;:;.:::.;.:::':":·~ii:!!e!~~r~.t~t?~;~!?.~t!l~~:'.J;!'!m;'.:~~~·"~f ~:t~l~:!fY;:··unr1u:mber~11f!g.~l!t· the'en!l.·o~· ~e~~~l~;·>" ·
THE AUTHENTIC WAY TO TUNE Tim
JOHANN CHRISTIAN GOTTLIEB GRAUPNER TEMPERAMENT OF 1819
following quarter notes in the order written.

"To obtain the Temperature; that is, a small proportioned Deviation from the Truth of every Interval, except the
>O,rtl'iv"' the fifths must be tuned rather flat, and the thirds rather sharp than otherwise; if this is well observed by tuning
Octave, then the first C will prove a perfect fifth to F below.'' 1 (A modern suggestion is to temper each fifth
by 0.843587838 beats per second.)
"The first note C must 2 Tuned

be tuned with a tuning fork." before
Tuned Tuned
before before
"First Trial"
- - -_ - _ --~==-~-=~ - -=- --~---_ - ---~-----=~
i
"If the first trial gives a fine Third, then what has been done
may be depended on; but if otherwise, it will be best to begin 3
a fresh, and tune all over again, and the same by the second triaL"
Tuned "The frrst C will prove
befdre a perfect fifth to F below." 4
~armonically
equivalent !
id II
By a. "perfect fifth,.'' Graupner did not mean a justintonation fifth. He meant a fifth that was neither augmented
nor diminished by a setnitQne. His "good fifth" FCresulted in being either just, a small amount narrow, or wide;
there was no way of determining w.hkhit was. Wide 9r narrow, if the fifth FC is not beating too rapidly, o,ne can
then perform well; in .all twenty-fom: tpajor and minot k~y~ without encountering wolf intervals in this crude form of
·qua!t~'et{mtl tem11ermnent~lfthefifth~'Feistoletable; fonowthe instructions below for completing the bearing section
from B below miCfdle C to E two octaves above. · ·
Tuned. Tuned
before Should be tolerable before
"If c gives p.ot a good :fifth tQ F, t)Jen fune back to throw the Imperfection in E-flat and A-flat. " 5
Tuned Tuned
before before Tuned
l
before
"the Imperfection"
109. The Authentic Way To Tune The Johann Christian.Gottlieb Graupner Temperament
'f:fiisc~ott1t:H<~tes
the bearing section from E belowmiddleC t() E two octaves above. If yom: fifth A-flat E-flat results
lrt''l~Ai1'\0' 1tOm:::Jrauu::. you have
tuned. a form of modified meantofie Ot Well temperament whereby you Can modulate and
'n'ertorm in all the keys. If your fifth A-flat E-flat results' in being an intolerable sounding wolf interval, then you have
form of meantone temperament In this case, you will not be able to perform well in the extremely harsh tonali-
A-flat, D•:flat, F-sharp, and· B major, but the nat.ural keys should sound excellent.
tuning the Bass by Octaves it will be proper to compare each Note with the Note of the same Denomination
in the Treble Octave, as the Ear is apt to be deceived. " 6
·"Example:
Tuned Check Tuned Check Tuned

before before before Check
l l l
+ ±
Tune
i i
Tune Tune
i
just just just
Table 109-h The Differe:m::es in Cents between the Notes of

Graupner's Equal-beating Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Graup:ner Rounded Figures
G-sharp minus 0.28086 0
G plus 0.23437 0
plus 0 .. 20035 0
F mim1s 0.41890 0
E minus 0.25940 0
D minus 0.29606 0
c plus 0.14111 0
B plus 0.21777 0
B-flat minus 0.28353 0
This is the closest to equal temperament of anything presented thus far in this book, except for John Farey's theoreti-
cal just intonation quasi-equal temperament.
Compare this table with Tables 85-1 and 101-1.
The above table is theory. In practice, the results would have been more like the results in Table 163-1 based on
Ellis in 1885.
NOTES
Rudiments the Art on the Piano Forte, 51.
THE "EASY AND CONVENIENT'' TEMPERAMENT
BY JOHANN NEPOMUK HUMMELIN 1829
J ohann Nepomuk Hummel (l 778'-1837) was an Austrian musician who was known at one time as Europe's greatest
. pianist. He was also a leading composer and the last of the great classicists. He was a link between Mozart, with
whom he studied, and Chopin. His highly successful Aiisfuhrlich theoretisch-practische Anweisung zum Piano-forte
Spiel was translated and published in London in 1829. This had the effect of introducing the latest developments in
tuning and temperament techniques from Vienna to London.
The only new element in Hummel's publication was the recommendation that one use an A tuning fork because
that was the basic beginning pitch for orchestras. 1 Hummel's tuning philosophy was based on equal temperament, so
it was unimportant from which note one began the tuning. Otherwise, the use of an A tuning fork was against all tradi-
tion. The arrangement of the key levers as they developed resulted in a keyboard design that is in C major. This in
turn caused most temperaments to be based on C as the beginning note. The note C was the one tone of agreement
among musicians who each tuned in their own system. Thus, all the other tones, including A, were constantly varied
according to one's taste.
The only way traditional characters of the. keys could be maintained in their proper places throughout the
world of music was to base the unequal temperament systems on the note C as the beginning note. Basing the meantone
temperaments and well temperaments on A could not be done with efficiency because of the bearing plans as they
developed. All of this no longer mattered in 1829 when piano tuning in quasi-equal temperament was the goal.
Hummel wrote as if the historical period of the well temperaments was over because of the changing construction
of pianofortes which affected tuning techniques and tone quality. He wrote:
In former each note of which had

rwo several Marpurg, , &c.: systems
on this subject; but as those instruments are now almost wholly laid aside, and in their place piano fortes are introduced,
in which each note has three strings, instead of two, and these 4 or 5 times thicker than those of that period, the compli-
cated propositfons laid down by these Authors, cannot now be so put into practice, and we are
adopt a system of temperament by which tuning is made much more easy and convenient. That such is the case, appears
evident, since many who to be can be said to have an ear so acute, as to discriminate with the
requisite nicety, the minute deviations in the different chords of the unequal temperaments proposed by the Authors. 2
Many of the temperaments as published by the above named theorists were meant for application on monochords;
therefore, they lacked practical tuning instructions that could be used by professional piano tuners who tuned by ear.
Even today, a professional tuner would not be able to judge specific parts of commas that various intervals are tem-
pered by without the help of calculated beat frequencies and test intervals. Hummel attributed the of follow-
ing the old theorists to the fact that piano tuners were preoccupied with tuning strings that contained four or five times
as much inharmonicity (because they were four or five times thicker), and that there were 50 percent more strings
not including those extra ones in the greatly expanded keyboard range. However, in the past, professional tuners never
did tune exactly according to the rules of the theorists. When common practice was down on paper for use on
monochords by mathematicians, ''the minute deviations in the different chords of the unequal ' appeared.
The actual tuning practice as done by ear in the days of clavichords and easy to do. Key-coloring,
"'""'"t.,""r1 instinctively was to theoristso
writings of Johann Wilhelm Marpurg were this.
ton~ atrd,~weil~t~11111eram.ents . (eg9ji;~1thaj i.i.~e~~~. ~~wn~ just fu
,.ith precisign•.:1Convers ,.Jt was; knowiHluir in: e(I\tat. teitiperaruent ri~thl . . me:~~,p,~~e%.e~ ·. · ·"for; oc-
.he 182~· attitude: waS: that equal teQ1perrummt was easy because it. was completel~ free from r~stti(; ..M such
jl~~~SlPail~1mjljo!•1Pirds th~t were. expected,; to· be fine or close .to pure, .Also,· there was n.0 pre&suret0: maintain
····· · · .JlU!Jifi1~lit.S:l1.~ifi~,of Jr:a. · . .n~J9cat!ons for the characters of the keys . Notice in .HummeFs bearing plan
& forc'.~f'irte.thirds;~~~we~.tt1 . ·. · .. . . e'~ectlQ.t;islQ9~~ 111). Th.e thirds anctsi;ittfl.s in• equ~ tempera-
~qwn as be\ngJ1$S:h ~d\J@ ~:,.. . . . . tel'';~in~pi•:~~e;1tb~.-:ds:~~ s.~1P~5ontail}ed no refinements. it was
:tll:fr··~8A9hwl;iethel; or not tfleseJntewatS:containedtpeproper· beat+ft~'!tfell~ieS\~?·Ir~~iS:ef •.• 11ei:~ or not,
alsiwere c>fpoot·quality, sQ; they did not matter. The on:Iy concern for piano tuners in 1829 tall twelve
ld. ~e slilooJ". s.ou~9~1)8: 0IP,tfli.s1.c.as~~· tper~. ~9~14.~.e. no )Volves,. and one could modulate freely through all
ith these relax~ apd·~ompi.:t>l1i!soo idtl.al!i~' th¢pbiJ9sophy ~f eq\jal:f te111per~en~·seernoo· li!<e the easiest and
nient ·system ·oftiniing~. ·HufumeJ·and most: othets concerned•with equal;tempera111~nf,'oit;jli'altos•tal'ely men-
ats or beatings: Only organ tuners counted the beats with precision. This was not consideroo important on pianos
tfiefrton~& wer~ ·sho[!Uy~, .a.1.1~ Pc!~sts were d'veloping a s~le of virtuosity with very rapid playing. Of course,
nts tuned accordih~;to;these;stifudl:(l'ds.couldh.Qt be called equal temperament•today.
.el's orig!n~I~el!fi~~1p,J~Jls practi~e4 by f!te Pm!es&tonal Wners in Vienna3 is ~iyen in. Section 111. Hummel
a. secol}.d bearing ~ta1:1 that he tho~ghl \Yas easier f(')r amateurs. This is found iti Section 11.2. Hummel's first
plan was identkal to 6taupner's of 1806, considering if cine took the final five notes of Hummers plan and
them at the begilji,iipg, Jtansposed everything up 01:1e ,o<.;tav~, and finally deleted all of Graupner 's unnecessary
duplications. (C(')rnl)~re Sections 109 andlll.) Notes three through fifteen of Hummers plan were.the same
e• of Jean-Jacques l{cwsseau transposed down a mi:nor tenth. (Compare Sections 40 and 111.)
el's bearing plans requiring the use of an A ttinipg fork were published in London in 1829. However, this
type of quasi-equiil tempering in the manner of Graupner had already been firmly established but with C tuning
. r~quired among the"Britjg:h and Americans. The fQ,Uttwing was also published in 1829:
. It is necessary that a1hhe .fifths should be altered, this win.be effected by flattening the successive fifths,
beginning
· C, wltich has pre,~iousty been ma<l.e in unison Witll thetun1ng.t'ork, ahd taking GDAEBF sharp, C sharp, G sharp,
arp, A sharp, and E sbarp as flattened fifth&, care being taken that this flatness be equally divided among them.
may satisfy himselfthat this is correctly done ifthe C coincides with the B sharp without alteration as a fifth
to E sharp. In the tuning of organ pipes, on account of their beatings when too flat or too sharp, a partial system of
em.tJmm1en!tn.!l~~~e:.Q~~~rrec},,1'hewleSSi,frequen; theiB>beatS;t•.thi1.1ll)orei.·Jl&£feeti.th~,.tune. 4··.······
t Words, since beats w~re so dearly heard. on organs in 1829, the organs had to be maintained in meantone
. . ~ent, wher.eas pianos with their duller and short-.bved tones were not objectionable in the free-modulating quasi-
fomperaments.5
,; Even though Hummel practiced a form of quasi-equal temperament, this style of tuning was by no means universal
in '1ermany. Hummei wrote:
JtJs.1:11uch to be wish~~l!J::ta.t 1i·~nif0pn: .J.l!odti of tµning )Yere universally introduced. To what disagreables are we not
e~posed, particularly with regard to wind instruments. Sometimes they are not in tune with the piano forte, at other
times in the orchestra not with one another. One is constructed according to the mode of tuning in use at Dresden,
another to that of Vienna, a third to that at Berlin .. One gives the pitch more usual in the chamber, another that in
the theatre, and another again that in the Church. How is it possible, among all this diversity, to obtain a pure and
equal mode of tuning. At all times Singers have been the greatest impediment to this arrangement. W:ould that in all
countries they would at last agree upon some uniform system of tuning and upon a pitch neither too high nor too low
and employ it alike in the theatre, as alra camera, and; when possible, also in the church. By this means they would
every where meet with their accustomed pitch, and would sing with less exertion, without being compelled to have
.... t:e,£o!lr~" Jo. trnpspositi0n. 6
el exJ:>lained ~hat th~ En~lis~.had an a~vantage for more precise tuningwork because of the construction of
fanos. fn.Engianc('oile~coutcf{jiirflie'fc:fot alft1fitwiycrt5wh on the'snfffor soft pedal on grattdpianos, and the
407
ptam~1that~~i«~~~-~
et10ugJt to. apply thl§
eaeh~1tdlisonaS1. one ptoce'4~d tlJti)Ui!)1,1tJl~"~e~g:.5e~tio
Without~ us11f3'~e1:tt 1 fr€tqttettdes·· and p:ropet testittg··iflterv tfie,professfonal •Vierfu~se tuners mid. Httmmelcould
ltave accomplished their purpose1onfy if they had a certain impression in theii ears concerning the sound of the fifths
Wht~~vwete1an.1 aveiage of· two: cents 11.artow:. If they had an instinct for depending on a specifier color"-quality for all
theMtfts, thefilllU:lh':fifdt~'\\loul.~1 !a~~,b~t at exactly the same speed throughout the bearing section. If one began
the tuning Wiili a fotli1 afl.c;.:t40'~;tlt~'li~A'1**ft•~y . · ....... ,......s VifqU}deach beat 0.44698:4024 times per second. If they
1
u.sed forks at lower pitches,•thisiftfme wcsnl'' . .· 11•1Wprop()raio~(e~ . 1~~;;lf th~y .did achieve this idealistic degree
1
0:1:~'f~~tii.l~i'mtd:tllis ·i9 doubtfuJf·Jtteh the'results: vvd'ilMMvebeeltth~swne"is:·tftat1 on1lmM1··i11Table·~ 11~1. Since

it·waSi impossible fof[llie: Vie1mese1tunets to· tempei: all their· fifths exactly L 955 cents narrow, the figures in Table
1
Uhl rep.resent the best that any oftheU1. ~<)Qf4: hav~ u<>ne! byJong experience oi: happy accident.
Wiien: one \lS'~s•· standartl·1{'it~h2'J\~44.0rmninj•ftj1k'·:f0t~ the sef:ond r'Hummelcbearlng p1an,.·the beats of each fifth
1·
sffould be 0:531598969 pet setondr• · ··
Table 110..f!;Ecto*l·beatina Quasi-equal Temperament

• 2ii .. 2ll'untd b3itVieml"8fiTml'1ts l1sin~;Htmnnel"s
'Fil'St. Bea:ridg Plan•
l\fajo~ 1'ftii.'d~ .Sizesr ce.-•s
ill, Cents Wide t'tom Just
CB 399.109s4· 12.79612:
GB 399.51612. 13.20241
OF-sharp 400.()5913 13.74.542
~~;~?;
AC-sharp 14.10825
EG-sfuirp 14.59306
Bfi~sharp . 399.98147 13.67375
F-sharp A~sharp 400.4f890 14.10519
D-flaf~ •·•. .3~;5~5()• 13.2~578
A-flat C 399.98339 13.66968
E'-flat G 400.49641 14.18270
B-flat D ·399;52196 n~ws2s
FA 399.97854 13.66482

'fh.,. ~bgve table is W~()ff·;···.fff pratttcee;:"'flte1•resuJt§1swfft1td"~Ve'b~lf'mol'e'1lik~tf1~·te~nlts ··in r.Fabt~·t62'"6 based on
·Eltis··in MJ8.5: ·
11 .
N61'ES
1. Johann Nepomuk Hummel, A Complete Theoretical and Practical Course of Instructions on the Art of Playing the Piano Forte
(London: T, Boosey & Co.,. 1829). Part m, 69.
2. Ibid. . .
3. Ibid.
4. '.fh<>m;as Tegg, The htndonltit,(;y.clapa"1ia, or UniVetsal Dictionary of Science, Art, literature, and Practical Mechanic$ (Lon-
doµ: l1;i1.1~~ for 1'bomas T<'.t1K 1~2.,)t 15:300.
5; David Brewster, Thi Edinburgh Encyclopaedia (Edinburgh: William Blackwood, et al., 1830), 15: 139.
6. HU111mel. A Complete Theoretical and Practical Course of Instructions, Part ill, 69.
7: Ibid;; 12. .,
ETune A}so perfectly in unison with the fork, that i:f:it be h~ld upon. the bridge across tJt~belly of the inS"9~entduring
its vibration, not the least difference of pitch between the sounds shall be sensible to the ear. . . . No one fifth. must
be tuned perfectly true . . . each fifth must be tuned somewhat flatter than perfect. . .. When we have laid the bear-
ings as far as the last fifth D, A, we shall be abletode.cide whether or not the eleven preceeding fifths are tuned cor-
rectly, or whether they are too sharp, or too flat .. If A, as compared with D, sounds good, neither too flat, nor too
sharp, l)Or perfect, we may be assure(Hhati the temperament is correct. But if A as compared with D, sounds too sharp,
all the former or•.at least, some ofthelatter fifths.aretunedt@;.flat.lf A with respect to D sounds too flat, the fore-
going fifths are ~ne~ too sharp or perfect. 1
"»'' ,,
~odem suggestion is to temper each fifth narrow by 0.446984024 beats per second. Tune the following quarter
'tes in the order written.
Proof
Enh~<!nically
~niva~nt ·
!
Octaves
"Flat (narrow) fifths"

Narrow minor thirds
This completes the 19 note bearing section from G to C-sharp.
Table 111~1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes of

Hummel's First Bearing Plan and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Hummel Number One Rounded Figures
G plus 0.48121 0
F plus 0.02146 0
E minus 0.39154 0
E-flat minus 0.01520 0
D minus 0.19718 0
c plus 0.49862 0
B minus 0.00267 0
B-flat plus 0.28086 0

Ellis in 1885.
NOTES
1. Hummel, A Complete Theoretical and Practical Course of Instructions, Part III, 70-7L
2. Ibid.
HUMMEVS EASIER'BIAIUNG.PLAN
FOR THE ''UNPRACTISED EAR'H IN 1829
Observe the written instructions in Section 111. (A modem suggestion is to temper each fifth narrow by 0.53 beats
second.)
Check the intervals to ''be certain of their correctness.' ' 2
Octaves
Narrow fifths
Wide major thirds
1
This completes the 19 note bearing section from B-flat to E.
Table 112-h The Differences. in Cents between the Notes of

Hummel's Second Bearing Plan and Eqmli Temperament.
Equal Temperament Hummel Number Two Rounded Figures
0-sharp plus 0.15951 0
G minus 0.25349 0
F-sharp plus 0.12284 0
F minus 0.05913 0
E plus 0.56001 +1
D plus 0.13538 0
c plus 0.13805 0
B plus 0.65328 +1
Compare this table with Tables 101-1, 109-1, and 111-1.

Ellis in 1885. .
Table 112-2: Equal-beating Quasi-equal Temperament Tuned by Using Hummel's Second Bearing Plan.
CE 400.42196 14.10825
GB 400.90677 14.59306
399.98747 13.67375
400.41890 14.10519
EG-sharp 399.59950 13.28578
BD-sharp 399.98339 13.66968
F-sharp A-~:nm·u 400.49641 14.18270
D-flat F 399.52196 13.20825
A-flat C 399.97854 13.66482
E-flat G 399.10984 12.79612
B-flat D 399.51612 13.20241
FA 400.05913 13.74542

Ellis in 1885.
NOTES
1. Hummel, A Complete Theoretical and Practical Course of Instructions, Part ill, 70-71.
2. Ibid.
n 1811' the firm Flight and Robson was involved in building and exhibiting the famous Enharmonic Organ d'esigned
by Henry Lisf'On .. Later in the century, the name of the firm changed to B. Flight and Son. Benjamin Flight lived
Pl 1767 tQ 1847. According to a friend of Hugh Boyle, Benjamin Flight's tuning manual was published first in 1830,
·· the third edition, which is still eJ(tantt was pul>Iished around 1877. 1
~C, •.On page 4 of the third edition Flight wrote, ''The following system of tuning by unequal temperament, is used for
~butch Org1ms,-Pianofotfe1J and Otga.lns, used for the CotYcett-room, are tuned by equal temperament, viz., by fifths
:~nly, which are made equally Flat throughout the scale.'' The unequal temperament referred to by Flight. was the an-
. · t fietro Aaron meantone temperament of 1523. In this, t~e s~dard eight major thirds from the tonality of C major
.timed "perfect." Alt the remaining intervals, except the octave, were tempered. For equal temperament, Flight
'sited no instructions other than that noted above. In 1830,. Flight would have tempered quasi-equal temperament
manner siW:ilar to that outlined in Sectiofi:9'1: of the ~resent work. Because of his statement, ''equally Flat,'• .(llight
doubt used the equal-beating method. Us:lttg a C fotk at standard pitch, ·each fifth would then beat 0.843587838
.•~ts.perseC()J1d •
.On harpsichords, the method for tuning m4antone temperament (outlined.in Section 12. of the present work) is ex-
ceptionally easy to tune. One needs to temp~i<otYly three notes. From C ~d these three tempered notes, one can tune
111aining eight notes. by means 6f j]ist into;natfoti niajor thirds. Benjamfn Flight, h()wever, did not use this method
He
S<t directly tempered the fourths, fifths. ana major sixths. In so doing, he tempered eleven tones rather than
three so that he could avoid tuning just intonation major thirds. The reason that he applied this seemingly more
difficult method was to avoid the problem called "drawing" by organtuners. l\.fore clearl}'., just intonationintervals
~ .~cutt to tifue. w:rm··~~ucy on'·fatl!'~lp~. org~J:"tm1fles! mstmm~11n:0Jtfsfiritervars contam'very wide neutral
· hich tto 1'eatifig''ismscemi6fe: 1\jtt§t intervar·can be quite wide or narrow while no beating is heard. The
r this. is that the farger pipe 'draws' the pitch of the shorter pipe into perfect. conformity ~ith the pitch of
pjpe b~(l~l,l!~e Qf dj~. power Qf jts AA~J;'1ll9¢c~. 1h¢r~~Qte$ tbe tuning of pure majQr thirds on large organs was
red undependable. ney could be quite narrow and th'us destroy the intended temperament. By making certain
c.tbatthe major sixths were tempered wide enough to hear beats, Benjamin Flight avoided this problem. If the major
,;;,•sixths contained significantly fast beat frequeneies, it was impossible in •regular' temperament for the smooth-sounding
. major thirds to be narrow • .for these same. Qns. Fliaht· d'd not tune the octaves directly. He arrived at the. octave
· t,~~es by temp~ring the foufthscand fifths .··The octave was then used otYly as a test interval or 'trial.' ·
·Benjamin Flight's bearing plan for meantone temperament was modern since it consisted of otYly thirteen notes.
~ight's original bearing plan is outlined on the following page in modern notation. This bearing plan wasalso recom-
.iriended for tuning in meantone temperament in 1876 by A. Hemstock2 and in 1902 by John William Hinton. 3
NOTES
l. Beajamin Flight, Practical Tuner for the Organ or Pianoforte, 3d ed. (London: Flight and Son, c. 1877).
'2. A. :ffemstock, On Tuning The Organ (London: Weekes & Company, 1876), 25. 1
1
~,.Hinton;. Qr,gan Constntction, 9&.
413
THE ·TUNING OF·•.PIETRD··A.ARON'SMEANTONE . TEMPERAMENT
ON ORGANS IN 1830 AND LATER 1
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. For a perspective on beat frequencies, see page 35.
"Tune Cto
concert-pitch,
by the tuning fork." Tuned Tuned
before
l
Tune before
just
Tune F a little acute, "Tune G a little grave, or more "Tune A a little acute, or more
or more sharp than perfect to C." flat than perfect to the same C." sharp than perfect to the same C."
Tuned
before ''Tune B a little before
acute toD."
l l
"trial, should prove
i
Temper using
a perfect third." "the same method."
"Tune D as equal as possible between G and A, by
making D a little grave to G, and a little acute to A."
'.'Tune..FrslJ<im lie littfe gl'.a;ve to B."
;;Tufte C-sharp alittle
grave to F-sh<im.''
Tuned
Tuned tuned before
before before
l
"a perfect sixth"
"a j:)erfect third"
l ! l !
,J !1i It J ~J I~~ I ~j
i
. ''Tune G-sharp a little grave to C-sh<im."
i
"'I\irte B-flat a little acute to F." "Tune E-flat a little
acute to B-flat."
' 1a perfect third"

The "Wolf' intervals
This completes the bearing section within the C to C octave.

''The following are Examples how tQ tune. the Octaves upwards.'•
Tuned Tuned
"trial, should prove before
before a perfect octave" "should prove an octave"
. l l !
J 1a
i
"Tun~ Da iittle grave to ihe under G,
and als(! a little acute to A."
The Lost Art ()j Nineteenth"Century Temperament
Tuned Tuned
before "shbul~.prove an octave" before "should prove an octave"
! ! l !
MH!lll'---~~-~1;±-11-HH~ ~--=ti~
i
"Tune E-flat a little acute to B-flat."
i
"Tune E a little grave to the under A,
(Note: G~ could and also a little acute to B."
not be used)
Continue this method to the top.

"The following are examples how to tune the Octaves downwards."
Tuned "should prove a Tuned

before perfect octave" before "should prove an octave."
1 t l !
i
"Tune B a little grave to E above,
i
"Tune B-flat a little grave to E-flat
and also a little acute to F-sharp above." above, and also a little acute to F."
Continue this method to the bottom.
1. Flight, Practical Tuner for the Organ or Pianoforte. Pages 5-19 contain all the quotations used in this section.
·Jonsse {176():±. 1:837) was aFtett:chman wbo fled the French R:evo1Ution; He' settfedin' London where heestab-
ed himself as a teacher'of voice,and piano, andialso wrote pedagogical music bookS; fu. 183'1. he published
s••calculated to, assist ¥()11ng students i11 tubing, c6trectly. the pianoforte.'' 1 His book began with an excellent
tidn: ofmonod1ords, string acoustics:~ the harmonic series, ratios; coiiliilas. wolfinter¥als, beats; the dennitfon
erament, the necessitx of temperament, ·arid the history of temperament. His book also contained advice on
hammer technique, mutes, test chords; replacing' broken strings, etc;
1sg2 Jousse wrote that ''some indinefor the equal temperament, others prefer the unequal temperament. " 2 He
rwrote,
llach of these temperaments has its advantages artd disadvantages. The advantage obtained by the equal temperament
3' :is that every interval and chord is produced S'1 near perfection that none of them sound perceptibly imperfect; but it
has the followin~ disadvantages: first/it cannot be obtained in a strict sense, as may be proved, not only mathemati-
.;.,cally, but also by daib;,~Xllerience; therefore !be ties~ eq\lallY tempered in$'ruments are still q.nequally tern~red, and,
\jlllat is worse, QftentimeS:. in wrong p,aces. ~ ·
Jousse revealed the truth. that is one of the main purposes of the present book; namely, to show that equal tempera-
. i9 not ex.ist on pianos before th~ twentieth. centutjl. By pianos being unequally tempered in the wrong places,
·• ·meant that some qua$i~e'lllal temperaments as practiced misplaced the key-coloring and therefore contradicted
aditional characters of the keys (see Table 99-3).
,,J~qss~., ~Q!lttJ!\t~d;···· ·• · ,.,, ••"'''"'""''''····
Se'iondly, if it was perfecqy obtained, it wqulcl prqduce no interval ()r chord quite perfect, although they would not
., .be perceptib)y Jmperfe~t. Thirdly:, ~ft.he equal temperament ~ould be obtained in perfection, the twelve diatonic major
Ci;@a•rtwelVel.mtMt..$'.lales wot1fd b~ :r~:l!cec:tJotw<>'. a~ t,f\ey w9.ulct only differ in point Of pitch, or gJ:avif.Y and. acute-
ness, and not in effect.
' The unequal tentf!C!tament, has two great ~dVaJ1tl;lt~es: first, it can be e~~~ly ()btai,i:ied ~ tuning1 ~~ i~ proved by qaily
practice. Secondly, it gives to every one of the tw~I:ve ni,aj.or and. [twelve} minor scales a particular character; bqt it
has ~he disadva9tage !hat it ~annot {re .used in a large brutd, as it is impossible to make every performer temper hi.s
ffistrument' in tine and ''tht!I same' m11it1ter. ·
•There ale several systems of the unequhl temperament: to explain them all would exceed the limits of this essay;
:.therefore the author has confined himself to the two following methods which are in general use.4
t; .Al this point, Jousse furnished. two bearing· plans plus the J.ohann Nepomuk Humt11el. bearing plan which Jousse
Wrote was practiced by "the German and French Musicians. " 5 From all three bearing plans it is revealed that Jean
~psseis term ''unequaltemperament•• did notincludeYthe meantone temperaments. In both of his bearing plans, the
a,~'major triad.was the finat"l'rial," and G-sharp E-flat was required to be a good fifth .. In the Hummel, the last
·· must'.'be good,'.'. Therefore, Jousse' s term "tmequal temperament" included all well tempernments plus the
terq:pe:aments~uch as those of Graupner and Hummel.
~t~tJQQ~S,~h~R~~mner~m$!l~,9.UPimJos w:a.~. u.n~;. !fterefore,~pe~iticbeat frequenc!es,~ere unimportant,
ot include any beat frequency numbers in hi& instnfotions. He only mentioned that •''from the equality
.iDg~1 · e9cYAl:~~~!~!!~fre.mJ?et!~ti~~·11lal"~f.(:~!!eetly ascertaine<J; 1 'Ii In otherw°'1ds,if 0ne was attempting
to tune eqµaltempt!rament, one should use tht> eq~al-~ratil}~ m~tllod as already o.utlined in this book for the Graupner
and Humwel ql}asi-equal temperaments. The only other infon:riation that Jousse furnished was:
In tuning, make the thirds as sharp and the fifths as flat as the ear will bear: but, as it is impossible to describe the
precise degree of flat.nes.s or sharpness '},l}licli tjleseii;itervalsy!;hQul<l have, tlie :Qest way is, first 1}o· tun~ the thirdper-
fect, then to draw up the string a little higher; butthat in so trifling a degree, as scarcely to hear a difference :in the
sound: likewise make your fifth perfect; after which, let down the wire by turning the pin back, but in a very trifling
degree. 7
These instructions were good for beginning students in tuning.

Jean Jousse 's book gave one the freedom of choice as to whether one desired to pursue equal temperament or well
temperament. Jousse's second bearing plan was completely modern. (According to Alfred James Hipkins, writing in
1893, 8 this bearing plan was originated by Robert Wornum, but Hipkins furnished no sources for this information.)
This plan followed the rules of modulation and tonality. In tonality form, it was superior to the modem William Braid
White bearing plan that is very commonly practiced today. Of course, in the twentieth century, tonality in temperament
was banned. Like Thomas Young's bearing plan published in 1800, Jousse's second bearing plan consisted of only
twelve notes. While Thomas Young's bearing plan was suitable only for Young's well temperament, the second bear-
ing plan ofJousse was suitable for either well temperament or equal temperament. No matter how one tempered, it
was highly unlikely that one could get the chord colorings or the characters of the keys in the "wrong places" while
using Jousse's second bearing plan. Here, one had the greatest freedom of choices. In contrast to this, the Hummel
bearing plan was suitable only when one was attempting to tune equal temperament. By the 1880s Jousse's second
bearing plan had become common practice. 9
Jousse's first bearing plan was copied from the plan published by Becket and Company in 1809. Jousse made one
change. He added A-flat in order to make the temperament circular. (Compare Sections 97 and 116.) Unlike the second
bearing plan in which Jousse made no mention of how the fifths should be tuned (because it could be used for either
well or equal temperament), eight of the fifths were specified as being "rather flat" or '"rather sharp." The remaining
four fifths were not described, so they can be interpreted as being just.
In conclusion, Jousse's first bearing plan was meant for well temperament only. The second bearing plan could
be used for either well temperament or equal temperament. third bearing plan (by Hummel) was intended only
for equal temperament (unless one was content to have chord colorings in the "wrong places").
One way to interpret Jousse's first bearing plan is to assume that Jousse meant for the fifths BF-sharp, C-
sharp, C-sharp G-sharp, and A-flat E-flat, to be completely pure. Adhering to Jousse's "equality of the beatings"
would then produce eight other fifths that would each beat exactly 1.340681477 times per second if middle C were
tuned to the standard pitch of today. The results of this interpretation are outlined in Table 115-1 and Figure 115-1.
From this one can see that there are two minor flaws. First, the major third FA is out of balance because it is larger
than the third B-flat D. To correct this, the of F should be sharpened a shade. Second, the major third
is the rather than the more usual or D-fiat F. the is somewhat
tetnr;i~rament v•-'"u'"'"~'" in 24- t and 115-L) This reflects an old
English tradition of one century. The form of the Jousse temperament, if it were transposed down a fourth,
is seen in Table 72.-1, colrnnn.7, 'Nhich is based on Thomas Young's well temperament philosophy. The circular form
of the Jousse temperament is almost Rousseau of 1768 Figures 39-1 and
115-1). Both Rousseau and Jousse favored the flats over the sharps. Perhaps this was a French trend. (The instructions
for tuning Jousse's well temperament through his first are given in Section 1
When using Jousse's second bearing plan for well temperament, one :is free to do anything according to one's per-
sonal taste. If one uses the second plan an equal temperament attempt or a quasi-equal temperament, then each
fifth and fourth should beat 0.796525703 times per second according to the equal-beating method at modern standard
pitch. Jousse wrote, ''From the equality of the beatings, equal deviations from perfection may be correctly ascertained.'' 10
The results of this are outlined in Tables 117-1and117-2, but this is only theory. As Jean Jousse wrote, "it cannot
be obtained" in practice in 1832.11 The second bearing plan is outlined in Section 117.
Table H:5-1: The Jousse EoualHJ13atii:nl! WeU l'IP'11rnu•rmrnlP'111t Using His Bearing Plan Number One.
CE 394.73713 8.42342
GB 395.34098 9.02727
399,29516
401.93632
continm:d
T~blti 115~ l: ·Con.tinned.
Major Thirds Sizes· bi. Cents· Cents Wide from Just

EG"sharp 405.46413 19.15041
BD-sharp 40J .. 8;IOQO 21.50629
F-shflrp ·A-sharp 405.33462 19.02091
D-flat F 402.01522 15 ..70150
A-flat C 399.79874 13.48503
E-flat G 396.83902 10.52530
B-flat D 395.37021 9.05650
FA 396.04847 9.73476
CE 394.73713 8.42342
this table with Table 72-1, column 7. Also, compare this table with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2,
, 57-1, 59-1, 61-2, 69-1, 71-2, 75-1, 77-1, 79-2, 87-1, and 89-2.
The largest third

~
BD#
·:f:?
:;$'
-~
(})
-~
DbF
(/)
a slight flaw
.d
BbD--FA~
CE
u
The smallest third
Figure HS-1: The Form of Well Temperament Tuned by Jean Jousse's Rules.
Compare with Figures 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-1, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, 71-1, 75-1, 77-1, 79-1, 87-1, and 89-1.
NOTES
1. Jean Jousse, An Essay on Temperament (London: Printed for the Author, 1832).
2. Ibid., 16.
3. Ibid., 28.
4. Ibid., 29.
5. Ibid., 40.
6. Ibid., 38.
7. Ibid.
8. Hipkins, ''Tuning," 189.
9. Charles Babbington, Pianofortes, (London: "The Bazaar" Office, c. 1880), 4; and Helmholtz, On The
r:.u1.11un, 485.
TUNING ·JEANJOUSSE'S WELL TEMPERAMENT
OF 1832 IN THE AUTllENTIC MANNER
BY USING HIS BEARING PLAN NUMBER 0NE 1
T une the following quarter notes in the order written. (A modern suggestion is to temper all the fifths marked
either "rather flat" or "rather sharp" to beat 1.340681477 times per second and then to tune the remaining
four fifths pure.)
"Tune the note C, on the third space

of the treble staff, in unison to the
sound given by a tuning-fork .... "
Temper
l
"rather flat."
r r l l
Tune
"quite perfect."
i
Tune
i
Tune
"quite "quite perfect."
Tuned
Tuned before
before
Trial
Trials
~------1
l
i
Temper i
"rather flat." Tune
"quite perfect."
Tune
"quite perfect."
"the pitch note"

tuned before Tuned
!
Trial Trial before
Trial
! ! l !
i
Temper i
"rathet sharp." . Temper
"rather sharp!'
Tuned ''•'''''"'"'''io)Nf.0 Tooed Proof

. ~[ore .. Temper . Trial before (Added by the
"rather sharp." Trial present author)
.... 1 ! l ! !
I~~i II ~J
~
I
~~ ,, II
Tune
"quite perfect." i
"This A-flat must agree
with G-sharp, already tuned."
(the G# one octave higher)
completes the bearing section from F-sharp to C.

minus
plus
plus
plus
pl'u$
minus
plus
..... fompare this table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40':1,41-1, 47-1, 52-1. 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1, 78-1,
7~-1,. 88-11 and 89~1.
NOTE
1. Jousse,. An Essay on Temperament. Pages 31:-32 contain all the quotations used in this section.
e followlAg quarter 11otes in the order written. m~~m suggestion is to·~~~per all fifths and fourths so that
(A
eats 0.796525703.times per second.) Fifths must be narrow, and fourths must be wide.
Tuned
the C in the middle of the 1 before
board in unison to the tuning-fork." Trial
1 ! l
Tuned
before Tuned
Trial Trial before
2
1'une<l "the pitch-note"
before tuned before
Trial Trial
Trial
l ! 1 !
ttr #r 11r r it
JIM . . .
'" II
This completes the bearing section from F to E.
This bearing plan adheres to the rules of tonality for C major.

Jousse Quasi-equal Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Jousse Quasi-equal Rounded Figures
G-sharp plus 0.28353 0
G plus 0.00267 0
F-sharp plus 0. 51790 +1
F plus 0.48388 0
E minus 0.13538 0
E-f1at plus 0.02413 0
D minus 0.38887 0
C minus 0.19451 0
B plus 0.42463 0
B-flat plus 0.50129 +l
Cmnoare this table with Tables 101-1, 109~ 1, 111-1, and 12- L
Ellis in 1885.
Table 117-2: The Jean Jousse Quasi-equal Temperament Using His Bearing Plan Number Two.
Major Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 400.05913 13.74542
GB 400.42196 14.10825
DF-sharp 400.90677 14.59306
AC-sharp 399.98747 13.67375
EG-sharp 400.41890 14~ 10519
BD-sharp 399.59950 13.28578
399.98339 13.66968
400.49641 14.18270
399.52196 13.20825
399.97854 13.66482
399.10984 12.79612
399.51612 13.20241

Ems in 1885.
NOTES
1. Jousse, An Essay on Temperament, 35.
THE METHOD OF W~ S. B. WOOLHOUSE
FOR TUNING EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
BY.SPECIFIC NUMBERS OF BEATS 1Nl835
esley Stoker Barker Woolhouse (1809-1893) was an English mathematician who wrote about music. He is
known for his book on musical intervals and acoustics which included all the latest scientific information, analyses,
and evaluations of the twelve tone, nineteen tone, thirty-one tone, fifty tone, and fifty-three tone equal temperaments. 1
He suggested that the nineteen tone equal temperament should be adopted for the next practicable improvements in
keyboard design-something twentieth-century theorists still predict will eventually occur.
Unless there were extra keys on the keyboard, Woolhouse wrote that "the best system for the usual organs" was
the equal temperament that divided ''the octave into twelve semitones.' ' 2 Equal temperament had been recommended
for pianofortes since the days of William Jones in 1781. In 1835, W. S. B. Woolhouse proposed using it on organs.
C. J. Smyth, who calculated the beat frequencies of all the intervals in equal temperament in 1810, had predicted that
organ tuners would never abandon the meantone temperament that was traditional on organs (see pages 352 and 354
of the present work). The first practicable tuning instructions for tuning organs in equal temperament were published
in 1810 as a sort of joke attributed to the temperament theorist known as 'Musicus Ignoramus.' By 1835 the attitudes
had changed, and equal temperament was being considered for organs.
Woolhouse wrote:
If these semitones could be tuned perfectly equal, all the .different keys would vary only in pitch; none would possess
any strong peculiarity distinct from the others, as must be the case when these intervals are slightly unequal. This would
form an objection to the temperament by equal or mean semitones, as it is conceived by some musicians that the ear
is better pleased with the peculiar differences in the effect and character of the various keys. 3
real correct was unobtainable.

He wrote, ''It must be generally acknowledged that no tuner can preserve this exact equality.' ' 4 Therefore, musicians
did not need to worry. Some key-coloration with the characters of the keys would always exist (at least during the
nineteenth ~n•>hnm
In 1810, when the first equal temperament organ tuning instructions were published, the beat frequency figures
were in beats per fifteen seconds the tradition created Robert in 17 49. So that organ
would not require so much time, Woolhouse transposed all the instructions up one octave. had the effect of doubling
all the beats. Since the beating was faster, the tuner did not need to listen to the beats for fifteen seconds any longer.
Therefore, Woolhouse shortened the listening time down to ten seconds. Listening to the beats of the fifths at such
high pitches assured great accuracy for the fifths because of the faster beating. However, the beats of all the thirds
and sixths in these pitches were too fast to comprehend, so Woolhouse deleted all the thirds and sixths used as
trials or test intervals. This was proper. Tuners that of history had to learn how to count the beats
of equal tempered thirds and sixths. Today, it is necessary to temper in the original lower octave because of the modern
dependence on thirds and sixths used for test intervals, Fifths and fourths are most easily heard and controlled at the
higher pitches whereas thirds and sixths are most easily heard and controlled at lower pitches.
In 1810 the pitch of C was standard at 240 Hz among the British and Americans, but this didn't last. W ooihouse
based his calculations C at 254 Hz. This, along with the octave transposition, created a 212 increase
in the beat frequencies from the originals in 1810. As long as sixths and thirds were not listened to, this meant more
for the fifths.
.J~'.).'.1l .,,L, I•.' .'.~1 w1ix~r1JI
..
,j~.m~ Jle. o~set"Veq.tfl~t•.. ~t.. .
octave IS ttined cfown dOeitts 0 as~~iiding Iiiust~ortesporlil with ht' ofthe fourth descend:-
ing: f,Jy ~(tert(jirtg td this rule the (Jctave may in some cases be adjusted more accurately than could otherwise be effected
with the. ~sslsta:nce of the eat only. s
','.'~~::,' ~, ';,S;/~,' ,: :~':,,;,,;~<~:;ll't ;'! "
The 6rigin~l p~aringpJm.a.id1m:sttU~f!oii$ by:.W~~lhause il~~.g\vtm on the following pages. The beat frequency num-
bers. w¢r¢ 'takulated by Woolhouse.
NOTES
t. ~esk~y Stbker :e~rkerWoolhouse, EssayQn Musjiallnttftva1s,1HatlfttXnks. aria the Tewperarneni Of The Musical Scale (Lon-
·11on::·J:'1S~uter~·Js35). ··" 1''' ·;H·:·'''' :':h•.,·•::.? •;. ·,"";.•<• · ,... ,.,....."''•I·.;
2'. ffii&. 67;
3. ffiid.; 39.
41 ·Ibid.:+
5. Ibid., 84;
119
Tl.JNING EQUAL TEMPERAMENTIN 1835 ACCORDING To
THE RULES BY W. S. B.. WOOLHOUSE 1
Test interval
(Figures denote
"numbers of beats
in IO seconds.")
Tuned
Tune C 2 Tuned
l
before
to 508 Hz. before
l 17 l i
Equal beatirtg
17
'--[
17
l
Flatten Flatten
Tune
just
l
Tuned
Tuned before
before beating
i '
Flatten j
Tune
just
The Lost Att Of Nineteenth-'Century Temperament
Tuned
Tuned runed before
before before
Flatten Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
Equal beating
22
l
*r Flatten
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before t-,,~forn
Equal beating
i------------i
16 16 l 12 l 18
i
Flatten
Flatten
119. Tuning Equal Temperaml!11t According Ta TJie: Rules By W. S. R W£Jalhouse
Tuned
before
i
Tune
Flatten
just
Tuned
before
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned Tuned Final

before before proof
l 15 1 Equal beating
,----------i
15 15 1 !
11
Flatten
i
Tune
just
This completes the bearing section from F to B.
NOTES
L on Intervals. Harmonics, and the Te;rmJ·er1rment
2 . If a modern tuning fork at standard pitch is used, all of W!)Oillo1ase
"A Goon TUNER CAN ACCO:MMODATE
THE TEMPERAMENT TO THE TASTE OF
THOSE WHO PLAY IN PARTICULAR KEYS, WHICH
THEY WISH TO BE MORE PERFECT THAN THE REST" IN 1840
T he above statement is found on page 40 of The Tuner's Guide. 1 The author and date of publication are unknown,
but from all the historical clues in the book, it must have been published in 1840. An 1852 edition, published
in America by the Oliver Ditson Company, was plagiarized by Charles A. Daniell, who changed the title to The True
Piano Tuner. This edition was published in 1881 by John Church & Company of Cincinnati, Ohio, who also that year
published Daniell's Organ Voicing and Tuning. Pages 36 and 37 of Organ Voicing and Tuning were from pages 11
and 15 of The Tuner's Guide of 1840; page 11 of The Tuner's Guide contained a bearing plan for equal temperament
which was in turn copied without acknowledgment from the bearing plan published for equal temperament in 1809
by Becket and Company-except for the fifth FC which was transposed down an octave. This bearing plan published
in OrganVoicing and Tuning is now available in a reprint edition by The Vestal Press in New York. Also, this same
bearing plan appears without acknowledgmenfin the 1975 Dover reprint of J. Cree Fischer's Piano Tuning. Thus,
this extensively copied bearing plan has remained in print since 1809.
The 72-page long 1840 edition of The Tuner's Guide was the first book written for the training and use of profes-
sional tuners that resembles modern textbooks; that is, it outlined the theory of sound, the acoustics of strings, and
the mathematical philosophy of equal temperament in a clear and concise manner, compared to most writings before
1840. It also explained dearly how to tune unisons, octaves, and tempered intervals, and was complete in that it con-
tained much information on how to repair and regulate pianos and organs.
After noticing several contradictions in the text and that almost everything in the book was copied from the writings of
others, one can easily conclude that no author actually existed. It appears that The Tuner's Guide was a compendium of the
finest early writings that were accumulated and arranged an editor who understood the of
It the as treatises
were written. publication It may in response to a void that
existed in textbooks designed for developing professional technicians. Regardless, these modestly composed words begin
the text: ''The following practical introduction to the art of tuning the piano-forte will be found of great to persons
desirous of their own instruments, Qr who in the far away the residence of a tuner.''
It is likely that the editor of the Guide may have been James Alexander Hamilton (1785-1845). In any case, in
1843 or before,. affixed his nameto the book as author to read: Introduction
to the Art Of Tuning The Pianoforte. 2 The book later went through at least twenty-five editions into the last part of
the nineteenth century.
James Alexander Hamilton wrote courses of instruction in several areas of music. He translated and edited many
important music theory books and methods. He specialized in transmitting the information from these books to the
public by means of pamphlets and short, easy-to-read books. The development of The Tuner's Guide must have been
an example of these.
The only part of the book not completely plagiarized from others was on pages 33-37. This section was entitled
"Earl Stanhope's Mode of Temperament." Even though Stanhope's temperament was acknowledged, no mention was
made the material was abridged from his 1806 essay. 3 (For the Stanhope temperament, see Sections 78-79
of the present work.)
contradictions in the text must have resulted from the different ~~,,~,,,~n of the various authors. On pages 5,
and 22 it was written that ' and ' "
16 that
120.
i~i1g•·~~ ~itpperfections •.• atjiongthe.· remot~ keys. 'B\lt "~··· first~class •• instnttnent,s · atet11ne4 .• in this·.·barbatous·way:
· wh~n an ign01;an1J1s accigentally gets· hold of tlttmL'' Thiscta~tst~t~me~t referred to·the ~11cient ~i~fro .Aaron
. fourth syntoniccomrna 1llea?tonetetnper,ament . •·.the ~nly tetnperament whereby the ·popu.lar keys co:ufd•be .tuned
\t'.~si perfect as possible.'' Also ·concerning the Aaron temperament,.· we learn on page JO that ''if, ·.by depressing the
j we tune our major thjrds perfect, the•fifths will!be so flata,s to be . unfit. for the. various cpmbinati:oµs ofhar-
,' This was written· regardless of the· fact that by ·1840, one-fourth comma·· narrow fifths had been ·accepted as
standard size for fifths for more than three centuries.
writing strongly supported the cause of equal temperament. It is therefore most surprising .to find Benjamin
complete book from 1830, except for five paragraphs, plagiarized and copied exactly word for word between
and55 of The Tuner's Guide; Flight's tuning instructions applied only to the Pietro Aaron meantone tempera-
m€:ntpultllii;hed' in 1523. There was no mention of the name Benjamin Flight, the title Practical Tuner For the Organ
or the date 1830 in The Tuner's. Guide; The Tuner's Guide thus furnished tuning instructions so that
•,;1izni()rnim1 ' could tune in a "barbarous way.'' (For these instructions see Sections H 3-114 of the present work.)
the editorlater noticed this. By 1854 the complete section of Flight's tuning was deleted from the seventh
of the book.
On page 16 of The Tuner's Guide it was mentioned that all well temperaments were defective because "while some
few are tuned more harmoniously than by the system of equal temperament, all the remaining keys are much
so that it becomes impossible to modulate into themwithout offending the ear.'·' All the previous theorists
n .. in ktW-coloring and variety while modulating would certainly have disagreed with this opinion. Ifcomes
11 • .,,,,,.,,
asancJtl1cer surprise, therefore, to discover that three well temperaments requiring pure fifths were outlined on pages
37-42 of The Tuner's Guide, although they were to be used only as preparatory exercises for beginning tuning stu-
gents. It was in this section of the Guide. that the statement ''A· good tuner can accommodate the temperament to the
t.aste of those who play in particular keys" was written. For the best instructions for actually doing this, see Section
73 of the present work.
In the seventh edition, printed in 1854, the three well temperaments were deleted, but the Earl Stanhope well tem-
perament was retained because it had remained "a subject of much curious enquiry amongst musicians" in 1854.
The first well temperament outlined ''seems to give the most general satisfaction.' ' 4 The bearing plan of this tempera-
rilent was copied from the bearing plan published by Becket and Company in 1809, but no acknowledgment or credit
was given to the publisher. In The Tuner's Guide, test chords used as trials were added (compare Sections 97 and
122:)and the tuninginstructions the were In 1809 the Becket and Company bear-
ing plan was used for quasi-equal temperament. In 1840 in The Tuner's Guide it was used for a well temperament
containing three pure fifths plus three fifths that were narrowed less than the remaining six narrow fifths. These were
tempered in a quasi-equal-beating manner. All the temperaments in The Tuner's Guide were based on equal-beating
fifths and fourths, as will be explained later.
While following the original instructions for the first well temperament as given on page 39 of The Tuner's Guide,
endless variations would be possible.Nevertheless, a truerep~esentation of the theory intended can be formed as fol-
C~sharp ()-sharp was "tuned Nothing or fifth E~flat B~flat
so we can assume that this was also meant to just. Later on (after E-flat was it was that
both fifths E-flat B-flat and A-flat E-flat be "good fifths." Therefore, the three fifths G~sharp, A-flat E-flat,
Ee.flat B-flat were In the of the bearing plan, the fifths were ''tuned flat. When the fifth EB was
reached, it was to be less than the preceding fifths." But, the instructions did not specify that the fifth
aiso to be tuned less flat than the following fifths; it was meant that one continue to tune the fifths
"less flat" through the fifth F-sharp C-sharp, even though the fifths and both instructed
to be ''tuned flat.'' Otherwise, the tuning of the one single fifth EB to be less narrow than the others would have served
no purpose for harmonic form, etc. Further instructions specified that none of the fifths be as narrow as those used
"formerly ... in most organs." Thus, none should be as much as one-fourth comma narrow.
From all the latter, a simple representative theory is as follows: The three fifths C-sharp G-sharp, A-flat E-flat,
and E-flat B-flat are in just intonation. The six narrow fifths B-flat F, FC, CG, GD, DA, and AE are "~um-u''"'"·""'
fifths, each beating l.340404919 times per second at standard pitch. The three fifths BF-sharp, and F-sharp C-
sharp are also equal-beating fifths but are beating half as fast as the former six equal-beating fifths. This is 0.67020246
times per second. (The results of this interpretation are outlined in Table 122-2 and Figure 122-1.) From this one can
see that this was the Jean Jousse well temperament of 1832 with one of the two mino.r flaws corrected (see pages 418-19).
The major third FA was still out of balance because it was larger than the major third B-flat D, but the largest major
third was now F-sharp A-sharp which was more proper. The temperament would be if D were sharpened a
tenl!pe:rarne11twas rather to well in 1731 Tables
This English tradition was now more than a century
72d, which is on Thomas
oith~st
fift)J"•. •so., ..the.srud~nt1~\va§i~·e:x
~ " .. , . .,. . .. . ·t.•\1F
stUdent was expected to te ·
or.spaniwa$.t~~e4:1~~~0
· The intended thll:o~f(Yr.'th
dire~ . f1'.~·~
at ~t~itrui:. . .. . . . )! . . .. . . . ~q~
<G~and E•W~t'f:})Ulf{~se~.•"1,f ·.·· . ..
~evertl'leless, t1JeS'etest d1ordsw1r ............... ·... .. • • . • ... . . ...•.··~'UD;e wi~A~d !~~:ffec~ results close to the theory:, espe-
~!alfy2sinitt:;n~0b<5at•.ffell,Uefic~·numbe'rsfwt!l~fumished~~'.(:'fhdrunftrgf€Jf;tfii~~'te~lfttfameliiuSing~the1. origina}. bearing
pfan and tria}s as printed on page 40 of The Tuner's Guide is outlined in Section 123 of the present work.)
The t\tird rell temperament publi~~e~ inr'f/f.er'furlel'~s. w~itte utiHz~d t?e same bearing plan and instructions as did
tll:~·.second1 etc.~Pt•tl)~i t1res~~were1.~s ·. .·. ... ..~· blf a~majp~;'t1JJ(~;.~ ~~·ch~g~; ~~~,.~iJ,~;tQ:~ one.Jilqre fifth
wits ttiansposed·trpwcims a fourttt·t'!.lfhet!thm ~· . . ··tlli~dz;·1'hiM·• bad· the· ·.. .·. vof~ ctianghrg: the~ harmonic" balances.
.Tl'le fifth ~"'sha,fl)· 6-shalf{.was .directed to be; HtUned pede~t; '" · AU the remaining fifthsi should be equal~beating at 1
~·<JOl 443~~6\ ~~*tS:~~ seco~d 3,~~tan .· pi~c~;;~l~ 1i8d()!1btj'Ql tha~ anyonCil a~ned this e~act theocy. in the nineteenth
~e~tli~ii\'t~e?·hi~illj:t)f'thi~ t~mtfll~ < . W~~rim:~~~ ~ri!Jit1ai tiei.tringplan ancHriais atpitinted oh! page 4 r of The Tuner 's
6Ri(l~·is oqdiJ\~ttil:i~ Sec:tl011 t~4 of'tfie·pr~;ntrwqi:k.) . . . ·.· . . .
.• 1Tl'(t 1'unej,!~~z(Jgtd6 iitCIUded: fou1t1he~h1s·1 pUinS: fo11 tUning gu~si~eq11a1 tempt;rament.. On page 15 was the bearing
plat.t used b · ''The Gerntans. •• Tl'lis' was l:Ul..· ~xa,ct ~opy of Johann Nep<>muk Hunuriel' s second bearing plan published
in·.A .. . . . • Tltt!tire1ll:~l1111td0P~11~11f:11l Ct>utse:.o}flr,slt'µs~ioris on,the Atto}Pl11yingthe PiarwForte of 1829. There
w~s n(l· me .· .· . o~ Hunt~~l's na..tf1~ ()t hfS?ficiok ..{For tUning quasi"-equal. temperament according. to these instructions,
~~,.$ection~t,2'1<>f,tJle+ pi-es.enftwod\): · .· ... ·. '" •. .:t
(~ Qn pa,ge.. 6~ of1 the qf§(tfe •. \V''~ a..~e~ring,J?l3,Thinte11~~for t:;rg.an tl.l~ing. J~x~ept for beill$ 011e octave lower. this
plan Was copied e~actltftumlt>hn:,MarsB~s··1 go9 b'earirlf pfanf'\Vhich in rum was copied from John Bland' s l790plan.
wbich.:~in;;rotn,~as'copi~::trQ:m"ifobn1~Prlst~n~~i1pliJU':Pl1bl~sltld:aroun'd l185i which in t\lm• was; copied from Nicolo
Pasq\lali!~ ~Jan from tfi~ \h~dd.le o~'thei eijht~ellth centucy,;whiclt in m111was copied, from William Holder's I 694 plan
whfoh\va~ based on· Marin Mersenneis: 1636 bearing plan: No credit or acknowledgment was gi\ten to John Marsh
qr~i~ fj(}()k~ riofwas th~re'a~y'1!1e~tiofi:·offt1s'tt~lit~'8i"the names''Of'uny previous authors; Tl'lis beanng plan was now
n;iore than two u~nturles old (c<Jiltl,1arel.'~8e 29 with Sec!igns ~4 and 125).Jotln ~ars}J. used this bearing plan for mean-
fone;temperament,'. but'in tli~(l1u'it161t was used· for quasi.:equai ieillperament (1'he funing of quasi-equal temperament
accordin to the rules of this. pl~n as printed otl pau:e 69 of The. funet's.Quide is Qu,tlin~d in Section 125 of
' <@i'i/,<!404\iiif-\l\%'!\i!<«i14%@t,;!l'if>""l+?';i<;:»j,{c.;·.;p,fflf40>f\'¥lg\~~\+;s';),·:~{;;'. ',,·~ '.&-+~;;,,,;:,~~']W;mh•i,\4A\14";\.0ll0~L~{.·,. ..·::f!.}:~··,.:;f·;,',::s;li,".·'·\-:;;'.'<'Ocdi.i:>1."''¢::;:~s'?i(l'4tr,,.f0.1~hl'<{,1+1";'><
,'.'•:;, 1
identical copyortlie bearing pfan published by Becket

The only fllinot clia4g~ was that t~e. fiftlt FG was trans-
twen~.,At9le!if' ~~i~t. ~()fllpliC~t¢q, h11t ~icl not
impfoVe it·~compate Ste an fortuning quasiiequal ·temperament was
CQll!iidered. to be aj<>lce by Mus.icµs Jgt1,()ra,mus, but in 184() it w1,1s treated with. gr~t respect .. ~o acknowledgment
was gi'Vett to the anonymons autllot••kno~·as Musicu.s l~no~us;·· ~The~g n:fquasi~,qaar•temyerarnent according
to.these rufosusingthe origi~~lt~~tin.pi~ al14td~~a§l;pdnted on p~'g~s H, 13, and 14 of The Tuner's Guide is
outlin~an ~e~tiUJ\ t~~ of.tht!i1p!:fs~ntwil~l·1)•nes~·pdmitive instruetions for quasi•equal temperament are still in print
by the' Vestal Press (see· the· beginning· of this section):· . .
, . !!te .~':1UftJland last ~~~ri~~planfo~quasi-equaltemperament in the Guide.was. reported.as having ''been used of
late h¥ s~llle of the best tuners belonging to $e most eminent of the piano-forte manufacturers/' 6 Like the Jean Jousse
beating plan of 1832·~\ t11~s was. a mQ<li.;~p!~ c;;?nsisting Qf four.tbs and ,fifths within oneoctave. Also like the Jousse
plan~· it adlj~.f!ed tl) the rol~ oftonality f.oric imiijt,r;; tllat~fs~.the, bla~k keys were runed as C-sharp, E-flat, F-sharp,
&sharp,. andD~tlat, 'fhis'bearingplarrwllsttotteconmrendedfor beginning stUdents "because a fourth does not strike
an U.~practi$ed; tlat so.well as. a thitd ot:fi:fth. ~ ' 1• This. explains why fourths were so rare throughout the histroy of bear-
i < ·1 • fi . . . ·. .. . .. ····"'··· ,... , ••.. ··· ... ·.·······• ..
. ......... .. .fi!J,,lU~wJlf?\~~\l;.8,4Q:,~.
;'l'ftt} fc)t.!Jlth~!iridfift.Jt~ trearip.~ plan ind1e Guidfffi was· a fifth fiigher .than Jousse's. Bec~use ?f the faster beating fifths,
.o~~:.\t!l~t!:t.ll;~!e ~~n,~~i~.tJ?~ . . . .· · · · ·. ·teJ11{>:e~t .fifth!!' and. fuurths. IJ:owever, at this
i. th.ere was Very little. chance of <;~ntrol .· . . .··... . .. irds and si .. . ecause these beattoo r~pidly for easy
'•.·······.~-~~~~~~:!P!Ull.tt~~~~.tt:!bll~!~~;.~~~-:~~si~ $is newn~an:w~s·in~rio~~~:·~,·:lotf~~rNe~eless,
us1fiktti
·preselit\\Ydti•}' :.. r'.
tuner's Guide was the first tel .·.· . . . . .. .. . . · . •. •. . ......· · . . . . . ~.! for th~ trajning of piano techni-
rn mating comparisionst "11~ m,{)4411\ (~~tlJM~t on,e s~n ~C)~~~S$.ofi~ sup~~m.~~<W'i~{~l1~¥ of ~e utmost impor-
in the Guide. Sp~.ci~ciµty,tliere.).V~.s not on~.t:>,eat fr~uen,cy.n,unil)er prjntedi,~ tlie ')'~Qle book. Ait<>ther lack
al significance is that ttiere was tfo fuentioh of the most promirient characteristics of equal temperament (at least
r: as tu~ers are concerned) which is the fact that any interval of a kind increases gradually in beat frequency as
~p1ayedupwards through th~ chrol)lati~ ~~ale: )Vithout the use of known beat frequencies, sufficient test intervals,
· • in partiCular, theappllt:latioit dfprog;fes~iy~.b~tfrequen,cies dUfing tests, there is no way that the so-called equal
tatl1ent of 1840 on pianos could be classed as equal teQtfel"ament toclay •• Org~s \Vere another matter. Organ
... were sc,entific beat counters, but their mettiods could .ilot be transferred. to pianos.
'The beginnings of beat counting did exist, however, in the Guide. The only information in the Guide was as ft>llows:
To assist the ear .in deterrninin~ theproper d~gr~ of~epr~s~f9n, let the.stu~ent tune the :(ifth CQ pe~fect;,and then
·Ief him tlllttetlilie·'ifore o;· •St)Biliat. 1lpo1fstiikilig tM Mtd'O· rutd c together; h~ Ifears <Wo sti>wattd''M§tilfct wav(.ls,
tenninatirtg in one steady, continuous sound; and the fifth will be properly tempered. The same mechanfoal test will
enable him to tune all the remaining fifths of the circle." 8
,. Notice that nothing' was Written concerning the Iengih of time that the two waves should take. Was it a little more
~11n two. seconds?.Notice also that the same·two waves·existed. throughout the whole bearing section no matter how
, low or high ifi pitch the fifths might be. This can be intefPreted in only C1ne way. The fifths were tuned by using the
Lequal-be11tifi.g meth~. CertaiJ:ll:l'.'~ t~e~e}s Ji.()thin~ in the Guide to <(Ontrad,ict this. All the temperame11ts in th~ Guide
. were thus tuned by the. equal~b48nng methqd.· The various tefuperaments and bearing plans were at different pitchJevels,
cbJ!t tuners IJ.9 doubt 1,1sed a. sing!~ f~Yor\te b~ring plan. ~fter a few years of experience through trial and error, each
!Uner Pt:':>l?a~ly gaWect .~ S~R11~ filipi:ell~i~n; qf hQW fast o~ sl~w. the ''waves.'' sho,uld be. Utilizing one single familiar
~eat frequen¢y for all the fifthsr and. fourths w.ithin.. a specific bearing plan tuned ftom one's own tuning.fork could
ba.ve:created. a. woriable . quasi;;;equal.tempei:ament:in Qlo:st cases.
· Co~cerning thirds, the Guide mentioneQ no waves or beats. In checting the temperament between the notes C and
E, it was advised that one must observe ''whether. when struck together, these notes produce a major third, somewhat
, sharper than perfect, but still consonant and agreeable. " 9 ,
NOTES
.t The '[T,tner 's Guide: <;<J!Jt~i11i!Jg 4 Co11JJ?.l'!.~~z'{e9!ise qn tu'lr!lJr&,l!J/1,J:i<f.1u1-Forttt~(!t1J.f!:~hMelod~?n: an{l"SerflpN~e,; !o~~ther with
'".ft,~/!ittti!Jeapon Ofi>,e[~<;!J.'A'!f!. Their]letn.~'!J'!.f(London: Musfoal 11ouquet Office, c. 1840). This is the seconaoo1t1on according
to infonnation from ihe sixth edition of 1o5.,. ·
t J\Ugustus De Morgan, "Tuning," The Penny Cyclopaedia (London: Charles Knight and Company, 1843), 25:359.
, ~~ ~t!lll.h9~, "frinciples of the .Science of Tuning Instruments with Fixed Tones."
· 4; The Tuner's Guide, 38.
5. Ibid., 41.
6; Ibid .. 16.
7. Ibid., 38.
8. Ibid.' 10.
9.. lbid.• 13.
The Tuner's Guide contained a section of "General Observations" thatwas a summary of the piano care lore still
common today:
Let the piano be tuned at least once in two months, 1 keeping it always at concert pitch. If you allow it to go too long
without tuning, it becomes flat, and occasions much trouble to get it to stay at concert pitch, especially in the country.
There is no greater enemy to a. piano-forte than damp. Close the instrument immediately after you practice; by leaving
it open, dust fixes on the sound-board, and corrodes the movements; and if in a damp room, the strings will rust.
Should the piano-forte standnear or opposite a window, guard, if possible, against its being opened, especially on
a wet or damp day. When the sun is on the window, dose the blinds. A void putting metallic or other articles on or
in the piano-forte; such things frequently cause unpleasant vibrations, and sometimes injure the instrument. The more
equal the temperature of the room, and the less the soft pedal is used, the better the piano will stand in tune.
Piano-fortes should be carefully guarded against extreme heat or cold, being liable by sudden changes of tempera-
t1.1re to be put out of tune. Sometimes, during an intensely cold night, the bass strings wiH so contract as to rise nearly
a tone above the When thus affected, they should not be touched, as the return of the temperature will bring
them into tune again.
It is advisable not to place them against outer walls, which, being more or less affected by the state of the atmosphere,
naturally communicate such effects to adjacent objects. 2
NOTES
1. In the seventh edition of this book printed in 1854, this reads: "at least once every month or six weeks.
2. The 17.
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written •. For authentic tuning, the given beat frequency numbers may
be ignored, and middle C may be tuned to any arbitrary pitch.
Test interval
TuneCto (Figures d~note
standard pitch. beats per second) Tuned Tuned
before
l l 1
before
1.34 I.34 l
)I~ J J J Id WJ\ J
i t
Ji J 13 II J
i
Tune
just
Flatten
i
Tune
Flatten
Flatten
Tuned
before Tuned
Trial before
1.34 l ! l 0.67
1J J 1j '1) II J J I~
t t Flatten
i
Tune "less flat than 1
the preceeding fifths."
Tune
just
Tuned
before Tuned
before
l
Trial Trial
! 0.67
l l
Flatten
Tune
just Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
Trial
l
Trial
0.67 t l 0.0
!
2
Tune "perfect."
Tune
just
Tuned
before Tuned
1 L34
Trial before
Trial
--~ --- b·
ShL i
Sharpen
,/
·Trials
I
f
'Tline
i
A modem suggestiofi:
Just
Temper E& from both Bir at)d Air so that the fifths E~ B~
and A~ E~ both beat at the saxne speed. Both intervals
should be just, but they xnay have to be slightly altered.
/This completes the bearing secfion from F-sha:rp to C.
Table 122-t: The l)ifferences in Cents between the Notes of

The 1'unet1'9:. ()14ide Well Tl!mperrunent Number One and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperrunent Well Temperament Number One Rounded Figures
G-sharp plus. 1.4Q282 +1
G plus 2:68397 +3
F plus 3.94910 +4
E minus 1.57208 -2
D plus 0.68560 +1
C-sharp minus ' 0.55218 -1
c plus 3. 68808 +4
B minus · O. 79437 ~t
Compare this table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1, 78-1,
88~1, 89-1, 116-1.
79:.l,
Table 122-2: The Tuner's Guide Well Temperament Number One.

Major TJµrds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 394.73984 8.42613
GB 396.52166 10.20795
DP-sharp 398.90406 12.59034
AC-sharp 399.44782 13.13410
EG-sharp 402.97490 16.66118
B~sharp 404.15219 17.83847
F-sharp A sharp 405.72316 19.40944
D-flat F 404.50128 18.18757
A-flat C 402.28526 15.97155
R-flat G 399.32615 13.01244
B-flat D 395.37278 9.05907
FA 396.05090 9.73719
CE 394.73984 8.42613
Compare this table with Table 72-1, column 7. Also compare with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1,
5:1"1~
59.. 1, 61-2, 69-1, 71-2. 75-1, 77-:1, 79-2, 87-1. 89-2,~and H5-1.
a slight flaw
(I
GB
.. ~,110-·F~~
CE
11
The smallest third
Figure 122-1: The Form of Well 'l'entperamentNumber One from The Tuner's Guide.
Compare with Figures 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-l, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, 71-1, 75-1, 77-1, 79-1, 87-1, 89-1,
attd 115-1.
NOTES
l. The Tuner's Guide, 39.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
, , ./. ·, . ~V!DB
WELL TEMPERAMUNTiNtJMIIER TWO
OF 1840 IN THE THEORETICALLY CORRECT MANNIR
TUne the following quarter notes in the order written. For authentic tuning, the given beat frequency numbers may
be ignored, and F may be tuned to any arbitrary pitch.
Test interval ·
(Figures denote
TuneFto beats per second)
standard pitch.
Tuned Trial
! 1
0.88
before
1 6.2
!
11~: f ~· .. E I~ ·II~ ~ I~ 1i II
t
Tune
i
Flatten
i
Sharpen
just
Tuned
before Tuned
before
l 0.88
l 8.0
Trials
u~=f u~ I~ II~~ ~ I~ I~ i ]
t
Tune I
i
Sharpen
"rather sharp."
439
The Lost Art Of NineteenthcCentury Temperament
Tuned Tuned
Trial
before before
Flatten Sharpen
Tuned Tuned
before before
Sharpen Sharpen
Tuned
Tuned before
before Trial
0.88
7.6
!
i
Sharpen
i
Sharpen
Tuned
Trial l
before
t
Trials
r-·-----1
-
10.6 0.0
1l~
·~~1r~~·~I
+= -
--tl=c ~r. 1-
-----·
----- --------- --- ----
i 2
~A 04:'~fit$
:G-sharp -1
G 0
F~sharp ()
F +1
E 0
'1~'-flat +I
D minus 0
C-sharp minus -1
c plus 0
B ptus . 0
B-flat plus +2
Compare '1tis table with Tables 22-1. 25-l, 27-1, 4Q-l, 41-l, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61.,-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1, 78-1,
.11~1.
88-1, 89'<1, 116.:l, and 122-1.
Table 123-2: The Tuner's Guide Well Temperament Number. Two.

FA 398.65:l29 12.33858
CE 399.25058 12.93686
GB 399.65043 13.33672
DP-sharp 400.18483 13.87112
AC-sharp 399.16847 12.85475
BG-sharp 399.64409 13.33038
BD-sharp 401.18484 ) 14.87113
G-flat B-flat 401.61041 . ·.
the
( 15.29669
D-flat.F 402.1'1924
largest
15.86553
A-flat C 401.10533
thirds
14.79162
E-flat G 399.16473 12.85101
B-flat D . 398.20476 11.89105
FA 398.65229 12.33858
There are several minor· inconsistencies in the harmonic balance.

€amparethistablewith'Fab1es20..l;24•1;:26,.l, 3g,..1wr4o..2,·46-li 5l-l,57..1;:59.,l, 61-2~·'694;·71:..2, 75-1, 77-1,
79-2, .s,7...:1, 89-2, 115*1, and 122-2.
NOTES
l. The Tuner's Guide, 40
2. Ibid., 41.
TuNING THE TUNER'S GUIDE
WELL TEMPERAMENT NUMBER THREE
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. For authentic tuning, the given beat frequency numbers may
be ignored, and A may be tuned to any arbitrary pitch.
Test interval
(Figures denote
Tune A to beats per second)
! l
before Trial
l 1.1 7.9
i
Tune
Flatten
t
Sharpen
just
Tuned
before Tuned
before
I
Tune "perfect." Sharpen
Tuned Tuned
before before
Trial
1.1 1
1g · . J
i
Tune "rather sharp."
2 t
Sharpen
Tuned Tuned .
befor~ before
! T l
1~~§*-:--P-3-.'.- t-1- • •l~;i-r- · ·
.......-....i--f--3• 1ij-+---c•~--f.
.......- .. •..-+-., #j-+---c·
.+--o--1. Fkdk.--------J·
, [+--------tt·;J-
....,.-,,..
•,,J-+---c,
• ---{I
t
Sharpen
s~
Tuned
before
l 1.1
Trials
I Ja Id lj ! j II
•. t
Sharpen
0 cents
~···
o~sharp
(}
+1
0
---2
f~sh~
F .. 0
-1
E
s~flat
+1
D 0
c~sharp
-1
c 0
;"-1
B
B-~at +1
Compare this table wltll Tables 22-1, l5~1, 21:.1, 40.. 1. 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1, 78-1,
794, 88-1, 8~1, 116.. l, 122.. 1; and123.,J.
Table 124-l: The.Tuner's Guide Well Temperament Number Three.
Majol' Thft.-' Stif! fdi ~ents Cents Wide from Just
CH 39$.70981 12:39609
GB 399.21010 12.89639
J
OF-sharp 398.25523 11.94152
AC-sharp 398.70047 12.38676
EG-sharp 15.27835
401.59206 the
BD-sharp 401.99189 (• 15.67817
largest 16.21252
F-sharp A-sharp 402.52624 thirds
D-flat F 401.5l893 '.· 15.20511
A-flat.c 399.69&13 13.38442
ll-flat 0 398.79801 12.48430
B-flat D 399.21853 12.gQ481
FA .399.78060 13.46689
CE 398.70981 12.39609
There are several minor inconsistencies in the harmonic balance.

· · · €;<.)rnPare !Qis table1 wi~·~ables 2u-.1.,.,24,,,h.l6"l1 39...i,~4°"'1¥.46..l, 5.l-.l,,S1.,,.1,S9-1, 61.'"2" 69-t~ 71-2. 75~ 1~. . 77~ 1,
1'"°!;•&9•4; j~2; H5.;l;:;~}i:J..;).f. aa€£.4;~~~ ''
NOTES
2. Ibid.
;~'.l:un'e th-efollowi11g\quarter1 notes in the ordet written.<;.f' Every octave must be tuned absolutE1ly pe.dect~ ,and every
fifth tuned somewhat flatter than perfect.' '.1.If the equal~beating technique is used, each fifth should beat 0,531556581
~ per second at standard pitch.
''/'* ,;,.
This completes the bearing section B-flat to E.

Table }25-l: 1'he Di((er¢:n~e&.ill {;e11ts between t}le Notes of
Quasi•equal 'f'emperament Tune{f.l)y Marsh's Plan and Equal Te)llpe:ra)llent,
Equal· Tt)J1lpe:r~ent Qu.asi-eq:ual Rounded Figures
A ~ero difference 0
G-sharp plus 0.. 1.5951 0
G minus 0.25349 0
F minus 0.05913 0
E plus 0.56001 +l
E-flat plus 0.63667 +l
D plus 0.13538 0
C phis 0.13805 0
B plus 0.65328 +l
Compare this table with Tables 101-1, 109-1, 111"1, 112-1, and 117-1.
The above table is theory. In practice, the results would have been more like the results in Table 163cl based on
Ellis in 1885.
Table 125-2: Equal-beating Quasi-equal Temperament Tuned by Using John Marsh's Bearing Plan.
Major· Thi:rds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 400.42196 14.10825
GB 400.90677 14.59306
DP-sharp 399.98747 13.67375
AC-sharp 400.41890 14.10519
EG-sharp 399.59950 13.28578
BD-sharp 399.98339 13.66968
F-sharp A-sharp 400.49641 14.18270
D-flat F 399.52196 13.20825
A-flat C 399.97854 13.66482
E-flat G 399.10984 12.79612
B-flat D 399.51612 13.20241
FA 400.05913 13.74542
Compare this table with Tables 99-3, 108-2, 110-1, 112-2, and 117-2.
The above table is In the results would have like the in Table .162-6 based on
EUfa in
NOTE
1. The Tuner's Guide, 69.
c·''_t_' une:the following quarter notes in the order written. If the equal-beating technique iH:tsM, each fifth should
beat 0. 796525703 times per second at standard pitch. All the beat frequencies in the following were added by
; tlte pres~ttt author. these - should be ignored for authentic tuning.
Test interval
TuneCto (Figures denote
Tune before
l just
! l l
Flatten
!
-
08
,. I\
~ d .._f _:__ j
....,J
~
..,._ ]
-{ " i ._
:r
•
f7
- .J I
-6 •
<
0.8
I
t'
~·
:::-:i~
.7
J --••c ~
_(.,L-
~
''f•
"';"
Flatten until you hear "two slow and distinct

waves, tenninating in one steady, continuous sound."
1 i
Tune
just
The lost An Of Nineteenth-Century Tempert1meitt
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l l Flatten
t
Trials
--,
1
0.8 0.8 10.4
-.-~- _,~-
-
Flatten i
Tune
This major third should be
"somewhat sharper than perfect, 2
just but still consonant and agreeable."
Tuned
Tuned before
before
0.8
Trials
r--:------i
16.0 l
------------l+---------J""--------1-------l
-----------·~--"-+-'··---·--------------·----·--·--·--+--------1
Flatten t
Tune
Flatten
just
0.8
i
Tune
i
Flatten
just
Tllned
before
Flatten
~
Trials
l ! 0.8
I
" t
--.:. !Iii:
'-' LT
IQ,'
:::: = i ~
.+!''- =1~
iJ lJ ~ ~ -6
\
--
:
··~ 8.7
f~.~I: p
\,:?
!7• i
Tuned Tuned
before before
I -:;;i
)
13 5
T
Trials
1 T
l
I ....-d ~ p I
---.±
r.
~~
~
I iJ '7
< 0.8
--J
I
I ---..
-~.
7
*-l
J
ff;-
t,,
f""'
i
just
Tuned Tune
before just
Trials
! ~------------i
8.6
Sharpen
Tuned Tune
before just Proof
l I
0.8
12.3
Trials
os
I ~ri__ ±--~----c~N~P----~~~±-r---~~-t-~~7---15ie;;;,i-~~~-;---LJ:-It---~-~ff--l'-~;;,t-----t----+--~--t~
-{: t)- Jiar
,~--"-l'QJ~~~~-+--------~--~v~-...,_-----+--~-tt--~--6J71--~---t-~ff~-t=.1-------~-H---""'~'2_,,,__ __~----t--t~N-(!f;~---+111
I ,__.__,>'-J-0-.-------------------------__,_."______
r,,.....L,~l"--------------1-------+--------------1-------------------+~v~-F".#.....,----1~
-:+-----------+------------------+--"--------
-~
r:r--z~JIL:__,__ _____________ -----!-------l~------+------------------+---------
-----------------r-------t----------t-----------------t-----~--lK!I
~- ---------'--------------~------------------ -~-----------
Concerning the proof fifth in the last measure above, the following was written:
Any imperfection which may have escaped us in tuning will manifest itself here; hence this fifth, from the frequent
harshness and howlings of its beats, has been technically termed the 'wolf.' however, the directions which we have
given have been carefully observed, this fifth will be little, if at an, inferior to the rest; and the chords in which one
or other of its notes enters will not be less harmonious than the same chords on other notes of the system of sounds. 3
This completes the bearing section from F to C.

Quasi-equal Temperament Tuned by the Becket and Company Plan and Temperament.
Equal Temperament Becket and Company Rounded Figures
G~sharp plus 0.28353 0
G plus 0.00267 0
plus 0.51790 +l
plus 0.48388 0
minus 0. 13538 0
continued
pare this table with Tables 101-1, 109'"1, 111-1, 112-1, 117-1, and 125-1.
e above table is theory. In pra<:tice, the r¢sults would have been more like the results in Table 163-1 based on
in 1885. ·
f
Table 126-l: Equal-beating Qua8i-equa1 Temperament
Tuned by Using the Bearing Plan of Becket and Company.
CE ' 400.0591~. 13.14542
GB 400.42196 14.10825
DP-sharp 400.90671 14.59306
AC-sharp 399.98747 13.67375
EG-sharp 400.41890 14.10519
BD-sharp 399,59950 13.28578
F-sharp A-sharp 39~f9S339 13.66968
D-flat F 400.49641 14.18270
A-flat C 399.52196 13.20825
E-flat G 399.97854 13.66482
B-flafD 399.10984 12.79612
FA . 399.51612 13.20241
:::compare. this table with Tables. 99-3, 108-2, 110-1, 1)4-~, 117-2, and 125-2.
. The above table is !heory. In practice, the r¢sults would have been more like the results in Table 162-6 based on
~llis i.n 18$5.
NOTES
2 .. Ibid.,13.
3.... '.lbid'.,M.
TUNlNG QUASI:·EQUAL ·TEMPERAMENT
IN 1840 ACCORDING TO THE RULES OF THE BEST FACIORY TuNERs
T une the following quarter notes in the order written. If the equal-beating technique is used, each fifth should
beat 1.192972537 times per second at standard pitch. AU the beat frequencies in the following were added by
the present author. These should be ignored for authentic tuning.
"Tune the fifth a little flat, and by the 1

TuneCto same rule, of course, the fourth a little sharp."
standard pitch. Tuned Tuned
before
l
before
1 1.2 l l 1.2 l
i
Tune
Flatten
i
Flatten
Hatten
just
Tuned
before Tuned
1.2 l l.2 lO.O

Tri.':!_s_-, l
before
~~~--"""-,_L------~--+~-t---;...1-1~~-.~11~···' =-=n-··=± .· · 1
t
Flatten
f
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
r 1.2 15.5
Trials
l 1.2
p 1.11.·.
#
l
Flatten
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
l 1
Trials Trials
13.0
Sharpen
i
Sharpen
Tuned
before Proof
1.2 1 1.2
11.9
Trials !
1.2
11~J Ibj ~~~ I~b~ II

i
453
o:89QI ..
minus 0.48388
plu~ 0.67240 +1
plbs 039154 0
pl!is 0.90677 +l
~1l~\l:~l 0:87275 +1
plus d,~5~49 0
pll.Is o.41300 0
Compare this table.with Tables lQl;;l, 109'-l. H.l~l. U2-1,l17-l, 125-1, and 126-1.
Elfis iriabo~e
/fhe 1885. table
· · · .... ·. is. · . . . In. ptact~ce,
. ..tfieory. .. te~~lt$
. .. . .tfie . . .. . . wo~d.have
. .. ·.. . . .. . ..been.
. . .. more
. like the re11ults in Table 163-1 based on
Table 127-2: Equal-bea•ing

,,.. ,,, ,i,'.-', '"''"'
Quasi-equal Tempe.ramen• Tuned by The Best Factory Tuners in 1840.
,,~'c:·.""'"''•'
' ·... ' ' ' ',, ,· ' t'.', ·'. ',. \,;• ·:.·
Major 'thirds Sues in Cents Cents Wide from Just

CE vlf: r::
39~.§1612·· 13.20241
GB 400.05913 13.74542
DP-sharp 400.42196 14.10825
AC-sharp 400.90677 14.59306
E~sharp 399.98747 13.67375
BD-sharp 400.41890 14.10519
F-sharp ·A-sharp 399.59950 13.28578
D-flat F 399.98339 13.66968
A-f1·at.~ 400.49641 14.18270
E·fl~tG 399.52196 13.20825
B-flat D 399.97854 13.66482
FA 399.10984 12.79612
Compare this table with Tables 99-3, 108-2, 110-1, 112-2, 117-2, 125-2, and 126-2.
The above table is In results have been more like the results in Table
·:E.In&···ii1]sss:·
NOTE
"''"'
IN1842'timotJcH 1848
n contrast to tthe r~ports in The Tuner's GuiaJ:~!'(Mund '1840, that equal tempetahl'.ent was univt::~~~ly adopted
. .. in practice, George Farquhar Grahame wrote in 1'h~Encyclopqetlia Britannica of 1842 that ''The un~qual tenipera-
. in:ent is that usually adopted; but it must be obsef\ted~ that tuners in general proceed more by rule of routine and an
\in,9ifferent ear~, fhll):k ..a~c;;ording to any scientific p~~tple: of temperament. Hence the great differences f01md among
;fustruments tunect>by differeilt tuners.' ' 1
,. , ; Aug\lstus De Mqrg~ (l806~lS11) W,as a· ~enius Q~fflafhet11qtics .in his youth. By the time he was twenty,-two years
'·' 9,£,age. he had, bec;ome the f1.rst pr9fessQr o~ m;;tthema!ics at the ne"f;\Jniversity of Lon,dqn from which he retired forty
y~ai:s later • .HeJs IcnO"".Il. for his bqoks on logic and. arithmetic, and for his articles contributed to The Penny Cyclo-
yaeqiq. In Tlte Penny CyclopaetJia edition of 1843,,, Morgan.wrote: '.'.The most common practice pf our day is to en-
~eavour at equal t~mperament, '' 2 This was true, l)ut according Jo science, the temperament was still unequal. Morgan
<:gntinued, ':Against equal temper!m1ent it is urged that it ta}c~s away all distinctive character from the different keys,
and leaves no one single key perfect.' ' 1 In another p!a~e M,9r&an~wrote 1 ''We a.re for variety in the several keys, and
~Q,a~nst equa~. temperame.nt; J:1ut We do t,tqt ljk~ yariety. )'li$oi!t law.' ' 4 . .
,Key-<:olor variety ac<;Ording to law is what !he present author calls harmonic balance whereby intervals change their
.~es gradually in th~ orders qf m<lPulatiofithrough root movements a fourth or a fifth apart. Augustus De Morgan explained
theseprinciples. throµghhionalysis of the transP<Ised :Vallqtti well temperament .as published by Thol11qs Young in 1800.
l'he mqder11 uajt c.alled a, cent was not invented yet, ~mt Augustus De Morgan used the equal temperament semitone
a~the basic u11it~ . This. had the effe<:t of cr~ting;Jamiljai;: figu.res with the decimal pointJnpved two place,s. The just
fifth was 7.01955 units in size; the just major third 3.86314, the just octave 12, etc. Below is a portion of one chart
fr~m.the.c~clopaedia~'~"th~,~;:¥ajor,.~eYJ~;.,¥9.fi~.m!!llt,JUiiSU,~nl~.Qa§,~quL~~,~S:.~~n;~,Ib$:.,~l~~!.~,!.,the. fi~\lres
...i~.Q,W.te,.diff¢e1lt~,,huti,. on~..,~,.~,e.,th3'.the,tilQ.te~'are'Jgc1~C;l.~<:~nsidering the ctecimal point change to the figures
in Table 69-1, column 3, of the present work.
<Zlltu1;1frolll:ThePenny. ·.Cycl'Dpaedia. (pr .~7S)

Major Key Temperament
C,D,G. +.059
~~sharp. F~sMfl!, G~t;l'i~ . +.215
D·shafl! ·· · · +.176
E +.137
F +.098
A +.098
A-shall! +.137
B +.176
Augustus De Morgan proposed a new unequal temperament that was based on ''variety without sudden change.' ' 5
In order to construct this temperament, each fifth in the order of modulation was decreased in increments Of one forty-
· · · · · · eigfitlrditonie~commathrough half of the circle offifths~·At this point, each fifth was then increi;tsed by the same amounts
toward the beginnjqg fifth ofthe circle. The effect qf thi!i, w,a~ an q:q.equal ternper~ment containing. mqgulatory variety
th~f ~~nflliD~d very even key~color changes. The follQwing:uhart showing the amQunts of temperaments of the minor
''1bCi tflree colull\US:~
·m~itt i.s: one equal t~~
ACorrectfon of the minor third
Temperament · column by the present author
-.186 +.166 ..-.005 -.171
-.191 +.147. --.010 -.186
-;1$6··· +~~l)i;•• 7.(}JS -.191
-;l'H +-W~··· . ':f:(~()' -,186
-.156 +.09S ..-.024 ....;;111
-.142 +.098 -.029 -.156
-.121 . +:108 ~.034 -.142
-<11'.r
2'..'t21 ·~~~·~~,; -.029
. . . .q~.f.
-.111
~j:ii
~.142 +.166 -.020 -.127
-.156 +.176 -.ot5 -.142
;._d~11! t'T& ...... am -.156
Ftom the clla:i:ts, Mtice that the' orders of te!llp~rtlme~ts 5did not follow the. centuries-old locations supporting the
tijlditiottal ~haracters of the keys;· 'l'flis was· causea'by ba~ln~ th~ harmonic· form for t<>nalify on fifths rather than the
tradidopal major ·thirds; In other words, t.f1e C !llaMi fonalify contained the finest fifths and fourths instead of the usual
fittest. thirds. and s;xths .··This effect destroyced',the trlYdiliQrlal characters of the keys. be~11use E major was now the most
hatmo11ious sounding tonalify. attd B-flat maJ?t was th~·~ar~hest and most brilliant sounding tonality. C major was
11Iso ~'ratltet hatsh keY:; Tflis c6rresj>onde,~ to weU temj)e~aritent transposed upwards a major third. (Modem type in-
~fl'fictiori'S for miliii~ this!'tefitperarit~fiit ai'e' odtlin~tflf~Se~tio1fi29.J ' .•. · . ·
Thereis. no clue in The Penny Cyclqpqedta ~s to 'wttedxer this displacement of the characters ofthe keys was done
piirp6se1y''itll~43'j:>r:w1ieffiet'mi'S'''w?s'~~'bversf~ht 6ferfor: ltJstrue dfat times were "hanging .. The music of the
P,ian€> composer Chopin might be sruaiid considering this acoustical question. Harmo~ically or beat-frequency-wise,
Clhopili g.musfomf<en:as a whole would s6tind .smootlierin,thistemperamenh Jlowevet,. the.present author is convinced
tlm"~~opitt·~S'''ntll!licfolldwsthett~ditlonatkey"chib·actets very wen, especiallywhefrChopin wrote in E~tlat minor
a~u Bifl:attminor~ Consfd~iril')~ the tont¥ofithe usual pianof€lrte of Chopin~s day; his music might have needed the extra
brilliance and sparkle furnfsried by a traditfot:lru well temperament such as the PreUeur-Jousse-Tuner 's Guide type. Perhaps
······ ,•.~}to~iP~r~te<ta:tel~b)it~~,.ke}'shof,g;,,majtlj!.'ftll~h<m~no~~~m"'~m'ili'CiiiusD~fil~U''~fit~mcmt+the8'"to11aliti~S:were
· · · '~lf•Uii&;il~ilim'Mf~iJll'fikll~ClmpliP:~1wtid'l~~8'Ji. w~ olfeiol 0c~ubi1ance ~d excitement. Played ·1n just
intonation,. Chopin's music would be a. flat-sounding caricature.
, eontinuing with thewritin8s of the encyolopedjsts, Sif 10hn Frederick WiUiam Herschel furnished excellent infor-
'm~tiott otth'ilW''~~·'teb;}perrun~tt.t~s basata~tl\et~ett~'\2l~"~a; 2'u~,,2?t~te1~:~ ttut following this he described equal
temperament as follows:
Theoretically speaking?. it is the s!!'lplest that could be. cfovised; and, p~~cti~ally {though fastidious ears may profess
to be offended ~y it~) itm\)S~JJ(?':fuce no contemptible harmony~ lthas, however, .one radical fault, it gives all the
keys one char:acter, In any ottfer' system of temperament some intervals, though of the same denomination, must differ
by' a minute 4uantity from eacf>, other; and this difference falling in one part of the scale in one key, in another in
another, gives a peculiarity Qf quality to each key, which the ear seizes and enjoys extremely. This fact, in which,
, we believe, all practical musicians will agree, is alone sufficient to prove, that perfect· harmony is not necessary for
the full enjoyment of music. ,~ost. practical musicians seem .t~ have no fixed or certain system of temperament; at
least. very few of them when questioned appear to have any distinct ideas on the subject. 8
In ~o~er. pface, Herschel wrote concertting equaJ t~mperameht that
•• 1tt~ ~~~ ~~·Mt· tra,t, artd' its major thirds: all too sharp; and the hartl1ony is equally itµperfect in all keys. But it
...:;~·':.:~~i~~e:~~r t<•• etabfe lffJ6c~re. It ~tTu~~e~e:o~~ii·~~~r:n~~~:f:i~n"eare:y~:::ifu~~
. . feet,, <wllich.\&c.called.,b.y.som!il\ tm-C>.Win!J.• the.wolt' in«J.th~.keys).9
• U\ c\•c•\ • \ · \ \ \ • " .• •\· •·•<· : '',' ('' ,d .~''iii:l;v~;f"',~zWkiPFt}';''.\otlt; ·!<•<•··" 1 d •>'';"(Jl'f"':<)!P}i'A'-'t/,'0. "'
Musicians are not agreed whattemperarnent is best.Jn Unequal Temperament some of the chords are very good, while
the aggravated dissonance of others, called by tuners the Wolf,. imparts a peculiarity to the keys in which it occurs,
much admired by certain musicians ..•. Some inequality of temperament may be preferable, but no key ought to be
made so bad as to give it a character for harshness. 11
explaining the acoustics of equal temperament, Holton wrote that of all the unequal temperaments, ''The best
.,...,..,... ".. , of these is that of Professor Fisher.'' 12 (See Section 107 of the present work for tuning this temperament.)
Table 128-1: Fifths in the Unequal Temperament by Augustus De Mo:rgan.

Fifths Sizes in Cents Cents Narrow from Just
CG 701.46625 0.48875
GD 700.97750 0.97750
DA 700.48875 1.46625
AE 700.00000 1.95500
EB 699.51125 2.44375
BF-sharp 699.02250 2.93250
F-sharp C-sharp 698.53375 3.42125
C-sharp G-sharp 699.02250 2.93250
G-sharp D-sharp 699.51125 2.44375
E-tlat B-flat 700.00000 1.95500
B-flat F 700.48875 1.46625
FC 700.97750 0.97750
CG 701.46625 0.48875
Divide the figures of this table by 100 and then compare with column 4 on page 456.
Table 128-2: Major Thirds in the Unequal Temperament by Augustus De Morgan.

Major Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from
CE 402.93250 16.61879
GB 400.97750 14.66379
DF-sharp 399.02250 12.70878
397.06750 10;75378
396.09000 9.77628
BD-sharp 396.09000 9.77628
F-sharp A-sharp 397.06750 10.75378
D-flat F 12.70878
A-flat C 400.97750 14.66379
E-flat G 402.93250 16.61879
B-tlat D 403.91000 17.59629
FA 403.91000 17.59629
Divide the figures of this table by 100 and then compare with column 3 on page 456. If this table were transposed,
it would appear similar to Tables 24-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 72-1, Column 9, and 122-2.
Also compare this table with Tables 7-2, 90-1 and 92-2.
the same size
the same size ----~ EbG

%
Q.
the same size AbC (\)
~
(\)
the same size DbF 5·
the same size
the same size
The smallest thirds
Figure 128-1: The August De Morgan Temperament.
This form is excellent, but the bases of the characters of the keys are in the wrong places.
compare with Figures 71-1 and
NOTES
l. George Farquhar Grahame, "Temperament of the Musical Scale," in The Encyclopaedia Britannica; or, Dictionary of Arts,
Sciences, And General Literature, 7th ed. (Edinburgh: Adam and Charles Black, 1842), 21: 173.
2. De Morgan, "Tuning," 356.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid., 358.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. Sir John Frederick William Herschel, "Sound, in Encyclopaedia Metropolitana; or, Universal of Knowledge,
(London: B. Fellowes, F. and J. Rivington, et al., 1845), 4:795. ("Sound" was written in 1830 but not published until 1845.)
9. Ibid., 797.
10. Ibid., 797-98.
11. Isaac Farwell Holton, ''On Musical Intonation and Temperament,'' a paper read in 1846, published in the Annals of the Lyceum
Of Natural History of New York, (New York: Published for the Lyceum by Stanford and Swords, 1848), 4:517.
12. Ibid,
~· the following quarter notes in the order written:
Test interval
(Figures dtjnote
yuneCto beats per second) Tuned
before
l !
standard pitch, Tuned
l
before
l
Quasi-just
0.2 0.3 0.2
11t1 r r ·r1r f 1f f II r: r
t i = i
Flatten l
. Quasi-just
Flatten
i Flatten
Tuned
before
Equal beating
0.7
l 0.3 0.7 0.7 12.6 9.7
r 1f r r ,r r
0.2 14.1 14.1
1J I r 1F II
t
· Flatten
-======
459
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
t:1et<iie
1.4 13.3
! t.l
0.7
r
9.1
11 1t. t 1lf
t
Flatten
Tuned
tiefore
Equal beating
Equal beating
8.8 8.8
.#F'=-!tF
l
Temper G# from both B and C so that the minor third G# B is narrow
and. beats at exactly the same speed as the wide major third A~ C.
Tuned
before
12.6
1 0.6
r
0.2 0.7
t t
8.3 8.8 8.8 9.l
~r 1#r ir II r f I~
l
.sharpen
129. Tuning the AJlg!4stus>DI! Morgan Unequal. Temperament
Tuned
before
1
Equal beating
(
10.2 12.6 9.4 9.7 19.3 9.4
t
Tune
just
Tuned
1------------~--1
9.4 9.7 12.2 0.6 0.6
Sharpen
0.6 0.7 10.2 12.6

0.3 0.7 11.9
---._=======
Check the foUowing intervals as a final test within the F to F octave:
Narrow fifths
0.0 0.7 0.9

0.3
If f 1
... 'Wide"tdl!m~
''''""'·"""·""- 1>•1''"'"•' ,.,,. ··~··
0.6 l.4
0.2 0.7 1.1 1.4
0.6 l.3
~t2= f ~ ~r ~ If ~~r f ~f
Wide major thirds
10.2 12.6.
Ufl:~i gi j · g ~i §~i 1 ti
129. ·· Tuning. Tire Altg~iils l>e Morgan Unequal Temperament
9.7
Narrow minor thirds
19.3
Table 129·1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes of

Augustus De Morgan Unequal Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Augustus De Morgan Rounded Figures
G minus 1.46625 -1
F minus 3.91000 -4
E zero difference. 0
D minus 0.48875 0
c minus 2.93250 -3
B minus 0.48875 0
Compare this table with Tables 8-1, 91-1, and 92-L
463
·:.a~~:;,......·
tiitliERAMM IN ··1843
~' T
· ·. be.·· most.• commo~ pfa~tice . Of. Q.~t da~ is.·;td. end~a.v:our ~t ~ual temp~rament. " 1 But, ..to carry this or any
other system strictly mto prac\tce without comparisons with the monochord. or the use of beats~ presently
de&ct;ib,~d, would be.in:J.po$$i~t¢ •.:~~.ffqlY,~V~.~.mJS4a.Junef$. 11tillc;lid not.cot,In~l',l.eatswhile tuning pianos because ''it
is yery:iClifficult to tt:tne th~pi~e:.foneJl~·J:ieat$ll!1sin~e· th~~ do .not .last· long enougll 'in .sufficient intensity'• on pianos. 3
:t<J''"·",P:{';'.A» '.'-r\'.»f,.,,-,,1<<< ,, ,;J' '.'.''·, .1"'' ,,; '!,<': ''"» '
The tuning 'j)r a piano..;forte is generally done by ·ear. but in that of an organ, recourse is had to the beats which
imperfect consomtnces always give. 1n the temperament()fthi's last-named king of instruments, less liberty is allowable
than in thjlt of the sttinge,d instrum~nts; for ?ot~ntf ~o the beats become unpleasantly frequent when a consonance
is too imperfect, but the iriiperfection of the con~i'Jrtattce itself is more perceptible when notes are held, as in the organ,
than when they die rapidly away, as in the piano~forte. 4 . . . •
At present the organ-builder 1s the only tunet'Wflo makes any approach to science: all the rest judge only by the
ear, which may vary from time to time, or evem>~t)\tfi~,stateof the body, or the weather. We have many reasons.
in
for thitlking that the' ear alone is a variable judg~ so nice a matter as temperament . 5
No wner !Uln•get·ab equal tempetamerttby trl~\h'~~ih!ltilW:l,luestion lies between the having all sorts of approxima-
tions to equal temperament, according to the pro.,eifsities of different ears, or as many sorts of approximations to some
ot&er systems. '.
It must be remarked with respect to ec:iual tem~tament, ·that it cannot be obtained in the ordinary way of tuning.
The only way ofobtaining a given temperament~'ettUal (Jr unettual, with certainty, is to take a monochord, and having
calculated the proper lengths of the different strings, to form the successive notes on the monochord, and to tune the
several notes of the instrument in unison with them. 6
.1.lle .use M.i~tW!filGl101d$.:.tly.•:piano. •tw18S.•. ~as.vecy; raie:; for tuning. by ear~ the editor of The Penny Cyclopaedia
furnished a beating plan that was considered .. the most usual" in 1843. This was an exact copy of the bearing plan
that Jean Jousse publish~ in 1832 fa,r.well temperament. ~o credit was given to Jousse. Jousse in turn copied the
plim fropi *"·Be;cltetanq;·fonipan)" t?t!blitattott·of Mf~. b\ita~ded the A"fiat at the end to insure that the temperament
was drculating. (CompareSections 97, 116, and 131.) It is interesting that the bearing plan was used for equal tempera-
ment in 1809, well temperament in 1832, and equal temperament in 1843. the instructions, along withJousse's bear-
ing plan and trials as giv~n in The Penny Cyclopaedia for equal temperament, are outlined in Section 131.
NOTES
1. De Morgan, "Tuning," 356.
2. Ibid.• 3~8.
3. Ibid .• 359.
4. Ibid .• 358.
5. Ibid., 359.
6. lbid~1 356.
'unethe following quarter notes in the order written. ·~Thettiode of proceeding by approximation tO equal tem-
perament is simply to tune the fifths a little too flat; . . . The thirds should all come out a little sharper than
as the several trials are made: when this does not happen, some of the preceding fifths are not equal. '' 1 (A
· suggestion is to tettipet each fifth narrow by (); 843587838 beats per second. The results would then be identical
resnlts Qalculated for Johann Christian Gottlieb Graugli,er in 1819 when modem standard pitch is nsed. SeeTable
;;;1.)
2
"Put C' in tune by tuning fork."
1
~l~J j J J J J J
Tuned
Tuned before
before
Trial
! 1 Trials
l
llJ J lj ~ II J
Jl'j J #J
Tuned
before Tuned
Trial
1
before
·t !
11e ··· · .. 1' · II D II
I™
Proof
Tuned Tuned (Added by the
before Trial before present author)
Trial
l ! ! ! 1
11$5 ~~!
'-"--'--"--""''~i'P"-'·'1' "'
~~ I~~i ll~~·
'·-'!W>fo0'4'--w1if'J<-Y1'c
J. I~&J ,, II
"~This complete~ the bearing section from F-sharp to C.
'··eumpa~ ·t1tlS'Fmeth<ld with that hfS~~tt~n 1 lZ6:
NOTES
L De Morgan\ "Tuning," 356.
2. Ibid.
''THERENEVERW'ASAMJ\.N.CAPABLE OF TUNING
BY EAR A PIANOFORTE OR AN ORGAN''
IN EQUAL TEMPERAMENT BEFORE 1834 IN GERMANY 1
J ohann Heinrich Scheibler (1777~ 1837) was a German silk manufacturer who became interested in music and acoustics.
• . He is most known for his proposal at the Stuttgart Congress of Physicists in 1834 that the tone A should be stan-
dardized to have a frequency of 440 vibrations per second at 69 degrees Fahrenheit. He also invented a tonometer.
This consisted of 56 tuning forks included in the octave A to A that were each tuned to be four vibrations or beats
11part in frequency. Using this apparatus as a basis, Scheibler was able to manufacture tuning forks accurately for each
frequency of the equal temperament scale. He developed unique methods for tuning equal temperament by using these
forks. He also developed a unique method for tuning organs by beats by using a metronome with very fine calibrations.
The quotation in the above title is from Johann Joseph Loehr's book Uber die Scheibler'sche Erfindung iiberhaupt
und dessen Pianoforte- und Orgel-Stimmung insbesondere published in Krefeld in 1836. This showed that the Germans
were unable to tune theoretically correct or mathematically exact equal temperament by ear in the nineteenth century
or before. In contrast to this, the English had been able to tune organs in equal temperament since 1810 by using Robert
Smith's methods of 17 49. (See Sections 96-98 of the present work.)
The complete quotation from Augustus Wehrhan's translation of Loehr's book reads,
There never was a man capable of tuning by ear a pianoforte or an organ so as not to leave some inequality of tempera-
ment, and there never will be. A naturally sharp ear and long practice may enable a tuner to arrive at a tolerable cor-
rectness of attunement; but let an instrument, which has been tuned by the best of tuners after the old plan be compared
with one whose notes have been regulated according to Scheibler's method, and the difference will at once strike every
musical ear. 2 •
''the old plan" Loo.hr tuning instructions such as those in Section 131 of the work.
Loehr's book was really an essay showing that no one had ever tuned or heard equal temperament in Germany be-
fore Scheibler's research and tuning forks of 1834. Other quotations are as follows:
[Equal temperament] hitherto has not been possible .... Before Mr. Scheibler's invention no such means existed by
which even a tolerable equality of temperament could be obtained. In theory, and upon paper, the of such
a temperament were indeed known long ago; the precise number of vibrations for each semitone correctly
calculated, and the necessary deviations from the mathematical scale pointed out. But when it came to practice--when
a musical instrument had actually to be tuned-then all the calculations of the theorists proved so much worthless rub-
bish, because practice knew of no other means or criterion to regulate the pitch of the different sounds and their ratios
to each other, than the ear .... The interval of a Fifth has to be depressed by about four-fifths of a vibration twelve
times in succession in order to obtain a perfectly equal temperament! We need not say more to prove that the attempt
is hopeless .... The perfection of intonation [of equal temperament] is such as cannot be obtained by the finest musi-
cal ear. 3
Scheibler manufactured sets of thirteen tuning forks for tuning equal temperament based on the pitch A=440 Hz.
All one had to do was to imitate the sounds of each fork while tuning the bearing octave and then tune the remainder
of the instrument by octaves. However,· Scheibler later discovered that the results wete crude and deficient ~~·,.,_,~. ~,u
to his To this situation he then recorri..mended that one purchase a set of forks that was four
per second flat One was then to each note
while a metronome set at
to t~ne zerob11<atsin unisons with the forks. This techn,iq?e of tuning, like that of using monochords, eventually proved
to be too laborious and inefficient. Professional tuners c~.ntinued to tune by ear.
Scheibler found, that although the ear may distinctly hear eight beats in a second, yet that for practical purposes,
and in order to guard a~ainst aJ1Y·.~oss~ble m.i~taj\es, a gre~ter !ask than. t,J1at of counting four beats.i11 that space of
time, should not be imposed upon the ear. This number, however, every rightly organized ear can distinguish and
count with facility. 4
This philosophy was one reason why tuners through this period of history did not count and compare beats of thirds
and sixths while attempting to tune equal temperament, but without comparing the fast beating thirds and sixths used
as test intervals, equal temperament was impossible on pianos.
Scheibler invented a third method of tuning equal temperament by using the metronome instead of a set of thirteen
tuning forks. (This is outlined in Section 133 ofthis book.) The original bearing plan and instructions are used. 5 In
order to use a few thirds, sixths, and tenths in the bearing plan without needing to listen to more than four beats while
checking them, Scheibler incorporated a system of retuning several notes. In other words, some notes were temporarily
tuned at incorrect pitches so that they would furnish easy-to-hear beats. Scheibler realized that his A=440 pitch was
not universally used, so he furnished complete instructions for the following pitches: A =440, 435, 430, 425, and 420 Hz. 6
Scheibler's systemwas an improvement toward theoretically correct equal temperament on pianos. On organs, however,
it was inferior to the English methods used since 1810 which were based on Robert Smith's techniques of 1749.
NOTES
1. Johann Joseph Loehr, An Essay on the Theory and Practice o.f Tuning in general, and on Scheibler 's Invention of Tuning Pianofortes.
and Organs by the .Metronome in particular. Translated from the German by Augustus Wehrhan, 2d ed. (London: Robert Cocks
and Company, 1853), 32.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid., 29-45.
4. Ibid.' 39.
5. Ibid., 55.
6. Ibid.
133
TUNING EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
BY USING JOHANN HEINRICH SCHEIBLER'S METRONOME METHOD
OF 1836 INTRODUCED TO THE BRITISH BEFORE 1853
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. Several notes will be retuned.
(Numbers in parentheses are corrections made by the present author.)
Test interval
(Figures denote
r
metronome settings
in beats per minute.) Wide Narrow
Tune A to
440
l
80
Tuned
..
1 ,~
(4 be
ats
"'T'k) ..
Tuned
1fore
(3 beats
per click)
63.5 66.7
tern,oon~dcorre<;lly, the fourth E A

narrow and produce beats (Retuned later)
that are twice as fast as a metronome
which is set at 80 beats per minute.
Narrow
Narrow
{4 beats Narrow
per click) Tuned (4 beats
Tuned per click) Tuned (2 beats
before per click)
before before
l (65.9)
65.8
l 60 l 80.4
~~~t~f-~*f~M lljm~~
Flatten
Sharr-en
t
Batten
(Retuned later)
OfNit<etif<mtk-Century Temperament
Wide
Narrow
('.}beats Narrow
Tuned (2beals in 2 cli:eks)
Tuned (4 beats
petclick) Tuned
before per click)
!
bef~re.(
! before
t
l 80 l (82.6)
82.S l 65.l
7]
L.=¥--o--=-;+--~--'--+--~----tt---+--~r~~~~
g
I II
cl J #J 111 =if
i
'a i
t
i
Sharpen
(Retuned later)
Sharpen
l
(If the metronome is set at 41.3,
this interval will produce three beats
Flatten
(Retune)
for each click of the metronome.)
Narrow Wide Wide

(4 beats (3 beats Tuned (2 beats
Tuned Tuned per click)
before per click) before per click) before
l 7~2 l ,!., l 80
)~·t= f
Flatten .
Pf~tt =H·-=rJf~
. Sharpen i
(Retune)
Flatten
Narrow
Narrow Wide (2 beats
Tuned (4 beats Tuned (3 beats Tuned per click)
before per click) before per click) before
! !
l 60 l 57.8
(78.6)
78.7
Hatten Sharpen (Retune) B~ in order to reduce the

(Retuned later) beating of the narrow fourth F Bb by 34.5%;
however, the fourth F Bb must still be narrow.
Scheibler wrote that B~ must be
"lower" or flat compared to a tuned
in jusi intonation to the temporary F.
In the this interval was en-oneously described as
beats per click with the metronome set at 78.7.
,:nfi ' [~ I
f
l
Flatten
Flatten
Tune
just
(I( tlt¢ m¢tronome is: set at 34. i, (Retune)
.$t~'intl'.t.'§,al wil~ I>ffi~ll~ ~e beats.
for each dick ofllie metronome.)
'.IJie final testing between' A and A is added by the present author
(Figures denote
beats per minute)
Just
! !
44.7 41'.4 50.2 53.1 56.3 5':>.1
nfd lj s ~@ a i'g ·~ t
5':>.1 63.2 67.0 70.9 115.2 79.6 84.4 89.4
There should be one beat for each swing of the metronome.

This completes the bearing section from A to A.
·T W~D;ty-three year~ Jler Johrut~ 1'f~~!i~p;s~~~i~l~f ~~~°:ptplisJj~~ 11is i:esear~~ and fourteen years after the. t 843
. ··.•
edition of The Penny Cyclopaeaia, volume 25,. was published, the mathematician Augustus De Morgan continued
to write on temperament. Jlis essay, written in 1857, "On the Beats of Imperfect Consonances," was an excellent
histoey of beats as researched by ~co~sticianurtd theorists sirtce 1636. Tile essay also included the history of the mathe-
matical processes used in calculating beat frequencies. This, along with a "Postscript" dated January 18, 1858, was
published. by the Cambridge PJjilos()p,bical Society. in 1864.
Conditions evidently had not changed in the fourteen years since 1843 (see Sections 130-13 l of the present work).
Augustus De Morgan wrote:
So long as unequal tempir~amefit was in us~i and even now when it is adopted, the beats were and sometimes are used
itHuning: but \Vhen equal temperament is reqllired (and: this system has gained ground rapidly) the tuners have nothing
to de>with beats* except to get perfect oota:Yes bY destroy1n~ them [the beats}. I speak of the organ, and of this country. z
fft ·1s~8· De Morgrui wrote,

The system generally used i!l the equal temperament: when any other is adopted, beats are sometimes, but not always,
employed, that is, counting the beats. For the ordinary tuner, even in equal temperament, learns to help himself by
a perception of the r~pi(fity of the beating~ but without numerical trial. 3
. . .....~i~.J.:.Ps
..,:.... f1'.9Ill , . . .l
.... ~ e attitude in 1858 w in ual
:~i;m;:.•:temnerament
.. ·.; .• :·l"T:: ,: •••• ·;1:.::.•.•···.: .•.was
;. ;;; . • ;:"'":;,,;;w.\4'iliiii'\;5";;:1•lt:•:•: .;.;·1;
.: ;.;:. in · tune< except
·.v.1.: •. :.,:·u:.::T. · .;:,;.: ·· · for
!11.e.~~~VEI~ -~~is· ~.~~!!-.1V~~Ufl!!~(,~.~!!.!'Y,
t r ... ".'.~!"ave and its~uplications, all the other
intervals were out-o ~ e (tempered) In equal temperament, so why use mathematical precision in tempering them?
II:\. ~js set;t§,e~ the. t!Ining.J>f quasi-eq\lfilJemPe1'.81P€1nt w11s. c()t;t§idered easier to tune than the older historical tempera-
ments requUingthii pre&:ision oJ v~oU&.interv!lls•.nerhaps it was the tune1s more thaJI the musicians who pushed for
the universal adopti0t1 of quasi..::equal temperament in practice.
According to De Morgan, quasi-equal temperament in 1858 was tuned' as follows:
'}'he method oftuniJ!g !hebeariP~~~~fte.J:Ulldn~a StaJ1dard note from the tuning-fork, consists merely in tuning the
successive fifths a little flat:; by the estimation ol the ear, making corrections from time to time, as complete chords
c()me into the part which is supposed to be in tun,e, by the judgment of the ear upon those chords. Proceeding thus,
ifthe twelfth fifth appear to the ear about as flat as the rest, the bearings are finished: if not, the tuner must try back. 4
Since beats were not counted while tempering, it is easy to understand why
different tuners, however excellent their ears, do not agree in their results. Two men, tuning different compartments
of the same.otg!lfi, produce two systems which do not agree: they take care that their tuning-forks shall give them
the. same standard-note; but this is all they can get.... An old professional tuner, to whom I mentioned the subject,
ass1irettiiieII>eMorganrn1a:rn:ed1d.iiofb'eHeveeiilier that any niiier gained equaitemJierameiit, oiiliatany one tuner
agreed with himself or with any other. He summed up by saying that ""equal temperament was equal nonsense. " 5
The system of equal
Y,>it, A newly·tun~ pianof~rt~~(S•t(,!; (llec:,i~~ill!'.tll'Jl~ ,~~ .,
in. its progre~st~wiq~~.~eiµg,,~~t ()ftu.ne'. N()~ as eye~ .· ,, . c~~
tion, l supposttfiat~ iii passin~ &mn lteyito key by modulation. the.'\' .
produces js {llore l,)leasing than the dead flat of equal temperament. 1
Morgan analy.i~d tlle~t()iJs~~s 9f (o,\lfJ".~peraments. He published the sizes of the intervals based on units of
dred cents. He also furnished the freque~~ie~ ~d ~at:fr~uen~ies Jler minute based on the old standard pitch
OHz for.middle C for the four temperaments.8 The first temperamentanal)zet\ was ~µaJJem11erflt11ent. The se-
temperament was the one previously published in 1843" in The Penny Cyclopaedia (see pages 457.:..63 of the present
rk). This, as well as the third and fourth temperaments. upheld the "principle of variety in the keys."!>
'fhe third t~mperamettt was De Morgan's favourite•m 1$58, This was the.third temperament from Johann George
dbardt's ''Temperaments ()f Fifths~~ published inJ;-?32. 10 This temperament contained major third~, minor sixths,
r tenths, and major seventeenths, etc., that were in equal temperament; however, no other intervals were in equal
perflt11ent. Neidhardt's temperament sounded like equal temperament because of the major thirds which were the
~t important ifiteNals for d:ete1'1Qjni,µ,gd1otd-colors. and yet there was a small variety in the keys. Six fifths were
~tfµtpered a,qclthey shared the ditoniccomma evenly, the same as in the transposed Vallotti temperament as published
~y Thomas Young in 1800. ·Nevertfieless, there was no similarity between the Neidhardt and Vallotti-Young temperaments.
· In the Vallotti~Young, which was an excellentwell temperament. the six tempered fifths we.re connected together
•In an unbroken chain. The six just lntonation fifths were connected together in another unbroken chain. This created
great key-color variety. In the Neidhardt unequal temperament, each tempered fifth was alternately connected to a
)Ust intonati9n fifth without exception. This destroyed all tonality. There was no. harmonic form. Whenever just or
· siwµarly tedipered fifths. are distributed evenly through()Ut :the scale, at least one kind of an interval will be in equal
.tertlper~ent, mthe N~~dharc:ttll'lir~te111pera111etttof ~ftf!s;'this interval was the tru1Jor third. Thus, the same as equal
t~i®~~flt11ePJ, ~e Ne~4Ji@.nl~. !C?tl1Per~~~! yvas an aton~ t~111~rament, eyen ~oug~ f91?r:variety exis!e~. The tuning
of this temperament ts outhned, usmg a modem beannir plan and test mtervals, m Section 135. This 1s one of the
finest alternatives fo:r equal temperament that is suitable for modern music.
The fourth temperament from Neidhardt's ''temperaments of fifths'• was another atonal temperament. 11 In this case,
·four fifths. shared the ditonic comma evenly. They were distributed throughout the scale evenly; that is, each tempered
fifth alternated with two jus~ fifths in an unbroken chain. The results in this case were equal temperament minor thirds
and major sixths. In order to reduce the harshness of two of the one-fourth ditonic comma narrow fifths, Neidhardt
·:·;t,te:f sa~ri~t;ed fWl'.1 oftll~j'il$t·intonatit)ff•fifth~i>·Neidbardf'cli~~d·this new altered,a11amgement;as,histemperament num-
1
!'.t'1WeNe:·•~·Acetmm'10rder'W~ ereat~w~reby in medulating toward the dominant direction a small fifth was fol-
lowed by a less small fifth aJld finally by a just fifth .. In 1776 Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg (1718-1795) completed
tfJ,~. sa9rl:f1C'e; of {\Vo IIJ.orejusfintonation fifthsso that the last two one~fourth ditonic comma narrow fifths would be
! fulprovoo. Maipuig published this improved1Nt'ljdhatdt tempet.iment as the 'Marpurg DTemperament. •u He also reversed
Neidhardt's order of modulating mentioned above. In 1858, Augustus De Morgan listed the Marpurg D Temperament
as the 'De Morgan Fourth Temperament,' 14 but De Morgan reversed Marpurg's modulating ord~r back to the original
as used by Nddhardt in 1732. He also transP()sed the temperament upwards a fifth. In this final alteration by De Morgan,
the mi:qor thirds and major $ixths were stillin equal temperament. This Neidbardt-Marprug-De Morgan temperament
is anoll'ler interesdnitalternative for equal. temperament that woulel be suitable for modern music if color-variety is
desired. The tuning of this temperament is outlined, using a modern bearing plan and test intervals, in Section 136
of the present work.
NOTES
1. De Morgan, "On the Beats of Imperfect Consonances," 142.
2. Ibid., 129n.
3. Thid •• 14L..
4. Ibid ..
5. Ibid., 141-42.
6. "fbid .•. f42.
473
U-IRGE~Et~~
.,T..·. . . . . . . .
FWTII TEMPERAMENT NUMB~R 1HREE .
y>.. . . .· ... •
I
O:Fl73t PldPdsm FOR CoMMdN PRAcTlcE 1#';1858
''·,',,:,: 1
· Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
Test interval
(Figures denote
TuneCto beats per second) Tuned
l l
l 1.2 1.2 l.3 6.9
If II f r If f 1F II
i i i
Sharpen Tune
just
Flatten
i
Tuned
before Tuned
before
l Equal beating
6.9 13.4
1 I.5 1.3
n2= r r I r F r=
6.9
II r f 1f f
i
Time
t
Flatten
just
Tuned
before
10.4 7.8 l 10.4
it'-4_··--------L----i____.__1_F_~t_·_~,,r_.··.··_r~ai_
--+----r_.=t_$-=--a 9
__
i Tune
just
13.4 15.0
--==::::::::::_ _ _
-==-
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
before
8.7
10.4
l 1.9
t
Tune
i
Flatten
just
Tuned
before
7.8 8.2 8.7

8.7
~· ~r -~
- = = = -.-_--_-_--_-._-
__-_
tI
Tune
just
Tune
just
2.l t.<) 9.2 9.8

8.7
#U~~
7.8
~b~
6.9 7.3
I~ ti!~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I
Tuned
before
12.4 2.1 2.4

lt.O
~r
11.9
~~e I
10.6
b
II
Tune
just
10.4 11.0 9.4 10.6 13.9

13.4 15.0
n~= ~
~~
I~ ~·.·
I~ ~ ~ II
Just intervals
Narrow fifths Wide fourths
1.5 2.4
1.2 1.3 1.9 2.1
1.7
!!~: ·~ f I j l~ ~ t~ ~ 2Sj
Wide major thirds
r
10.4 11.0
8.2 8.7 9.2 9.8
~l-VIHl- 12=-hl-f- 'ltl-'-.~- +- - - ¥'7- -===:~~.~'

; ===::=--{_ ~,_...--+1*-·
---==;-t~~9f_·__---+-~b- -___,---!
Wide major sixths
7.8 9.4 10.6

6.9
f
Narrow minor thirds
r
11 0 12 4 13.9 15 0 16.8
!~----+#r_.8_·~§~lr~·6__~b~~r-_--~bli__~,_._i ···-f---=-~-~~--JI
Table· 135-1: The Diffe:ren.ces in Cents between the Notes of
the a:nd Equal
Equal Temperament Neidhardt Fifth Temperament No. 3 Rounded Figures
G zero difference 0
F zero difference 0
E minus 1.955 -2
D minus 1.955 -2
C-sharp zero difference 0
c minus 1.955 -2
B zero difference 0
Compare this table with Tables 8-1, 91-1, 92-1, and 129-1.
136
TUNING THE NEIDHARDT-MARPURG-DE MORGAN
UNEQUAL TEMPERAMENT. OF 1858
Test interval
Tune c to (Figures denote
l 1f 1, T 5.9
11.9
!ffl= r: =t== =4'.---------+---r-FF -J._,____r Jf---f_ ~1

·-+---f
i -======
i Tune
i Flatten
Sharpen
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
LO 0.7 l 5.9 8.9 l

·r==;:_~· --r=1r-=r==:=~zi
--====-
t -===-~ t Flatten
Tune
just
The L<>st :4tt Of Nineteenth-Century Temperament
Sharpen
5.0 5.9 1.7 1.0 8.9 10.0 11.9
~~12:1~r--=r-~~j1-~+--f--~r---~tti-----=--4F+'--t--.-----==+-¥ti-·-·--+l=m
Tuned Tuned
before before
l 75 89 l 0.5
0.6
~~~-~~--~ . JJ J&-··-L!i'=: .....tff... $~

i -===== i -~
Flatten
Tune
just
Tuned
before
7.1 l l.9
-----=-------
i
Flatten E~ until the
the major third Eli G is wide and beats at exactly
wide
Tuned
before
Equal beating
7.1 7.1 7.l 8.4

7.t .
,~r
Tune
i
just
Tuned
before
5.9 6.3 6.7 11.2 l

Jr~: F If f ~r II r f
t
Flatten F until the
major third FA is wide and beats at exactly
the same speed as the wide major third C E.
Equal beating
Equal beating
0.8 1.2
5.9 5.9 0.7 LO 1.2 1.4
·······~·····.·····
''"' "
If ~[ r
···~
q.i. r If
Equal beating
5.9 5.9 6.5

5.0 5.5
t;; ~r
F
9.4 10.0
7.5 7.9 8.4 8.9
r ij~F ,er
![th~ r 'r -~
Check the following intervals as a final test within the C to C octave.
Just intervals
Wide thirds
Equal beating
----i
7.1 8.4
5.0 5.5
Wide major sixths

1--·-·
6.7 7.1
5.9 6.3
l"':J ~
1~- ""'r-°' ? I
l I~
]
~t-F j
!~
~- ~ p
n J
136. Tuning The Netdhardtc~Marpurgcf>(J. Morgan tlneqll(Jl ·Temperament
I0.6 1L2 11.9

7.1 7.5 7.9 8.4 &.9 9A 10.0
§~, b~ ·~~
et •P-1
..
··~·
#~r r l!ffl
the Neidhardt-Marpurg-De Morgan Temperament and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament Neidhardt~Marpurg-De Morgan Rounded Figures
A zero difference 0 ce11ts
G plus 1.955 +2
F-sharp zero differe11ce 0
F plus 1.955 +2
E plus 1.955 +2
D plus 1.955 +2
C-sharp plus 1.955 +2
c zero difference 0
B plus 1.955 +2
Compare this table with Tables 8-1, 91~1, 92-1, 129-1, and 135-1.
EQUAL TEMPERAMENT &n· ''NEVER BEEN ATTAINED''
ON PIANOS THROUGH THE YEAR 18641
A lexander John Ellis (1814-1890), an English writer onthe science of music and temperament, wrote valuable
papers that were published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. He was elected a fellow of the
Royal Society in 1864. Anyone who reads these articles, particularly the article "On the Temperament of Musical
Instruments with Fixed Tones,'' and who notices his extensive bibliography along with his analyses of dozens of theo-
retical and historical temperaments, wm not doubt that Ellis was eminently qualified to judge the status of the art of
tempering in 1864. He wrote, "On the pianoforte the Hemitonic system is universally adopted in intention. It is, however,
so difficult to realize by the ordinary methods of tuning, that ''equal temperament,'' as the Hemitonic system is usually
called, has probably never been attained in this country, with any approach to mathematical precision.' ' 2
The twentieth-century techniques and testing procedures had not been discovered yet. Ellis knew the truth that, although
everyone tried to tune equal temperament, no one could actually do it on pianos according to the exact mathematical
theory. Tuners were still using the procedures described by Augustus De Morgan in 1843 (see Sections 130-131).
Discoveries and improvements were made slowly through the years. In America, in 1869 or before, Dr. William
Geib published two typical nineteen-note bearing plans. 3 The first was the same as one of Johann Nepomuk Hummel's
bearing plans from 1829 if one started with Hummel's middle C and then tuned backwards through Hummel's bearing
plan around the circle until one returned to middle C. (Compare page 409 with the first Geib plan outlined below.)
The second Geib plan was identical to thatof Johann Christian Gottlieb published in 1819 in Boston
except Geib deleted all the unnecessary octave duplications. It is also the same as Woolhouse's bearing plan of
1835 transposed by an octave. (Compare Sections 109, and 119 with the second Geib outlined below.) Geib gave
no credit to or Woolhouse. Geib's second bearing was in turn copied in England A. Hemstock
and others. 4
Geib bearing plan number one:

to the fork. standard pitch is
times per second.)
Proof
beat 0. 843587838
137. EqualTemperamentHad 011 PianosThrougfi···The Y11ar 1864
Proof
!
)~ Ju J p =J wT#-j;w #4iJiJJ#J#w;iuJqJP
After the bearing section was completed, most tuners tuned upwards and downwards by octaves. Geib, however,
-..-·~-."" .... ,........
Flight's technique of 1830, but without using his fourths; that is, the notes above and below the bearing
were tuned by fifths, and the octaves were played and heard only in the trials. 5 Following is an example. (Com-
pare with pages 415-16).
Tuning above and below the bearing section
Tuned Tuned
Trial before Trial
before
Sharpen
Concerning these traditional bearing plans and instructions for intending to tune equal temperament, Geib wrote that to
actually attain equal temperament "by this method is nearly impossible. " 6 By using the traditional methods and no more,
Geib wrote that "It is vain to consider a tuned. " 7 He also wrote, "Could each third receive an
of this method instrument would also be in tune. But
Accor'!1m1§!; to the traditional methods serve a purpose. He that
be used for pitch-raising. 9 After pitch-raising was accomplished, he then proposed the application of a third
bearing plan along with detailed instructions for fine tuning closer to equal temperament. This is duplicated in Section B8.
Geib's third for fine was not new. His of tuning thirds was done in the
late seventeenth century by Gottfried Keller (see Sections 17 and 18). Geib's bearing plan was of William
Tans'ur's method published in 1746 (see Section 27). The new in Geib's method was reliance
the musical qualities of the dominant seventh chords used in trials. He that the qualities of the dominant
seventh chords held the secret of how for the first time one could truly tune in equal temperament.
Typical of the times, there was not one mention of beats or pulsations of any kind in Geib' s book. It was believed
that beats could be counted or compared with accuracy only on organs, not pianos. Instead of writing that fifths should
be narrow and beating, Geib wrote that the upper notes of fifths should be "placed atthe lowest point within the con-
sonant interval. " 10 In other words, the ear's judgment of consonance determined equal t"'"""~'rmn<>•··i-
On pianos, there was complete dependency on the color-qualities or musical traits·ofthe various intervals and chords
for making temperament decisions. The very wordy detailed instructions of how to temper without beats
in Geib's book furnishes an excellent insight and perspective of how pianos were actually tuned in 1869. Any modern
piano technician who studies these instructions would agree with Johann Heinrich Scheibler and Alexander John Ellis
that real mathematically correct had never been tuned on l'"'''uvnn
·"'"'""''!?'as seems, Geib's
instructions
\
e the following quarter notes in the order written.
"First, tune C above

middle c to the fork.
See remarks on
(:oncert Pitch." Tuned
Tune Trial before
just Flatten Trial
! ! ! l !
1 J
i
13 II J g lj II
Fifths "are as near

flatness as may be,
without being dissonanf or flat."
i
Tune
just
Tuned
before
l
Sharpen Sharpen
"Nore, that the chord will perfectly harmonize if the third is "as sharp as it will bear
smooth; 'but this not beiI1g its true character, would be fatal to without being dissonant."
the whole process. And as this chord is to be the foundation of
the whole, it must not be left until entirely satisfied of its accuracy."
481
i
t
Shili'pen
t
"prQVe"
Tune
just
"as the $.was to C."
Tuned
before
Tri"' l Trials
t
"must be hannonious"
...!.. 1
"prove"
Tuned Tuned Tuned

before Trial before before
. . ~. . ! l J. , '''<'->00-lffrH>l;,;c'\,
Trial
'i ! ;
l~J l I~ II g J Ij II
J
f Tune i t
Tune
ju~t Sharpen. just
"a~ you did the E."
William Geib believed that the dominant sevenths had great power in determining equal temperament provided that
they were "equally harmonious."
Test nst
R.esofution R.esotution
Tuned
before Test
Trials R.esolution
Sharpen
l
Tuned
Test' before
Test R.esolution
Resolution
Tune
Just
Tuned
before
T l Trials
Test
.R.esolution
4S9
Sharpen
}y)."'"\''''
"ft !lltist rt~t be forgotten ~at the t.welve

· fflajor tllitifg'ilJ !he.(lcfave tftl!St all have the same
degree of sharprtess, when above the tonic, or
flatness when beldw it; and that the third which
is being tuned must always bear this. test of
standing exactly bttween the major third above
and below it."
Trial
Tesf
"the same quantity
Trials
Resotutidn of dissonance." !
Ii·t~ II
i
This beautiful key,
so murderously treated by some tuners, must be perfectly harmonious. It is the
key which Von Weber selected for one of his finest fancies--his "Aufforderung
zum Tanze"--(Invitation to the Dance)·-which is as delightful to the feelings,
when played on a well-harmonized Piano-forte, as it is repulsive when played
ofi ·one that'i9'rtot•sovll!\;;.*··
Tuned Tulled
before before
l
Trial
! l Trials
llflJ
Ji 'd 114 #J
i
I
i3 ~
Sharpen
Tune.•.
just····
Tuned Trial Tuned Tune
before . befote just
!
l !
Tune
just Sharpen
Test "the same quantity

Trials Resolution of dissonance."
Proof'
Trial
Trial Test
!
Test
Resolution ! Resolution
U~tj I~ &@ I~~i I~ti pl'~ II

This completes the bearing section from F to E-flat.
"When great accuracy is the aim, it will be found very profitable to unite the chord with the octave which is being
tuned, even to the extremities of the Piano-forte."
NOTE
·t;· &ib; Tuning the PianO"<Forte: Pages n ...i~ eontain allc the· quotations· used in this·seetion.
·Beware. ofJtinerant prete11<ters in th~.~rt ~4 t.ttY~t~YY oftµf,!inga11<f:riP!liti111rPiano-fortes~ If a Piano-forteis mu<:I\
otlt of order, the pest advice to be offered to its owner is to have it Carefully packed in a Piano-box, by a per~on wffa
understands. how to make it ~~cure; and send it to a good Piano-maker to be thoroughly examined and repaif~. The
legs and pedal need not t:ie s!nt. •
NOTE
1. Geib, Tuning the Piano-Forte, 30.
''STRICTLY EQUA.t T)<JMPERAMENT
IS A THING UNKNOWN IN PRACTICE" IN 18751
A· lexander John Ellis must have noticed books and instructions like those of William Geib published in 1869 .
..£"\.Geib did not mention the acoustical phenomenon of beating that is present in all tempered intervals. Concerning the
tempering of fifths, Geib wrote that the upper note of a fifth must be ''placed at the lowest point within the consonant
interval. " 2 Thus, the fifths. were tempered narrow by ear without any help from science. Therefore, Ellis no doubt
was quite confident in 1875 when he wrote that the truth in tuning was that "strictly equal temperament is a
unknown in practice owing to the extreme difficulty of tuning the Fifths by estimation of ear. " 3
The present author has repeatedly suggested throughout this book that whenever there is an absence of beat fre-
quency numbers of fifths in original temperament instructions one should apply the equal-beating method for fifths;
that is, all the fifths within the bearing section should beat exactly the same speed for authentic tuning. As an example,
note the present author's suggestions for equal-beating techniques on page 484. This is legitimate practice since tem-
pering in the past centuries was based on equal color-qualities or equal musical effects.
Ellis must have known this, and in 1875 he proposed an improvement on the above method. In EHis's improved
equal~beating method, the fourths resulted in beating faster than the fifths when the fifths and fourths shared common
upper tones and also when the fifths and fourths shared common lower tones. This in turn created results that were
cfoser to equal temperament. (Compare Tables 127~1 and 141-1.) Ellis's improved equal-beating method consisted
of the following instructions:
[AU the fifths} within the octave C 1 to C" [should] beat once in one all fifths whereby their upper
notes are higher C" within the given bearing should] beat three times in two seconds. [The untuned fifth
F' C" left over at the end of the about one and two secomiis.
The pitch was unimportant as long as it was reasonable; that is, between C=256 Hz and C=264 Hz.
No universal standard of pitch existed in 1875, so practical tuning instructions based on beat frequency numbers
had to accommodate the pitches of the C tuning forks that varied in between 256 and 264 Hz. In this way,
Ellis's instructions were successful. Ellis called his method "a decent (although unequal) imitation of equal
""T'"'""""t " 5 The trnth is that Alexander Eilis's was best imitation of
was ever published. John Farey's just intonation equal temperament of 1807 was a closer imitation, but Farey's
tuning method was impracticable and almost impossible to do with perfection· on pianos.
Unfortunately for the music world of the late nineteenth century, Ellis' s information was buried in the
academic and scientific book of Hermann L. F. von Helmholtz translated in 1875. No one read this book
a few acoustidans, music theorists, and university music students. It was many years Ellis's "'''''"'...'"'""
beating method was noticed and applied by the piano tuning profession which was by 187.5 a cmnpJ,eteiy ""'n:cir·:citP orc,tes1s10in
from that of being a musician. These facts are evidenced by many tuning"""'"·"'" v•"V"•"·~·~
cation between piano tuners and musicians or theorists was beginning to break down.
EUis's bearing plan and instructions are outlined on the following pages. Notice that the bearing section is
in pitch. This is so the fifths can be very accurately tempered without on the thirds and sixths for test
Most of the thirds and beat too rapidly for control and in Eilis's ElHs's
from William Holder's of 1694 that Holder's was an octave lower because at that time
fifths the
C as Holder had done. This was because ""''~"'·'
. . ~~~~~\~.~4~ ~~~Y•jtt~l ·•·
. fa:.l.5~j'g .
J't•~·!i1~~ 1l3Ji0840
DF-sh~tp,;;. J4.061~n.
AC~sllarp~\;\ ·· 1l.6&.~9~t.J1:
EtJ:..sharp 13.51516
BD-sharp 13.24095
F~sharp A-sharp 13.13823
D-flat l'· 13.62091
A~flat C
14.33033
E-flat 0 14.20951
B·tlat D 13.1!5611
FA 13.14800
Compa:re this table with Tables 99':J, 108~2, 110~1, tl2:;.2. 11?;-2. 125-2, 126-2, and 127-2.
·••.•Tlteiabbve:.table iSt tlt~QfY>: 1n:1practice~·t1t,~,resqltSt1.wot>l~+f\ayeJ;teen'qtore like tM res\llts..in T:abl~. l64.:c6J~.~seq on
Ellisiti 1885. .
;'ofi::irat)fQ:iJ;~q,.2t 1'hez.Jl\li•a~lQ~;~qual1 '.l'ell1pet~ent by;. Alexa,nder John Ellis.
<'l'ttis table. was. cal~ula(~d at sta,ndtttcll)it~h wheireby mi~clle t is .261.625565 Hz.
~°"ttS~. (l)Jlt. th"' 1tl)~r~~ 11,n~; sixt~~..seem t~ be. quite well in order.)
Beats pt!r Second bf Major Thirds B'eats Per Second of Major Sixths
DF-sh~rp ·~1'.947~5 CA. ] beyond Eilis's ( 22.95320
D-flat F 21;88752 :Bo:..sharp · · ·bearing 21.95557
CE · 19,95320 B~flat G section 21.72256
~D-~harp 18.?555'7 AF~sharp 20.46051
B'-tlat D 18i.\J2':l.B6. A-flat F 18.91564
AC~sha:rp 11,.46051 O:B 17.46490
A~flat C 17.25l38 F-sharp D-sharp 16.09168
Gn. ~5;4649Q FD 15.91692
F-sharp A-sharp 14.091~8 EC-sharp 14.97038
FA 13.91692 E-flat C 14.81504
EQ~sha,rp l~.970~8 DB 13.47367
E-flat o i:z:sl'504 C-sharp A-sharp 12.44376
Dp-sharp . . 11.97367 middle CA 11.47660
D..Ilat ··fi· . ,..,H,..*·"'''...,.,"'.. · ; ..,•.., ..u;""""''''"fU:~4~1<S'· ·•"'·';,"·--'"""''·...N,····•····· · ...,,. '"'."'"'"'''···••·'''
rlii(ftffe Cl!,., · · 9:91660
i~,,f~l~~~qy~l~ljI~~~:t~~c)~.,Jri'~!~~!!~f;J~~,t~~~~~~~~~!d;~,~~e been rnore like the results on page 544 based on Ellis
NOTES
1. Hermann Ludwig Fetdin~4Y~ll!l~.l~5-?~~F~:.~tMfteS~nsa.tioJtS fJf Tone as a physiological basis for the Theory Of Music, .trans-
·•.•• l~te4 • , . froilL; The Tbit4 (lemran Eilttion wttff, ·.: .. ·. an t;1dditioru1l appendix by Alexander J. Ellis (London~ Longmans, Green,
. :,aqd.CQmpllliY, t87~J, 78,. .. ·· ·
2. Q~ib, Tynipg the ~fario:Ff!rtf!.• 6.
3 .. Helmholtz, On the Sensations Offone, 185.
4: llJid. . .
5:. tbid. The \vords within the parentll.eses ~t'e1 Elfis's:
141
TUNING QUASI-EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
IN 1875 ACCORDING TO THE RULES BY ALEXANDER JOHN ELLIS
Test interval
(Figures denote beats per second
when C is tuned to any pitch
Tune C to any between 512 Hz and 528 Hz.)
reasonably pitched Tuned
1 , T
tuning fork.
l y l J- ,J_ I
!~ fH-
i.o
±-tW4tf-=-J=-itE-_LL_tF_-~=----=::::--J--=j
f
Flatten
. f
Flatten
t
Tune
just
Tuned
before
Flatten Flatten
Tune
just
Tuned
Tuned before
1
before
Equal beating
1 ····J
1.5
I~~ · ·· ll~J ·. #E If
Flatten
i
Tune
just
.~
·····berc1r~
Equal beating
1 1.5
I.5
d
'W •i~ . II
t·
Flatten
t
Tune
just
flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
·Tuned
1
before
Equal beating
l.5
l 1.0
i1~1J
1.5
iJ 1 fg rd
1= lfjJ #J I~~ II
l i
Flatten
Tune
just
Tuned
Tuned before
Proof
l
before
!
1_;,qual beating.
l ~
1.5
1.5
1.5
0.8
11,iJ I~~ ll'J ~ 1~~ ~~ I~ I

i i
Flatten Tune
just l
The fifth F C will beat 0.8 times per second only if C was
tuned to standard pitch. In this case, F C will beat once in 1
1.203 seconds, which is "in between one and two seconds."
This completes the bearing section from C to F-sharp.

1~1:A .....
.
;·a~;rits··
0-sharp ff'
G 6. 0
~.tsharp o:gg992 0
F 0.06ln:. 0
B mirius 0.01402 0
E~flat mihus 0.25647 0
n·· plus 0.01178 0
C-sharp ylu.s 0.00367 0
c plu~ 051890 -fl
n plus 0.1.8886 0
B-flat minus . 0.15810 0
Compare this table with Table 85-l. Also, compare with Tables 101-1. 109-1, 111-1, 112-1, 117-1, 125-1, 126-1,
and 127-1.
Ellis in 1885.
NOTE
1, Helmholtz, On the. Sensations Of Tone, 1st EnglMl. ed., 785.
.d.··:··.·1\ he methods of the best factory tuners were reported in The·Tune11's..Guide1, publishedarolind.1840,•(See Section
127 of the present work.) Even though this was a modem method whereby the bearing span was no more than
• an octave, this method strictly followed the rules of tonality for C major. Alt}1ough the intentions were for equal tem-
~fi ••• peraillent, the trials us¢ci had a sttong tendency to guide tuners into well temperament. The only test chords used were
· the traditional C major test chords used since the sixteenth century for meantone temperament.
The writing of Dr. William Geib ifi America changed this situation~ He stressed that two major thirds such as EG-
sharp and A-flat C which share a common key lever on the piano must contain "the same quantity of dissonance"
anq further that all twelve 1llajor triads must be tested and compared for equalness if one had pretentions of attempting
to tune equal temperament. 1 Thus, Geib ignored the C major tonality. He promoted atonality .
. Geib's philosophy was applied by A. He1llstock in Englapd. 2 He followed the factory method of 1840givert in The
Tuner's Guide througb,,the tone G.-s1Iarp. At. this point tie added Geib·~ method of testing BG-sharp and A-flat C for
equality. He also made another change at this point ...Since tonality was no longer important,. he did not begin again
.... (rom.C.an<{ t1Ie11. mne F, :S-:flat, anq E-flat, Instead, he c~ntinued on from G-sharp and tuned D-sharp, A-sharp, and
E-sharp, although he renamed these tones as A-flat, E-flat~ B-flat, and F. Thus, all the black keys were tuned as sharps.
Perhaps this: is the reason that all the short, raised keys sold at piano parts and supply houses are advertised as being
'sharps' and not' sharps a11d flats.' Hemstock's new bearing plan and instructions are outlined on the following pages.
t"
J1emstock also copied Geit'i's second bearing plan from 1869. 3 He gave no acknowledgment or credit to Geib. Hemstock
reprinted this because up Ht76 it had been "the most approved and simple method. " 4 For using this bearing plan,
see page 485. '
l. GeiQ, Tuning the Piano-Forte,. 20 .

. 2. Hemst.ock, On Tuning the Organ, ll.
3. Ibid., 10.
4. Ibid., 9.
..... · ·. ·... · · · · . 4i!JJMl)N~~;:. •' ,:·
IN 1876· Al1CORDlNGlfft'.·hj·:R1JtESHBY;1_A~rJBMsrocKl
ti'une tlie followins. quartet notes .ir1: the ordel': written .•

Tune(; to
the fork. Tuned
1
·Tune before
"qt;jte ~rfe~~..'' Proof
!
Tune
"somewhat flat.:'
! j
;
'!I'd a ·ilt !J II J
t
Leave "somewhat flat, but not to be offensive tO the ear; for
it is so lime, that o~ aoout two slow w;i.ves c~ ~ bear<l
by attentively lis~ning while ~.Mo notes are sounding."
l
"somewhat sharp, bu~ still
agreeab1ey and fit to form part of
Tune
"somewhat flat."
the harmony of the commort thord of C."
Tuned
~fort) Tuned
Proof before
! l !
Proof
l
11~ J Il J #J l~J lliJ fl ,J
f
"agreeably sharp"
i
Tune t Tune
"somewhat flat."
"somewhat flat." "agreeably sharp"
···ra·· .If~ ,... ' 11Qr . ~J
t
"as good as the rest'.' l i
"agteeabty sharp"
t
Tune
'IThi& third is almost stire ta show "somewhat flat."
Tune
'if any mistake has been made." "somewhat flat."
Tuned
before
! 1 Proofs
"agreeably sharp"
I! ~J J I~ II
' 't
'agreeably sbaTpt!
1 Tune ''It will be a g<tod plan
"somewhat flat." to try the F just tutted with the C,
the note; we started from, which
oµg{lt tq be ashade fl<tt, the same
depression as the rest of the fifths."
This completes the beafing section from C to C.

'••,• "~ 1 Be sure to test~,e; thirds, ~s shown,··:·• w~entunin8dhe.~taves d'-\WllWMd$~vwhic;l\!lhi:m\d.b~.dgneJi,rs~, to, make
• ;,;·~·~ the teinpef'ame8*·;fSi ;sadsfacto~~ thOO, take, the ~taves upwards... ' ' '
Tuned Tuned Tuned

l Proof
l Proof
! l Proof
!
ll' J J II ~J I~ 114 II
Tune
.,'.'quite,,perfect.'.'
r
Tune
"quite perfect."
f
Tune
"quite perfect."
'''N&fE
,:;~:,:;t;:;;~;::H~~sto~k, fJ«'''!Jf!!~~~lff:'.(;J'fq,an? ,:'I!~S~~·~-l~•contaio·al~ the quotations, usro in this, secti<m. ,
144
''THERE ·ARE FEW TUNERS WHO •GAN PRODUCE
A TOLERABLE EQUAL TEMPERAMENT'' IN 18761
obert Halford Macdowall Bosanquet was a fellow of St. John's College in Oxford. He was an excellent writer
on the acoustics of temperaments. Conditions in 1876, as reported by Bosanquet, were that equal temperament
was in intention commonly practiced and that "all systems which involved 'wolf have practically disappeared. " 2 However,
the best grand pianos now had more powerful tones with louder harmonics; therefore, ''it is only on the finest modem
grand pianofortes that the equal temperament is really offensive. " 3
Concerning temperament quality, Bosanquet wrote,. ''There are few tuners who can produce a tolerable equal tem-
perament.' ' 4 The reasons for this are obvious. Observe the next several bearing plans and instructions outlined in this
book through at least Section 159. From this, it can be seen that the technique of tuning quasi-equal temperament on
pianos as actually done by real piano tuners and· not theorists had made few improvements since the instructions of
1840 were published in The Tuner's Guide. Specifically, tuners were not listening to the beatings among the upper
harmonics, and they were not counting and comparing the beats of thirds and sixths used as test intervals that should
be played chromatically up the scale. Proof of this is seen in the instructions of A. Hemstock of 1876 (see Section
143). Here, the effects or musical qualities ofa few major thirds were compared, but Hemstock's bearing plan was
too high in the scale for listening to the individual beats of thirds or sixths. In this high location, most of the thirds
and sixths beat too rapidly for determining whether or not they were tempered accurately.
Obviously, the sophisticated and inconvenient methods of Johann Heinrich Scheibler were being ignored, but theorists
never gave up. Bosanquet published instructions similar to Scheibler's; that is, he published the beat frequencies of
fifths in beats per minute. These could used with the metronome. Bosanquet copied Alexander John EHis's bearing
that was published the before in EUis's translation of the Helmhotz book. Of course, Ellis the
were both By copy-
of 1809 shows that were
more influenced by the writings in academic books than by the contemporary tuning manuals. This was natural.
Theorists knew the theory of beats since 1749, but the piano tuning profession was rebelling against its application
except to a very superficial
In the year 1880, Alexander John Ellis reported what piano tuners believed about beats. He wrote, "The beats hardly
last long enough to be available for the piano, which should be tuned to an harmonium. this equal ten:lpera-
ment is now generally aimed at, though seldom really attained.' ' 5 ''The number of beats in a second can be counted
easily when it between 2 and 5. Beyond 5 beats in a second there is considerable difficulty ... and, after 6 beats
a second, the cannot be depended on.' ' 6
This was the belief in the nineteenth century. 7 Later, in the twentieth century, tuners discovered that they could
count, hear, and compare beats that were much faster than 6 per second. The standard, common bearing-plan that
evolved is between F below middle C and F above middle C. For tuning equal temperament today by ear, tuners must
be able to comprehend the beats of all the major thirds, major sixths, and minor thirds (at least the minor thirds up
through AC) within the F to F bearing section. The slowest third, FA, beats 6.9 times per second at standard pitch.
This is already beyond the limit set by Ellis for ease of comprehension, but modem tuners find this exceptionally easy
to listen to and to controLThe fastest major sixth within the bearing section, A-flat F, beats 9.4 times per second.
The fastest third, D-flat F, beats 11.0 times per second. The minor third AC beats 11. 9 times per second. Thus,
w"''"'aeum-:~enmrv tuners discovered that the ear is of and beats that are twice as
'"v"''".,. 1-""""'n"·"' to reason that
thirds and
ffalford Macdowall Bosan,quetrA11c Elenienf<iry T.,-eatise on. Musical Intervals. an<J. ,T~mper.ament (London: Macmillan
ompany, 1816); 5. · · ·
.32.
xiv.
5. .·.·· .· .
nder John Ellis, "On The History OfMuskaIP:itch,'' Journal Of1he Society. Of Arts (March 5, 1880; reprint, Amster-
~tits /\.. M. Knuf, 1963): 295.
'299,; .
, l,Qehr, An Essay on the Theory and Practice of Tuning in general, 39.
ff;'~fl:at"fes Babbington, Tuning and Repairing Pianos, Fourth Edition, Revised and Enlarged (London: "The Bazaar, Exchange
Mart.'' Qffic~. [published aft~r 1902)), .54.
TuNlNG.·EQUAL.TEMPERAMENT
IN 1876 BY THE<METRONOME METHOD
OF ROBERT HALFORD MACDOWALL BOSANQUET1
The beats per minute were calculated by Bosanquet for the pitch C=264 Hz. Corrections for the minor errors that
he made in his calculations are given in parentheses by the present author. Set the metronome to the figures specified.
Each beat from the tempered interval should correspond to each click of the metronome.
Test interval
Tune C to 528 Hz.
(an equally tempered (Figures denote
minor third above beats per minute) Tuned
A= 443.9933 Hz.) Tuned before
l
Tune
just l before
80.4 l
·~~~.'---!---~-----+---_,,_ -~ .----...f-J ~
Flatten Flatten i
Tune
just
Tuned
Tuned before
before
Equal beating
r 1
80.4 60.3
(60.2) l
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
>t j
Tune Flatten
just
Tuned
Tuned. before
l
before
Equal beating
l jJ 101.4
(101.2)
101.2
101.l
ll'
J ,~~ II j.J
#J lid ~~ II
i
Flatten
i
Tune
just
Tuned,,.
Tuned bef9te
before
l 75.6
(75.8) 1 75.8
Equal beating
75.8
1rnJ
Flatten i
'#d II
Tune
just
The lost. Art Of Ni11eteenth~Century. Temperament
Tuned Tuned
before before
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
before
Tuned
before
1 Equal beating
85.l
~
85.l
---i==
i
Tune
Flatten
just
Tuned
Tuned before
Proof
before
95.4
(95.6) l beating
95.6
!
71.6
Flatten Tune
just
This completes the bearing section from C to F-sharp in theoretically correct equal temperament. For tuning at A =440
reduce the metronome figures by about 0.9 percent.
For more practicable tuning, Bosanquet wrote,
Mr. Ellis has given a useful practical rule, which is more manageable than the above, and does not err in its results
by much more than the hundredth part of a semitone. It is-make all the fifths which lie entirely within the octave
C 1 C 11 beat once per second; and make those vvhich have their upper notes above C" beat three ti.mes in two seconds.
Keeping the fifth F 1 C 11 to the it should beat once in between one lwo seconds. See
785. This is a to be instructed in the use of it. There are few tuners who
can a to1,erable
·· r~'. ,.'., ·'.· ""·'"' .' .'
IJtlRAM!NT
VLES,BY' EDWARD JoHNHOPKINS1
T. une th~l following quarter notes in the or4er written. "All the thirds, fourths, and sixths that are tuned upwards
are made a little sharp, and those that are tuned downwards rather flat. The fifths, on the contrary, are tuned
a slight degree flat upwards and sharp downwards.'' The bearing plan is by Hopkins.
TuneCto
tile tuning {ork. Tuned Tuned Tuned
l
Tune before before before
just
J
! l 1 1
n4 :l J I; \,J I; J I; J
r Sharpen
t·
Sllarpen
t
Flatten
f
Sharpen
Tuned
.... 'b(;f()n; Tuned
before
l
Trial Sharpei:t Sharpen Trial
! ! l ! !
ll~····.~ It 4 J #J !J ,J iJ IJJ II
i
"rathe( greater i i
Sharpen i
than perfect!' Sharpen C# is "rather flat"
(Wide) in this trial.
(Wide)
t
Flatten
t
"rather greateit . Sharpen 1
than perfect"
(Wide) "rathet g.-eater
than perfect"
(Wide}
~}; compl~tes tlie bearing section from c to c.

NOTE
ijppkins and Rimbault, The Organ, Its History And Construction. All quotations in this section are from page 183.
509
147
TUNING QUASl-EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
IN 1877 BY USING EDWARD JOHN HOPKINS'S BEARING PLAN 1
This is the bearing plan published in 1809 by the Becket and Company except that Hopkins tempered the flats first
rather than last (see Section 97 of the present work).
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. Hopkins furnished no instructions on how to temper equal-
temperament fifths. No beat frequencies were given.
Tune C to
the tuning fork. Tune
l
just
Sharpen i i
Sharpen
Sharpen
Tuned
before
! ~:
Tune Tune
just just
!!
n~~-Wt---_~--t-&-=:=~----~-=-J--4---.--------til __ :-J~
t i i Flatten
i i
Flatten
Flatten Flatten Flatten
147. Tuning ·Quasi-Equal Temperament By· Using Edward John HopkiflS 's Bearing Plan
Tllne Tune Tune

just just just Proof
t ! ! i
Flatten
· This completes the bearing section from F-sharp to high C.
NOTE
t. Hopkins and Rimbault, The Organ, lts History And Construction, 183.
I n England, the established bearing plan used by'the:ll!Ore professional factory tuners was published in The Tuner's
Guide of 1840. This was a bearingJ>lan reduced to within the octave C to C. This was made possible because every
other fifth was inverted and tuned as a fourth (see Sections 127 and 143). In America, the ''best tuners in the piano
faetoriesir ttansposed the+bearingplandowna:f:ifth; that is, to within F to F. 1 This is where the most common bearing
plan of today still remains. This was done because tuners were becoming more concerned about the proper tempering
of the thirds and s~ths. In this transposed position, the American plan was actually a copy of Jean Jousse's bearing
plan published in 1832 (see Section 117 of this work). The only difference made by the Americans was that when
one reached 0-sharp one kept right on tuning through the sharps whereas Jousse began again from C so that he could
tune F, B-flat, and E-flat according to the rules of tonality. More clearly, the Americans tuned as if they were preparing
for the tonality of D major in which all the black keys are tuned as sharvs. However, tonality no longer mattered during
this period of history,. and equal temperament is atonal. Thus far in the nineteenth century, it seems that only profes-
sional.· factory tuners tempered by fourths as well as fifths. The American factory system as reported by Louis 0. Peltier
~·J§![ ••prevai!'edentir~ly'' in general practice in England by 1893 according to Alfred James Hipkins. 2 This is out-
line,<IJ11 the fo!lowing section. .·.. . ... .. · . . .
In· 1877, Peltier reported that the well temperaments ''of Kirnberger, Earl Stanhope, and some others . . . are now
seldom used. " 3
NOTES
1. Louis 0. Peltier, The Piano Tuner's Guide containing full directions for learning Piano Forte Tuning (Sommerville, Mass.:
0. Peltier.1877)~ :4=·t~; . '''''"'""'"''''''' ·· ···· · · ''" ····· · ··
·· ·z~ "fffl'lttn~~ 0 Tnrtfflg~~"
:lt'tJtctttfnary of'Mtlti't: :ltml Musicltttts (1893), 4: 189.
3. Peltier, Tile Piano Tuner's Guide, 5.
TUNING QUASI·EQUA.L TEMPERAMENT
IN 1877 ACCORDING TO THE RULES BY LOUIS 0. PELTIER1
"Chord with the Tuning Fork.... To have an

Equal Temperament, no one of these Fourths or
Fifths should contain more imperfection than the
others, but they should an sound consonant and
agreeable to the ear." Temper
l .... l
"slightly flat."
i~t---F~::t~=L*--=r··w::cJf:-:1-t=_Jr==t-~
L_lTemper
i
"The last note tuned, (F), will,
"slightly flat." if all the Intervals thus far have been tuned correctly, form an agreeable
Fifth.to the. note (C), which started from. Then tune the (F) Octave
above the note last tuned; should fom1 an agreeable Fourth to C, and
an agreeable Fifth to A-sharp."
Tuned
Proof before
Tune
just
section to
The Lost Art Of Nineteenth-Century Temperament
When tuning the <>ctaves below and above the temperament section, Peltier recommended that one check each note
by fourths and fifths. 2 When finished, Peltier recommerided;that ~ne test all the common chords (including the ''Dominant
Sevenths" which was an American tradition) in every key throughout the piano. Peltier wrote, "If all these chords,
when struck, harmonize, and sound consonant, and agreeable to the ear, we may conclude that the piano is in tune. " 3
NOTES
1. Peltier, The Piano Tuner's Guide, 11-14.
2. Ibid., 15.
3. Ibid.
514
··:m~~,, ..
\JN 1819 AccoRDlNG To:TffE R&lls ··B\f~E:dol\R BBlNSME1\tl1
1
e the following quarter notes in the ordetwritten. '~After each string has been tuned, a heavy blow upon it
td be given to· ascertain if it hangs upon the bridge pins, in which case it would quickly get out· of tune.''
fog temperament, B.rinsi,nead wrote that. the ''rule is-tune all the fifths towards the bass a. wave sharp and
rourths a wave flat:" Since there was. no distinction between the "waves" of the fifths and f~:>u:rths, the old
11Us equal-beating method was implied here. Pot authentic tuning at modem standard pitch, each fifth and fourth
fo the bearing section should then beat 0. 796525703 times per second. The results would then be the same as those
':faBle 117-l of the present work.
TuneC
!
Tune Tuned
"perfoct, that is, Tune before
without a wave." ''a shade.fla~."
! l
Tune
t i
T!Jne
i
Tune
"a trifle flat.w "slightly flat." "a shade sharp."
Trial Trial Trial
"more rQughly "a rapid beat "a rapid beat

fu tune than" or series of Tuned or series of
Tuned
the next trial undulations" before undulations"
before
l ! l !
.JL[. ~r
",,.,.~''"' "~''·-'"'· ' /t ... !! ............r f LI II
r r
Tune...
"s1ightly; frat: \t
515
The LQst Art. OfNineteenth-Cemury Temperament
Trial Trial
~ ~~~ ~~~
l•
before or series of
"""j"''
d •
Tuned
I
before
or series: of
u.rulr
•
T
Tuned
ierh rr-fils=wr & ·-JE_?J+t--+--rr-

1t--____,j
i
Tune
I
Tune Tune
t
"slightly flat" "slightly flat." "slightly flat"
Trial
Trial
"a rapid beat Tuned
"a rapid beat or series of before
or series of
undulations"
i
Tune Tune
"a shade sharp." "a shade sharp."
Added the
author
Tuned
"G# should be Tune

slightly flat to C#." just
NOTE
Ewer& 148-50 contain all the
''THE KEY··IS··.IN 'MUSICWBAT Cowua.·1s··1N PAINTlNG.'' 1
DO THE ·CHARACTERS·OF· THE ·KEYS STILL EXIST?
he key is in music what colour is in painting.'':< "Every key has, to a certain extent, its particular domain,
in which it reigns with a decided supremacy, and in which it satisfactorily expresses its individual charac-
"3 This was a clear statement of 'the characters of the keys' in 1877 by Ernst Pauer. Now that the practice of
qn,~si-equal temperament was rather universally established and temperament theoretically was atonal with no key center
oil pianos sl.lpposedly differing in characteristics from any other, many writers were mystified as to why
No matter with what precision the tuner exercises his art, with what skill he lays his bearings, still there remains the
distinct character of each key, unaltered and standing forth, almost as if each were tuned on purpose to produce given
results .... Every person who has even a rudimentary knowledge of music is well aware that each scale throughout
the gamut has most distinctive characteristics, and an ear comparatively untrained can almost always appreciate the
difference between scales of sharps or of flats .... No one quite seems able to tell us why our modern scales have
each their own distinctive qualities; why it will not do to play a solemn passage in B natural. 4
statements still apply An answer to this question written C. A. Edwards follows.

In the past, common musical law dictated that the most used tonalities should be F, C, and G major and that the
most harmonious sounds should be reserved for these keys. Since the most harmonious sounds were always reserved
for these particular keys, the temperament practices of the eighteenth century and before were far more uniform than
they were later in the nineteenth century when tuners were attempting to tune the atonal equal temperament in which
no keys were favored. In the eighteenth century, the traditional favoring of F, C, and G major caused the harmonic
of all as done by tuners to be t\le same.
natural on and G were tuned more this auto·
matically caused the chromatic keys (black keys) to be tuned in a superior melodic manner for more expressive linear
effects; that is, the major tonalities among the sharps and flats such as F-sharp, C-sharp, and A-flat major were more
sounding while the minor tonalities were more 'minor' the more sounds
among the black keys allowed for more expressive melodic effects than is possible in the equal temperament
When is improved in some is in the keys.
In the equal temperament of to9ay, there is no acoustical basis for the of the In the past, increased
expression existed that was based on the varied acoustics of the intervals. This in tum created the characters of the
keys in the following manner. ·
During the eighteenth century and before, composers utilized the varied color effects of the tunings to their advan-
tage. This was based on their experimentation, intuition (instinctive sense of color and the to music
...,,.,,.,,,.,,,., composers. They eventually realized that certain keys were best suited for "v'''""''''"
such as exhilaration, sadness, contentment, etc. As an example, if one wished to compose music expressing the
mate in mournfulness or depression, he would compose in E-flat minor or B-flat minor. Thus, the utilizing of the varied
color effects and the resulting establishment of the characters of the keys was accomplished the historical composers
in a group effort. This was done because of the uniformity of tuning previous to late nineteenth
Whether the various well were based on one-third, one-fourth, or one-sixth comma
narrow fifths made no difference. The locations of the various color effects nevertheless remained the same in the
The the the colo:r ~~··''""""''
could be
Jhe answer·. to C. A. .·Edwards' s questi(}n is that key~c()loring. and the chatactets. of the keys still existed .in l 880.
The reasonf(}tthis.i~ that··.the quasi·equal ternperameptsbeing practiced were still not thoronghly equal .. Notice in
Tables·l 62".6, 163· 3~ .a:nd 164~3 the ample key-col(}ring or variety that. still existed among the major thirds which are
results from the analyses done by .f\Jexapder John\~llis in 1885,
Existence 9f the• ~.ba~a,~t€}f'~ of !:~e ~eys }p t}le twentieth. 5eptu~ is .Psy~~()l(}gical. 5 Qrigin~n:y, the . effects from the
characters of die keys were permaiiently incorporated·into the expression of the music itself as it was written down
by the old.composers .• This . expression.cannot be con1pletely eliminated from.themusiq.even though it is performed
in the modern equaI temperament that has no color. There is so much· keyboard music from the eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries played today that lovers of keyboard music have been environmentally conditioned to associate
certain eighteenth-century expressive effects, feelings, and emotions with specific keys. This, coupled with a minimum
sense of absolute pitch, causes some musicians of today to declare dlat they still hear the eighteenth-century characters
of dle keys.
Some twentiedl-centuty composers have been affected by these psychological considerations. They have occasionally
promoted dle characters of the keys in their compositions. An example of this isSergei Rachmaninoffs Etude-Tableaux
in E-flat Minor, Op. 39, No. 5, published in 1917. The feelings expressed in this piece are similar to those expressed
by Chopin and J. S. Bach when they wrote in E-flat minor.
Chopin is an interesting composer to study. He lived at a time when true well temperament coexisted widl serious
attempts to tune equal temperament on pianos. Much ofhis music written in certain keys expresses qualities that agree
with the known characteristics of dle same keys in well temperament. A question is: If Chopin was composing on
pianos tuned in various quasi-equal temperaments that contained key-coloring, was he affected by the characters of
the keys that still existed or was he simply maintaining the characters of the keys in the manner of Rachmaninoff?
An acoustical reason of lesser significance for key~coloring in the twentieth century is that keyboards are still un-
equal in design. There is no black key between E and F and none between B and C. To the performing pianist the
physical feel of the B major keys is entirely different from that ofE-flat major, C major, etc. There is also the considera-
tion that the wound strings in the bass have a different effect than dle plain wire strings in the treble. On large Steinways,
the effect of E major is different from F major because of the location of the 'bass break.' There are many varying
effects caused by the design and construction features of pianos. Various conditions of 'voicing' must be considered.
For a continuing study of the characters of the keys, read Sections 174-76.
NOTES
l. Ernst Pauer, The Elements of the Beautiful in Music (London; Novello, Ewer and Company, 1877), 20.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid., 21.
4. Edwards. Organs and Organ Building, 181.
5. For a demonstration of this principle, see Section 176.
A,; Edwatdsiwrote, ~'If the tuner deslres'ta us~ thirds, etc.; in his scheme, the following n.t1es,~ust b~ ri~isUY
• 'kept: All octaves perfect, major thirdS sharp\ minor thirds flat, and fourths sharp. " 1 However~ Edwards'p~ef~rrid
traditional circle-Of octaves and fifths. Rewrote, .''lnthis way a perfect scale may be produced with less compli-
. ·an~ when' the thitds' an:d fourths are brought foto play. " 2 The bearing, plan that Edwards published was copied
.fchange ft<lfu The Tuner '9Gitide of 1840~ NO' aclrnowledgment was given: to the Guide which in tutn had copied
s:fllcfrom 'the ..Bedcetand Company of 1809. This plan is still in print by the Vestal Press.
.f 8<:JO the instructions for· tempering the fifths were th~t 'one should reduce· them until you hear ''two· slow and
ct.waves, terminating in one steady, continuous sound." 3 Edwards modified this to read, "reduce the interval
distinct slow waves may be heard. " 4 In other words, in forty years tuners had learned to hear more than two
'While tuning imitationequal temperament... . . .
'·.· · ...·... tuning qfiasi-equaltetnperamen,taccording f() the rule.s of C. A. Edwards, the reader is referred to S~ction 126
o;titlte'ptesentwork. Up<?ll' srudying these rules and ot5serving'their deficiencies, notice also that they foUow the old
ftqnality. No \\'.~Dctt')r C. A. ~d'Yards had great difficulty in trying to eliminate the 'characters of the keys. ' 5
NOTES
':11;'Edwards, Organs and Organ Building, 178.
~.•..•~~ fbid., 177.
· :1: the Tuner's Guide, 10.
4, Edwards, Organs and Organ Building, 177.
·~·,'':~tj:f:,. ISL Also see Section 151 ofthe vresent work~
519
TUNING Q1JASt~ ~LTEMPERAMENT
IN 1880 ACCORDING TO THE RULES BY. B . T. MARTIN
A.
ccording to H. T. Martin, the price of tuning in 1$80 ranged frotn: two to ten dollars. 1 Martin wrote, "Tuners
.. ·sometimes instruct learners to tune certain fifths, slightly sharp, and others a little flat ... but [I (Martin)] ad-
vise you to get all fifths and octaves perfect. " 2 No distinction was made between tempering fifths and tuning octaves.
Beats or waves were not mentioned, The way to properly tune the fifths was to "form in your mind what would be
a perfect fifth ... (or you may sing it), and tune." 3 After closing the circle in the bearing plan, the last untuned fifth
(proof) must be ''a perfect fifth .... If not, you must go over your work and find out your point of departure, or
where you first got a note too sharp or too flat.' ' 4 Martin had faith in human musical instincts eventually accomplishing
the task of tuning quasi-equal temperament but advised, ''Do not expect to accomplish too much at first.'' 5 In another
place Martin wrote, ''Oh! do not be discouraged.... Try! try! again. '' 6
H. T. Martin furnished four bearing plans. The first six notes of the first one were identical to the Viennese method
reported by Johann NepomukHummel in 1829 except for being an octave higher (see Section 111). Martin's second
plan was the same as Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner' s of 1819, except that Martin deleted the unnecessary octave
duplic;ations. Martin's method of deletion produced different results from Geib's second bearing plan of 1869 (compare
Sections 109, 137, and Martin's third bearing plan was a variation of the first, and the fourth was quite similar
to John Marsh's plan published in 1809 which had its roots in the seventeenth century (compare Sections 94 and 157).
Like the Marsh plan, Martin's fourth plan followed.the rules of tonality. These plans are outlined in the Sections 154--157.
NOTES
1. H. T. Martin, Every Woman Her Own Piano Tuner; or, Hints And Aids To Piano Tuning (Beaver Falls, Penn.: H, T.
1880'-81), 4.
2. 19.
3. Ibid., 17. Words in parentheses are Martin's.
4. Ibid., 18.
5. Ibid., 20.
6. Ibid., 15.
the following quarter notes in the order written.
Tune A to
the tuning fork.
Tuned Tuned
before Trial before
! l !
Trial
I~ I
Tuned Tuned
before before .
Trial
1 ! l
~ . il
II
This cdtnpletes the bearing section· from F to B.
NOTE
1. Martin, Ev~ry Woman Her Own Piano Tuner, 17.
THE H. T. MARTIN BE.ARING PLAN NUMBER TW01
Tune C to
the tuning fork.
l
f
ll J J-- -J d;J
J+------J__ -----==1
Tuned
Tuned Trial before
before
Tuned Tuned
before Trial before
l t l
l - -=jJ _~M~-11t-=-~~~
this completes the bearlilg setdori it0:"1 b~~Mip to D.
NOTE
l.. Martin, Ev~ry Woman Her Own Piano Tuner, 19,
15
THE H. T. MARTIN BEARING PLAN NUMBER THREE1
Tune A to
the tuning fork.
Tuned Tuned
before Trial before
l
Trial
! l !
~
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l
Trial
! l
)--
NOTE
TuneCto
the tuning fork.
l
n~ J J J J
3 J
Tuned
Tuned · Trial before
!...:
before
! l -
· ..... !
I~ -~-ii 3 .··-; · #3
Trial
It&' ·. 113 . j ···-i#; TI

Tuned
Tuned Tuned before
before Trial before
! l l
J. !
11~J ~J I~~ II
This. completes the bearlng se~tion from. 0-sftafrp to D.
NOTE
1, Martin, Every Woman Her Own Piano Tuner, 19.
TUNING QUASl-EQUAL·.TEMPERAMEN't
IN 1880 ACCORDING To THE RULES BY CHARLES BABBINGTON
y following these instructions for temperament ''there will be no wolf and no key is more prominent or perfect
than the other .... Fourths may be nearly perfect and the thirds and fifths equally rough." (Did Babbington
actually mean what he wrote here?) When tuning beyond the bearing section, test the major tenths ''which should sound
smooth." (Did Babbington mean smoothly progressing, or did he mean smooth without beats?) In tuning each note
above the bearing section, ''try all chords you know which introduce the note, a key being tuned with its relative minor
and major keys, and practice only can teach you when they are correct." 1
Before beginning the "Fine Tuning," take the action out of the piano. Using an ivory, "chip" the piano to pitch
by using Jean Jousse's bearing plan that was published in 1832. 2 • (See Section 117 for this bearing plan.) Tune the
notes by humming or singing them. 3
Second, put the action back in and rough tune the piano by playing the keys. 4
Third, "fine tune" the piano by using Babbington's bearing plan. 5 Except for one detail, Babbington copied the
bearing plan used by the factory tuners as published by Peltier in America in 1877 (see Section Babbington
made one Instead of tuning the low F or E-sharp from A-sharp at the end of the bearing procedure,
he tuned F near the beginning from middle C. In this way, Babbington's bearing plan was almost identical to
the bearing plan that became most common in the twentieth-century. The only difference was that Babbington tem-
pered G first and F second. Most modern technicians temper F first and G second. bearing is out-
lined in Section 159.)
Interpreting the tuning instructions in Babbington's bearing plan is a problem. If one follows the instructions Iiter-
temperament cannot be the result. There is one just intonation fifth and three intonation
is narrow one that is and two fotirf.hs and one are not
and two seem to be properly tempered. d1e results a crude form of "'"·"<~-•-"•ur•v\Olll«H
modified meantone temperament. Perhaps that is why Babbington wrote that the thirds and fifths were "equally rough";
however, he also wrote that "no key is more prominent or than the other. " 6
Normally, one would assume that these instructions contained errors caused by the "''"""~"'·r"
However, Babbington's book went through several editions, the second of which was in
after the first edition. On comparing the first with the fourth one finds none of the
instructions had been rewritten, although other small changes and improvements had been made. Considering
we must conclude to Charles Babbington; the instructions did not contain errors.
NOTES
l. Babbington, and Repairing rwnnrnn.Ps (1880), 9.
2. Ibid., 4.
3. Ibid., 5.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid., 6.
6. Ibid., 9.
15
''FINE TUNING" BY·CllARLES BABBINGTON IN 18801
Tune C to 512 Hz, "but if for solo playing, and

playing only, at least a quarter of a tone higher.",
l
Tuned
before Tuned
Trial before
"a shade flat"
l
t
"The vibrations are dead"
i
"must be left sharp"
i
"This should be
with the C above. tuned smooth, or as
perfect as possible."
Tuned
before Tuned
"This fourth "should be a "Tune rather flat,

should be perfect." shade rough" but not quite so
perceptible as the
G previously tuned."
i
"roug/l" "must bea
perfect fourth"
"~good
l third"
..·. ·. i
"The F-sharp must now be tuned
rather sharp with the B-natural."
(This is not a printing error.)
Tuned
before
Trial!!
i
"Tune a little sharp."
i
(No instructions were
(This is not a printing error.) given for this note.)
Tuned
befq~
Trials
! Trials
II
i
(No instructions were
given for this note.)
531
The liJst.Art OjNineteenth-Cemury -Temperament.
Tuned
before
l Trials
l~ gs~-~-~1~'- -1- #+-f--==.=-¥-!-'-.~-~~-==---~---+----~~,____- ~1--FJ ----
i
"a perfect fourth"
"The following chords are those used to try the scale after tuning to see if it is playable. On playing each chord,
listen intently, and if incorrect it will soon make itself known.''
~ ._ _ _ _ ; ~=*~---_Jf_~•__f__
-"---f
81=-=l~--u
ll_-_------~
t
This F~ is obviously an error, because
the note E has not been tuned yet.
cmnp1tm~s the twelve note "'"'<•nrm

note from F to also be tried with its and fifths."
NOTE
1. Babbington, Pages 6-10 contain all the quotations used in this section.
- -~-~:::{;;. THE BEARING PLANS OF THE ENGLISHFAC10RY TUNERS IN 18851
"-\"
-""'-~!;-'.~\;,(:
'.Zd'_i~)j;{;
.
T he tuners of the Moore and Moore Company used the bearing plan published by Jean Jousse in 1832 (see Section
117). This was a modern plan condensed to within the octave F to F. Also, it still followed the rules for the
tonality of C major; therefore, if one erred from theoretically correct equal temperament, the 'characters of the keys'
were supported in their proper places.
The tuners of the Broadwood factory used the same bearing plan as the American factory tuners. This was published
in Massachusetts in 1877 by Louis 0. Peltier (see Section 149). This does not follow the rules of tonality for C major
as well as the Jousse plan, but it was also a modern plan condensed to within the octave F to F.
The fact that the English factory tuners were no longer using the higher bearing plan from middle C to the C an
octave above as they did in 1840 shows that they were becoming more concerned about the proper tempering of thirds
and sixths.
NOTE
1. On the Sensations Tone . .. Second 485.
·?;~; ;.fterthe ~iddle o~ th~nb\etieb.!11 cenro.J'Y~ the majo~ity of: piano tech~ieiarts Md. t~e. ~ttitude that ,all fi;f!~sshould
:fi. be tempered as httle and consistently even.a~ possible. Als(), they intended to ehmmate chord shadmg or key-
colotitti~n, However. since most•bftrte wl\itediatonic keys Wefe tempered first and then refined by listening to C and
Q•. tn~jfjr .c~brds for qua)ity, it was f?sychologi~ally very difficqlt not to temper the Q art(} Ochor(!~ slightly more har-
ltJt:>tiillbslY.thati theotedcally•propef~·lt made no ~ifferettc~whether one: used the Jousse ·bearittg platt or the Peltier
bearing planj the firstmajdt third that c()nld be• listened to for testing was a high CE. The fast beats of this third may
have sounded like a bdz2 m nineteenth~century ttfrte'rs~ if they'heard the beats at all·. In any case,, the major third middle
(}to the E above is Vety brilliant. in etiual temperament beca1,lse of its high pitch. It must have been difficult not to
allow theE to be·a·little onthe'flat .side in•orderto improve.the quality of: CE, ·Most of the figuresin Eilis's chart
reflected thfa. tendency .. His chart,: called the '' Speciinens of Tuning in Equal Temperament,'' 1 contained Ellis •s attaly-
s~~ ~(.three,?rgatt tup~rslllld four.piano tuners.Ellis wrote, ''These examples must probably be considered the best
tfiatpian6f6rte tuning by ear can accdfuplisli" in 1885.~'.Tffe"{jresent author thoroughly agrees with Ellis. The figures
f!Q.IDJ~U!~:~ chart.ate ()\l!li!led in Table 1614 i~ ii fowi C:<;>gfo.~jng to the. ustJaltables in the present work .. By compar-
ing this table with Table 101-1 one can see that irithe seve1lt:Ffouryears since 1811 tuners, in general, made significant
improvements in their attempts to tune equal temperament. ,
Table 161-1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes ot

the Seven Tuners Analyzed and Equal Temperament
N0,{~. 0,f Eq11~l !~m~rahlent

..............""'·Y••••.~.....
%·~~~~~~-......
Equal
.
Seven Columns Representing the Tuners
.Pfann 1Ftnre..S•
'3 . 4 . 5
The Deviations in Rounded Numbers
.. Orgaw·Tunen
6 7 8
(.; ilb'.'H~'.¢ Wtd.~e <; 0 + l +6 0 0 + 1 - l 0

B 0 -11 + 2 0 0 - 1 - 1 - l
B-flat 0 -10 + 3 - l - 1 + 5 --: 1 + I
A 0 ...., 6
- 3
+ 2 - 3 - 1 - 2 - 2 0
G~sharp 0 + 5 0 0 + 6 0 0
G 0 0 + 7 + 2 - 4 + 2 +2 0
F-sharp 0 -10 + 2 - 1 - 2 + 1 - 1 0
F 0 - 2 - 3 + 2 0 + 2 - 2 - 1
E 0 - 8 +11 - 5 - l· - 1 - 4 - l
E,-flat 0 - 3 + 5 0 - l - 3 - 2 0
D 0 - 3 0 0 - 1 - 8 0 0
C-sharp 0 - 4 - I 0 + 1 + 1 - 2 0
middle C 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Compare this table with Tables 85-l, 101-l, 109-l, 111-1, 112-1, 117-l, 125-l, 126-1, 127-1, and 141-1.
Colun:m 1 represents the theoretically correct equal temperament .. Column 2 represents Ellis' s personal piano tuner,
·~r·•usnat·roner'' from··Broadwoods.~ EUis let.the piano·'· 1·stand·unused'' fol', two weeks bl.}fore. analyzing it. Columns
.J.i.4,J!U~.?. .f~l;ll'.~S,f?n!~~!ll!:~~.g!~!1. ~....~~.~. ~().S,~J..:. . !f!()a.d\\'()~S,'~~s~tuners,
.. .... '•··· ,, .. ...
" , ,
prepa.red for examination through the kindness
0
clud-
.e. modem pfa110, aitd;3 ~.welt .191<Jw~ :;l~~\~(~1!t,.f:~p~jd"~ti11!i·th~$ . autli911~"•hf!l ce~m:fbat the .. ''best tuners'' as
described. them were truly. the finest tune.rs of:the d~. "
.. {;olumn 6 repr,esen~~"an orgait tuned a week J?reviqu~ty by one of Mr. T. Hill's tuners, andused only once. " 4
9l~ 1 rep~e.~e~ts "~tl. harmonium tuned by one of Messrs. Moore and Moore's tuners, kindly prepared for my
. .•. . ·11a#f,1l, "'~4:·c~!ulnfy~rept"ese:nts "an harmonium, used as a standard of pitch, tuned a year previously by Mr.
, J. Blaikley, by tneans 9f accut"ately c~utl.t~d .beat!i &c., with ·~ constant blast, put at my disposal for examination
~~Mr. Blaikley.hs It must hav~beencttiiterar~in .. · ..... a.t~yone actually "accurately counted beats;"
:.;Ji): J.. BlaiJC!ey \Vflsfln important writer on acoustics. ~ wa~ the manager of Messrs. Bqqsey and Company's Mili-
.: tafy Musical l:nstrriment Manufactory. .
!
Ortly column 8, representing the work of D. J. Blaikley. can be considered an example of a close approximation
to equal temperament. Three of Blaikley'8 toll.es w:ere;eMh one c.ent flat, and one tone w~s one cent sharp. Blaikley
tiiay have u1;ed 1ofie of the pre~Ellis e~ulil~beatiilg ·methods3."fhe reslilf s offiis tuning ate soniewhat like tfiose: in Table
112-1 of the present work. '
\On observing th~ deviations for the note E in the chart, it is obvious that columns two, four, and seven represent
vli}'(ous degreeSl'ofeighteenth-centuzy;\\)ell'.tempetament~ This verifies what the present author h~&always suspected;
that is, roughly half of the late nineteenth:..century tunets were tuning well temperament and calling it equal tempera-
lrient out of ignorance because all the fifths were beating very slowly.
NOTES
!>~i~~oltz, On tht!; SenfatiQns Of Tone . . . Second English Edition, 485.
J.. .lbid.
4. Thid~
5. Thiel
INTERPRETING THE ALEXANDERJOHN ELLIS ANALYSES OF 1885
I f only one out of the seven tuners that Ellis analyzed tuned a real approximation of equal temperament, this indi-
•cates that the style of temperament actually being practiced in the nineteenth century deserves another name uniquely
its own so that it can be discussed and compared with the other styles of temperament practiced. Even though the inten-
tion was equaltemperament, it can no longer be called equal temperament by today's standards. In honor of Alexander
John Ellis (1814-1890) an Englishman who researched and wrote during the Victorian era, we shall call it 'Victorian
temperament.' The Victorian era parallels the years that tuners seriously intended to tune equal temperament but could
only achieve rough, crudeimitations. Alexandrina Victoria (1819-1901) became queen in 1837, around the time that
the first edition of The Tuner's Guide was published. The Tuner's Guide, in all its plagiarized and reprinted editions
under varying titles, remained the most influential textbook for tuners throughout the late nineteenth century. In 1901,
mosttuners still could not tune equal temperament. Fortuning Victorian temperament according to one's own personal
taste, see page 269, and observe the special instructions.
For discovering what the representative Victorian temperament is, the first step is to average the deviations in cents
for each note as tuned the seven tuners that Ellis analyzed. The results are outlined in the following table.
Table 162-1: The Differences in Cents between the Averaged Notes of

the Seven Tuners and
Equal Temperament Deviations in Cents Rounded Figures
C above middle C plus 1.00000 + l cent
B 1 -2
B-t1at 1ninus --1
A minus 1.71429 -2
G plus 1.28571 +l
minus 1.57143 -2
F minus 0.57143 -1
E minus L2857l
D minus 1.71429 -2
middle C zero difference 0
Compare table with Table 101-1 and observe how much tuners in in the <·=,·=~"'-""w
years since 1811.
The second step is to find a closer that columns 3 and 6 from Table 161-1 should be eliminated from con-
siderations of this analysis. The tuners in these two columns did extremely poor work, and it would not be fair to
reputations of the other nineteenth-century tuners to include them. Columns 3 and 6 unfairly the
in column 3 the C to C was stretched six cents wide, the fifth EB was eleven cents narrow
two other fifths were eight and nine cents narrow, four fifths were wide-including one that was seven cents
w 1i1e····-arm the CE cents. wide"···'l-\'ider a third eleven cents
had no of consistency, and no historical
it weren't normal that Ellis revealed for
the accuracy of Enis's In column
.were
ds
'ck
~tij<t1n~fe\l'verti~
"· :' :,: ,wet:4in~tf~tudect
6 E::~~tr" ·:;:? 1~:·'Wf\~r~~~- ·· · ·
' l'able 16~4: J)ilferen~es Cen~~~~~·th~ ~~;taged
The. ill Ne>tes of
t~e. Five B~t Tuners.Analyzed anij Equal. Temperament.
Equal Temperament Deviations in Cents Rounded Figures
c above middle c zero difference 0 cents
B 2.6 -3
B-flat 2.4 -2
A ·111 n ·:.2.4:• -2
G-sharp ·minus 'o.6 -1
G zero difference 0
F-sharp ~!\Y;S. ....i .. s -3
F nlirlus 0.6 -1
E dtiilus 3.8 ~4
E-flat minus 1.2 -1
D minus 0.8 -1
c. .sharp minus 1.0 -1
middle C zero difference 0
Compare this table with Table 162~1.

A closer truth can still be discovered. The piano tuned by Ellis's personal "usual" Broadwood tuner represented
in column 2 from Table 161-1 was not analyzed until the tuning was two weeks otd. In this two weeks, B-flat obviously
slipped by seven and one-half cents. This is verified by Ellis.'s analysis which showed that the fifth E-flat B-flat was
11.ine cents narrow while the fifth.B-flat F was six cents wide, a considerable amount. Not only is it unlikely that Ellis's
tuner would have tempered a fifth by as much as nine tent's but it is inconceivable that he would have tempered any
fifths wide, especially byas much as six cents. Obyiqq~JY.» the ~ones B and F-sharp both slipped fQurcents. The octave
was one cent wide, but the upper C can be disregarded. We are concerned about temperament, not octave stretch.
Concerning column 4, there is an obviOus unintended error. The fifth EB was reported to be three cents wide while
the fifth BF-sharp was reported to be three cents narrow. No doubt, both fifths were originally pure. Also, the Ellis
figures .stated that the fifth E-flat B.-:flat was three cents narrow while .the fifth B~ flat F was one cent wide .. Therefore,
11:-fl.~t had slipped two cents~ . .· · . ·
Concerning column 5, the tone G obviously slipped three and one-half cents. Ellis wrote that the fifth CG was six
cents· narrow while thefifth·.GD was.onewcent wide, Coll11mi.,.S.representt"1vwe.piano technician whg. came closest to
~m@QuaJ temperament,Itismostun1ikely tfuit.he . would . have tempered any fifth by as much as six cents. It is
also unlikely that he. would haye had any wide fifths. Ellis analyzed the fifth BF-sharp to be four cents narrow and
the fifth F-sharp c . sharp to be one cent wide. Therefore; F~sharp slipped by two and one...half cents.
The conclusion is: that seve1ttohl?S' ltaCf;sllJ)Jtcd befotethe ana:tysis was fmished:·By correcting these tones in columns
2, 4, and 5, the figures for fifths and fourths are weighted more toward modern equal-tempered fifths and fourths.
Certainly for the year 1885 this could not be judged objectionable. Following are two corrected tables based on the above.

the Five Jfest Tuners after Correctio~s Were Made and Equal Temperament.
Equal Five Columns Representing the Tuners
Temperament Piano Tuners Organ Tuners
Column Numbers 1 2 4. 5 7 8
Notes of Equal Temperament The Deviations in Rounded Numbers
C above middle C +I 0 0 -1 0
B -7 -3 0 -1 -1
B-tlat -2.5 +1 -l -1 +1
A -6 -3 -1 -2 0
G-sharp -3 .Q 0 0 0
G 0 +2 -0.5 +2 0
F-sharp. . ~6 """'l +0.5 0
continued
·"""··
537
1'ahle 162-4: The Differences in ·cents Between the Averaged Notes of
.the Corrected Five Be~t Tu~.e~ ~~~·~~ed ~md Jj:qu~ Temperament.
· Equal Temperament p~~iati;;'~~~l'· Cent$ • • Rounded Figure~
C above nii:ddle C •zero difference 0 cents
B mim1s 2.4 -2
tt::flat ·. · minmr'.• o.5 -1
A mHitis 2.4 -2
G·sha:rp minus 0.6 -1
G plus. 0:.7 . +l \
li'-spa:rp.. minus J.5 -2
•.F .. minus. ().6 -1
triinus 3.8 . -4
~ ·. .
E~flat mibqs' l.2 -1
rwf!.ils .o: g -1
ij.• ·.... ·\ mifiis ·1.0 -l
c~sha'tP .
ffiittate:~ ·. •ztt~C:li(ference 0
~onttxir~ t1Jis taofo)¥i!fi'.fahle~ 1~~~1 •• a~d't62-'.f

. ··. · .·· . . .. . . .. . . .
l'h~~~~vfJ~ble i~ ~.accurat~ fepr~s~11:ta~6n°'~nvetaged'f88'5 temperament. It wm be used as a basis.for discover-
iljg)~e f~pre~~nta'tiv~ E:Jfltfotlel VietoHan teniperamenL It rs weighted on one side by column 2 which is in strong
eighteenth-century temperament ami on the other by column 8 which represents an experimental scientific testing in-
strument used as a standardof pitch guide in equal temperament. From this table the following table was calculated.
,,,-,v\w--· \%N'"'t"-w:%,A.%u· .· JSUit~,.,,:f"'' ·,·, •• :<~,~u'!\hi\'i.''l"""'-":IY;;;,""¢~~>~~;~ v· ,, ~.' ·.~\.' '''';\~NfV:f;ri;jl\i#,0w>0&1;0.Vli}.40,iif;'.Uf';::;<">'~".::t'1·3\::;\r·.;f.:"1.1ffih.f~~~/µ~j, Lf"Qzy·\::\;%;:.;>·· ,., ·+YAY'Ke'\'%Wi!B#Wffe:~4.1.,-;~i;vh: ::•> ":,, .'. ·r. :.. .'-'.·»/J
0
''. ' •" '', ·' '.c,,,"'·1 \\.,.... ,
"''ft6fl'fl?~J: tWt 4
t:ents of thl! Fifths 'SfZes m
•Taken· from the ·corrected and Averaged Five Best Ellis Tuners.
'l'l\e, li1~~b~> •.... l)~, Sb;e$. in1C.ent$
FC 100.6
ll-flatF 699 ..9
E-flat B-flat 700.7
A~ tJl\!.1~~.flati~ 1• 699.4
C~sha:rp G-sha:rp 700.4
F-sharp C-sharp 700.5
BF-sharp 700.9
EB 701.4
AE 698.6
l}A 698.4
an 698.5
CG 700.7
· · ··:·· ifft~·'¥fiove··ta:ble··1s 'easy fo inteij>ref:TtTs o6vfous tfiat three· of the fifths· were <lf <lne .·size and the nine remaining
flfthsiwere ilf anoihit< size, 1hus. the three sma1Ier fifths averaged. 698.5 ·~ents in size, and the nine larger fifths averaged
. . . ' >'100''.5''i:~iif§ fo s.IZ~~"Trfi'S:'."men,·is tlie Was~1 Uie6fY t'Jftlf!"~!m'ltati've Vietmtan:temperarnent. In general or superfi-
' . . .. itm~nl.fifth~, N9, W,.Q!l~~r. ninetem~:-~SnJt.l~~m~~ic,jans were
f:''!flfe"'!e'oti'Stl~M1 1malys:fg·an~'tuning of this+Vi~torian t~mperament
t i.>'.,..;'o_,,, -~/.,~· J·.'<,'\"§,',(.;:.,;,.;.:;.:j; J•:'.t';"f~ t,,·'.~.'.:L•, c''
Table 16~-6: R,epres,~ntative Vi<;torian Temperament;
or, the Moqre and; Moore {?qmpany. Temperament in Idealized Form.
Major Thirds sit~~ in Cents I Cents Wide from Just.
CE 396 9.68629
GB 396 9.68629
~~
DF-sha~ 11'.6&629
AC~sharp 13.6S629
BO-sharp 402 15.68628
BD-sharp 402 15.68628
F-sliarp A-sharp 402 15.68628
D-flat F 402 15.68628
A-flat C 402 15.68628
E-tlaf 0 402 15.68628
B-flat D 400 13.68628
FA 398 11.68629
Compat~ this table with Table 128-2. Also compare it with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1,
59-1, 61-2, 69:..1, 71-2, 75-1, 77-1, 79-2~ 87-1, 89-2, 115-l, 122-2, 123-2, and 124-2.
The large§t thirds
the same size AC1t

the same si;z:e DF#

1 flat and 2 sharps
$·
0
~
the same size ,s..
~ <o~
. CE GB ~9 .
~v.O~o0·
The smallest thirds
Figure 162-1~ T.he Form of Representative Victorian Temperament or the Moore and Moore Company Temperament.
. '!h.!~f?rm is aJ~~.~! .. ~~"~U:~!s:al. t? !h~! . ?f. S.har,les E~rl §!!~h,?}.'e inFigure 77-1. . .. .. . . . .
Compare with:Figures~n-J, 24~1;,26,..h 3g..1, 40-1, 46~1,; 51-1, 57-1, 69-..1, 71-1. 75-1, 79:..t, 8.7-I, .&9~1. 115-1,
and 122-1.
TUNING TIIE REPRESENTATIVE VICTORIAN
(MOORE AND MOORE COMPANY) TEMPERAMENT OF 1885
The original Moore and Moore bearing plan is used. All the test intervals and beat frequency figures were added by
the present author. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
TuneCto Tuned
standard pitch. Tuned before
l 0.7
-l 1.2 0.7
l
it±f·--t-f-ZZt--1""'-----~-1~f;-
__JJ++-tr-l""--=--
3-+-.~-~~1f~-=--f-~==i~ [_J] __
i i i
Flatten Flatten
i Flatten
Tuned
before
1.8 1.8 1.3 1.2

0.7 10.0
--
-=---
Flatten
r .11f
rn.o t.8
g:
~,.Jt~rf f r f Ir
B
f=.
t
Flatten
Tuned
!
before Tuned
er l
befure
11.2 10.0
tt.
r
0.6 0.7 9.6 10.0
Jltl = = r 'r 1f f 11 1 1 1~ r ~~ 11 1
====- i -===== -===== i
Flatten Flatten
· Tuned
before
l
· ·e· · ·. ,,. • r m ~~
0.5 1.2 . 8.7 7.3 16.4 112
n~xtf ~f~t 11
= .i
Flatten
Tuned
before
0.7 0.7 °·8 9.4 8.7 11.2 12.3 16·4 l

MfJ=f tr f 1'= ~, 1e #@ !f 11r r
t
, , ' ,, ''"''''"''"'
Sharpen
8.7 <>.2 '>.4
0.6 0.6 8.4
lbE ~E 1l bb~ ~I. t ~r

t
····Sharpen
Tuned
before
Proof
U.2 B.8 16.4 . 0.8 0.5
b~f ,~ ~1
i =--
Temper Eb from both Ab. and Bb
. ··. sO.'ffilltiilief'ourtit\'W~~'6eats oil~~*a:~~:fiart' times· Mfast as the
fifth A~ E~. B~ E~ must be wide; and Ab E~ must be narrow.
0.5 0.8 0.8
qJ
0.5 1.2 0.7 11.2 1).4
u~Hf ~t 1~¥ ~ I~
~··
f ?f
0.6 .0:.9
"t
TeWtietF from both B~ and C
sb that the fourth C F beats one anit one-half times as fast as
thefifthB~ F. CFmustbewide,andB~ Fmustbenarrow.
Equal beating
10.3 0.5 0.6 0.8 0.9
r
1.2 1.8
1~1 f f 1f
10.3
lltl:f ~r f
12:6 9.2 10.3 ' 15.3 15.5
. 11.2 13.8
11~=~ ~ I~ ~ I
~~~ ~~ ~ II
Narrow fifths
0.0 0.6 D
0.4 0.5 0.5 1.2
)!tI F If ~, lp f ~r f
' Wide fourths
1.8
0.6 0.7
·~t"··· . • re. .~~

Wide major sixths
6.3 10.3
n?f'
Narrow minor thirds
15.3 15.5 16.4

10.0 11.2 13.8
~ ~
11.6 12.3
~~~ ~¥
9.6 10.3
n~:I~ ~ ~~~ ~· ~~. ~~ tt

This ~Qw,pletes tli~ bea!i~g st,:ction fl'Otll F to F.

Repr.;sent1dive Victorian ~oore and Moore) Temperament and Equal (Temperament.
Equal Temperament Representative Victorian ~oore and Moore)
A zero difference
Q;~V! plus 0.5 cent
0 plus
F~sliarp minus 0.5
F plus 2.0
E minus 1.5
E-flat plus l.O
D plus 1.5
C-sharp zero difference
c plus 2.5
B minus 1.0
.e~nat plus 1.5
Compare this table. with Table 129-1.

Also compare with Tales 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61~1. 70-1, 71-1, 76-1, 78-1, 79-1,
88-1, 89'-1, 116-1, 122-1, 123-1, and 124-1.
The figures in the above table do not match those in Table 162-4 or Table 161-1, column 7, mostly because these
tables were calculated from the note C rather than A as in the above.
Th~··#ifths )z~inCeqts
FC 702
B-flat F 700.5
:E-flat B-flat 700.5
A-flat E-flat 700
c~sharp Gsharp 701
F~sfttlfp C-shtlfp 702
BF~sharp 701
EB 701
AE 698
DA 697
.GD 697
CG 700
Notice that two of the fifths were in just intonation .. Everyone in 1885 knew that all fifths should be narrow. There-
fQte,, it would be more authentic to narrow these two fifths by one cent each and then distribute the excess two cents
a111()ng the other fifths involving the black keys. In this way, each of the eight fifths at the top become an exact 701
cents in size. There is no reason to change the sizes of the lower four fifths. The tuning according to this theory is
outlined on the following pages.
It·is clea~that this ''usual'' Broadwood tuner was tuning a typical eighteenth-century well temperament and then
calling it equal temperament. His temperament was· reminiscent of the first wen· temperament outlined in this work
in Table 20-1. Many parts of it were almost identical to the idealized representative well temperament tuned by Thomas
'fo~g 's rules outlined in TabJe. 71-Z. Tht1 genet1ll sound of this temperament is indistinguishable from the well tempera-
ment by Jean-Le RondJ)' Alembert outlined on wiges 205~13 of this book. D'Alembert lived from 1117 to 1783, and
b~Qul>,l!sbe4 the tilll!ng rules in 1752. J'e!b~ps this was th~ b~sis of Ellis's statement that "tuners of the piano some-
times still intentionally tune unequally, and hence mak¢ the effect of A and A-flat really very different. " 1
Interpreting the Ellis analyses continues on wige 552.
Table 163-3~ Victorian Temperament as Tuned by a "Usual" Broadwood Tuner.

Major Thirds· Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 39l. 5;68629
GB 39:3 6.68629
DF-sharp 397 10.68629
AC-sharp 401 14.68629
EG:-sharp .404 17 .686l9
BJ>.sharp 404 17.68629
F-sharp A-sharp 404 17.68629
D-flat F 404 17 .68629
A-flat C 404 17.68629
E-t1at G 403 · 16.68629
B-flat D 399 12.68629
FA 395 8.68629
CE 392 5.68629
Compare this table with Tables 57-I and 71-2. Also, compare with Tables 20-1, 24-1, 26-1, 39-1, 40-2, 46-1, 51-1,
59-1, 61-2, 69-1, 75-1, 77-1, 79-2, 87-1, 89-2, 115-1, 122-2, 123-2, 124-2, and 162-6.
FA
GB
06
. •lj
The smallest third
Figure 1CS3-l: The .Form of Vtctoi:ian Temperament Tuned by a "UsuaIH Broadwood Tuner.
Compare with Figures 2()..1, 24-1. 26-1, 39-1, 40-1; 46..:t, 51-1, 5?-1, 69-l, 71-1, 75-1, 77-1, 79-1, 87-1, 89-1,
11s.:1, 122-1. and 162:.i.
NOTE
1. Helmholtz, On: the Sensations Of Ton~ ... .. Secom[ Englfs~ Edition, 552.
,:rp~
original bearing plan is used. All the test intervals and beat frequency figures were added by the pre~ent author.
Test interval
(Figures denote
TuneCto beats per, second) Tuned
l
Tuned
before
l l 1.7 l
r r
0.9 0.9
~l~Jr r rf II 1f E 11t f
i i = i
Flatten Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
Equal beating
2.5
l 1.5 4.3 4.3
,r r r
1.7 0.9 7.3 1.7 7.3
11t1 P f. E 1r 1 r f II
i -=====
Flatten
Tfie, Lost A.ti Of Nine+teenth-Century Temperament
Tuned
before
o.s 4.3 9.9 7.3

0.9
-======-
Flatten
Tuned
before
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
before
0.3
1.5
9.3
4.3 17.8
1
--=--==== i
Flatten
0.5 17.8
)~-~0.4 -=-3---1""'-~.. =-·tF-~~· t~* -~[=]

---.f'i'J-l-W,---0.5
-------
i --= =--
Flatten
Tuned
before
16.8 17.8 0.5 0.5
1 #f
13.3 0.5
112:#& 14f #·~

Flatten
i '
4.3 8.6 15.0 16.8
9.3 10.6
~
9.5 11.9 13.3
pP~
9.9
n~= ~ ~ ~
bb& ~! 11~ b~ f&
~ •• <''h'U'i>f'~"'"'' .,
II
Tuned
before
l 0.4
Proof
0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4
bi Ibf F If i'f Ibf ~~ A

Temper F frQlll both Bb and t S() that the fourth F B ~ beats 33.5%
faster that the fifth F C. F B~ must be wide and F C must be narrow.
549
. . . . .· • . . . .. . ..· 4 4
U 0
#.· .· · . .. . . .·
lM
9.9 .· 1 1.2 . l L9
i~·}: f.~1~•
.• .• ~--r-bf~ Jfcj--------i-H,g gm_t[_ti
Tuned
before
Equal beating
~
0.4 0.6 11.2 0.3 0.4 1.5
,t raf 11.2
~~ ~~ ~ ~~
i
Temper F from both B~ and C so that the fourth CF beats one and one-half
times as fast as the fifth Bb F. CF must be wide and Bb F must be narrow.
14.2 11.2 13.8
f---fi-.. !~41
Narrow fifths
0.0 0.4
Wide fourths
05 0.6
jf2=i~- 1qi .1i-c;f__1__ H ! __i_~~~

Wide major six.tbs
4.3 11.2
6.9
1::-larrow minor thirds
13.8 16.8 17.8
r U~f 1 #'
7.3 9.9 15.0
r
9.9 11.2 11.9 13.3
rr u& .. ~q& II
This· cothpletes the .bearin~ section from F. to F.
Victorian Temperament as 'l'uned by a: ''Usual" Broadwood Tuner and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temperament A "Usual,, Broadwood Tuner
A zero difference
g-sh:;u-p ~}~;\,v,,~ C:ents
p:::snarp zero difference
F p~ 5
E · minus 2
~-Oat plus 3
D plus 3
c~sharp plus l
C ~u 6
a minus 1
B-flat plus 4
Compare this table with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-1, 70-1, 71-1, 76-1, 78-1,
79-1, 88-1, 89-1, 116.:}, 122-1, 123-1, 124-1, 163-1.
Orte of the "best tuners'' from Broadwoods who tuned Victorian temperament is represented in column 4 from
Table . l(jl.,1. After . the two correctionsweremade;.the conditions of.the.fifths became as follows:
Table l.6~-2: The Size$ in Cents of' the Fifths

Taken ft:om the Corrected Tuning from EUisis. ColuJiln Four.
the Fifths Sizes in Cents
CG 702
FC 698
B-flat F 701
E-flat B-flat 701
A-flat E-flat 700
C-sharp G·sharp 700
F-sharp C-sharp 70 I
BF-sharp 702
EB 702
AE 698
DA 697
GD 698
CG 702
Observe that three fifths were in just intonation. This was not intended. Everyone in 1885 acknowledged that all
fifths should be narrow. Examination of the patterns reveals that the fifth FC was quite out of order with its contiguous
neighbors, a just fifth and a nearly just fifth. In this case, it appears that C itself had slipped by two cents before the
temperament was finished. Correcting this problem causes FC and CG to both be 700 cents in size. The remaining
two just intonation fifths can easily be adjusted in the same manner as was done for the "usual" Broadwood tuner;
that is, they are each reduced by one cent, and this excess is then assigned to the smallest fifths involving the black keys.
After these adjustments are made, seven fifths are 701 cents in size, two fifths are 700 cents in size, and the three
fifths GD, DA, and AE are left unchanged. AH of these changes altered the temperament to be closer to equal tempera-
ment. For the year 1885, this should not be objected to. The three fifths GD, DA, and AE were essential for determin-
ing the color and character temperament. Since these three fifths were never corrected or altered and since they
are still exactly in the same condition that Ellis found them, we can state that the spirit of the temperament has not
been changed by this editing. Thei tempeniment is outlined on the following pages.
It is clear that this "best" Broadwood tuner tempered in a manner very similar to the "usual" Broadwood tuner.
The only difference between the two was that the "best'' tuner had a shade less color contrast. (Compare Tables 163-3
and 164-3.) Like the "usual'' Broadwood tuner, the "best" tuner sounded very similar in his work to the temperament
of Jean-Le Rond D' Alembert from 1752.
Interpreting the Ellis analyses continues on page 559.
Table lM-3: Victotiaia Te11nmera1me1r1t as Tuned by a "Best" Broadwood Tuner.

Major. Thirds Sizes in Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 393 6.68629
GB 394 7.68629
397 10.68629
AC-sharp 401 14.68629
EG-sharp 404 17.68629
BD-sharp 404 17.68629
F-sharp A-sharp 404 17.68629
D-flat F 404 17.68629
A-flat C 403 16.68629
E-flat G 402 15.68629
B-flat D 399 12.68629
FA 395 8.68629
CE 393 6.68629
Compare this table with Tables 163-3, 57-1, and 71-2. Also, compare with Tables , 24-1, 26-1, 39-1,
, 59-1, 61-2, 69-1, 75-l, 77-1, 79-2, 87-1, 89-2, 115-1, 122-2, 123-2, 124-2, and 162-6.
FA
GB
CE
iJ
The smallest third
Figure 164-1: The Form of Victorian Temperament Tuned by a "Best" Broadwood Tuner.
CQmpare with Figures 20-1, 24-1. 26-1, 39-1, 40-1, 46-1, 51-1, 57-1, 69-1, 71-1, 75-1, 77-1, 79-1, 87-1, 89-1,
H5-l, 122-1, 162-1, and 163-1.
'.>\_J
:a~R IN 1885.
'+;;·:.'· ,.. .· F'·,., '
-· .
The original bearing plan is ~~~;,All the ~~~,t intervals and beat frequency figures were added by the present author.
Tune the following quarter notesd11.the 6rder written.
Test interval
(Fi~~res denote
TuneCto beats pei second) Tuned
standard pitch. Tuned before
l l before
1
\r
.M 1.3 0.9
.u~:f . ;r. : f 11r r

i t = i
Flatten Flatten
i
Flatten
2.5 1.3 1.5 1.3 4.9 5.1

0.9 8.1
r r3
i
Flatten
Tunect
before Tuned
before
l 0.4
0.5
to.<>
9.9
l #f
!i!>= ~ 111~ f ~ 11 11r
'ri I'~
i
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
before
Q3 \.3 1 %>" ' SJ 17.S 10 0
#.
n~=rf 1!f 1r 11#t #
f 1!f f r
-=- i
Flatten
0.5 17.8
0.5 10.0 9.3 13.3
10.0
~, #f
~f f ?f
I 1
1 r #& II
555
-========
Tuned
before
l 0.5 0.5
0.5
11t 1#f If
t
Flatten
5.1 8.6 15.0 15.9

9.3 10.0
~
9.5 11.2 13.3
b~ #q~ b~~
10.0
11~: ! ~. ··~ b~~ ~~ I!
Tt11ted
before
Proof
1 0.4 0.6 .
0.3
~ 0.6 1.J
0.4 0.4
11&:bf r 1uf F· 1~=F F f Ibf ~f i

·=
i
Note:·
The fourth F B~ must
be wide: rum beat at
a slower spee<l th~
~~'~:f;~~<:)'.
Tuned
before
.equal beating
! 0.4 1.2 11.2 0.3 0.4

0.6
11 f f
11.2
If l
~
l!truf
- .:=
t
Temper
i
Note~
The fourth C F must
be wide and beat three
times as fast as the
narrow fifth B~ F.
1.2
0.9 2.5
13.3
II
Check the following intervals. as a final test within the F to F octave.
Narrow fifths
0.0 0.4 1.5

0.3 0.3 0.6 1.3
i1t>= F 1 !f #f f wf
1 ~r f
Wide fourths
05 12
.-----+--·---;~-+----,;~4-+-"i-'~-i~~·!~rn¥:~····~~···~~t~·:~- +- -f --1
\1Vide majot sixths
4.9 11.2
6.9
. '.
Narrow: minor thirds

13.8 15.9 17.8
8.1 9.9 15.0
11.2 · 13,3
~ b~~ ¥ tt'=
10.fr 11.2
n~= ~ ~. ~·~ ~~·~ b~ f~ II

Tb.is completes the. bearing section from F to F.
. Table 165-1: The Differences in Cents between the Notes· of
Victorian Temperan,ient as TUne.d by ~ "Best" Broadwood Tunet and E,qual Temperament.
Equal'tempetameH~ ··.<\.''Best'' Broadwo<td TUner
A zero difference
G-sharp plus 2 cents
pltf"g'"'"'''1'"5''···
···· ···*Pi.isfu'tl:p zero difference
F plus 5
B minus 2
E~flat plus 3
D plus 3
·C-sharp. plus 1
c plus 5
B minus 1
B~flat plus 4
"''''' ,'' ',,,\<',"' ,, '
. <:;onjp11rethis table :with Tables 22-1, 25-1, 27-1, 40-1, 41-1, 47-1, 52-1, 58-1, 60-1, 61-t, 70-1, 71-1, 76-l, 78-1,
79~1, 88-1, 89-1, 116-1, 122-1, 123-1, 124-1, 163-1, .and 164-1. ·
'''ii;'i?"
~nother one of the "best" tuners from Broadwoods tuned a quasi-equal temperament. He is represented in
cblumn 5> from Table 161-1. After the two corrections were made, the conditions of'the fifths became as follows:
Table 166-1:. The Sizes in Cents of the Fifths

Taken from the; Corrected Tuning from l!:Jlis•s Column Five.
< ,' ',\
The Fifths Sizes in Cents

FC 700
B-flat F 701
E-flat B~flat 700
A-flat !!-flat 699
esMrv o~sflarp 699
F-sflarp C-sharp 700.5
·•BF-sflaip 7005
EB 701
AE 700
DA 700
GD 699.5
CG 699.5
. . Tltereis no question that the tuner•tet>resented in~olumn~·.was tuning.ai;close1approximationof equalt~mperament.

• MN•N:Na 17attem for organized·key..coleratian•e1ilsted. This· tuning can be taken as an example of the vecy finest intended
equaltemperament that existed up through 1885 on pianos. The present author suspects that the great Alfred James
Hipkbts himself may have been the tuner represented here, Except for the organ tuner D. L Blaikley, the tuner in
column 5 was. techni~ally and phUosophicnlly as far from the ·styles and workman:ship: of the other five tuners analyzed
as it would be possible to be. In any case, column 5 represents the only piano that was tuned in anything resembling
equal temperament. U was Hipkins who had promoted the idea of equal temperament thirty-nine years earlier in the
Broadwood Factory. According to the revelations from Eilis's analyses, Hipkins must have failed in getting equal tem-
perament established with most tun~ts'•
·There is no purpose ill constructing a set of tuning directions on how to imitate the sounds of the tuner represented
in column 5. the temperament would: sound modern except for some roughness here or there. However, for the in-
terests of study on ttow good this particular tuning was in 1885, the following calculations are furnished.
Table 166-2: Quasi~equatTemperament as 'lbned by a "Best" Broadwood Tuner.

(From the cents valueR given.in 1,'able· 1.66-1, the following frequencies of
beats per second were calculated based on C at modern standard pitch.
The decimal placeR were retained for purposes of study.)
Beats of Major Thirds Beats of Minor Thirds
FA... . .12.84252 DP 14.82998
EG-sharp C-sharp E 16.87065
"''~~!t~;:;· CE,.fiat· 1~.016:ZS.
c.q11tinutid
.<14fi~396
1~.~9~0
11.10993
1t.205J~4
AC-sharp
at 1u:Mm9
F-sharp·A 10.93909
A-flat C FA-flat 9.42295
GB EG 8.60604
F-~~arp A-sharp D-sharp F-sharp 7.58872
FA .. DP 7.41499
• Table t6'i~J: Tile Dfrferellc~ in C~rtf'S between the Notes of

.Qbasi-equal Tetnperatnent.as Tuned by a "BeSt" Broadwood Tuner and Equal Temperament.
Equal Temper~ent A "Best" Brqadwood Tuner
A.•. zer() differen<;e
G-sharp. plus 1 cent
0 plus 0.5
F-sharp plus 1.5
F pl1;1s .... 1
E zero difference
E-flat zero. difference
D zero difference
C-sharp plus 2
C · plus 1
B ~ 1
B-flat zero difference
Compare thi~ table with.Table~ 101.. 1, 109-1, 111-1, 112-1, 117-1, 125-1, 126.-1, 127-1, and 141-1.
THE NEw··E<Jl1AVBE~TtNGMErHon
BY ALEXANDER JOHN ELLIS IN 1885
I n 1885 it was obvious that very few tuners counted beats with any precision. "But it is only by beats that we
can work effectively," wrote Alexander Ellis. 1 There still was no universal standard of pitch in 1885, so Ellis
wrote,
What is required is a method of tuning at any unknown pitch which an organ or piano may happen to possess at the
moment within the limits of, say, C 1 256 and C' 270 without determining exactly what that pitch really is. This would
save the great trouble of entirely altering the pitch of the piano (never very certain in its results), and the still greater
trouble and expense of entirely altering the pitch of an organ or harmonium. 2
In other words, all the beat frequency numbers for the exact mathematically correct equal temperament that had been
published by theorists since 1810 were worthless and impracticable except for the exact theoretical starting pitches
from which the figures were calculated; therefore, what were needed were universal rules for tuning imitations of
temperament that could be applied at any reasonable pitch.
Ten years earlier, in 1875, Ellis had proposed an equal-beating method that fulfilled these requirements Sec-
tions 140-141 of the present work). In 1875, Ellis based his bearing plan on the ancient circle of fifths and octaves
as by William Holder in 1694. In 1885, Ellis published a new equal-beating method based on the modern
L. 0. Peltier bearing plan of 1877 used in the piano factories. 3 (Compare Sections 149 and 168.)
In comparing Tables 140-1, 140~2, and 141-1, with Tables 167-1, 167-2, and 168-1, one can see that Ellis's new
equal-beating method was not as close to as was his old method from 1875. Nevertheless,
the new method utilized the modem fourths The modern allows for more accurate
and faster because octaves are not tuned the octave FF was tuned
the bearings were finished.
After finishing the bearing section, octaves were to be tuned up and down the piano. The fourth-fifth test for the ratio
4 to 2 octave had been known since . Ellis two more octave tests that were used for ratio 8 4 and
ratio 6 to 3 octaves. 4 (All three octave tests are listed on the following pages.) The test intervals used for intona-
tion octaves must be out-of-tune or to an easy or convenient number of beats per to
to. Ellis made no mention that one must to the coinciding and nearly coinciding harmonics when applying these
tests. He also did not that 8:4, 6:3, and 4:2 octaves were each of different sizes on because of 'inharmo-
(q.v.) and that on pianos the harmonics of various just intervals will coincide at only one location for each ratio.
Proof that the verification tests for fourths and fifths were still unknown in 1885 is found in the last of
Ellis 's Article 11. 5 Ellis stated that it was impossible to determine by ear whether a very slowly u<0<nrn11;;
was narrow or wide. Tuners now know that for testing whether a fifth is wide or narrow, one needs to
sixth-major tenth test or the minor third-major third test. For testing whether a fourth is wide or narrow, one
to apply the third test. Ellis not furnish the latter information. For this see Section
227 of the work.
Regardless of the equal-beating information that Alexander Ellis gave to the tuning profession, tuners still were
not able to tune temperament in 1885. The primary reason for this was the basic belief con-
''"'TTlrnm beat Ellis wrote:
beats of all kinds most easy !o c9:1111t when 5

Above 5 too for 2, so that
is p.vf·r"'rr'""' difficult to from of the swell of sound the beat
There is beating at th.e
~ere ls no beating locations of the nearly
01
at th~ toc~ti(ln th~ · •. coinciding h~onicS of
·· c~incidi11g hltffil~!li~~ • · out-of-turte or t~mpered
ofajust ~~rv~•. iiitervats,
l
it'''yiJJ ;i" ',s-f.Je~,,"
r···
r
Ajust8:4
A pair olfompered test
intervals that beat at
ell.11.ctlJ,M.he. same speec}
apd U11mifore prove that.
octa'\'e
the oetave being tested
is. in j\ist Intonation.
There ls beating at the

There is no beating locations of th.e nearly
····~~{~~~crli\<tsof:•·····
· ou..Of~tune or tempered
intervals.
A pall: gf tt')ropered, test

exactly the same speed
dtl'tt!~prove that
the oda\ie being tested
·· · ··:t~:1ll.l\l$l'il!tblfatiort~·
•
i
Ajust4;2
A pair of tempered test
exactly the same speed
octave and therefore prove that
the octave being tested
is injust intonation.
Table 167-1: The New Equal-beating Temperament by Alexander John Ellis.

Major Thirds Sizes in. Cents Cents Wide from Just
CE 400.30420 13.99048
GB 400.76007 14.44635
DP-sharp 400,19002 13.87631
AC-sharp 400.28179 13.97008
BG-sharp 399.77548 13.46177
BD-shatp 399.85860 13.54488
F-sharp A-sharp 400.34099 14.02727
D-flat F 399.73653 13.42282
A-flat C 399.92032 13.60661
E:flatG .3~~M§J~~7· 13.0<f!62
B~fll\tQ 399.46~99 13.15528
FA 399.97968 13.66596
Compare this table withj'ahles 99-3.• 108-2. HQ-1. 112-2, 117-2, 1is-2, 126-2, 127-2, and 140-1.
The above table is theory. In practice, the results would have been more like the results in Table 162-6 based on Ellis
in 1885.
Table 167-2: The New Equal-beating Temperament by Alexander John Ellis.

(This table was calculated at standard pitch whereby middle C is 261.625565 Hz.)
Beats per Second
Minor Sixths and Major Thirds Minor Thirds and Major Sixths
AF 13..83773 DF 15.83773
G-sharp E 12,86784 C-sharp E 14.86784
GE-flat 11;78910 CE-flat 13.78910
F-sharp D 11.81586 BD 13.81586
FD-flat F 10.78849 B-flat D-flat 12.78849
middle CE 10.61410 AC 11.81410
BD-sharp 9.70088 G-sharp B 10.90088
B-flat D 8.89182 GB-flat 10.09182
AC-sharp 8.91190 F-sharp A 10.11190
ct.ntinuen
563
Compare this table wifhl'able 140..:l.
•.· Th~ ~b9Y€ll. table isth~~FY· In. J;lf~~ti£e, the results would have been more like the results on pages 543-44 or at
best the .results in Tabfe;i)~(f;-2
~~:
Ms¢9.on. lallis
·"" .,, '/• '· ''. _.,. <>
in 1885.
.. - NOTE~···.
k Hehntfoltz, On the SenslJ,iions Of Tone. . SecondEngflsh Ediiion, 488.
2. Ibid. .
3. Ibid,. 489.
4. Ibid., .491.
5. Ibid., 489.
6. Ibid .• 444.
. . . IN188S
BY USINGALEXANDERJ. EILIS'S N'EW EQUAL~BIATING RULES
s+'
· , }The original bearing plan is used. Ellis instructed that all fifths must beat three times in five seconds and that all fourths
beat once per second or five times in five seconds. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
Test interval
TuneCtq (Figures denote
any pitch between · beats pet second) Tuned
before
l
256 and 270.4 Hz. Tuned
l
before
l 1.0
1 0.6
:Utl= r r 1F II r r 1f II r r
j
Hatten·
t
Hatten
i
Hatten
Tuned
Tuned before
l
®fore
l.O
1 0.6 1.0
n~= ~ II r
~ 1f II~ ~· 1F II
f
Flatten
i
Hatten
~.•·Lost Art . Of Ninerei;Jnth-Century ·rempi-rameflt
Tuned
Tuned before.
before
1.0
l 0.6 1
#p
l~ ~ -+---.___,__!~f --L~ _---l-'-1 ft------------~-A
i Flatten
i Flatten
Tuned
before Tuned
Proof before
1.0
i
Flatten
i
Ifa C fork at modem standard pitch was used,
i
Tune
the fifth F C will beal 0.6 times per second, just
or more accurately, 0.57432 times per second.
This completes the. bearing section from F to

Eiiis's New Equal-beating Temperament and Equal Temperament.
(This table was calculated. from A as a basis when a C fork at standard pitch is used.)
Equal Temperament New Equal-beating Rounded Figures
plus 0.15585 0
G minus 0.17598 0
plus
F plus 0.02032 0
continued
~this table1Wifh:.J'abks:85"1~ 101~1·~ 109-1, 111~1. 112-1, 117-1, 125-1, 126~1, 127-1, 141-1and166-3.
above. table is theofy... Jnpliact:ite, tll~tesults:w<mld have been. more like the results in Table 163-1 based on Ellis
~8,~.
''T.. unibg •.. is an arlO, . , The kn,owl@dae of how to.set an even temperament can no more be imparted by
written rules, than one can team to paint a perfect portrait by being given the angles and measurements. " 1
These words were written in 1881 by Edward Quincy Norton after ''mote than twenty years' experience in tuning,
and teachin$: others to tune.' •2. . . .. . . . . . . . . •
. Norton regretted that there was still no standard of pitch in l 887, but he recommended that A =435 Hz or C =258.65
Hz be•!JSed beca1.1se it w~s P:t~ most. conmion among .me many varieties o.f pitches then. in use. 3 Because of the lack
of standard pitch, Norton repeated the equal-beating instructions published by Alexander James Enis in 1885. From
information in Norton's preface, it is evident that he had studied the writings of Helmholtz and Ellis.
Norton's bearing plan was almost the same as that of Ellis .. The exceptions were in tuning. the tones F and ff-flat.
These tones were tuned first rather than last. Also, Norton's upper F was tuned from B:-flat rather than from the lower
F.·(Norton's instructions ate outlined in Section l10.) H~ revealed two truths:. First, ''Frequently the tuner may 'co.me
out. right'-the IastF tuned being a perfect octave to the ~rst F-and yet the temperament not be even." 4 (This verifies
th~ writfog of the presentauthor in Sectfon 2.) Second, '.'Trials alone, by thirds or chords, must not be relied upon,
if•·ooewishes to seta·perleetlyi•even temperament."' 'Fhus, Norton knew the truth that the only way that one can tune
equal temperament is to keep a balance between the tempering of the fourths and fifths with the testing of the thirds
and $ixP:ts a~ one proceed$. Tempering either by foprths.and fifths exclusively or by thirds and sixths exclusively does
n9~ p:codqce equal. temperament except by occasional accident. The interaction between the two groups of intervals
is reqidred~ ·
On "bent,. twisted, or sprung" tuning pins, Norton wrote,
~bi~~l9~!~.~\ll~:;fJ!J:t~.l~U8'.W:·~tt~e;lli"~lli!;ll the rune,r can, feel, through hammer,. when the

pit) moves.in the k, and whe e string renders over the bridge, or through the agraffes. Frequently the pin springs,
or wfods, 'Yith()uf tt111ling iqthe bl(J';k; f~e,quently it twists at. 9ie string hole,;; .and ()ften turns in the block, tjghtening
ilie.~trfJtgJ.!;o,m !4.Ci"i.Pm. t9:ilieJ,>~AK~.Jj#;~.(J~.a~lJ!fe,.~1Jt.tftestdug 1wti:en,<;lenngfreely ovet, thete is a much greater
tension from pin to back bridge, thaili tto:m back bridge to sound~board bridges: and when the piano is used, the tension
will equalize itself, tb1Js sharping that note in proportion as the string renders over the bridge, or through the agraffe.6
For completing modern tuning-hammer technique theory, two .elements should be added that help to prevent the
above mentionc:4J>!obl~ms~ First, lo11d test b19ws. must be given to the keys while 'setting the pins.' A fact is that
if the pianist ci:'t4 pmy a note louder than. the tunet did when he set the pin, the pianist will immediately render the
string out..of-tune by equalizing the string tension from the tuning pin all the. way to the .hitch pin. Second, the tuning-
hamtner handle or lever: should be placed in a {'atallel position along with the lengths of the piano strings. More clearly,
the handle should be.poi11tin~in the s~e difecti()n ~s the,:st~~g~~~ 1Jln<:h as. is ptacti~able. Mu.ch more could be written
on the subject of tufiitig~halrurlet teeJlniq'u~;. t>uf q1is is. not the purpose of this book.
Through Edward Quincy Nonon. the essential information on modem tempering techniques began to emerge. He
wrote. ''From the great prominence of the second partial tones of the strings in this part of the piano, is due the slow
beats of the tempetedJourths anclf~f!lls, milking me 112tes from i:<'. below ~<t<ile c to f' aboye h1clusive. the most de-
··· s1ta6fefoi.tempiiiniig.purposes. ••?The present author take.s the above words to be proof that tuners in 1881 were begin-
ninw to listen amo1Jm. the.\Jnmr nearly'-'Coinciding harmonics while countinfY the beats of tern-red intervals. We have
· pfoi:reisewtfir6ujH~ftianf~~iihiries 6flii~i6ijiwhnewaifirig~:fuilfii~imp~tdevelopmeti~~o bike place. Of equal
..... ,...J~rlall~..foi;:. . the. tuniA .. of;.. ..tem mnent...in.ptact~e·is·Norton's ·state~nti ·' 'Use.~~~:!f~~ssive tenths,
. . Wtrli!tt:·~fi:(ft1f(f 'fJe1it* • .,t•· · •• .. .•· ··•·· · ·. . ·· · ·· · ·· • · · ·· · ·
"'"'•~,..~ ... uma.m~trk m~t1a1tmi~ u1e aevt~lo1Pment and emergence of the modem tuner.
tests for new members. In the treble
rotu:--1tm11 test for octaves. Since . . . . . · . . . and since his major tenths progressed
we must he also checked. the even progression. of his. major thirds before leaving his bearing sec-
there was )1o way th~t Nort<;in .c9ulcJ: have. achieved evenly progressing tenths, Even though Norton
mention the progressive major thirds, he certainly used them; therefore, the present author has added the progressive
thirds as trials at the end of Norton's tuning instructions. Norton's tempering was still not completely modern
bec:am;e he did not mention the use of major sixths, minor thirds, or many other common testing intervals. He also
the equal-beating method of tempering the fifths and fourths.
This development in tempering techniques occurred during the time that the impressionistic composer Claude Debussy
was beginning to compose significant piano music of the future. His Clair de Lune was composed in 1890, three years
after the publication of Norton's book. This was timely . Any remnants of key-coloring or the characters of the keys
.,:you.ld have been quite detrimental to most of Debussy's keyboard compositions.
NOTES
Edward Quincy Norton, Construction, Tuning, and Care of the Piano-Forte (Boston: Oliver Ditson & Company, 1887), 42, 79.
2. Ibid., 80.
3. Ibid., 78.
4. Ibid., 80.
5. Ibid., 81.
6. Ibid., 85.
7. Ibid., 82.
8. Ibid.
.·...
T A·fi~\U'iginal bearing. plan is used, 1 N6.lrt:9~ \ytote, '.'Th~ fi{th& b~t 9Jree times. in five $ecoµds; the foµrths beat
dnce a second, or five times in five seconds.' ' 1 Conce:fDing the trials,. Norton instructed that one should make
f'all chords so shaded. as to be most agreeable to the practised ear. " 3
TuneU!e following quarter notes in the order written:
Test interval
(Figures denote
Tune Cto beats per second) Tuned
258.65 H:t~. Tuned before
l. l
before
l 1.0 l
l~_f-+-r---'--'--I f_.;.__.--'--'.L-111---f-b-~_IL_L__~f_--1..L._llf_·____j_r___J
r t t
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
. before Trial
LO
1 r ! l 0.6 1.0
)l~if II r 1f 1! 11.r r Ir
t
Flatten
i
Flatten
Flatten
t
·. Flatten
Tuned Trlal
Trial before
1.0 ! l• 0.6
!
11P 1
1 f . ll'F !r · 1'f 1!f · •. 1 11
i
Flatten
t
Flatten
Tuned
before Trial Tuned
before
,t, ,,;'t-~· ~r :11E

Flatten
t
Flatten
· .l.
Tuned
Trial
Trial before
I
! Equal beating
1.0
(Co~~ted) -f 0.0
"=~ttJf- 1=! bf · 11br __ F rf= 1 f 1F II

Ptoof Flatten
571
~()~O~ wrote that the H·flat from the low F in .rne11sure three should beat once per second because it is a fourth. 4
tater, however, co~ceming the lastF tuned, Norton wrote, "If the first F above C is now . three beats
in five se<;?ndsJ1at?f A~sharp belo'N, it wiHbe a perfoctoctave to the first F tuned. " 5 This i8: an acoustical impossi-
bility. Norton printed an error here. Even though the high B-flat Fis a fifth, it must beat once per second. Norton
explained. correctly on his page 82 .that 'i,Vhen 11.·.· fifth is adjacent tQ its.lower compHmentitry fourth, both intervals must
beat exactly. the same speed. 'therefore,. this was a typographical error by Norton.
It is known that Norton used the following tests. 6
Check for evenly progressing beat frequencies.

This completes the bearing section from F to F. The results of this temperament are identical to the calculations
done in Tables 167-1, 167-2, and 168-1 of this work.
Check for evenly progressing beat frequencies.
NOTES
1. Norton, Construction, Tuning, and Care of the Piano-Forte, 79.
2. Ibid.' 80.
3. Ibid., 81.
4. Ibid., 80.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.' 82.
~n, first glance:. ·the tuning instntctionSi ·for ~·equal temperament'' ·by Mark Wicks; se€1D) to contain •great. em~ts.
· isdnstructions. state that." AU notes a fifth apart are tuned s0: that they are twG beats. flat; that \s:;; two beats
in a. second of. time}' l. What could be more clear? This ~annot be attributed to a typographical error because
"two beats flat~' was repeated a total of eleven times in the text concerning the fifths in the bearing section.
aring plan and instructions were printed in four different forms, all of which agree. 2 There is no question as
;W!dch notes were involved.
eproblem with Wicks's instructions is that if they are followed as written the results are a meantone temperament
~e seve~teenth century: Even worse, the meantone temperament is in the improper key of A major with a wolf
·~ · ed sixth E-sharp C that is 29.31670cents wider than a just intonation fifth. (Compare with the meantone tern-
.tin Table 15-2 which was in the proper key.) Th.is certainly could not have been accepted as a quasi-equal
llll1ent in.J887. To discover the true manner in Which Mark Wicks tuned, an interpretation is offered below.
ks\ copied the bearing plan of A. Hemstock given •on page. 10 of On Tuning The Organ except for one detail.
added one extl.'a ®necessary note to C-sharp .thatserv~ no purpose in any way. Wicks probabcy did this so
couldn't be ~;tied. Wicks was probably unawate that Hemstock had in tum 'loPied the bearing plan from. the
IcanDr. Williani Geib, who,spublished it in1869. Geib in tum copied it from Wesley Stqlc.er Barker Woolhot1se
.based his bearing plan of 183S on the:work of the Gei'rfian-AmericanJohann Christian Gottlieb Graupner who
~ave published his bearing plan as early as 1806. (Compare Sections 109, 119, 137 (Geib No. 2}, remarks at
at 142, and 172;) ·
Since Wicks copied the bearing plan without giving any acknowledgment to Hemstock or any previous author, he
'·. a~s~m~9:,tlt(t'.tt~:w~~s9: c61\~b'fJ'tf~$f~lt"~'W'C1ttrs'0{Jttl)'abOtit;tW6''~taw waves tan be Mard"by attentively
While the fW<1;'rt6fl!.s'nre 'Slltltttffng;••91 Hemstock's words were based in tum on the words, .. let the student
he fifth CG perfect; and then let him flatten the note G, so that,· upon striking the notes G and C together, he
r.
]Wo slow ajl~ disti!J:~f'~ave~; te~1fil!in~ in on~ ~t~ilcrY;"c()t1tinuqtl5: SO\Jri<I and the .fifth will be. properly tem-
eted. The same'inechanicai test wm·:enab'le::hffu. to•tUfie all the remaining fifths or the circle."'
, . ·.··Notice in the latter that nothing was mentioned about the length of time that the "two slow waves" took. The word
· ,,tsecond' was not written anywhere. Wicks could have misunde~stood the meaning of the above words, an(l this was
the basis of his two beats per second for fifths. l:Iqwev(lr. on large organs it was traditional to tune the 'Principal'
:f:i~st. The tones were an octave higher than Written.· This required that the beat frequencies must be doubled in number.
,Jn this case, Mark Wkks's "two beats" did work. Considering the latter possibility, the Wicks instructions in this
·•·.• · work are given one octave higher than originally written. The results are a fair equal-beating quasi-equal temperament.
However, if a standard.pitch tuning fork is used, the fifth FC will result in being 2.72724 cents wide. This is rather
;; .'l~f:le cofilpai:¢ ta the otfier eciuat-peating approxi~tiol1s present¢ in this bc;ok. If a higher pitch, perhaps the old
N~w York pitch, were~~~ then the W~c}(s tt'lniper~ment would be as good~§ most of the others.
NOTES
. ,,fytarkWieks; Organ Building/or Ama1eurs (London: Ward, Lock and Company, 1887), 239•
.• J .. Ibid.' 238-42.
. .'.l~,.~emstqck,. On Tunlr1g...1h~ . . (}rgan, 10.
4 . The Tuner's Guide, 10.
TtJNING 0RGANS;tJN 1887
BY USING MARK WICKS'S EQUAL-BEATING RULES
·T··. times
he original bearing plan transposed upward one octave is used. Wicks instructed that all fifths must beat two
1
per second. "American case-docks, now found in most homes, generally tick about twice to a second,
2
so that with one of these docks near him, the novice will soon be able to determine the correct beat, as each beat
should correspond with the tick of the dock. " 3 Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
Tunetoa 4
"C tuning fork."
"If the result is satisfactory,

the chords sounding neithertoo harsh 5
nor too sweet, we proceed to tune the B."
Tuned
before
Trials
An unm;cessary note, probably added
so th~t Wicks could not be stied.
Proof. Trial
Trials
!
c a(
If a fork modern standard pitch is used,
then the fifth F C will be wide and beating
3.3 times per second. A higher pitch for the
. beginning C would reduce this error.
"All major thirds should qow sound slightly sharp; minot thirds slightly flat; fourths slightly sharp, and fifths flat. " 6
This completes the bearing section from F-sharp to C-sharp.
Compare these instn:tctim1s with those in Section
Table 172-1: The Differences in Cents Between the Notes of

Mark Wicksts Equat•beating Temperament and. Equal Temperament.
(This t~ble was calculated from A as a basis when a C fork at standard pitch is used.)
Equal Temperament Wicks Rounded Figures
G plus' 1.()049 +1
F minus 3.42523 -3
E minus 0.67198 -1
D plus 0.01262 0
c plus 1.25701 +1
B minus 0.47051 0
B~flat minus 2.89664 -3
575
S~S, Woolhouse (1809-1893) presented a bearing plan arid instructions that are outined' in Section 119 of the present
k. In his new writing of l 888 he repeated this along with the following bearing plan. 1
' the Jc;>llowing
: ..·
'"" ~
quarter;,,p()tes in the ord~r written. Temper the fifths "a trifle flat. " 2
' \ . ' ' ,·,
TuneCto
atuning fork.
l Trial
Tuned
Tuned ,, '"' ' before
befQre
1
Trial
. 1 Trials
!
,n~ a ~ lj ~ II ~ J #J I#~ II
Tuned
before Tuned Tuned
l
Trial before , before
Trial
! l
The Science Of Equal Temperament
Tuned Tuned
Trial before before
Trial
! l
Tuned Tuned Final test

Trial before before (Proof)
Trial
! l t l !
I
l~i ][jJ
-1J 3J--J#:r= #t- 1$]
This completes the bearing section from G to C-sharp.
NOTES
l. Wesley Stoker Barker Woolhouse, Treatise on Musical Intervals, Temperament, and the Elementary Principles Of Music 2d
ed. (London:. Charles Woolhouse, 1888), 39.
2. Ibid., 38.
'tt1above ~tatement by William·Staunt~it reads like:~ acoustical conuadictiom W0:+modem piano tet'\h.,foiansj~ere
l8' only one equal temperament in.theory. The problem in 1889; reflected in Staunton 's. writing and. also his state-
~S,t "tl~e or t,wo of the, fifths may remain penect, artd;the whole burden of the temperament be laid on the others; ' 2
~; fa~t that,. the teritJs;fw;~U;teinperament'· apd,f\iictorian+ temperament•. had not yet come intd cominon use.
tlles'e tett:nsralltlf thewel?temperawients whereby'one couideasily,modulate through aU the keys.: were catego-
.r~$(\farieties, "shades.' •,or ·~degreesH tlfequal temperament~ The complete statement by William Staunton, S. T.D.,
88.9:. follows .
•. tithe equal temperrunent now in general use is a necessity of modem music, In this temperament the excess or defi-
,,~ien~y [commas,dieses1 andhnperfe<;tions, etc•labove.Mtedisdistributed among all the keys, thereby rendering them
;.~! ava,ilal)le;(Qr 11s0, ~nq ef1abJ!m~. ~e cqmp()ser ~() presen~ h~opious combinati()ns in the. remotest keys without any
disagreeable effec~. Ther,,.are"' ~qw~vti~~ §~Yeaj sh~~e~ q~; degr~~ q~ eq\lal temver~ens, from tht: s~ricte~t u11if()!ffi,ity
at9~n)!. ~91.ll;lt,9f 1n,eq\l<\).tty,,~hkbJ§ §ti.lt . \e· J{ajIJ;,ey,§.»:~re !lll:lde exa<:t~Y !111tce, tltere,woulcl be an, undesirable
"'~J~sspftfteir'iitdMffiilU cfil:lracter ,, <J'i ..·.. ·· perceptiflf~ excet>t in their de~n~e of acuteness~ 'foayoid this, so~e
'~fs~riminatioll is comfuonfy usetl . 6r of . ~in popular key~. yet notto sue~ an extent as sensibly to injure the
eff¢ct ofkeys Jess fayored. A differ~11ce is recogniz.ed at once bet~een the tnajor keys of D attd A~flat, even though
: tlte .in§tnunent in use is said to' be equally tempered:· Some discrimination, therefore, has been exercised by the tuner;
;©d sometimes the key whfohbears the greatest stress of imperfection is that which most attracts us by its beauty. 3
.:fto~.tpis was d.one is exelained in the following section ..

" ' " " ' ' ' '' ' .N '",''''·"''"' , ••~.,,.,.,.,,""'it,,,,,,.,,"~"''r"'t··+·>.··'>J"~·> ,,.,,<:1A\\f-¥\,'1,'tf.\~~~·;,""'"'''
NOTES
Staunton,
,,.,· . "Temperament,"
'
Jo~nson 's Revi's.~d lJniyersal Cyclopqedia, 7:743.
\-
D··=::~~;=~~~::~:f:1;:Zt~:~~;ih::.!:Jt~!!:fi1!:!iI~Li~:~:;~:t;u~::~~h~~~:!:~oal;!~ ~!~~
vals were count~. Tuti~ts using.this.method were con\l:inc¢dithatthey had accomplMted· equal temperament: The other
appr~c'1!,w.a~ tbat sin~~ 't~'W~* qiffic11Jt:o~z~on~dere~ impo~sible to hear the beatings of thirds and. sixths among the
uppet ~rurm~nics'r the tunillgof1eafilhln()t~"1~&i b.as~·on a~~dtetic auraljuc.famettts~ This was accompUsh:edby listening
to intervals and a1so• b); .fttctgin3:.the'qnalities. of..wnole·cho:rds; .triadsf ~md their inversions as musicians do .. This type
oftemperlng was in the realm of art rather than science. Of course, most musicians. do not hear beats; but; these beats
exist. ~yway, and, they. a.ffect the colors or qualities of the chords as musicians hear them.
the intefVals:.were not checked by, means· of beatsrbul; the chords were tested by checking their shadings to deter-
mine if dteir;effects tfi8:tched the. known e111otiQns associ~d~d, with· each key center. Sin.ce these• emotional associations
ha<t relfjaiH~d·'qt1i~~·~onstM1t'for• se\.etru cenfti:ries;• espeefa119: eolisidei'ingc the extreme keys such as the c, F, C-sharp,
and'Fks~itffi'Maj~t:tceys:;~1~tc:.;''. 1tot'•e!ft!bs ·blifa"unifi~ ot~eftJased·~fi· ttadition. 1
1'1ie r~son·th~l.a'tliitfiect'<?r .·. ··.. ed ttlrot{gQ tfie.centuries is that we are' still using the
feyoa~f\l'lt.~~~~~t'.~~:'.1!·:~Y~!Y~~···!1t~ ... . .. ,. . ,~ fi~t;s~~~··o11: ~efiru~~ 23, ~ 3~ t . TIIis contained five
rais~Ic~ys (blaQk'l<ey~ ()ntlte mod .. ·.· •. Q~·· .Jo.t.m~ chromatic tQnes ~::sp~rp, lHl&t, F-sh~rp. G-sharp, and
B-fiat. · J;he l\)Wef Je:yel, 9f Ic.e~sJdt~·~~it~;lceY~·q:tl. a,.mOdern.. pi~()). prodw;:ed the extremely uneven <Uatonic scale.
Becausto' tfii~ gtell~fl!!eXemt~sstr• ~l.fu~f~tQtu\litYJ1tiWestemmusiQ was formed and. permanently set. Thjs keyboard
design is in the strong tonality of c major. J
The only appropriate atonal design for the atonal equal temperament is the "Six-Six'' design extensively researched
·by PTG member. Thomas.s, Reed.Jn.this~.ev:e~.,QU\eit.k~.i~.a.Jfilse~tk~~.withqu.t efl£ellti~tii, J)µtthl~~s not yet been
....• ··afi~teQ.~m GOJnmQA.:;~~i•. •··.· · · ,......•..•..;...:;...••.
Because of the keyboard design, it has b:een. in.stin,ctive for .111usician.tune~s to tune all the white key chords first,
namely the F~ c~ and G majai triads, i:nversions. and fower relative minors. They <;onsidered the chromatic tones (for
th~bltttk teys}Jast becaQ$€H>rigi~lly1these,.were.9nlyau:iti1iary tones altered from the basic diatonic scal0 on the white
keys. Tuning the chromatic tones was not considered as important. Our music staff notation system still reflects this.
Since the sounds ofthe white keys were basic and too.le precedence over the black keys, the chords of F,. C, and G
major were always tuned more harmonio\}sly (with fewe~ beats) tfiroughout the centuries. The emotional associations
or charac~~ of dte keys b~~e s.et. an<Ji.these ch1;1racters. of the keys in turn became guides for aesthetically tuning by ear.
C:one~mittg tbe contrasting chord c9lors of C and G major versus those in C-sharp and G-flat major, it makes no
difference whether extremes such as William Holder's meantone temperament or Thomas Young's well temperament
are considered. The same characters of the keys existed in the same places for the.same acoustical reasons. The ex-
tremes in contrasts were in varying degrees dep¢nding on the temperaments used or the tastes of the tuners. As an
example, the key of E.~flat tJ}inor was know~ ~s being horrible•;: frightful, and depressed to the extreme. This was true
because in Werc1oneister's and Young's well temperaments, the minor thirds E-flat G-flat were 21.5 cents narrower
tha~just intonation minor thirds. This was typical for eighteenth century well temperament as recorded by theorists.
ln Pietro Aaron"s meantone temperament of 1523, the minor third E-flat G-flat was 46.4 cents narrower than a just
i:ntonatt61t mirrarthird; so the key of E'-tlat minor would· have been more than twice as horrible in 1523. This explains
wb~.J~.'.'.'tl~t min<lr was a.rarely nsed key before the. late seventeenth century ...'l'he equal-temp¢red E-flat G-flat is only
.,?,:t't·'C~snan:owermmrajust·intomtmn:•minQr tbim7'fhe'~~tlat (l.,ftat.'itt·therepresentative VictoFian temperament
tle.~==!@!~9~i~li'!;~~:i~!;~~ ~~ durln~ t~~ I1.ineteenth f~I1~11:,tll~~~l ()f E-flat minor

Technique Of temperament Setting
third G-flat B-flatfrQm the E~flat~P?~ ~tiad as a further example, Aaron's Q.,flat B-flat from
wider than a just intonation maj~f third. Werckmeister's G-flat B-flat . . . 1681 was 21. 5 cents
in the representative Victorian temperament was 15. 19 cents wider. The equal tempered G-flat
today is 13.69 cents wider.
t:onc~~rnmg CE froµi the.Cmajortria~, Aar9n'sCEfromJ5'.?3 w~~ notwid~r atan .• Jt wasin perfoctjust intonation.
CE from 1681 was 3.9 cents wider than a justintonation major third. Young's CE from 1800 was
wider. The CE in the representative Victorian temperament was. l().69 cents wider. The equal tempered
of today is 13. 69 cents wider.
From the above examples it can be seen that as keys such as G-:flat major and E·flat minor were improved, natural
such as C major were worsened. The key-color contrasts gradually diminished through the centuries until
nineteenth century when the characters of the keys became relatively faint, and tuners thought that they were
equal temperament. Nevertheless, key-coloring supporting the characters of the keys still existed enough to be
as a guide while tempering. Thus, tuning in the nineteenth century was more of an art than a science.
NOTE
1. For a study of key-coloration, see Rita Steblin's book, A History of Key Characteristics in the Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth
Centuries. For the late nineteenth century, see Helmholtz, On the Sensations Of Tone ... Second English Edition, 550-52.
EXAMPLES O"E.How THE CBARJ\CTERS OF THE KEYS
ARE PRESERVEDIN THE MUSIC ITSELF
WHEN PLAYED IN EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
A n example of how certain emotions of keyccharacter are preserved in the music itself and then communicated
to the listener (even though equal temperament is used as the medium) is demonstrated when listening to music
composed in the most extremely colored keys that were rarely used such as E-flat minor. In 1692, Charpentier wrote
that B-flat minor was "horrible, frightful. " 1 In 1784, Schubart wrote, "If ghosts could speak, their speech would
approximate this key.'' 2 These emotions are portrayed well in Chopin's Prelude in E-flat minor, Op. 28, No. 14. Also
in 1784, Schubart describedE-flat minor as "Feelings of the anxiety of the soul's deepest distress, of brooding despair,
of blackest depression, of the most gloomy condition of the soul. Every fear, every hesitation of the shuddering heart,
breathes out of horrible E-flat minor. " 3 These words are like a literal description of Chopin's Etude in E-flat minor,
Op. 10, No. 6, his Polonaise in E~flat minor, Op. 26, No. 2, and also J. S. Bach's Prelude and Fugue in E-flat minor
from book one of The Well-Tempered Clavier.
B-flat minor is a closely related and rarely used key that contains emotions similar to E-flat minor. The acoustical
basis is also similar. Charpentier in 1692 wrote that B-flat minor is "gloomy and terrible. " 4 In 1722 Rameau described
it as "mournful songs," and in 1784 Schubart wrote, "Preparation for suicide sounds in this key. " 5 In 1840 Chopin
published his in minor, Op. 35. famous Funeral March movement of sonata reflects these emo-
tions to an extreme degree. J. S. Bach's Prelude and Fugue in B-flat minor from book one of The Well-Tempered Clavier
is also highly representative of these emotions.
The expression of these pieces is augmented and enhanced when performing them in old temperaments. This is
due to the minor thirds being more minor and the major thirds being more major in the E-flat and B-flat minor keys
in the old tuning systems. Also, closer to pure fifths among the black keys create better identical and proportional
beaJ frequenciesthatproduce a certaiJ1 for,prpand for the in the past instinc-
"''"''""'h"·~1 qualities that existed keys of and minor, in-
corporated the emotions from these keys permanently into the expressive effects of their music which we still hear
to a degree in equal temperament.
NOTES
1. Stehlin, A History of Characteristics in the Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Centuries, 250.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid., 301.
5. Ibid.
"BEATS ... ARE DUE TO THE PRESENCE
OF UPPER PARTIALS'' IN 18921
II enry Fisher's book was not plagiarized from Edward Quincy Norton's Construction, Tuning, and Care of the
Piano-Forte of 1887; Fisher acknowledged that his book was indeed Norton's book in rewritten form. Fisher
changed Norton's tuning instructions. He added major sixths as test intervals, and he also returned the bearing plan
back to being closer to the original Jean Jousse bearing plan of 1832 for better C major tonality as used by "one of
the best of the old London 'fine tuners.' " 2 (Compare Sections 117, 170, and 178 of the present work.) Fisher also
extensively rewrote Norton's section on tuning hammer technique, and he added the elements of using heavy test blows
to the keys and also the fact that the lever of the tuning hammer should be in the same direction as the strings in order
''to guard against all sideways pressure'' that would later affect the pitch because of bent tuning pins. 3 By this writing,
Henry Fisher's manner of "Setting the Pin" may be considered completely modern according to the best twentieth-
century techniques.
Historically, Henry Fisher introduced three extremely important techniques for tuning pianos in equal temperament.
First, he instructed tuners that they must listen to the nearly-coinciding harmonics for beats when counting and compar-
ing them. 4 Second, he furnished instructions on how to easily count up to nine beats per second. 5 The previous limits
set by acousticians and scientists through 1885 was only six beats per second. Third, he introduced the major sixth
as a testing interval. 6 However, Fisher was not quite a completely modern twentieth-century type tuner because he
failed to recognize the value of minor thirds used as testing intervals. About the minor third F-sharp A, he wrote.
''It is not at all a satisfactory trial, being confusing to the ear. This is the case with all minor thirds and sixths in this
part of the instrument.' ' 1
Henry Fisher clarified the fact that until 1892 the first major sixth heard was GE and the first major third heard
9'N·nrru""' to most bearing Fisher however; that these two
ll'd,e•nr•tid·o for played as a second inversion triad. Since tuners
could now comprehend at least nine beats per second on pianos, Fisher proposed that tuners should listen to GE separately
and then count its beats. Therefore, according to Fisher, trial chords became obsolete in 1892. When trial chords are
three different sets of beats are This renders them for beat purposes.
Fisher wrote:
Hence, when chords are used as trials, the tuner cannot rely upon beats, but has to trust to his aesthetic sense, which
tells him whether the combination is sufficiently rough, or is too smooth. But this aesthetic sense cannot always be
relied upon, because the ear may be fatigued, the mind may be depressed, or there may be some other equally cogent
reason. But when only two notes are sounded at once, there will result only one set of slow beats from the upper
Having not applied Fisher's technique, the tuners who relied on the trial chords were unable to
tune in equal temperament. By observing the next several sets of tuning instructions outlined in this work, it is obvious
that Henry Fisher was many years ahead of his time.
Henry Fisher's bearing plan and his trials are outlined in the following section. Because of Fisher's new information
on beats, the present author added the notes in the treble cleff which denote the locations of the nearly coinciding har-
for listening··purposes.
ll92), ii.
he original bearing plan is used. Temper fifths "one-fifth of a vibration per second'• narrow and fourths ''about
one-fifth of a vibration per second'' wide. 1· By vibrations per second Fisher did not mean beats per second. He
t frequency numbers at the fundamental pitches. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
Test interval
(Figures denote
beats per second)
Beating occurs at this
TuneCto location between the nearly
''Diapason Nonnal" coinciding harmonics of the
Ot 517.305 Hz tempered interval below.
(A=435Hz).
1
Tuned Tuned
before before
7.8
Tune
l
Sharpen.
t
Fll\tten
t
Flatten
t
Flatten
just
585
(CE was not listened to as a test interval because

';;,
it beats more than nine times per second.)
:-,-~t~-s= ',
Trial Tuned Trial
Trial
before
l
l l
Tuned
before
685 7.7
8.8
tt • --~
,...__,.,,_________ __, !--
~ .
-_----_::±--- ------ t=J_--- l=t--------t- ------l
- --+------=
~J=
-·--->+--1-----:.li[~~,.__ z::;;h:
\~) -
~
~
41::
L
~
:f
. ~
1
"' "
· - - - -j - -
~
--1-+-===----+-------++----·---j1f---·----l:±-----
T
I I
Flatten
i
Flatten
"This is a very severe 2

Trial and important trial."
Tuned
before
! Tuned
before
8.1
Tuned
before
------·~-+---~---~--·--~----~~--+-------------------~-· +----------~
r--------------
i
Flatten
t
Flatten
i
Flatten
i
Sharpen
(B~ D was not listened to as a test
interval because it beats more
than nine times per s'<cond.)
Trial
Proof ! Added by the present author.
8.3
~- .
7.8 8.3
#•
8.8
.!t
Sharpen
The tests in the last measure were added by the present author because some of Henry Fisher's readers. would cer-
. tainly have thought of this even though Fisher did not mention testing the parallel chromatic major sixths. This com-
•p~~tes. the bearing section fro~ F to .E: the upp~r F now needs trining in order to complete an octave.
NOTES
. Fisher, The Construction, Tuning, and Care of the Piar10forte, 61~64.
64.
587
"TIIE MOST EXPERT AND RAPID TUNERS ARE MEN . . .
VERGING ON THE BORDER OF INSANITY'' 1
The complete statement including the above title is
Tuners are governed by instinct principally, and are necessarily emotional. They cannot be relied upon to tune at all
times with equal results, for much depends upon mood. The most expert and rapid tuners are men possessed of a highly
excitable, nervous, and emotional temperament, verging on the border of insanity at times. 2
Daniel Spillane did not believe in beat frequency numbers even though the word "scientific" appeared in the title
of his book. He wrote:
It would be impossible to lay down a rule to illustrate the proper degree of temperament for each interval. The result
sought to be attained is to have the various trial chords sound as much alike as possible, and the ear is to be the guide.
Some authorities-among these E. Quincy Norton, notably reliable and experienced-have attempted to set forth a
working theory, giving the number of beats per second for each interval, but the student or tuner who is capable of
'''""'''"'"v out such experiments with a urn1e-1111ece.
exact number of beats a could be ascertained,'' says a noted authority, ''a mathematical division
of the temperament would be no difficult operation; but as no two wires have an exact similitude of vibration, the
precise temperament required in each piano must be subject to the ear of an experienced tuner." That is the issue in
a nutsheH. 3
Spillane did not acknowledge beat

on Guide pu:ommeo
In determining the nearest possible correct degree of temperament for the fifths, let him, for instance, tune pitch C,
F (below), so that he will hear two slow and distinct waves ending in a continuous sound.
(Compare the latter words with those on page 433 of the present work.) Spillane continued:
This test cannot be relied upon for all intervals of fifths, for the reasons given in the foregoing quotation. It may,
however, give students something to work upon. The fourths, whenproperly tempered, give forth more rapid beats.
The necessary expertness will come in time with practice and observation. 4
During this period of history, two schools of thought prevailed. There were the scientific beat counting tuners striv-
ing to tune mathematically exact equal temperament. These tuners followed the writings of Alexander John Ems, Robe11
Halford Macdowall Bosanquet, Edward Quincy Norton, Mark Wicks, and Henry Fisher. Henry Fisher came closest
to through the year 1892. Other tuners were striving for art based on instinct and empiricism. For
them, exact equality was unimportant. It was only necessary that one be able to easily modulate through all the keys
without encountering a wolf interval. These tuners produced various forms of Victorian or well temperament.
USINti.THE . C TUNING .·FORK
IN TUNING QUASI-EQUAL TEMPERAMENT
ACCORDING TO DANIEL SPILLANE'S RULES OF 18931
The original bearing plan is used. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written.
TuneCto Tuned
258.65Hz.
l "•trit' l
before
Trial
!
)~i'-_,_____-=- - = = - - - - - - -r:--=---===-±_,_r_.
+- -~- __
- --===-==.,__---l--F===-f--1----f___ r tilt@
t t t
"depress slightly" Flatten "slightly sharp"
l
"If the third, A, is too
sharp to be agreeable, the fifths are not flat enough. If it sounds too perfect, the
fifths are too flat. Remedy accordingly. From experiment and practice of this kind,
assisted by intelligence, come all the essential qualifications requisite in a good tuner."
"a trifle sharp" "a little sharp" "a little flat"

Trials
i
''flatten slightll'"
i
"flatten"
Tuned
before
Tuned Trial
before
I i l Trials
··~ p~i
U!i:!i~ ~ 1~f !~
p~ ,pi II
i
"a trifle flat"
i
"a shade sharp"
i
Proof
NQ'l'E
1. Spillane. The Piano. Pages 20-22 contain all the quotations used in this section.
591
The original \)earing plan is used. Tttite the fo1fowing quarttilr notes in the order written.
Tune A to Tuned
217.5H21. Trial before
l
"a little sharp" Sharpen
! ! !1
r r ,,,,.,,,,~ '
If I! r e
i
"a trifle sharp" "!\' trifle sharp"
l l r
"a trifle flat"
"Note instructions and
hints already given."
(See Section 180, measure 3)
Tti.ried
··~ Tuned
Trial Trial before Trial
! l ! l !
n~= ! u~ .~ 1m II ~ I~ I~ II
j 1
"a trifle flat'.' "a shade flat"
181. Using· 1he A Tuning Fork According To Daniel Spillane's Rules
Trial Tu!led
bef(?re
Trials
i
"a little flat" "a little sharp" This trial is obviously
an error by Spillane, because
E~ ·has not been tuned yet.
Tuned
Tuned before
before
"a little shm:p" "a shade sharp" Proof
This completes the bearing section from F to E.

''The requisite sensitiveness of the ear and hand will come to one in time by cultivation, if possessed of the mental
qu:am1es which go to make up a tuner .... Above all things do not go about tuning in a fussy or angry mood. Keep
your temper under an circumstances, if possible, otherwise you cannot do artistic work."
1. Spillane, The Piano. Pages 23-25 contain all the quotations used in this section.
"'SOME'.;
. ~~!~~:.llfE..f:)tu~~¥$;1'EM~t
rn he stateme. nti, .• '·~ome piano; tilhets now.? have a hanke~ing :rtter the old ~ystem,, leaving a wolf now and then,
.1 although professing to. tune m equal temperament'' wntten m 1893, applies to meantone temperament whereby
1
the 9iminished\sixth G·sharp E-flat was a wolf in(erval, and ''it was wholly impossible to play in some keys.'' 2 If
nieantonelettiptltament containing these extremes w'.as actually called equal temperament by a few musicians and tuners
in 1893, it is easy to understand how various forms of well temperament were called equal temperament by William
Staunton in 1889. (See.,Section 174:of the present work.) Without compari~()n, the well tefJ1peraments of Vallotti,
Kirnberger,; St~op~, · · ·i~,. Youn~, ~!~:, passed more easily for: e<lual teml]erament than did any form 9f meantone
t~Jpperame!lJ \Vhfoh •.. • . livi~~s wo1veg: '1he w~n tefJ1peraments.,;as practiced by Peter Prelleur in 1731 and as tuned
h~many ofthe Broadwood tuners in 1885, passed for equal temperament with even greater ease because in these well
t~nipetamefits. there were mr Pythag<>rean intetvals, . .
In describing JoltannSebastian Bach;'s 1112 J?as Woliltemperirte Klavier, Frederick Westlake wrote in 1893 that
of
''it was Bach's intentiotl' by this work ta test the system equal temperament in tuning.' ' 3 Frederick Westlake's state-
ment was •.w~Uen a. few.~years Qefo!'e.t~tlJQneJ,ad• actual~Juned the math.ematically exact; theoretically correct equal
temp~rament on claviehords, harpsichords, or pianos for tfie first time; therefore, Westlake's statement is a contradic-
tion in the twentieth century. During the eighteenth century and, particuJ:.arly. the nineteen.th ce~tury, music writers
pJ!l~ .· · Jq~sof \Ven t~pl)l~ t ·~~ual tei;nperalllent.' It ~as only the mathelnatfoians ofthe past who
~1'~'1.t / . JtcWlJi;be~w~~Jilh;eo~ ...... ,:.e~~~~etil~:t~~nt ail(fJiie welJ {emperamentsin practice. Thus. the
roa er· int;aning'iffhe tenn
equa( tempefamerit;·as applleij'lri:.' tlie past century by many writers, is why Frederick
".Yesdake was able to write his statement about temperament in the above manner. This broader meaning of the term
'iiqii~:.temper~ent¥ ···"'"'"' ·· i~t.~~i:i~ttaie::· · · .. ···~:;;~~~;::···· · · ·
·· ·ne·notibn thatJ: . ";fta:8<an1fhM~"ttldo with th~'lH~t>retically correct equal temperament was a phenomenon
that developed in the nin~teent~ century, long after Bach ~~ed' .'fhere is n<> record that. J. S. Bach ever mentioned equal
t~w~™1!~~f.9l\tfiilt·.lJe ~.rgf:~ ~JBll1~ it. !f !l~~~.~.~~ffiuf':1 t~w~tajnent in tniiid, ~e would have given a technical description
of it in his title page. Instead, he only wrote that one could perform "in all the tones and semitones, both with the
major third or Ut, Re, Mi, and with the minor third or Re, Mi, Fa. " 4 In other words, one could perform in all twenty-
fiJur major and minor keys':This was common practice In England in 1122, and the system of well temperament had
alr~dy been, tested before then. ~ach ;was·tt()t !e,s,ti9~a;ny~g. He only specified by means of his title Das Wohltemperirte
Kl<Jvierthatonecouldnotpetfoffllth.ismusic in the oldmeantone temperament that had been outmoded on clavichords
and harpsichords. The nieantone tempeFament continued in common practice only on organs.
NOTES
l. Hennann Smith, The Art Of Tuning Th¥t?Pianoforte, 3d ed. (London: William Reeves Bookseller Ltd., 1901), 15. The first
edition was published irf 1893: ·
2. IDid. .
3. Frederick Westlake, "Das Wohltemperltte Klavier;' A Dictionary ofMusic And Musicians (London: Macmillan and Company,
...... 1893);...4:482.
4. lliid., 482n.
OUTLAWING THE ·EQl}At-BEATING
TEMPERING.TECHNIQUES.IN 1893
•·. . ·
JI
.·
ermann Smith banned the equal-beating tempering techniques for fifths that most tuners had instinctively ap-
plied since the beginning of temperament history. He did this six years after Mark Wicks published his equal-
b~ating system and eight years after Alexander John Ellis published his famous "three beats in five seconds" equal-
beating temperament. Hermann Smith explained, "Another error, equally common, that the tuner labours under, is
the belief that he tunes all his fifths equally flat, and all his fourths in the same octave equally sharp; here he deceives
himself" when equal temperament is the goal. 1 Smith, like Mark Wicks of 1887, meant by "equally tempered" that
the intervals beat the same rate or frequency. This is how musicians and tuners had interpreted the meaning of 'equally
tempered' for many centuries. The results were various forms of equal-beating temperament. Hermann Smith also wrote,
''Guard yourself against the mistake so common among tuners of supposing that the fourth lying within the fifth should
be as much sharp as that fifth is flat. " 2 He then furnished an example showing that when a fourth and a fifth share
common lower tones, the fourth must beat 33.48 percent faster than the fifth. Thus, according to Smith's descriptions
and terminology, the fourths sharing common lower tones with fifths were tempered to a greater degree than the fifths
in equal because the fourths beat faster.
Hermann Smith wrote that ''the rate of the beating increases regularly for each higher fifth'' as the fifths are played
upwards on the chromatic scale and that this was the "absolute rule. " 3 More clearly, as the fifths are played chromati-
cally upwards "step by step every fifth is progressively a faster-beating fifth, and for every other interval the same
reasoning holds. This is an important truth, the statement of a law from which there is no escaping. All the blandish-
ments of a tuner's self-satisfaction are of no avail against scientific Verities; he may as well dispute the propositions
in Euclid. " 4 Robert Smith (1689-1768) knew all of these principles in 1749, but it took 144 years for them to be recog-
nized as law most tuners.
Hermann Smith was a specialist in correctly tempering fifths and fourths. He also authored the first r>Pc''"'"'"'
consisting of a circle of fourths and octaves. This was done in order to furnish an exercise in tempering fourths
beginning students. (This system is outlined in Section· 186 .) It is ironic that Hermann Smith must have been unaware
of the books by Edward Quincy Norton and Henry Fisher, published in 1887 and 1892, respectively. The results were
that Smith repeated the centuries-old rule that "the limit of beats that are countable is about five or six per second,
beyond that the beats are recognizable merely as degrees of roughness, or " 5 Hermann Smith also wrote,
''Beats are not countable even by well practised ears beyond about five per second; therefore we rely upon the fourths
and fifths to be the safe guides in laying the bearings for tuning. When the beats aggregate in higher numbers the ear
judges of them only as of degrees of roughness; higher still the roughnesses become finer and finer and at last vanish
altogether. " 6 The slowest major third in the F to F temperament octave beats 6.9 times per second, and this explains
why Smith did not count and compare the major thirds and major sixths as Henry Fisher did in 1892. Fisher proved
that tuners could count nine beats per second. If Fisher's and Smith's tempering instructions could have been combined
under one cover, then the tempering done in 1893 would have been quite close to satisfying the equal temperament
requirements of today. Since Smith could not compare the progressive beats of the thirds and sixths, he continued
to apply the ancient test chords or trials that were judged aesthetically or by listening instinctively to their color-qualities.
In choosing between Norton and Fisher on the one side and Smith on the other, it is likely that Norton and Fisher
came closer to true equal temperament because of their progressive thirds, major sixths, and major tenths. Smith
repeated A. J, Hipkins's statement ' accqracy is indeed even with the best-trained ears. " 7
Hermann Smith furnished three bearing plans. Smith's first beating all the trials and test
Was Guide of was in turn based on the Becket and
's Guide in l Smith gave no
be~~iitlle:~mith
. ·. .. ·"Fflis; 1Jad the
~tQ~~i,tl~ll~i ~~~()l'ding t'!' Stnjtfj's
·$¢ eq\}~~tillg t~hnique for
.~:,fi!Stl~ t¢~~~~me11t.
selit work.. Also, this
cafi be compareti with Sectio1'i~ll~\ll~~t~J t1 .. . ·.. .. .. . .. lished by .Hermann Smith in
1893 because it was "surer for begfunets' [ari e one usually placed re. arners.' ' 8
Smith's second bearing plan was an exact copy of L. 0. Peltler's 1877 plan, but Smith credited A. J. Hipkins for
it, This plan '~prevailed entirely [for} the practice of well-matured tuners'' in 1893. 9 (Compare Sections 149 and 185
of the pre~en~ work.) Thjs is Jhe best system ever devised for those tuners who do not check the thirds and sixths.
Smith's third bearing plan was otiginllt,.~d·i~w~s }!is "scheme for a learner. " 1 on consisted of the new idea of using
a circle of fourths. and octaves outlined in section 186,
NOTES
1. Hermann Snµth, The AN Of Tuning the Pianoforte, 18.
Ibid.•. 39. '
miet., 24.·
Ibid .
. ~.:'ll)fd .• 40.
6. 'Ibi&t; 4:t .
7/ lbid;, .61.
8~.·;Jbid,,. .,.l;.'59.
9'' lbid.' 56..
l {), Jbid.' '!(l,
184
TUNING EQUAL·TEMPERAMENT
IN 1893 BY USING THE BEARING PLAN OF BECKET AND COMPANY 1
(Compare with Section 126.)
A s each octave is tuned, "test the truth by interposing the fourth. " 2 In other words, use the fourth-fifth equal-
. . . .·beating test for just intonation ratio 4 to 2 octaves. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. The
beat frequency figures are by Hermann Smith. 3
Test interval
Tune C to 512 Hz (Figures denote
(Philosophical Pitch). beats per second) Tuned
before
l l
Tune
l
just Flatten
0.87
0.65
·+------t------
Flatten
i
Tune
just
Tfie Siiience Of Equal· Temperament
Ffatte!l
----d111P---·---+-------
0.73
-~--------~------------
Flatten
t
Tune
This major third should be "somewhat sharper
than perfect, but still sufficiently 4
just near consonance to pass as agreeable."
Tuned
Tuned before
before
Trials 1 Flatten
------------H---------------+-------------------------1
Flatten
i
Tune
just
Tune
i
Flatten
just
Tuned
before
Flatten
Trials
l ! 0.92
Tunt:d
before Tuned
before
i
A
I
Trials
..:.:.
I l
J6.
·~ ~ ~
±
1·~
, -.:> . .
_-It
.... _ti:.::
.., .
}
f' I,
: ~~
t·
'~
'!.··
..il-•
-._._. ..
_jJ.
_!_'._l
1
.L_
± 1!!:_
1
0.58
~
~
.·.··
j
Sharpen
599
Sharpen
Tune
Tuned just
before Sharpen Proof
! ! I.03 r
T"
nals
l
!
rt_
/
.1 .. ~
~L i.L -L
~
+ t
_::_
l
_h_.-.i I i;-,,.
i!"~ rl i;;:"'~
··'
I ·"'"_,J = ~
t....~. -i··
-v ""' IT'"" v-....
,.,
1•,. * 0.69
Lt ~~
r--
I ~:
..L
±
..l
..!'.'...
"'
"Any imperfection
in the gradation of the beatings allotted to the previous fifths will i;nanifest itself here. Hence this
fifth, .frorn the frequent harshness and howlings of lts beats, has been technically tenned the wolf, 5
l!lld strict lnjUi\ctions ate, 'lAlok om for the wolf.' ·Reckon yourself fortunate if no wolfappears."
Check the following intervals as a final test between the low F and high C.
0.77 0.82 0.87 0.92 0.97 10.3 1.09 1.16

IN 1893 BY USING THE BEARING PLAN OF LOUIS 0 . PELTIER1
(Compare with Section 149.) Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. The beat frequency figures are
by Hermann Smith. 2 Each tone after middle C must be flattened.
Tune C to 512 Hz
(Philosophical Pitch).
l Tune
just
Tuned
before
0.65
0.87 0.87
i i -
--==-------
Flatten Flatten
i
Tuned
before Tuned
Flatten Flatten
185. Tuning Equal· Tempetdmetit By f/sing T!tt Bearifl[{ Plan OJ L. ·· 0. Peltier
Tuned
before
l.09 0.97 0.73

0.87
i
Flatten
--
-----=-...
i
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
T 0.61 o.~ l
~,_ _[2?l_ ,. _f--#~f-+--1if-+-_J__SJ_Ff_·-·-·~--==-~d
i -=-==== i
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
before
0.97 0.65 0.69 0.73
i
Flatten
Tuned
before Tuned
t
-==--=-=~---·----------~-----
Flatten
i
Flatten
'l'he, ·Science Oj Equal Temperament
Proof
0.73
0.77 0.82 0.58 0.58 0.61
~1'-"- - 2=~f~=1--tF----< ----+-+--If-----r-.--1f_ift_·---JI

-===---
Check the following intervals as a final test between F and E.
0.65 0.69 0.73

0.58 0.61
lf21 ~ ~ #~ f 4d
0.97 1.03 1.09
0.77 0.82 0.87 0.92
!~:b~ ,~~ ~ If ~ h ~ II
As the fifths are played chromatically upwards "step by step every fifth is progressively a faster-beating fifth, and
for every other interval the same reasoning holds. " 3 "beats are not countable even by well practiced ears
beyond about five per second; therefore we rely upon the fourths and fifths to be the safe guides in laying the bear-
ings. " 4 Thus, Hermann Smith in 1893 did not attempt to count and compare the thirds and sixths in the above tempera-
ment scheme for "well-matured tuners. " 5
L Hermann Smith, The Art Of Tuning The Pianoforte, 56.

2. Ibid., chart between 34 and 35.
3. Ibid., 24.
4. Ibid., 43.
5. Ibid., 56.
s each octave is tuned, ''test the truth by interposing the fourth.'' 2 In other words, use the fourth-fifth equa1-
beating test for just intonation ratio 4 to 2 octaves. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. The
ifequency figures are by Hermann Smith. 3
'''·'/'.'
' 'rlitte A to 430.539 Hz (Philosophical Pitch)

~~,~at one can be"more free from the 4
dominating predisposition to favour the key of C." Tuned Tuned
before before
l Sharpen
!
Equal beating
0.97 l l
0.97
"Test the truth Tune Sharpen

of the ()ctave." just
Tune
just
, J\!ne
just
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned
before before
Equal beatin~
Equal beating
l.16
0.77
0.77
S'1arpen
i
tune
t
Sharpen
just
Tune
Tune Tuned just
Tuned just Tuned before
Sharpen
!
! l
before before Equal beating
! 1.03
1.03
Tune
just
Tufte
Tuned just ·Tuned
before before
Sharpen Equal beating
!
Equal beating
0.92 l l ! 1.23
1.23
Tuned Tune
before Tuned just Tuned
before Sharpen
!
before
Equal beating
607
Tune
just
Check the following intervals as a final test between E and E. As the fifths are played chromatically upwards, ''step
by step every fifth is progressively a faster-beating fifth, and for every other interval the same reasoning holds. " 5
0.77 0.82 0.87
1.30 1.38 1.46

l 09 1.16
0.92 097 l 03
~
/
~L
I If llJfG
~
--;
l
c.
qt;;
LI
11t:
LiJT
ft
=~--
--..... irG
t. ~
.::tf-z;
If
--6
~
~
=i--~
:I
¥
'r;
I tJ ~-_-6 - -GI
'
I
j '-'l:
'
+
1.95 2.06 2.18
1.73 l.84
e\that in th~ order of the fourths the beats have quitkened progressively, and not by fits and starts. " 6
187
THOMAS ELLISTON MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE TUNED
THE EXACT THEORETICAL EQUAL TEMPERAMENT IN 1894
T. homas Ellistonwrote, "As the intervals risein pitch the waving or pulsation becomes more pronounced, orfaster." 1
Again he wrote, ''The intervals wave faster as the pitch rises.' ' 2 Therefore, Elliston knew the theory of progres-
sive beat frequencies for any interval played chromatically up the scale. He also was a fanatic concerning the fourth-
fifth equal-beating test for just intonation ratio 4 to 2 octaves. He explained the rules concerning the latter test several
times. In addition to thoroughly checking the bearing section with all the test intervals, Elliston instructed that one
should also ''test every note with its octaves, fifths, fourths, major and minor thirds, minor and major sixths, minor
sevenths, and tenths, above and below, and in double octaves. The tenth is an excellent test.' ' 3 This was to be done
throughout the whole instrument.
On first perusal, the above appears to be complete for tuning in the mathematically exact modern theoretically cor-
rect equal temperament on organs, but there were a few elements missing. There was not one mention that the thirds,
sixths, and tenths should be played in parallel motion and compared for their evenly progressing beat frequencies.
Instead, Elliston wrote, ''Every note throughout the organ should sound pleasantly with its fifths, fourths, thirds, sixths,
minor sevenths and tenths, and the octaves should be pure. " 4 Elliston did not mention any beat frequency numbers.
In both of his bearing plans the sixths and thirds were too in pitch for efficient beat counting and in
parallel sequences. The minor thirds in his first bearing plan were beating at an average of around eighteen times per
second. This along with the fact that he included the very difficult minor sixths and minor sevenths as important test
intervals within the bearing section shows that except for fifths and fourths Elliston was not listening to beat frequen-
cies and comparing them in parallel sequences. He was listening instead for musical qualities. Elliston explained key-
color and the characters of the keys based on unequal temperament, and he wrote that the ''absence of colour is a
good test for in " 5 He must have relied on this test rather the of beats
on Elliston' s statements beat progressions were used by Elliston to prove the truth of the
test for ratio 4 to 2 octaves and especially to show when fourths share common lower tones with fifths and also when
fourths share common tones with fifths that the fourths must always beat faster. It is likely that Elliston carefully
compared the of on fifths, and twelfths.
From all of the above, it is evident that Thomas Elliston tested each note of the organ in the manner outlined below.
Middle C is used as an example. It was that this tone must "sound with" all of the intervals. 6
Testing Middle C
n . i •• • ·~it~ . ·• .....¥i~i~;ll1~.(l y.;~•. ;li:{"•. . . .·~
is done correctly' this D-sharp should prove to .. a slig wide f~urth with Ute O~sharp atlt}v~~ \vhiG;h
ed by holding the finger over the G-sharp pipe, and (gradually} shading it to flatten it slightly. when such
t•IIiporary flatt~ning should cause it to sound a perfect fourth.
·not trus~ the ear witho~t this test as it might tum out to be a slightly narrow fourth, in which case the intervals
tutted mote imperfect tnan t]Jert:c is occi;tsion for. For the same reason it must not be a pure fourth, if so, it must
right by distribut1ng tlte e'.,.i1rj Whlch ~~ b.~ ~€Ill.~ by wor.l(in~ backwards throughout the series of bearings .
.dJt li'rove to be too wide a fourth the intervai:s, .9r som~~ofthem, h~ve.b~e~ttmed too p\lre. 8
tetvals,'' Elliston meant only the·fourths and fifths .

.above writing, can be taken as proof that Elliston did not.know about the major third-major sixth test that shows
·a' fourth is wide, just, or narrow/ This,. afong. with tqt\ fa~t. th11t Ellisto1' sometime.s hJtd prnblems V/ith the
shows that Elliston must not have been checking the progressive beatings of the thirds and sixths as he
()Of'
·d through the bearing section.
~s EJliston's second bearing plan.was dominated by the fourth:..fifth equal-beating test for just irttonation ratio
· ~ves .• Obviously, Elliston cortsidered this ta be the most important set of testing intervals. Underneath all
can: see tllat Elliston's secon4. bearing plan was the same as that used by Wesley Stoker Barket Woolhouse
) W. <;Jeib in 1869, A. Hemstockin 1876, and MarkWkks in 1887. Elliston gave no acknowl.edg.ment to the
authors. (Compare Sections 119, 137 [Geib No. 2}, remarks at end of Section 142, 172, and 188 of thee present
"Elliston's second bearing plan artd inst(uction.s are outlined in the following section. This bearing plan does
JloW the rules for C major tonality because. equal temperament was the intention.
NOTES
.. a,~EHiston, Organs And Tuning, 2d ed. (London: Weekes & Co.; Suffolk: B. R. Marten, 1895), 81. The first edition
~~~ pu~Ji~hed in 1894.
{bid'., 90.
Ibid., 86.
!b~d., 88.
th~d., .74.
id:, 88.
83-85.
g4~''.
611
Tuned
before Flatten Test
"slightly." just
l !
Test
Equal beating
lj g II
Flatten
"slightly."
Tuned Tuned
before Flatten before
Just
'.'§,ligblll-'·:'.
Equal beating
!
II
i
Flatten
"slightly." i
Flatten
188. Tuning Quasi-Equal T~mpetamentl~1894According Td The R!!li?s By Thomas Elltston
'fu11ed
before Just
Equal beating
I
Flatten Flatten i
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
Flatten Just
Equal beating
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
Flatten Just
l l 1 Equal beating
,--------1 !
i
Flatten
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
~ l ~
. ~ual beating !
"'- -1- - - - '-~- - - - '-'-~- -'-~=r-
-'-i #~ tf} ~~
Flatten t
Flatten
The§cien(eJJfEqual Temperament
Tuned Tuned
before before
Flatten "an evenly narrow fifth"
This completes the bearing section from F to high B.

An example of how Thomas Elliston tuned the notes above the bearing section:
Tuned
before Just
Tune
just
The fifth must produce
slower beats than the fourth.
"Do not trust the ear to tune the octaves without" using the above tests. 1
''As the ear cannot be trusted to tune octaves perfectly,'' use these same tests for the notes below the bearing section. 2
l. Elliston, Organs And Tuning, 90.

2. Ibid., 85.
''NOT ONE PERCENTOlrTftEPROFESSORS OF PIANO
CAN TUNE THEIR OWN INSTRUMENTS" IN 1895
E. Moscow wrote, ''It is generally known among tuners that not one per cent of the professors of piano
can tune their own instruments, whereas the maker or tuner, with little knowledge of music, will tune a piano
oet·tec:tlv " 1 Realizing these facts, Charles Moscow must have surmised that if musicians could not tune their own
they also could not hear the difference between the mathematically exact equal temperament and the very
imitations of it. Therefore, it was a waste of time to struggle so hard to tune equal temperament as Edward
n1·.. nr·v Norton in 1887, Henry Fisher in 1892, and others were attempting to do.
Moscow ''had an experience of many years as a practical tuner [and] studied carefully the various methods
~ by all classes of tuners.' ' 2 In his quest to find the easiest-to-tune equal-beating temperament ever devised, he
..... . .LAA•
Louis 0. Peltier's bearing plan from 1877 without acknowledging Peltier. (Compare Sections 149 and 190.)
M"""''"" made two alterations so that the fifths would beat faster and therefore be easier to hear and to control. First,
1rans1Jos:ea Peltier's plan to be an octave higher. 3 This doubled the beat frequencies. Second, Moscow tuned all
T£n•:nT•" in just intonation so that only the fifths needed to be tempered. This doubled the beat frequencies again.
the beats of the fifths that one was required to listen to were roughly four times faster and therefore easier to
in the original Peltier. The results were a substitute for equal temperament that Moscow labeled as "best. " 4
This was similar to the Johann George Neidhardt temperament of 1732. (See Section 135.) Charles Moscow evidently
no problems selling this to musicians and calling it equal temperament in 1895. Moscow ignored the ban that Hermann
had placed on the ancient, easy, equal-beating tempering techniques in 1893.
The tuning instructions for the Moscow temperament are outlined on the following pages. Moscow instructed that
a!Hhe fifths the bearing section should contain "three waves a second. " 5 This works only if one
the extremely of A=457.2 Hz that was used on or A=460.8 Hz in New York
·<h1""'"'" the 1880s 6 was from New York According to the formula X=7153C+ X
is the number of beats per second for Moscow's equal-beating fifths and C is the frequency of the C above middle
Cat the present standard pitch, the beats of Moscow's fifths must be 2.72221382 per second each.
NOTES
Charles E. Moscow, The Practical Piano 'Tuner (New York: Carl 1895), 6.
Ibid., introduction.
7-10.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid., 8-9.
6. Helmholtz, On the Sensations Of Tone . .. Second English Edition, 502.
,:r\lnq tile ,foll()wing qqal°te(, n9t(\s,.µl,the ~t<Jf~, ~tiff~.Q~ TW-l~ Ut~ foq{th~ in. just intQnati9n, ,If C\. standlU'd pitch c tuning
fork i$ used, temper each fifth to beat 2.1 times per $econd.
Tune Tune
just·· Tune Tune Proof
t .· T,
·just
T !
J;4#~ J I~ II
t l r r
Flatten Flatten Flatten Flatten Flatten
r
If a tuning fork at modem standard pitch was used,
tlJ,e fifth F C }';,ill l>il~*:.2•7 tim~~ pei; second.
This compfetes the bearing section between F to F.
Tabl(' l'°"Ji Th~ Diftere:ft((!Sc i~ Cents between the Notes of

Charles E. Moscow's Equal:.beating Temperament and Equal Temperament.
(This table was cale~lat~cl' fro.n A as a basis when a C fork at standard pitclt is ~d.)
Equal Temperament Moscow Rounded Figures
0-sharp plus 1.96402 +2
0 plus 0.09763 0
F-sh,arp plus 2.29486 +2
F plus 0.68515 +1
E minus 1.61514 -2
E-flat plus 0.14065 0
D minus 1.95500 -2
c minus 1.85737 -2
B plus 0.33986 0
. a."flat.. plus....... ..2.Jl9565 +2
k/D'n.Y,G· IWANS
BY.•FREDEIUCK:•·.·E\Vl\RT ROSEkfsON'IN 18971
rst bearing plan begins like that of Johann. Nepomuk. Hummel of 1829 (see Section 111 of the present work),
foUows the rules of tonality for C major much better than does Hummel's.
e the following quarter notes in the order written.
Tune A to
the tuning fork.
Flatten
l
Tune "a trifle." Tune Tune
just just just Trial
! ! ! ! !
l~ J J ~ ~
~ #~ #J
#J I~ II
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
t
Flatten
"a trifle."
Tuned
Tuned before
before Tune
Sharpen
l
just Sharpen Sharpen Sharpen
1 ! ! ! !!
' l!~iJ ,J l~ 1J J
J J J J
#J 1
l
Flatten
i
Flatten
i
Tune
t
Tune
just just
617
Tune A just octave
just
This completes the bearing section from A to high D-sharp.

Robertson's second bearing plan follows the rules of tonality for C major completely.
Tune A to
the tuning fork. Tuned
1Y T Sharpen
g;----
Sharpen
!
Trial
!
lt@g-NJC ll4 ___,_J~ _J fl__/[[~
i i
Sharpen
Tuned Tuned
before before
Sharpen Flatten Flatten
Sharpen Flatten Flatten

Flatten
i
A fourth that is
"a trifle" wide
his completes the bearing section from A to A.
NOT:e,
rederick Ewart Robertson, A Practical Treatise on Organ-Building (London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, Ltd., 1897),
64~
192
''TRY TO FIND OUT WHAT STYLE OF PIECES
THE ORGANIST PLAYS''
The above statement reveals that tuning in 1900 was still more of an art than a science. John Hinton wrote:
I once asked a very clever tuner, ''How do you succeed in getting such smoothness of tone, and in seemingly pleasing
all classes of players?" His reply was, "I first try to find out what style of pieces the organist plays. If need be, I
look over all the music I can see about, and I form my conclusions. Then I judge what combination of stops he likes.''
Would that all tuners possessed the same amount of brains!1
Thus, the secret of becoming an established, prestigious tuner in 1900 was to temper according to the music found
on the music rack.
After describing the "neutral ground" between discernible beats on the narrow side and discernible beats on the
wide side of octaves intended to be just, Hinton wrote,
It is in dealing judiciously with this quantity that brains, and real art in tuning, come in. No amount of mathematics,
monochords, pendulums, or the like, will produce anything but a theoretically correct result. Some persons [evidently
very few in 1900] grasp this readily, and by cross-tuning attain a sweetness and cohesion of tone completely beyond
the capacity of the mere routine tuner who, again, is invariably better than the theoretical 'crank' who approaches
his work with a mind filled with algebraical formulas. 2
Perhaps Hinton was annoyed by the recent acceptance in common practice of the mathematical tests for just intonation
ratio 4 to 2, 6 to 3, and 8 to 4 octaves.
John Hinton used four The one was in 1809. 3 this,
see of the added major thirds FA, and B-flat D to
be used as test intervals (trials). This completed all the standard major thirds for tonality C major. Hinton con-
sidered this bearing plan to be "the best one. " 4 This bearing plan was deeply rooted in history, originating in the
seventeenth or before.
Except for the tone F-sharp being an octave lower, Hinton's second bearing plan was the one used by Alexander
John Ellis in 1875 and Robert Halford MacDowall in 1876. 5 this, see Sections 141 and
Hinton's third bearing plan was copied from A. Hemstock's plan published in 18766 (see Section 143). Hinton wrote
that this was ''now more generally in vogue.' ' 7
John Hinton gave no credit to the former authors of the above bearing plans.
If one intended to tune according to the music found on music racks or in the benches, then the first Hinton bearing
plan was the best because it followed the rules of tonality.
When tuning meantone temperament, Hinton recommended the bearing published by in 1830. 8
(For see Section 114.) Here, John Hinton actually acknowledged Benjamin Flight as the author!
THE 'TEMPED.ELLA' 0FJ903
The National Self Tuner was a book consisting of the. writings of previous authors copied word for word except
.1 for a few minor deletions. On the first page, the 1835 bearing plan of Wesley Stoker Barker Woolhouse was
printed. Following this were several pages of instructions published by W. Geib in 1869, even though by 1903 Geib's
tempering techniques were outmoded. 1 (For these instructions, see Sections 137 and 138 of the present work.) Follow-
ing this were many pages of instructions published by Hermann Smith in 1893. 2 (For these instructions, see Sections
183 and 184 of the present work.) In The National Self Tuner, all of Hermann Smith's beat frequency figures were omitted.
No credit or acknowledgment was given to Woolhouse, Geib, or Smith. This was plagiarism, even though Hiram
S. Talbot was able to get it copyrighted. The one element of originality in his book was an advertisement found on
pages 34 and 35 for the "Temperella," a tuning aid which was "the only means by which the temperament on the
piano can, with assurance, be set absolutely correct.'' After much propaganda, it was revealed that ''Tuners have had
to spend months, and even years, to acquire this art of setting a correct temperament by the present methods, and
many a tuner today earning a living by tuning is not able to do this correctly.' ' 3 All of the study and practice needed
to become a piano tuner in 1903 was now unnecessary because "a novice can, with the aid of our instrument, fit him-
self one week to do what has heretofore years to accomplish. " 4 This tuning aid, the "Temperella,"
nicknamed ''The Perfect Piano Tuner,'' could be purchased from the National Tuning Company, Steinway Hall, Chicago,
Illinois.
The basis of this tuning aid was a monochord which was as ancient as the science or study of music itself. The
Chicago Daily News wrote:
This invention consists of a wooden and a set of keys corresponding to the natural,
sharp notes in an also a single which strikes
the string when one of the keys is At the harp is a which moves the over
which the string is stretched, thus varying its length and changing the tone .... The harp being placed on key-
board, the scale is moved until it indicates the note which the tuner desires to strike. A depression of the corresponding
key drops the hammer on the tuning string and depresses the piano at the same when a discord between
the two strings will at once be apparent. 5
At this moment, the novice was instructed to tune the piano strings of the note in unison with the single string of the
Temperella. All twelve notes of the bearing section could then be tuned by moving the Temperella's bridge.
This tuning aid did not become popular for two reasons. First, many nineteenth-century acousticians revealed the
truth that tuning from monochords was highly inaccurate. 6 Second, amateur tuners have undeveloped tuning hammer
and pin setting technique; therefore, tunings, inaccurate to begin with, go out of tune very rapidly to become
worse than ever. The mark of a professional is how well and long his unisons hold throughout the poundings
of a virtuoso pianist.
NOTES
1. Hiram S. Talbot, The National Self Tuner; or, Tuning Made Perfect (Chicago: Talbot, 1903), 5-9.
2. Ibid., 10-20.
3. Ibid.' 34.
4.
5. H:>id., 35.
6. Smith, 1Vmv:nu Reeves Bookseller Ltd., 28.
m~l Hasluck furnished two bearing J)lails; One plan, a}qngc with tbe test chords or tri~s. was cppit::9'.~~~ctly. from
· .e Tuner's Guide of 1840. 1 This was the circle of fifths and octaves that was based oit the Becket and Company
plan ~~blished in 1809, Hasluck gave nQ acknowlecfgment to The T14ner's Guide or to any of the s~veral other
dsts Wft{) had published t)lis bearing plan. (For using this plan according t.o Hasluck's instr1u:tions. see Section
! the P{~~ent work.)
µck's other bearing pl~m~ outlined below., was. a composite of the bearing plans published by Edgat Brinsmead
and Charles Babbington in .1880. The first three measures were copied exactly fron'i Brlnsmead. The remaining
'on was copied from Babbington (see SectiOns 150 and 159 of the present work). Hashick instructed that when
rths and fifths" are played that "two slow waves only should be heard." 2 Obviously, this instruction came from
Tuner's Guide. Hasluck further wrote, "Each fourth and fifth is equally imperfect; the imperfection must, however,
.se) slight that it is perceptible to no one but the tuner himself. " 3 In contradiction to the words "too slow waves"
"tten above, Hasluck later wrote that when tuning downwards toward the bass that each fourth must be ''one degree
.~J!at''. ~.!!<!.tl!~t each fifth must be "one waves~:;trp. '' 4 These lastwords show that Hasluck had indeed copied
qm Brinsmead's book (see Section 150 of the presenfwork). These words were used in describing notes that were
still within the bearing section. The contradiction and conf\lsion was caused because Hasluck copied information from
•more than one author, and he. obviously did not notice the discrepancy.
··•·• Tune th~ (qllowing quarter notes in the order written. PaulNooncree Hasluck used the equal-beating method; there-
·fore, if a modern standard pitch fork is used, a suggestion for authenticity is to temper each fourth and fifth in the
following instructions to beat 0. 796525703 times per second. The results would then be the same as those in Table 117-1.
Tuned
before
! Trial
1
Flatten Flatten
! ! !
n~= n E r ~ ~ I~ ~ I~ II
t
Tune
just
t
Flatten
r
Sharpen
623
The. Science Of Equal·. Temperament
Tuned Tuned
l l
before before
r- c Triru• -,
~fi___lL__---+··_t----+ul~~· ----H---'ffi£--==-=!=-~a •--+-----f
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned Trial before Trial
Trial before
t l
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
before Trial Trial
l
Final proof
J t !
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
completes the bearing section from F to E.
NOTES
l. Paul Nooncree Hasluck, Pianos: Their Construction, Tuning, And Repair (London, New York, and Melbourne: Cassell
and Company, Ltd., 1905), 98-101.
2. 97.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid., 98.
195
IN 1905 ACCORDING To THE RULES
BY GEORGE ASHDOWN AUDSLEY
:n._ eorge Ashdown Audsley (1838-1925) was a Scottish architect who emigrated to America in 1892: In America
\.J he was a highly successful architect and also a prominent organ designer. He wrote many books on architecture
and art, and published two bearing plans. 1 The first was copied from The Tuner's Guide to which he gave no acknowledg-
rnent. He added the theoretically correct beat frequencies based on "Diapason Normal" (A=435 Hz) to this bearing
plan, outlined below. (Compare this with Section 127 of the present work.) Audsley's second bearing plan is given
in Section 196.
Test interval
(Figures denote
beats per second,
Tune C to with the author's
517.305 Hz corrections in
(Diapason Normal). Tuned
before
l
Tune
just
!
! 0.87
(0.88) l 1.31 .
Flatten
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l 0.98
i
Flatten F!aiten
The Science Of. Equal Temperament
Tuned
before
I
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before before
l 0.93 l l.17
Flatten Sharpen
Tuned
Tuned before Proof
before
1.56 l 1.04
!
Sharpen Sharpen
George Audsley advised, ''To render the observation of the beats in the intervals more easy it will be well to count
them during ten seconds of time instead of during single seconds" when tuning organs. Also, if "the Octave, 4 ft.,
drawn on the Great Organ manual,'' is used for laying the bearings, the beat frequencies must be doubled. 2 1·.,,,,.,.,t;,.,."'
for organ tuning, multiply the above figures by twenty. For example, for the fifth CG, count almost 18 beats in ten seconds.
NOTES
1. George Ashdown Audsley, The Art of Organ-Building (London: Low, Marston and Company, 1905; New York: Dodd, Mead
and Company, reprint, New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1965), 645-47.
2. Ibid., 646.
TUNING. EQUAL·. TEMPERAMENT
IN 1905 BY USING GEORGE ASHDOWN AUDSLEY'S
CIRCLE OF FOURTHS AND OCTAVES 1
une the following quarter notes in the order written. For organ tuning on the four foot octave, multiply Audsley's
beat frequency figures by twenty and count them during ten seconds of time. For example, for the fourth AD,
almost twenty beats in ten seconds.
Test intervals
(Figures denote
beats per second,
with the author's
corrections in
parentheses.)
Tune A to 435 Hz
(Diapason Normal).
t Tuned
before
Tuned
before
l Sharpen
! -,
Equal beating
0.98 0.98 1 l 1.31
Tune
i i
Tune
Sharpen
just just
•. 1lttu~<:t . • .
trefote'
Tune
just
Tuned Tune
before Tuned just
Equal beating
!
before
~
1.11
t 11
1 r
Equal beating
(
Jt
-
{. t
::::::
Jll
u i ~
.h....J
·.
._"
~ [! ~
-6
~
··: 0.78
t
·:1
....~.
"J.•
--;;:
~
'
~+<<•······
....
·...: -
:-r
li·
T
:-r ~···
t
0.78
k
-
i -:
1: ,,, ..,...,,
1T•
t
.... .....
···.,'LL'.
A
.,
-::
T: cc
Tune Sharpen
just
196. Tuning Equal Tempetl1Jlfent "{Jy l.l.sing Auds[ey's. Circle ()J Fourths And Octaves
.Tuned Tuned
before before Sharpen
!
Sharpen Equal beating
~~-~~~~~-~-----~~--~~~
I
1.04
to4
l ! l.39
&-~-~+~-+l
-----------+---
i
Tune
just
Tuned Tuned Tuned

Sharpen Sharpen
l ! 0.93
Equal beating
0.93 l l !
---
---·-·
Tune
i i
Tune
just just
t
Tune
f
Sharpen
just
Tuned Tuned Sharpen Proof

Tuned before before (retune)
Sharpen
!
1 l
~
! 1.1()
1.10 ! 1.47 0.00
±
•
I' I _;;,_ ,, ~
-
-"-
I l'1 L :f
±
--
~
--
;.f l. ..[ e:.
-
~ (!';,.
-1
'J: = r---- .'L'~H_:'_ .. ,. -;; ..J-~ -_. .
.....
..,
;:.
"4 l -· ii
~
~
It
--·
;jtl~,
H~
"/'-
± ~
-A
-----\.- ""-"-
---- ----- T =
i
Tune
just
This completes a very large twenty-five note bearing section from C to C. Compare with Herman Smith's system
outli_nedin Section 186. _ _
"Each notei tuned to its octave above, must be tested with its fourth and fifth above. When very close tuning is
aimed at, it is very desirable to test the same throughout the compass of the stop, by means of major and minor thirds,
minor and major sixths, and tenths, both in single and double octaves. These tests may be made in the form of chords.' ' 2
NOTES
1. Audsley, The-Art of Organ-Building, 641.
2. Ibid.
THE CORRESPONDENCE COURSES BY.NILES BRYANT IN 1906
Hes Bryant lived from 1868 to 1946. The cost of a piano tuning by a former Bryant student in Hendricks, Minnesota,
was three dollars in 1906. This was "typical of thousands" of students who had enrolled in the Niles Bryant
cQrre:spcmaienc:e courses. Graduates could tune four pianos per day, 1 The Niles Bryant School of Piano Tuning, chartered
the state of Michigan, was founded in 1898. "The graduates of this School are able to earn larger incomes than
lawyers, dentists, accountants, electricians, tradesmen and teachers. Money can be earned after the first few
The Niles Bryant tuning instructions were an exact copy of those published by Mark Wicks in 1887. 3 Bryant even
included the unnecessary high C-sharp that Wicks had added so that Wicks couldn't be sued by A. Hemstock who
had published the bearing plan in 1876. Of course, Hemstock copied the bearing plan from W. Geib of 1869, who
in turn had copied it from Wesley Stoker Barker Woolhouse of 1835, who in turn simplified the large bearing plan
German-American Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner of 1819. (Graupner may have originally published this
in 1806.) The 1916 edition of Niles Bryant's organ book is still in print by Vestal Press. Thus, this bearing plan has
print for roughly two centuries. Niles Bryant gave no acknowledgment to any of the previous authors-
none of whom had acknowledged each other. Two centuries of plagiarism are represented here. (Compare Sections
109, 119, 137 [Geib No. 2], remarks at end of 142, 172, and 188.)
For the Niles Bryant organ tuning instructions; read Sections 171 and 172 of the present work. For Bryant
used "Concert pitch"; therefore, Bryant's final fifth FC was better than the Mark Wicks fifth FC at standard pitch.
All· of the fifths must beat two times per second, according to Niles Bryant. 4
NOTES
1. Niles Bryant, Tuning, Care and Repair of Reed And Pipe Organs (Battle Creek, Mich.: The Niles Bryant School of Piano Tun-
ing, 1906), 102.
2. Ibid., i.
3. Ibid., 51-54, 96-99.
4. Ibid.
THE·•MODERNBEARINGi PtAN PUBLISHED
BY HOWARD WILLET PYLE IN 19061
fter ''twenty-five years of careful study and experience," Howard Willet Pyle in 1906 published the bearing
plan that has remained as the most traditional and commonly practiced bearing plan to the present day, 2 Accord-
ing to page 19 of the May 1914 Tuner's Magazine Pyle began using this in 1884 and by 1906 it was in general use
and was commonly taught in schools of tuning. Pyle wrote:
Some years ago tuners nearly always tuned by fifths and octaves, not using the fourths, but it proved to be a very
roundabout way, and it was tedious to discover any error. The 'fourth' is quite as easy to tune as the 'fifth,' after
the ear has become accustomed to it. By the use of fifths and fourths the bearings can be laid by using only one octave. 3
Howard Willet Pyle's bearing plan, as he published it, is outlined at the bottom of page 635. No test intervals or
trials were included. Pyle wrote, "Should this system of temperament be followed exactly, there will be no need for
trial chords, as they will all prove correct if the fifths and fourths are correctly tempered. " 4
The tuning fork for C was recommended by Pyle to be 517.3 Hz. This was the "French Diapason Normal," or
equivalent of A at Hz. This pitch was also caHed "International Pitch" in 1906.
Pyle gave his readers a choice between two equal~beating methods for tuning the approximations of equal tempera-
ment. The first method was the centuries-old pre-Ellis method of tempering all the intervals to beat the same speed.
this, all the fifths and fourths within the hearing section were to be tempered "until you hear three long waves
terminating :in one continuous sound.'' 5 The words were the twentieth-century descendants of the words written
in 1840: "Two slow and waves, terminating in one steady, continuous sound. " 6 Perhaps the tone quality on
had 1906 that more beats heard died away. words
"""'"'"""' t11m1;ngs or measurements In another did add to these
words the phrase "or three waves in five seconds. " 7 In any case, it was dear that each fourth and fifth was to beat
at the same rate. When C is tuned to the old pitch of 517.305095 each fourth and fifth (except the highest fourth
which was not must beat 0.787474275 times per second to the formula X=1L~;f~~~Ie£:. five
seconds the beat frequency must be 3.937371375 for each fourth and fifth. Thus, Pyle made an error. He should have
"or four waves in five seconds." If one each fourth and fifth to 0.8 beats
then the results would be identical to those outlined in Table 117-1 of the present work.
For the second equal-beating method, Pyle instructed. that all fifths should beat ''three beats in five seconds,'' and
that an fourths (except the fourths FB-flat and CF which were not played) should beat "one beat a second. " 8 If one
tuned C to the old "International Pitch" of 517.3 and followed Pyle's instructions exactly, then the octave FF
would result in being 0.64569 cents wide and it would be beating 0.129 times per second. The results are outlined
in Table
.A o cent!'!
g:~~~
0-sharp plus 0
G minus 0
the upper F plus 0.84208 +l
~~1ow~r F plus 0.19640 0
piu!'l 0.36220 0
E~flat pfos 0.31207 0
n·· >plus o.n:J~9~' 0
c-srtarp plus 0.19668 0
c plus 0.14458 0
B plus 0.54569 +1
B-flat pltJ!'l 0.39011 0
~unpare this table with Tables 85-1,. 101-1, 109-1.111-1, 112-1, 117-1, 125-1, 126-1, 127-1, 141-1, 166-3, 168-1,
1'12-1. The above ta})le is theory. ·In practice, the results would have been more like those in Table 163-1 based
is in 1885.
NOTES
'lf<twatd Willet Pyle, A Practical Tffeatise on Tuning and Repairing the Piano-Forte (Philadelphia: J. W. Pepper, 1906), 38 .
. , preface.
37.
. , 3~.
., 38•
.Tuner's Guide, 10.
.· Je,A Practical Treatise on Tuning, 38.
lt>id., 39.
633
1~~ followin~ bearing plans are given without tri~Man(L test intervals so: that one can follow, their historica.l develop-
fiietit. The 'wolf intervals and 'proof'interv~ls w~~e added by the present author.
William Holder (1616.-16981) ·published the following in· 1694 for meantoh:e temperament.
Twentycfollr notes from C to B Wolf
The· above plan was later abridged and used· in the following form.
Wolf
Nineteen notes· from C to Fli
John Marsh (1752-1828) published the following in 1809 for nteantone temperament.
Wolf
Nineteen notes from Bb to E
199. .•·• The E~tilution OJ The. Modem Bearing Plan
Nineteennotes fro!U F~ to C Proof
fifths CG, DA, EB, BF'-sharp, C-sharp G-sharp, B-flat F, and E-flat B-flat from the Becket plan were inverted
as fourths in the following Jousse plan.
Jousse ( 1760-1837) published his bearing plan in 1832 for equal temperament. Hipkins attributed this bearing
to Robert Womum.
Proof
Twelve notes from F to E
t
im t=iif-4_==f~t ttr tvat§r-1 t=~
Louis 0. Peltier published the following in 1877. The common laws of tonality for C major were renounced.
Proof
l
in 1880.

,----~---·-------·--·-·----···------------·----·------·---- f !
Proof
~~--i--1~~-=t=t/f-ct~~~
Howard Willet Pyle and William Braid White both published the following in 1906. Pyle began this in 1884.
Proofs
Thirteen notes from F to F
------, 1----1
THE Mf>DERN.BEARING PLAN
As AMENDED BY WILLIAM BRAID WmTE IN 19061
D r. William Braid White (1878-1959), an English acoustical engineer educated at Cambridge University emi-
grated to America in 1898. In 1904 he became the technical editor of the Music Trade Review in New York,
a position he filled until 1932. In 1910 he founded the American Guild of Piano Tuners which eventually evolved
into the present Piano Technicians Guild, Inc. He is the ''father'' of the guild. White was secretary of the Music Indus-
tries Chamber of Commerce committee that worked in the 1920s to establish A at 440 Hz for the modem standard
pitch. From 1927 to 1938 White was an acoustical engineer for the American Steel and Wire Company; from 1938
to 1959 he was technical editor of the Piano Trade Magazine. During the half century that White served as technical
editor for music periodicals, he answered questions from professional piano technicians concerning problems of tun-
ing, voicing, regulating, repairing, rebuilding, etc., and wrote several books on these subjects. Overall, he was the
most influential piano technician of this century. He founded the School of Pianoforte Technology in Chicago and
remained principal until his death in 1959.
William Braid White added the traditional trials to the commonly practiced modern bearing plan in 1906. His in-
structions are as follows:
Upper notes of fifths must be tuned flat so as to give two distinct beats. Lower notes of fourths must be tuned flat
so as to give three distinct beats. Upper notes of major thirds must be sharp so as to give approximately eight beats
per second. Upper notes of major sixths must be sharp so as to give approximately eleven beats per second .... The
major thirds and sixths are tested continually as the tuning proceeds, and thus is provided a sure guide to the correct-
ness of the fourths and fifths. 2
the
Time Cto Tuned

the tuning fork. before
Sharpen Flatten Flatten Flatten

200. The Modem bearing Plan As Amended By William Braid White ln 1906
Tuned
before Tuned
Trial before
Trials
1 1
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned before
Trial before
i
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
before
Trials
l Trials
1--"--------1
Flatten
Tuned
before
Flatten
WnJt~t•s"~tio~ i~Ff~Q'.q m~~ tfle 111;;tj<)( ~ixt~S within the F. tO F bearing section should beat an average of eleven
times pet sec6ll1d was rt()i·~'¥1'<fS:t~Pfl.i(iij~.. •··Me re~~ted~this ~rror elsewhere in his book'. If the major sixths were
tl1ii14~ to beatJhree times per se('1l't'a fus(~r· ...· . ..•. e Jjj#jt}ri•tflirtt§! $ltflrihg common lower tones with the sixths, then
. ·tlf~ f~ti~s J t:J:ql.9' b~()pie excessively wide. and fast beatirigr4•11Wllite c~ffiiinty ffid not inte.nd. this. Proof that White was
0
capable of greatettors in mathematical calctilations is obvious in his chart of equal temperament frequencies. s White
shoµld have; :wr~tten that the major sixth~.within the bearing section beat at an average of 8.6589 times per second .
. .. ~illiam:Braid ~ite ·.. •• 'liar with . ~e the()fY ?f pt6gressive beat frequencies. ll.~ ~;(ote, ''The number of beats
that~anytempe:red••interv•· • ·nerates ·varies directly as•the.piteh of the1sounds that fotm(jhe interval•. ·T:he higher the
pitch,. the greater. the numb~t of beats~ Conversely¥ the lower the pitch, the smaller the nurt:ibet of beats.' ' 6 This, along
wi~ the fact th~t•"\\ftJite !e~ted the
thitds and sbthsas• he•progressed through the circle of foutths and fifths, indicates
that;,Wbite.majhave'turie<r:aswellas•Hen,.~;Fishe~did in 1892, although White did ~ot mention the upper nearly-
coincidingbatmonics. ·.. , is~,·this Wa ·"i . highest f911p of tempering done during the tum-of-the-century: Even
so;<WhiteadrfV!~edthat'° . mnpossilde{th efore;mnrac,tice, to tune with such accur1,.1cy as theory would demand,
but an approximation may.be obtain¢.~ q . . .
·White wrote extensively about the beauties and' harmoniousness of just intonation and meantone temperament. With
regret, he acknowledged that the "Equaf'femperament has become so strongly and intimately bound up with the per-
1 fonnance of IDQSk, that the majori«y of music~ans.are probably incapable pf distinguishing between the idea of pure
as' opposeQ!J~ ~at· or. tempered musical sounds.' ...
NOTES
1. William Braid White, Theory arid Practl'ce ofPianoforte Building (New York: Edward Lyman Bill, 1909), 129. The first edition
of this boqk was publisl\~c!. in 1906.
2,
3.
lbt~:~ Pt ......
TAttTIJn~t's
·. .. . . ·.
t;fuitlet lO, ·.·.
.
4. White, TAeory ana Practice of Pianoforl:e Building, 119.
5. Ibid., 46.
~~'.. l.Qili.,.. ltl:i •
.···'f:'''lf>'flt·····'••··+ .
s:. Ibid., 47.
Uowing bearing plan is a variation of a bearing plan that Daniel Spillane published in .189'.l (seeSectjon 180
present work).
eLthe following quarter notes in the order written.
Tuned
Tune Temper before
just "slightly flat." Trial
! ! l !
r r r f 1f f 1J II
i
Temper
i
Temper
i
Temper
"slightly flat." "slightly flat." "slightly sharp."
Tuned Tuned Tuned

before 1'.rial before before
! l I l
lf;,:··~
Pg
1! 11·r E If ~
..
i
Temper
i
Tune just, or
i
Temper
"slightly sharp." "dead in tune." "slightly flat."
The Science Of Equal Tt!mperament
Tuned
before Tuned
T l T T
~rrt~_f:__··
. ~AP_f~-r-==-_--===If-.---+1+-"--1
-· C____,_Jf:~~-==Q
Temper
i
Temper
"slightly flat." "slightly flat."
Tuned
Tuned al f.
T T
Trial
1 1 b
~tf?]~=f;-·--++--l!f'-t-tz-k-+l~---(f2___~~
i
Temper
i
Temper
"slightly flat" "slightly sharp."
Tuned
before
Trial Trial Proof
! 1 !
Temper
"slightly sharp."
This completes the bearing section from F to F.
NOTE
l. Charles William Love, editor for The British College of Pianoforte Tuning; Principals: Frank Markham, Charles
Charles M. Love, and Charles W. Love, A Manual Pianoforte (London: Weekes & Co., 1907), 5.
,,~nry Spain's first bearing plan was an exact copy of the bearing plan published by Alexander John Ellis in 1875
and by Robert Halford MacdowaU Bosanq1;iet in 1876. Spain gave no acknowledgment to the previous authors.
Io'\Ving this bearing plan, see Sections 141 and 145 of the present work.
;;,Spain's second bearing plan i.s outlined below. ·
.;+the following quarter notes in the order written. Temper fifths narrow and fourths wide.
Henfy Spain's.
beaMrequencies
(Figures denote
beats per second)
Tuned Tuned
l 1
before before
l 0.730 1.092 ! 0.818
J .1-g II J J lg II~ #J II
l
Flatten
t Flatten
Flatten
Tuned
Tuned Tuned: before
before before
! t.229 1 0.916 l 1.377
~1r~#J #1 I~ lluJ IJ 'uiB ll1J #J 1#1~ II
i i Flatten t
Flattefi Flatten
The Science Of Eqiml Temperament
Tuned
Tuned before
before
Tuned Tuned
before Tuned before
Proof
1 1.736
-l 1.298
l
l~ J_-==r=rt~tJ_J~d~~d_;J_~
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Or
Henry Spain's.
beat frequencies
(Figures denote
beats per second)
Tuned Tuned
Tune A to 228.070 Hz. before before
1 l l
0.772 1.157 1 0.868
Flatten Flatten
Flatten
Flatten Flatten
T\ID~~
Tuned before Tuned
before before
l l.637 l.224
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned Tuned
before .Tuned before
Proof
l
before
t
For completing the bearing section from A to D, the following octaves must be tuned.
643
Tune t i
Tune i
just Tune just Tune
Tune just
just just
NOTE
1. Henry Spain,. Equal Temperament Jn Theory and Practice (London: Novello and Company, Limited, 1907), 22, 32, 36, and 37.
''MANY. GOOD TUNERS''
OF 1907 TUNED As WELL As THE TUNERS OF TODAY
Cree Fischer's tuning instructions mark the beginning of true equal temperament in practice on pianos. Researching
t" ...'"""'" the materials published in English since the year 1636, the present author searched for written evidence
piano tuners had enough acoustical knowledge and ability to tune excellent approximations of the mathematically
.·.•c1-....,., theoretically correct equal temperament by ear comparable to that usually done today near the end of the twen-
By 1907 the practice of this equal temperament was beginning. The evidences for the latter determination
vu'""'"" in the following summary.
pn11osop11y of equal temperament has been known by mathematicians since ancient times. In 1636 Marin Mersenne
..,..'""'"'"'"' the ratios and string lengths of equal temperament for the benefit of the builders of fretted instruments.
·.}/ +·,... 1673 the harmonic series was correctly explained.
1749 Robert Smith explained how to calculate beat frequencies. He also discovered the theory of progressive
frequencies.
In l!HO C. J. Smyth published the beat frequencies of the fifths, fourths, major thirds, major sixths, minor thirds,
minor sixths in equal temperament.
1887 Edward Quincy Norton listened to the upper nearly-coinciding harmonics for their beats. He also listened
to chromatically played major thirds and major tenths in the lower registers for their progressive beat frequencies.
In 1892 Henry Fisher learned to hear, count, and control up to nine beats per second. Before this, five or six beats
second had been considered the limits of comprehension. Because of this increased ability, the sixth was
as a test interval for equal temperament within the bearing section. Also, Henry Fisher compared the
thirds for their progressive beats up through AC-sharp within the F to E bearing section. ·
In 1906 William Braid White listened to major sixths that eleven beats per second.
to be as them fot their nr,un·"'""'
beats at least up through A-sharp C-sharp within the F to F bearing section. 2 A-sharp beats times per
second at standard pitch. Thus, Fischer expanded the limits of comprehension up to ' twelve per second. " 3
able to hear and all beat up throughtwelve second is the general level of
ability :required for piano tuners today. along with the fact that tuners had been to the nearly-coinciding
harmonics for beats since 1887, shows that the ear accomplishments in 1907 were as advanced as
are today. The year 1907 marks the first time that many common intervals, minor were
within the F to F bearing section. Those tuners in 1907 who applied the above techniques may have tempered as well
as the present-day tuner who could pass the new Piano Technicians Guild tuning test which is monitored electronically.
Cree Fischer wrote:
The following system [an F to F bearing is one that is followed by many good tuners of the present and
has many advantages. To use this system successfuUy, however, one must be familiar with the number of beats neces-
sary in each interval used .... As each step is taken in this system, the tone tuned is tested with any or all of the
tones previously tuned .... The intervals used are the minor and major third, fourth and fifth, and major sixth.
The thirds and sixths beat from about seven to nearly twelve per second. exact number of beats for each step
in the system may be calculated from the Table of Vibration Numbers. 4
llt<l'
I . ~illtseat~t'\\li~0; an,dctlle interven-
ing fifth~.. : ·... . . ... ··... . . ·. ·.. ·. ·. . . . ... :i·~pptbact\tfi¢lilgbetfifth. Yibra-
tfbb:s Peli sec!ll'.ld d:ou~le witfi each. oc~Ye. and so do .~eat~. 7 . ·•· .. . •·•
•. <TJliS''is· one of the featutes that .is overlt'.loked or etidreiy unknown to many fairly goqa tuners;· their· aim being to
·get
,·.,·:;-··
IDl fi.fths the. rsal:tle.11
'
·
Ffscftetlt1eant that~~§ety~er~~~e,~to all.thyir~fths to b~at the same speed. Obviously, many tuners in 1907
we,re still using the equl:ll~1'eati~g·m~· · · •tln;iijg)lH~mt~Jt ~!l,lith outlawed. this practice in.1893.
••• . A~~i; tlJ't.~~~le ~~~ti.on .of the piano ~~•.. uned an~ thee c~ron]aticaUy.pla~ed major~Jllirq~ became t?o fast to listen
to while cheeking upw~rds m the scale •. Fischer explruned that one must then use parallel major tenths m order to con-
tinue checking the upper notes. For explaining the beat frequencies of these tenths, Fischer used the following example:
. . ; . . 9'"'''"'
•• 1·-fit~\eiiili is1siAfitii t6 the iliH<fni~frieilfaftcalty:"· ·
·IHl:itnfa' worils/ttle rnajortenth should beat
af the. sam~ ~peed as the major third.
ti
. ..~11,e(J{!l!§! .oi.th!~.t~@!P}~ a}Jcl tht? .~~S,!i'IlP!!,Y.~1.)VOrcls, 1 :!!~: ~r'?e Fischer c;a}J· be. credited with discoyering the major
thirctY:-m~jQt teoth: 4 ~Q ..2 r~tiO: oc;ta'\le~test, l'hi~ tl\lSt invqlves easy and con:veniept rate.s of beating to listen to~ therefore,
iH~ supe.-ior tQ the fourtfi~fifth 4 to :l ratio octa\(e test that was standard practice throughout the nineteenth century.
Jhe tfiegry l1ehincl ~l tl;t.ergc;tave.tests wa~ bnrll\ld.t\eeply iti th;e academic writing in 1749 by .Robert Smith. The applica-
tion of thesetests in practicei Mw~ve:lf, shqµlcl be c;reclited·to the following persons.
John Robison, 1801
'. :tf!e·:.{O~l,tfi~.ftfttt~~!!g::~'.t~ti<J1~t;'~ttY(?'f~S,t';•;:•~· '"'·•'''''"''*'"''w..''''p
····~xiexanae~.J~finT7Ei'fiS: .:·rssl·· · ,. ,. . . . . · ·
.•... iq~ .Wi~()r ttt.li:cl~msiJo,ri~i~th 6.J~ 3,/t\tio 9ctave:Jest
' ,,,
the .mµl'1r'< Si~tndIDtjo:t
'' ' ', - , "J'''"'
. ~td. 8. to. A t~tki
· ' "<l' ,:·k;· S:;.Yt>,>·'':,' ,, , ' ··'· '" "' ,,
1 f;,1' ,.,, ·,v
octave:
'
test
.«·) "'' ""'·
Jerry ere,e fisc;li'?r t )9Q7 . . . . .

. ~The. maJ0:r. third,.,. major teoth 4 to 2 J,"atfo octave fosi
..·.~e~ fj~~~~~Jf\}j'ah&ilJ~'},,~~1lill~+~i'ib0"~·~;~~al School. of Pia90 :i;uning.' ' 10 Hi$ book co11sisted of a series
of less9ns. u · for teachmg stUdents. There were two important elements that he left out of his writing (but not neces-
sarily left out of his teaching). First, he did not write about the fact that one should listen to the nearly-coinciding
upper harmonic.s .for.:the. bea,ts. However. if he could. compare and listen to the beat frequencies of minor thirds up
to twelveper$econd}iemustht\'\fe Petsqna,lly l~st¢1l~d to.these:UPPet hamiopics. Professional tu!len~ had been listening
to upper harmoni'l~'~itt"ie l\t~:Uttd;:l &.&1,.:1:'®.ei~whQ di~. Ji.()( listen. tQ the µpper harmonics never tested the. chromatically
ptayed;.thirds.;an&sixths~;;Tliey:relie<ifiin tfie;m(tsical:qualities:of the trials or test chords. If Fischer would have written
this ifif()trf1l}tion in his tuning insttucti()nsf hi.s readers would have learned the art of tuning with far greater ease and
rapidity. Otherwise, it must have taken Fischer's 'readers many years of practice and experience to tune reasonably
· · · · · well' or lo'<Jiscover·me: nearry:.:coinCiding upper harmonies·· on their ··own. ·
The second element that Fischer.did not write aboufwas the infomiatfon concerning the interval beat-frequency
''"'1!5lftJafis{jns~ THese·'are~s''f011ows~'W1feJI•aroottlfsJJare'f'iconmtonroW'er•tfine with a fifth ·ana arso when a fourth
,shm:e§c.a cQtJJtJJoU;.•upp.;;~.,MJ11§1. with.J~.flfth~.•we.f<l.'Jtth..must.beat i;l!ghtly. f~ster •. When a maior. s.J,;.th share.s a common
t()W~, with a major third, the majorsixtn fl1llstl;>~at faster. Whenaminorthirdshares anykinddfconunontone
·p:iajor third7 the minorthird must b_eatfaster. Ag~in, thii) knowledge would have enableq Eisc;}ler's reade.rs to
~ning·· more rapidly, ·bUtt!fter afewyears of experience many of. them must have gradually ·disc;overed· these
these are outlined in music notation as•.follows:
(Faster)
i
Notice in measure three that we have the test for determining that the fourth BE is wide. As long as the major sixth
GE can be heard to be beating even the smallest perceptible amount faster than the major third GB, this constitutes
acoustical proof that the fourth is wide. This is true even though the beating of the fourth itself may not be detectable
if it is almost just. Likewise, the combination in measure four is the test for proving that the fifth AE is narrow. These
of tests are the secret of how the modern piano tuner can aurally hear whether various intervals that are almost
are tempered on the narrow side or the wide side. The modem piano tuner is also aware of the following equal-
be11tmtg tests that can be applied within one octave.
Equal beating Equal beating Equal beating

~---------, ,-------·--··-~
Just Just Just

4:2 octave 6:3 octave 8:4 octave
Quasi-equal beating
Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating i

i---- I I ~
I
lt:W#l-- ~-~~= c-q=-c1¥--j_-~~!~ _Ell

The beat frequencies of these intervals will appear to be equal
only when the numbers are rounded and no decimal fractions are given.
It is important for historical perspective to understand that if the tuners of 1907 did not know the information on
the interval beat-frequency comparisons outlined above that this did not prevent them from tuning the modem equal
temperament according to the best standards. The tests outlined above are only aids for efficiency. Those tuners who
consciously compared the progressive beats of all the fifths, fourths, major thirds, minor major sixths,
etc. beat in twelve or fewer times per over the whole
corrected all obvious errors could have tuned ear as fine as is possible. Thus, the era of the
>·•¢d~··.
Frotfi,tlt~ 'Y.~~ t 90> . . . .. tlt~rtj1~to~ . .. . . ..... .. ·'tl·fll· nt~~gce has beeit a contimiaI search for
bettet tt~~I ~I~.s. W<f~ e . .··• .· nt~hfliq'QesJincluding ttt'nitig hamtn~t t~hmques, artd faster errot tleteetion methods.
The, srut:J~'of itil1al]'tC1~f<tity prol)l~w,s ti~s gr~a:tly increased thetuner's Qltderstaµditig of the01;y \Tersus practice. All
of th~)a~~t has hnproved the lives of professional tuners. but the quality or the sound of equal Jemperament itself
$s tuneq by the bestruners of 1907 has not changed.
;;5;
~;:~~«lret,
,Qlll~ .
tdelpfti:iU1: 11.,.,•iu•c l1rt!s~ef1 1001~ .-epnlit~ Ne.w frir1'~· Dover Publications, Inc., 1975),
2. Ibid., 168..
3, Ibid., 169.
4. Ibid-. 167-69.
5. Ibid .. 170.
6. Ibid.' 105.
1.. • 154+
s. ,tst5~
9. .t1d.,,
>,, ,": ,' ,'"> ._ ·,,/' ':.,~r
10'. I!)td.,. 8.
h:·Ihid:, 98.
gne the following quarter notes in the orcfo:r:~ritt~n. Jerry Cree Fischer used both dte Intemation.~ Pitch and
me so-called Concert Pitch. The modem standard pitch is in between Ute latter pitcMs. The following beat fre-
ies apply to the mOdem pitch of A=440 Hz·.
Test intet'VaJ
(Figures denote
TuneFto beats per second)
174.614 Hz
l
Tuned Tuned
(standard pitch). before before
Tests
! 1 0.59 0.79 0.59

l
.lt:?:··r r If II r ~r l~f f II f f
i i = i
Flatten Sharpen
l Sharpen
Decfii'scendos denote. decreasing beat speeds.
Tuned
Trial before
!! 7.9 9.2 0.99
r
tl.9 11.9 0.79
r. r 1f hf $J
6.9 6.9
"MJ: r 1 f r II I~ ~ ~
t =====-
Sharpen
Tuned
before
i~t#ir=r@-~tF rrfc=ifyf0 .1 r ~~fEI

.I-.·.-.· ....· •· .·.. ·. · . .· .· .·•.· ·.•.·.·... -.···.----i·
.. ·.··.. · ··.·.··•·•·. ·.· ·.·..•· •. ··.·..·.··. l. ·•.· •· ·.•· ·. ·.· . . ·•. ·. . · • ·.•· .· .·. · ·•.· · ·. · · ·. · .·. · 1·. •9·.· · .·.· .· . ·.·. · •. ··•·• •.. •·. ·.. ·. .. l.• 1..•.9. ·. ·. . . .......··.. . .8...• 2 . . . ·.·9...·.• 2..·.
Flatten
i
Tuned
Tune
just
Tuned
before
9.4 7.9 15.8 1-·---·--1

Trials
l 0.66
i
Temper G from both C and D
so that the fourth G C is wide and beats
33.5% faster than the nanow fifth GD.
0.79
0.66 0.99
--------
9.2
i
Temper E from
either G, A or C.
Tuned
before
9.4 8.9 7.9 1.12 1.18

0.99
----==--
Temper B from
either G or E.
15.8
i~2J- '===i==i-=-i=~~~i=~-~I~~ ~
Trials Tuned
~--------
Temper C# from
either A or A#.
11.0 15.8
Temper D# from
either G#, A# or B.
l.12 9.2 9.8 10.4 13.3 14.1 15.0
f I~! ~ <f If ! !
Trial
!
~
Tuned: before
\# 0.59 0.63 0.66
· H~J~f If ~F L.·#f ·. ·r 'rt If ·,rf f

t
Temper F# from
eitherA#,B,C# orD#.
~ ·~ - .. . 78 " u u
U7I~F #E f . 1l .~~ · J if f f
Trials
Narrow fifths
D~ has not been tuned yet.

It may need temporary tuning.
Wide fourths
r-·-----------·---··---·---------------···--·--··· ------·-----·
1.12 l.18
0.99 I.OS
Wide major thirds

-----------------------·-----·-----------·-------i
11.0
NOTE
1. Fischer, Piano Tuning, 103, 105, 154, 167-70. These instructions are a literal interpretation of the words on the latter pages.
JERRY CREE FISCHER'S
REVIVAL OF THE MOST ANCIENT BEARING PLANS IN 1907
J erry Cree Fischer published the first tuning instructions for pianos whereby, if one followed them literally, equal
temperament according to late twentieth-century standards would be the result (see Section 204). It is ironic that
the writer who gave us these modern instructions should be the same writer who attempted to revive most of William
Holder's bearing plan that was published in 1694, over two centuries before. Fischer did not mention Holder's name
or acknowledge him. He named Holder's bearing plan ''The Fischer System of Setting Temperament. " 1
Fischer had his reasons for reviving this. Concerning his modern type instructions already outlined in Section 204
of the present work, he wrote, "It is very doubtful if a beginner could succeed with this system. He should tune by
an easier system until he can hear the beats very distinctly and judge quite accurately the rapidity of them. Having
acquired this ability, he may try this system and follow it in preference to others. " 2
Fischer also copied the bearing plan of Edward Quincy Norton published in 1887. (This is outlined in Section 170
of the present work.) Fischer called this his "System A. " 3 Even though he made no changes, he did not mention Nor-
ton's name anywhere. About Norton's system, Fischer wrote,
This system is much followed in factories for rough tuning, and also by many old professional tuners . . . . We think
a little study and trial of this system will produce the conviction that it is a very difficult and precarious one, and that
it has every disadvantage but one, namely, that it uses the smallest possible number of tones, which is really of little
value, and does not compensate for the difficulty encountered and the uncertainty of the results. 4
Of course, the majority of most tuners of today would disagree with Fischer. Norton's tuning methods were strikingly
similar to the most common methods of today.
Fischer was av·1are of the overall trend to reduce the number of notes within the sec-
tion. He wrote:
The aims of many have been to invent a system which uses the fewest number of tones; working under the impression
that the fewer the tones used in the temperament, the easier the tuner's work. These have reduced the compass of the
temperament to the twelve semi-tones from middle C to B above; or from F below, to E above middle This system
requires the tuner to make use of both fourths and fifths. Not only does he have to use these two of intervals
in tuning, but he has to tune by fourths up and fourths down, and, likewise, by fifths up and fifths down. When tuning
a fifth upward, he flattens it; and when tuning a fifth downward he sharpens the lower tone; when tuning a fourth
upward, he sharpens it; when tuning a fourth downward, he flattens the lower tone. It is readily seen that by a system
of this kind the tuner's mind is constantly on a strain to know how to temper the interval he is tuning, and how much
to temper it, as fourths require a different degree of tempering from the fifths; and he is constantly changing from
an interval upward to one downward; so, this system must be stamped as tedious and complicated, to say the least. 5
According to Jerry Cree Fischer, the more tones there were in the bearing section, the more simple, pre-
cise, and stable the results were. About the simplicity in the Holder-Fischer bearing plan, Fischer wrote,
Two kinds of intervals are employed: the fifth and the octave. The fifth is always tuned to a fundamental below and
hence which relieves the tuner of any mental operation to determine which way he is to
fifths a the is and can be
l;>y: fisctfet.·· !tccording
'l'le oU840 was: a better
g~ijf~~ari~~&. 11 Jle ca,lled
v/,:;":' :, , ,., 'Y' ,,,L~",' ,,,~?\ "~' '" __ ,'.f,:At:~i':~:it'~~l. {·~~:' k r;v0 ',':\''t:
This s~stem .is used by a great numper ()f very success .. . . om~ api>reciab1e disadvantage, w1iich
is that involved in changing froni fifths upward to fifths downward. This diffil~ulty is easily overcome, if it were all
~e~e !s t() ~llf()~nter; .b~t in practice, we fin.d that after tu1ting the intervals in th.e above succession down to the last
· · in!lfhe fii-st ~et:ies. mid~e C win often have changed pitch somewhat, and the last five tones with their octaves
fromdt.wiil Mtbelirttttle.ft~ony with the intervals tuned in the first series.<>
M~st tlp!~t~.s!fl~e tfie l)egiruting ()f ~emper~~rttld~t~~ tisedt~~~pl~Sc$Wilat t(lctf\e ltitter ff()nt The Tuner's Guide.
Tllls c(J11stitJiteS1 ot1,e m~jor rea~~tl why eqvat temperament was fi,()t achievedt in genethl. on piail,t;is until tlte twentieth
centuiy'. .The tWo senes refettelt:to by Fistftet were commofily practiced because they followed the rules· of tonality
F foUow ilie1tUles"of ·~anality,:. iFisch.~l';,w:fotj :that· ·· ·
fo:eth~>key, of Iifi\jor:•..........••... · . . ·.....·... ~. . . . .. ·. ·.·..
i;,;;.~ath~i;'thaii to
<
it is better to go on thtough. [the first series; that is, ·contiriue art through 0:-sharp to the endJ; as· in our system, tuning
" , · by fi:(lhs:; UP:Wal'<l,;tandlif thereJs .any; cgange of pitcb: in the,i:fll'!lt t9nes tuned, they may 'Ile more easily corrected by
g()in~ oyeJ:. !l!e~:~the s~e\V~iil!\l at ~s~; ·l!lso;;;th' am.ctunt of:<l' ty .in loC!lting disci'e.ttanciesds gt:el}t1y .lesseited. 10
. .,· , 'l'be l\'isc.flet~y.stept,()i, mem~4 qf, !jef.!!ng,tlte temn~mttl},el\t .~lls.· .advantages: lt .uses l)µt fWo ltinds of iJ1tetVals;
.·. the,fifth.and octave~ 6y e~l?Jo;v~pg two,w!lole oc~Y ·1.1Iiice 9,f()ne.o.l' ot1e anct l1 h.~f•. nearly all ofthe,mi<ldle section
of strln~s is. brol,lght lip .~ pif~~ wJ#ch il\s~res .tftl\,t. .. te~~r~ent will stan~ better while the remaining stiings. are
being funed~ an<tUJe altema~e '(q'@Ig Ollflt} .fi:ftlf !ind oc~~'\fl.'l maltes the system excee<l'ngly easy to learn, enabling the
tuner ~o .work with less m~ntat strain; .Also di~ two~octave systein gives a: greater compass· for testillg, thus insuring
grlilater accuracy. u ·· · · ·
The "Fischer System" is William Holder's bearing plan'tliat wa~ published in.· 1694 up through both G-sha.-ps. At
tlti~. lt · ~j~cher 'Y~ll! '. .~~11. tfiro,tigh" .tfie first .~e£irs to tl\e ~nd. tn this way. Fischer's ending notes. were like Alex-
ander . ... EUiSc's :whfoh·~er~ pub1i~~ed in.l87l (setf Sections H and 14 l ofthe present work)'. The "Fischer System"
is outliit~ in the fQllo~1ng sectfoni · ·• . ..· . . . . .. · . ·
Fischer was aware pf, the ab,~idie? l:fPW~r bearirtg . plM oqtlined in SectioJ] 13. of the pre~ent work. 12 This became
standard during the eighteenth century. However, Fischer did not recommend this because ''in many years of experience
f}l filltjtt$ ~Untagjp~l>~e tyl)e$,;style~ lilM kinds Qf pianos~ ~d by all systems, we have found good reasons for adopting
the two-octave temperament:tu
1. Fis~her,. Piano Tuning 1 .. 82-83.

~t ~{~~~.!~... .. .
3. ·Thltt~r 16$.
4. Thid,,164,
5. Ibid.,. .163.
6. Ibid,.• 171.
1. Th~9••. n~.
8. lt1~2~c 1§~.
9. lbid.• 167,
1Q. Thid.
l L lbi(t •. 74.
12; Ibid., 170.
13. lbid•.
206
THE JERRY CREE FISCHER SYSTEM OF TUNING
WRITTEN FOR AMATEUR TUNERS1
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. Temper all the fifths narrow. Tune aH octaves in just intonation.
Test
Tune C to "The dissonance should not be so
the tuning fork. great as to be disagreeable."
l l
Tuned
before
i
"less rapid than
one per second"
Tuned
before Tuned
Tuned Trial
before Trial before
! l
the Science Of Equal Temperament
Tuned
Trial Tuned before
Trial
l
before
Trial
~
l
I
_[~ '!"\ ~
1 l
::rI
#J -
l
,~.~
~ -- ---!----- -itJ
11
lJ:
•e:
il_Gt'
_Ll.
••
11 -
---
----~
~
-6'
<
" -~.....
'-'l~ l • - ~- _ _Q_ --1
z l ~ --
--
\
+
Tuned
before Trial Tuned
before
Tuned
Tuned
before
before
Trial
l Trial
------------·----i----+-------tt-::..~t-::..-::..-::_:::-:::__-::_-:_:::'i:firr_'-"_""-_~---~---._-_·~-~_:-
--·-·-- - - - - - - - - - - - + · - - - + - - - ---·- 1-i
------!ft----.~-+Jttl:i4#-~_.L:.~;+----HJI---tf--------------------1
--~---f-------t---11'-....C~~~--------l-l--+-·------------1
-------------~----------··__uc ____________________ ~
206: The Fl~cher Sy!item Of'ltuning. For Amateur Tuners
Tuned
Tuned before
Trial before Trial
l Proof
i
"nearly as
perfect as the rest"
"After you have gone all over your temperament, test every member of the chromatic scale as a fundamental of
a chord, as a third, and as a fifth. For instance: try middle C" in all the following ways. 2
l~
~.~. -- ---------+-r-fl-5>!---fJ-~
__ _
,___,,,__•- - - - - ______ __,_.,.._--~---- --------·
Check the following intervals as a final test between low C and high C. "Each third should beat slightly faster than
the one below it. " 3
.' The SCfence Of Equal Temperament
Equal beating
r-'--·-~
i~-·---~~-~1-·~3--~-E-r.--~.~-----tr.-::_-tt--;i;r:~-------,?:L.~----.;f"F-~-~.------t':;~r- ~- - -~-I"'+-~"='- - -_
--HI
~
_,,L ¥ l
I
NOTES
1. Fischer, Piano Tuning,, 81-107, 170.
2. Ibid., 103.
3. Ibid., 170.
1'1908j; James F. Cooke had tuned pianos fot.fo:rtj•.years, ·and he had been. teaching piano (\fling f():l' sev:eayears. 1
rly in his. c~eer .he tuned uneql,l.l;ll temperl:\ffient (tom a set of tuning forks made in Berlin•.z In this, ''the key
•aJ was so extremely dissonant, •. " [Later:,.hel became a convert to the Equal temperament.' ' 3 At this time,
used theb~arlng P.lan number two published by W. Oeib in 1869 which was copied from Wesley Stoker Barker
·olllouse's publication of 1835., (See Section 137 [Geib No. 21 for this bearing plan.)
~J.893 Cooke decided that it was better "to raise a stringjust above consonance and then lower it to the highest
· of the intervl;ll. than only raise it to its lowest part'' as it was done in the Woolhouse beai:ing plan.4 Therefore,
9-tcec reversed his. technique,. and used the following bearing plan. 5
TuneAto
the tuning fQrk.
NOTES
~ •.•James F. Cooke, $very M<ln His Own Tunf;lr (Newport, R.I.: Cooke,. 1908), 1.
2 .. Jbid., 19.
l:\~i~'.: i~:
s: Ibid.' 25.
661
r:'l~'tbe:rwritiftgs ol,~w~rd 'iJuiJ~'1' Nortorl m188,/l gave ~he fir'gt,hints that piano ~fief~ Were"aWare of the fa~t that
.I. i.J.the beats, they,: listen to are not' where, they; areil' playing the· keys but high, up m ·pitch' where the two senes of
hU(ito~icSftoitl;th~:twotqnes.~ei..g~'playedfhtdracommol!'pointwhere they almost coincide and form an out~of-tune
uni'so11~ Nevtfttheless4{itrw~s''rfofttntit~11'!i69~ a gt5heratiqn:fater, that this phenomenon was cleatly explamed to tuners.
In, explaining tile test for the. U(;tave FF being a rad<.¥ 6 to $ octave, William Braid• White wrote, ·
Th~ sixth:parti$t tone of Fafidthe fifth partialtone of A-flat will alike be C3. So also will be the third partial tone
of Fl. The oeats between FA-flat and Actlat F aregeqerated by the disturbed C3 unison, the souhd differing in pitch
according to its position in one or other of the original sounds. The disturbance of unison is, of course, due to the
process of tempetament. 1
!n Q~er. words, .most beats are caused by unisons that are out of tune high up in the harmonjc series. An exception
Jiiwfi§Dthe i11terv11,l bei1l&Pi~YtXt is a l11liscm, ()~tave, twelfth, fifteenth, seventeenth, nirieteenth, etc. In these last cases,
.tile b~ats exist on the top note. of the interval, '
Ndt knowing this information is the reason that tuning in the past centuries. was restricted to the use of unisons,
octaves, and fifths iri~eneral. J,~·P~,~. the beating takes plac~ only one oc~"\'e above the upper tone of the fifth. This
is scrctose tor tfte lbdation ofthejnte~alitself that musicians were able to hear the beats of the fifths, and they thought
tlt~ptje beatJJ1gtqok pla¢~1',ithe Jdc~tioit;~f th,'~· fUI;f<J~~nta1$. only; ffli. fottt'ths.however, the beating takes place a
twelfth above .the upp~r tones of the fourths, or two octaves above the lower tones of the fourths. This was too far
·i,t.'fiif~ft!Jrrt~e· fUJr<t~~lt!3t!i''c:l#:tl'te1(J'!!'~~'f9t~~~i~J,mr~''.~tf~~r'Witltout sp~i~l>waitnirrg: ··Not heatintthe' consonances
'1'f'fotttthstmnong t1re'upper·hammnie'9.,is~nereasonthah~ighteenth-centurymusicians considered foutths to be abstract
sounding discords. Thomas Y9ung suggested using the fourths in b~~ring plans in 17~9. but., this did not !'1~co~e com-
. .ifl()'f:t·prlrctice until near th,'e end of the nineteenth century' when tuners were beginning to listen to the lipper harmonics
rot: lieats. · · · · ·.,. · ···
Returning to William Braid White's example, a further explanation is as follows: When a minor third such as FA-
flat is injust intonation, the sixth harmonic. ofP exactly coincideswith the fifthharm1;Jnic ofA-flat;.1'Jie two Harmonics
are exactly i11Jt perfect unisonwith each ().ther.,at tile pitch of C which is one nineteenth above the lower tone of the
minor thirq1 ,.'fhe coiticiding halln,Qttj.cs being in a complete just intonation unison is the basis for determining that the
interval between the two fundamentals is also in just intonation. There are no beats in this case.
208. White's Explanation That B'ilats EXist At the Nearly-Coincidin'g Harmonics
A perfect
unison
The fifth
harmimic of A~
---------------
L _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I
The first harmonics or
fundamental pitches
(Whole notes)
i
A 6:5 ratio minor third
in just intonation
In equal temperament, the minor thirds are narrower than in just intonation, and their complements, the major sixths,
are wider. For this reason, all the A-flats in equal temperament are flat compared to any of the Fs. If the fundamental
of an A-flat is flat, all the harmonics of the A-flat are also flat. Therefore, the fifth harmonic of A-flat is a little flatter
than the sixth harmonic of the F below A-flat. This in tum causes the unison between the two nearly-coinciding har-
monics at the pitch C, a nineteenth above F, to be out of tune. This imperfect unison beats, and this is the basis for
determining that the interval between the two fundamentals is a tempered (slightly out-of-tune) interval.
A bad unison
that beats
noticeably
The sixth The fifth A sharper A flatter
harmonicof F harmonic of A~ harmonic hannonic
is flat.
l ! l
A~ is flat.
L _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _J
fundamental pitches
(Whole notes)
i
A tempered (narrow)
6: 5 ratio minor third
663
When a)l octave is .di~idedinto afower minor third adjoillfog an upper major sixth and when the minor third beats
exactly the same Sf)eed as the major. sixth, then the octave is a just intonation ratio six to three octave because the
sixth harmonic of the lower tone of the octave forms a just intonation unison with the third harmonic of the upper
tone of the octave.
The sixth The fifth The third

harmonic of F harmonic of A~ harmonic of F x beats x beats Zero beats
is flat.
Ab is flat.
L
fundamental pitches
Equal beating
tempered intervals
j
(Whole notes) (The minor third is narrow, A just 6:3 octave
and the major sixth is wide.)
Proof:
6 lower F-5 A flat= X number of beats
3 upper F- 5 A flat= X number of beats
6 lower F-5 A flat=3 i:ipper F-5 A flat
6 lower p,._5 A flat+5 A flat=3 upper F
6 lower F=3 upper F
WiHiam Braid White also explained the major third-major tenth test for ratio 4 to 2 octaves. 2
NOTES
Braid as Science and Art
York: Edward
2, Ibid., 130.
WILLIAM BRAIDWmTE'S BEARING PLAN OF 19091
ompare the following instructions with William Braid White's former instructions of 1906 outlined in Section
200 of the present work. An important change is that in 1906 White believed that major sixths beat at an average
eleven beats per second within the F to F bearing section but in 1909 he decided that they beat at an average of
nine beats per second. Thus, in 1909, White's major sixths beat only a small amount faster than his major thirds.
is proper to modern standards.
White's instructions are as follows:
Tune these intervals within the middle octave so that the upper sound of the fifth is flat of purity by two audible beats. . ..
There should be an average approximation of three beats in five seconds between the sounds that constitute perfect
fifths ... but if we do so tune these fifths as to obtain an average of two distinctly audible beats before the sound
dies away we shall obtain two beats in approximately three seconds, as against a similar number in three and one-third
seconds; the latter being the actual rate as calculated by Helmholtz. 2
In these words, White has combined the instructions printed in The Tuner's Guide of 1840 with the instructions of
Alexander John Ellis in 1885.
Similarly, the uppe;- sound of the fourths must be tuned so as to be sharp by three audible beats. . . . The tempering
of fourths should produce an average of one beat per second, or three audible beats in three seconds, within [the bear-
ing section] .... The major sixths should beat about nine per second, and the major thirds about eight in the same time. 3
here. He wrote,
Let it here be noted that the beat-rates above mentioned are averages, and that the actual number of beats increases
in an ascending thus causing the intervals below middle C to beat more slowly than the average and those
above more rapidly .... It is obviously impracticable to attempt to hold the dock on beats. 4
It is almost impossible to estimate these beats by the unaided ear, Nothing but can enable one
to determine instinctively when a third or sixth is quite correct. 5
The average price for a in 1907 was $2.50. 0

Sden&. (}JEquat Tellipetarnent
1\me th~ following qµa,rtei; notes in the order
"If the fifths already obtained are too flat

the sixth will beat too slowly, and conversely 7
will beat too fast if the opposite condition prevails."
Tuned
Tuned before
before
l
f----~-=-J~c__-4£ __ J_4
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before Tuned
Test before
l ! l Tests
l~4=;=Jft== =4t-. I !t
i
Flatten Flatten
209. White's· Bearing Plan Of 1909
Tests
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Proof
Flatten Flatten
NOTES
L White, Regulation and Repair of Piano and Player Mechanism, 120-22.
2. Ibid., 118-19.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid., 135.
6. Ibid., 154.
7. Ibid., 119.
W. A. BUTTERFIELD'S MAJOR TmRD-MAJOR SEVENTEENTH
4:1 RATIO DOUBLE OCTAVE OR FIFTEENTH TEST PUBLISHED IN1910
W hen a major third shares a common lower tone with a major seventeenth and when the major third beats exactly
the same speed as the major seventeenth, then the fifteenth between the major third and the major seventeenth
is a just intonation ratio four to one interval. Following is an example.
The location of the beats of

both the major third and the No beating
major seventeenth
l
~@)~~------_- -------~----===-___:___________ ~~------------
,__,~-=l---·--,..,~-------·-------+------·----------------~-----------1
L. ~ . . ------~----------------------------1---i"i;;L_~--
'--_:F--------------+--- -----+---t------------1-ill
Equal-beating tempered intervals

(Both intervals are wide.) i
A 4: l ratio double octave
(or fifteenth) in just intonation
W. A. Butterfield explained the mechanics of this test, and he thirteen examples of it in his chart. Butterfield
instructed that this test should begin as noted in the above chart and that it should be used as high up in the piano
"as it can be "1
NOTE
19.
. .':~,:ihmMNT
·Bv·~····A~ BtnrnRMEtnm)19tO~
une the following quarter notes in the order written. Temper every fifth narrow and every fourth wide so as
to have ''two waves, followed by a close blending.' ' 2 The beats of all the fifths and fourths within the bearing
"sJto1dd,ajl appear .alike. " 3
TuneCto Tuned Tuned

.·theru~ing.fork. before "abOut twice 5 before
as rapid as C-E" Flatten
1 ! l !
F Ir r
t
rr =
~ II r F F
t
i
Temper "abOut four 4
Flatten ·
t Flatten
beats to a second" sharp. Crescendos denote increasing beat speeds.
Tuned
6 before "ashade 7
"five beats" faster than C E"
Equal beating
! 1 !
F f If
=
~ II r 'F
i
I~ '=r II
Sharpen
The SctenqJJf Eql{al Temperament
Tuned Tuned
before 8 before
"a shade faster"
l ~ti".: .
•.Eq:" ! l
f zw #~=t~
.-1 bo•tiog
q-+-+--f~·~:t-·······
·.· ·.····.·.·~rr.~>1-·~+-+--~
; i =====- I
Flatten (See remarks at the end of this section.) i
Flatten
Tuned
before
l Equal beating
---i
i
Sharpen
Tuned Tuned
before before
l l
Flatten i
Flatten
Tuned
before
l EqMI brntiog
i~-ttB ~=t~#=~nd~~
. .. · · -· . __-.:-_: i -- --------
Flatten
fifths and .fourths between C an~ . J'.l m\}st be equal beating when played in the following order. ''Listen for
""'""''' which shmild. all appear alike.' '9
testing the beating of the different Thirds, passing up the keyboard, the increase in speed will at first be hardly
;,.c;:n1erce01tibJe. Each should beat a hair faster than the Third preceding, never slower. " 10
This completes the bearing section from C to B.

Upon completing the bearing section, Butterfield furnished the following instructions for tuning from C to E.
(See remarks following these tuning instructions.)

Tuned Tuned
before Just before
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
Just before
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
1
i
Flatten
Just Tuned
before
Equal beating
! Equal beating Equal beating
Tune
just
Continu.e tu11ing by j~~t o~~ves. to the. tof;'of the pi~o, Continue testing the ratio 4 to 2 octaves by using the major
ihird,~major tenth test. When high E is reached, continue by testing the ratio 4 to t double octaves by using the major
ihird~majorseventeenth test.
There is a conflict if one follows Butterfield's theory literally. As an example, place the fifth measure from the
beginning of the instructions next to the first measure above as follows:
Measure five 147Hz 293.8 Hz
from page 669.
t Two frequencies calculated

j
from the arbitrary frequencies
. applying the arbitrary frequencies to G and A and then calculating the equa1:~beating rates for the measures above,
Jtswjlf be that both intervaJs in ll1easurefive (the first measure abov~) wiU beat exactly one beat per second.
t\tals in the second measure above will beat exactly 1.4 beats pe'f second. This is fine except tha,t the octave
is narrow, and it has a ratio of 1. 998639456 instea,d of 2. The octave in this case is 1.178 cents narrow. This
that the above theory will not work. Butterfield must have had problems in preventing the five octaves next
bearing section from becoming narrow. His 4 to 2 octave tests probably corrected this fault in practice. The
c~se. whereby the theory of the above measures will w9rk is when all the beat frequencies of these measures are
, .and this would be Pythagorean tuning •
.is also questionable concerning all of Butterfield's equal-beating tests such as found in the eleventh measur~ from
·· · ''Wing. W:~en a major ~irq shares a cotnmon.~ppet tone with a major sixth, the major third should beat faster .
.Jd' s system wast1ot meant to be a form of nieanton~ temperament. See Section 95 of the present work where
etfield's technique. was roughly applied in 1809 by John Marsh for meantone temperament;
NOTES
"Th~bellt must be qllicket~!fte ' ·. 3

lntervat cit' a fo'(frtm tflan lf\ lliat. of t1te; fifth•." ; ·
Tuii'ed
l J . r
00
.. T
Tune"flatuntil .2
a slow beat is discemable."
This completes the bearing section from C to B.

,. )V!ien tu11i11gth~2.S!!Y~~· !ll~~~.~.£~~.£~~~~fo~t!h;.§.~t1}o 2 octave test. 4 Listening to oct~xes alone is undependa-
,ll,!~ ?due ta. the 1?!!!11~~.!ll~n 0!~!~~111g.. . ·· · · · ··· · · ··
NOTES
1.. Walter att.d Thomas Le'Wis, Modem Otgar- Building (London: William Reeves, 1911), 149.
2. Ibid., 150.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid,. 151.
5. Ibid., 150.
eon 0. UnderhilUfad "sevepteen years practical work it1 piano factolies, warerooms and finally ~s anJndepen-
dent piano tuner. ":Ii His bearing plan was a copy of L. 0. Peltier's bearing plan published in 1877 e:xcept that
hill added. the thirds and sixths used as tests. (Compare with Section 149 of the present work.)
··· ~ the: following qQarter notes in the order written. ''A good rule to go by is to tune the fourths sharp and tune
· s flat."~ ·
TuneCto Tuned
~."finetone 4 before
tuning fork."
l Flatten
!
Flatten
! l Flatten
!
utJ: r r r r f 1F ·11f r
t
Flatten
t
Flatten l
"beats .•• a!X>iltas rast as
one woulcfcountrapidly.''
Tuned
before Tuned "The beats must be a shade
Trial before quicker than G and. B."
"The beats should be
about the same speed."
l ! l !
r II r ic
i
1 f 'r
1 II
#f 1~f
i =
& II
.Flatte11.. Flatten
615
The Sdel'lce Of Equal Temperament
Tuned
"The beats must be
before
a shade slower."
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
i
Flatten
Tuned
before "slower" Proof
l
11
slowern
i t
i
Flatten
Check the following intervals as a final test between F and E.
"The beats between F and A should be about as fast as a large watch would tick.
And every third higher should beat a shade faster than the preceding one."
---~~·~. ===
21 J. The Bearing Plan By Leon 0. Underhill
. "The beats between F and D. should be about as fast as one would count rapldly.
Every sixth higher should be a be.-it or so faster than the prec:e~ng one!'
!
f[tI f ~ r =ti
NOTES
Leon 0. Underhill, The Art of Piano Tuning (Bellaire, Ohio: Leon 0. Underhill, 1911), 6-8, 18-19.
Ibid., preface.
3. Ibid., 7.
4: Ibid. Pages 18-22 contain all the quotations used in these temperament instructions.
THE TECHNIQUE OF USING TWELVE .COl'crIGUOUS MAJOR THIRDS
FOR TEMPERAMENT SETTING AND ALSO THE TESTS FOR PROVING
THAT FIFTHS ARE NARROW AND THAT FotJRTHS ARE WIDE
PuBLISHED BY OLIVER CROMWELL FAUST IN 19131
Oliver Cromwell Faust wrote, "The proof of a perfect fifth: a minot third above the lower note should beat the same
as a major third below the upper note.' ' 2 An example follows:
A 3 :2 ratio fifth
in just intonation
Equal beating
"The proof of a perfect fourth: a major third below the lower note should beat the same as a major sixth below
the upper note.' ' 3 ·
A 4:3 ratio fourth

in just intonation
Equal beating
,-------1
''The proof of a tempered fifth: the minor third above the lower note should beat a trifle faster than the major third
below the upper note. " 4
Faster Slower A narrow

beating beating tempered fifth
II
e present' author searched through all available materials written in English since 1636 in the quest for the above
rtant information. Not finding .it un,til 1913 is an,other strong evidence that piano temperament as we know it did
exist until the twentieth century.
NOTES
Oliver Cromwell Faust, The Theory Of Piano Tuning (~oston: The Faust School of Tuning, 1913), 9-11.
\Jtj!d;, 10. .
:;Ibid.
'4,Hblcl., 11.
~- Ibid., 12.
679
Tune the follQWing quarter note& in the,. order. written.
TuneCto
the tuning fork.
Sharpen
l !
Test
r
Tuned
Just before
Sharpen
~L
Sharpen
Equal beating ·
! ...
11tr r
i
Sharpen Sharpen
E~ has not been tuned yet.
It is used as lilt auxiliary note in the
test and may need temporary tuning.
Just
Test Equal beating
If
215:< The, Beafi11g. Plan By Faust
Test
r-------
i
Sharpen
i
Sharpen
Tuned
Equal beating
Just
I
~
l before
Sharpen
l Sharpen
~--------- _
·- _
-p,___-
-
1
~1-+--f--2tJt,_.__.¥_==-l--~-~=r:;~=£=__..,_,...._··.~ -::_~-=--=~
i
Sharpen
i
Sharpen
Just
Test Equal beating

i------ !
This completes the bearing section from C to E-flat. It is a mere skeleton of how Oliver Faust tuned. He must have
compared the beats of all the and sixths. In particular he must have tested all the
fifths and to make certain that they were narrow and wide, respectively. In fact, it would be most unlikely
that anyone could tune the above plan unless one Faust's new tests for
fifths and fourths.
NOTE
l. Faust, The Theory of Piano Tuning, 9, 10, 22.
TWO BEARING>PLANSBY CHARLES E. EWING IN 1913 1
C harles E. Ewing's first bearing plan follows the rules of tonality for C major. Except for changing the order
of a few measures, it is the same as Jean Jousse's second bearing plan published in 1832. This temperament
was used as a practice temperament in preparation for Ewing's Second Bearing Plan (see Section 217).
l beat per second

This is an error.
C F must produce
Tune C to 1.2 beats per second.
l ,T''
the tuning fork. 3 beats in Tuned (2 x 0.6 = 1.2)
1
tn·~=· · -~.· · · -f ·············?ff=~~==={·==;..~~~--
______~I
before
~~ .- - ~€ u
·j i Tune
just
3 beats in 5 seconds
This is an error and an acoustical
impossibility if the octave F to F
is tuned in just intonation.
B~ F must beat once per second.
~r ~1~"' l ~r
- --------~~--~~-----.hFc.-----~f~------~
~~ -
:----r
~
--
- _-_------ ----- ________
-----t----~---- ~ ------ ------ - - -----.-----------
__L_ _ _ _ _ _ ~
--~-~---
i i
Sharpen
3 beats in 5 seconds
Tills isail error~~ an ~~oustical
.. impossibillty if the octave F to F
is tuned in just intonation.
B~ }<'must beat once per second.
l beat Tuned
per second before
~~~
Equal beating
1 beat per second
-~~~
l
i i
Flatten
This is an error also.
These intervals must beat equally.
1 beat
l
per second
(Error: must
beat 1.2 times
1 beat per second)
~ ~!;~~~~ ~~~~
1
per slecond i--Equal beating
3 beats m
pe~ ~!e~~~d
5 seconds
lltff =$=~=--=tr-~ I =-c:f~~ --~

i
Flatten
T ,
Tuned
before 1 beat 3 beats in Tuned 3 beats in l beat
1 "'T"" ,~r ~r P'T"'

ir?¥f-::-c--J;c:=c:3 r- -~+i-r~=-_ccf=~==-==f-=--==--_j
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before 3 beats ln Tuned
5 seconds before
l !
!~-·__t_._ ·-tf 1 F-.---3f+---ggj
-----===--
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
8.25 beats Tuned

per second before
Equal beating
l beat per second Equal beating
r---- 3 beats in 5 seconds
Flatten
Tuned 9 beats
before l \}eat 3 beats in per second
per second 5 seconds Proof
l l l ! !
i i
-----~,,---·
Flatten Nothing is written about

the beat speed of G# D# _
NOTE
1. Charles E. Ewing, Practical Piano Tuning (Lincoln, Neb.: Charles E. Ewing, 1913), Part 3, 1-6.
G\IOUS MAJ'1l\'E .
AN!)... . ·.· 1.so'.:1*...... · ·· · ro
TllA't ..· . TH~ ARE NARROW AND
THAT ForiRrlls.ARE WIDE PUBLISHED IN
CHARtES·E. EWING'S SECOND BEARING PLAN OF 19131
. '.fune the following qt1arter notes in the order written. The beat frequencies a,re by Ewing.
TuneFto Tuned
the tuning fork. Test before 7 beats
perseco~d
Equal beating
r 1 !
f I ·. II r r II
t
Tune
t
A~ has not been tll~d yet; therefore,
i
Sharpen
just it may or may not need temporary tuning.
It is used as an auxiliary note in this first
test of a 6:3 ratio octave in just intonation.
Ab will be retuned later in equal temperament.
Tuned per second Tuned 8.5 beats

before before per second
!
l r 1
r ,~~ . tr I I! f
i
Flatten
t
A~· has not been tuned yet; therefore,
Sharpen
it may or may hot rieed temporary tuning.

It is used as an auxiliary note to prove that
the fifth F C is in fact narrow. A~ will be
retuned later in equal temperament.
685
i
Sharpen
Tuned
8 beats l:'Naf 'befute' : 8.$beats
per second 1 beat
per second 7 beats per second per second "smooth''
,!'· per second
! ! ! !
112: i r 1F I~ f II
t
t
Flatten i
This test proves that "Smooth does not mean perfect."
the fourth A D is wide.
Tuned Tuned
before 9.25 beats before
1
. Jiqual beaun~'·"
. "not quite one a second"
l
i1~it 11E
i
Flatten
==·::;;=:;:::::::=-
This test proves that F to F is in just
t
Flatten
intonation as a 4:2 ratio octave.
iJI to F is in just
• ' 1 ~.§''fEi$X I!!~VE;S tli,at Flatten
ifltonation as a 6:l ratio octave.
(
"once asecofld"
"not quite '}. 7.5 beats 1 beat
one a second" Tuned per second
per.~econd before 7.5beat~ 7 beats
per second per second
! J !
l ! !
Uf1=1 ·#f r 1& r I~ II
i
This is an error.
i
Sharpen
B has not been tuned yet.
l., . ,T
Tuned 7.25beats 8.25 beats
before 7 h<;ats per second 7.5 beats "less than per second
one•a•se(lonat• "smooth"
pers~on:<l···
J ! ! !
bF [~ ~br ~qr
I1f !'f I ~ II
t
Flatten

''If you have temperedyour octave pro\1erly the fifths will have a slow beat and be smooth, the fourths will beat
about one-quarter faster than the fifths and the thirds will be in proportion to each other.' ' 2
687
Utttf ~f IT (f f If f f
Wid!! maj<>,r thirds (Ewing's ~lit frequencies:) .
10.25 11
s 9.25 9.75
7 7.25' 1.s·· S.5
ittr r ! ff ··~ 9' f f

WidemaJOr sixths (Ewing's beat frequencies:)
9
8 ·•~>8i•25<%~>U••··•····•
I~, II
Ch&rles Ewing did not test tlie mino~ th.itds.
NOTES
1. Ewing, Practical Piano Tuning, Part 3, 3-6.
2. Ibid., Part 3, 4.
'ftre followi~g bearing plan should be compated with Willilml Btaid White's previous bearing plans that are outlined
ip Sections 200 and 209 of the present work. The historical progress is evident.
Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. '(Fifths must be contracted and fourths expanded.' ' 2 Listen
r all beats a,t the nearly·coinciding upper harmonics. 3 All the beat figures are by White.
Test interval
(Top figure denotes
beats in 1(f seconds;
Middle figure denotes
Tune C to 517.3 Hz beats in 5 seconds;
(International Pitch Bottom figtire denotes
based on A= 435 Hz). beats pei second.)
6.0 Tuned 9.0
l Tune
just
r
3.0 before
i
4.5
0.9
Tuned
before
! ! l p
UttE I . C· .ti .[~( E .1 f II r
1
Sharpen
i
Flatten
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
l
Trial
6.5 80.0 10.0
3.25
0.65
40.0
8.0
5.0
1.0 ! 70.0
35.0
7.0
lltl: g I~ I t: E I~ I~ I~ II
l-·
fl!lm?I)
689
i
Flatten Flatten
Tuned
Trial before Trial
11.0
5.5
1.1
Flatten
Tuned
l
before
6.50 Trials 90.0
100.0 3.25 45.0
50.0 0.65 9.0
~._ . . _tf-J:~ i----HB-+HOl!lf-~--=~L--~ -·.•··~--~.~--+-!--_-==·~f---+-S-

0
__lSJ)
i
Flatten
Tuned
before
l 9.5
4.75
0.95
lffl;t. ~~=-tt
i
Flatten Flatten
l
.. fl!i:ttten
J;>roof
ttlal
Turt¢d
before
8.0 110.0
!
0.0
l
95.0 4.0 55.0 0.0
! 15.0
37;5
1.5
41.5
9.5
0.8 11:.0 0.0
11~:~ ~~·
I.~·. ~ ,,~~ .~ 1f /~ I~ II
t
Flatten
This completes the bearing section from F t<YF.
NOTES
.'. • '.t.:°\Yillia~ Braid WhiteT M<:dern Pia1to Tunin~ arzdAllied. Aris· (New YQrk: EdW!lt:d )0.yman B~'l, IncQrpQrnted, 1917). 108,-9 .
. •····'· ··1'hewritfo:g otiliis ~ok was.finisned ..inl9it5.
2. Ibid.
Ibid., 67-69,. 103-4.
219
THE QUALITY OF PIANO TUNING DONE
DURING THE YEARS 1911 THROUGH 1917
L ike The Tuner's Guide published around 1840, William Braid White's Modern Piano Tuning and Allied Arts,
published in 1917, was destined to become the leading textbook of its century. It went through many editions
and is still in print. In comparing the tuning instructions of 1840 with those of 1917, one is impressed by how different
the tuning in Chopin's day must have been compared to that done today. William Braid White's tuning instructions
in Modern Piano Tuning and Allied Arts became the model system followed by the majority of twentieth-century tuners.
It has been used as the basic foundation from which modem technicians have departed in their experimentations with
countless new bearing plans. Many technicians today practice their own unique bearing plan methods, but the William
Braid White system is known as the classic system. To the capable modern technician, the bearing plan used is only
a matter of efficiency. The various methods used produce one correct equal temperament in the end.
C. J. Smyth published the beat frequencies for the equal temperament minor thirds, major thirds, fourths, fifths,
minor sixths, and major sixths in I 810. This had very little meaning to the piano tuners of the time, so the information
was soon forgotten. Joseph C. Miller of Lincoln, Nebraska, was a member of the American Guild of Piano Tuners
he calculated this in 19H, almost a century late:r. William Braid White thought Miller's
material was "novel," and he published Miller's calculations supposedly for "the first time" in the The Music Trade
Review. 1 Later, in 1914, Miller expanded his tables of information to include two full octaves calculated to six decimal
places, and he published this in The Tuners' Magazine. 2 Writing a year later, William Braid White acknowledged that
Miller's calculations were the acoustical basis of his new book. 3 Applying these beat frequencies in a scientific manner
is the reason that the word ''modern" was used in the tide of White's new book. Previous textbooks for piano tuners
did not contain the extensive beat found on 78, 79, 91, 108, and 109 of White's book.
pianos a these c011cevts
began The word ''modern'' was deleted from the of White's book in 1938. most textbooks
on tuning were based on scientific beat counting and beat frequency comparisons. The word "modern" no longer had
special me:aning
In 1909 Braid White wrote, "Nothing but practice can enable one to determine instinctively when a third
or sixth is quite correct. " 4 In 1915, however, he wrote, "Testing is best done by means of major and minor Thirds
and major and minor Sixths, whose rates of beating in equal the tuner must therefore know." 5 White
wrote that his new system was "based on science and not on guesses or rule-of-thumb . . . . To do things scientifically
is always to do easiest as well as the best way. " 6 The tuner must insist on doing "more accurate, more
scientific and more complete work. '' 7
The ideals and standards that White wrote about are common practice today. The question is: How much were these
scientific techniques applied in 1917 or before? The following miscellaneous information will give the reader a perspective.
It must be remembered that equal temperament in 1917 was not considered to be an old system. It had only
been universally established in common practice. Samuel Wolfenden wrote in 1916,
The. system of temperament, by which some of the more used keys were favoured at the expense of others, had not
place to the present plan when the writer had his first experience as a tuner, and there were still some middle-
and. elderly men, who were not able to their minds and working habits to the new demands, and to whom
location of 'wolf' was a serious matter. temperament. !s permanent, until such if ever,
make
~'.l ·have come to the: C(!~~tusion that a nurofier of tuners· do
indifferent to the.subjecL' ':!}
absolute, correct temperament can be made by any goQd' tuner''whodoes not· stop .to try to· count the· variations,
or beats, between the two. notes he is working upon, but who has learned the ratio, or length of those waves, and makes
them all even as .to fourths ·and fifths. In pipe or reed organs> I never fail to come out even with theJast note,·· antiquely
called the wolf. . . . As to the thirds and sixths, why fool with them, as there (lre only the twelve notes to. tun(;), and
if they (lre properly tuned, the thirds and sixths must be correct. 10
~bove is c;:ertainly contrary to the philosophy of tempering done today.

:Following is a. quotation from. The .TuY1er$' Magazine.:
'fhe American Guild Of Piano Tuners warns the public of Cleveland against certain quack piano tu11ers who pretend
to tune pianos, but possess no qualifications for this delicate task. Members of the Guild have passed rigid examinac
tions and.received certificates from (ln ~xamining boardcomposed of recognized expert tuners and piano builders. When
you call one of the Guild you are assured of the most conscientious work-the most exact tuning-and the most depend-
able guarantee of excellence. Next time you call a piano tuner, ask him why he doesn't belong to the Guild, if he
doesn't. There must be some reason-all good piano tuners do .... The Guild is not a labor union.!!
The national secretary and treasurer of the Guild, William Braid White, wrote in 1913,
The American Guild of Piano Tuners has now existed for three years, having been organized January 9th, 1910. It
became an incorporated body in September, 1912. It has 14 branches in various cities of the country, especially in
the Middle West, and its membership at large is scattered throughout 27 States. Although numbering but a few hundreds;
the influence of the Guild has alw<lys been altogether out of proportion with its numerical size. This, l think, has been
due principally to the high character of its members and to the great care taken by the national officials to limit mem-
bership to men who reach a high standard. The Guild has been officially recognized by the National Association of
Piano Manufacturers. 12
Braid White was the editor the called "Our Technical Department" in The Music Trade
Review. In 191 l he described the phenomenon of the nearly~coinciding upper harmonics of tempered intervals as ''the
principle that beats arise only as between disturbed unisons. This principle, or rather this law, is not well understood
by all tuners. " 13 Following the publication of the beat frequencies of all the tempered intervals by Joseph C. Miller
in the July 22, 1911, issue of The Music Trade Review, White wrote, "The Miller tables are immensely useful, in
that they furnish a guide showing precisely what ought to be done to obtain an Equal temperament. " 14 He wrote as
if equal temperament before Miller's writing had never been attained. White further wrote,
It is a common thing, especially among tuners who have been trained in factories only, to express the utmost contempt
for all scientific knowledge. . . . It is plain truth that the piano tuning profession is filled, absolutely filled, with bun-
glers and incompetents .... So-called ''practical'' tuners, men who have had a long factory training, tell me continu-
ally that they have no use for theories.'~
There seems to be a very generally prevalent idea that the matter of temperament is one in which considerable dis-
cretion is permissible, and that after all the whole thing is very much a matter of the individual tuner's likes or dis-
likes. . . . Now, anybody would suppose that every tuner would know that the equal temperament means just one thing,
instead of having a variety of possible meanings. But the fact is that a very large proportion of tuners know nothing
of the sort. A very great many of them really do not in the least understand what is meant by equal temperament.
A tuner in Chicago, of assured and honorable position, told me that he knew nothing and cared less for what he con-
temptuously termed ''theory,'' and that he tuned as he was taught; namely, by a rule-of-thumb, dead-reckoning method,
he having learned to do this and that, but knowing absolutely not one thing as to the and wherefore. This man
has been tuning for many years. , .. Yet this man, with all his ''practical'' ways, all his contempt for the ''theorists,''
cannot tune a piano in equal temperament, I know, because I tried his work. 16
From all of the above writing on the standards and ideals of equal temperament by William Braid White, one is
puzzled bythe obvious lack of scientific techniques in his bearing plan of 1915 (see Section 218 of the present work).
Among the test intervals, there was only one minor third, and it was not compared with anything. No tests
not even octave. No sixths were No fourths or fifths were coimpaH:d
together. Two major thirds were once. A
thirds or sixths have the
693
The Science Qf Equal Temperament
these comp'1t;isons are 11ot considere(L TMs; only three co~parison t~sts of value, . e~ch consi~ting of two intervals,
were n1ade 1 Th~ only scientific bases for White's system \Ver~ the beat freql.le~cy ~umbers listed for every interval.
The inclusion of nine triads used as trial~ was rather unscientific. Henry Fisher had explained in 1892 thattrial chords
were of no use if on~ was tempering scfontificaUy a~cording t~ theory. Lawrence Marcus Nalder wrote in 1939: ''Tun-
ing by chords should be· always avoided:' a man who begifls this practice is to be numbered among the lost:'' 17
Testing within the bearing section, Hermann Smith used many sets ofthree paralleHourths or fifths for beat fre-
quency comparisons in 1893. If the book by Jerry Cree Fischer was interpreted correctly, Fischer used all the possible
parallel interval comparison tests in 1907. W. A. Butterfield applied a large number of parallel interval tests in 1910.
Leon 0. Underhill used many of these tests in 1911. Oliver Cromwell Faust used four sets of three contiguous major
thirds in 1913. Charles E. Ewing compared fourths and fifths together as well as seven sets of thirds (one including
a major sixth) complete with beat frequencies in 1913. Thus it must have been common practice to apply the modern
interval comparison tests in 1913, four years before White's book was published.
Considering. the above, and recognizing that William Braid White \Vas respected as a leader. in his field, it must
be true that hi.s bearing plan and meager instructions as published on pages 108-9 of his book did not represent the
complete manner in which he tuned. His writing strongly verifies this fact. From White's words, the finest techniques
for tuning equal temperament according to the acoustical kp.9wledge available in 1917 can be determined. The bases
for this determination are. outlined in the following paragraphs.
In 1911 White wrote, "The Miller tables . . . furnish a guide showing precisely what ought tobe done to obtain
an Equal Temperament. '' 18 The key word is "ought." From a perusal of the Miller tables as White published them
in Table III of his book, all· the laws for testing equal temperament become apparent. 19 In Table III the first column
consists of two octaves of notes. The second column consists of pitch frequency numbers. The third, fourth, fifth,
sixth,. seventh, and eighth columns consist of the beat frequency numbers for minor thirds, major thirds, fourths, fifths,
minor sixths, and major sixths, respectively. The beat frequency numbers for the thirds and sixths were rounded off
to the next 0.5. This was reasonable.It is unlikely that the ear could hear gradations consisting of refinements much
less than this in practical work. The beat frequency numbers of the fourths and fifths were rounded off only to the
next 0.05 so that the increases of the beat frequencies could be seen on paper. The original figures as done by
Joseph C. Miller displayed six decimal places, but this would have rendered the acoustical laws less apparent, espe-
cially for the equal-beating tests taken from the second inversion of the major-minor seventh chord. C. J. Smyth pub-
lished this type of information in 1810, but Smyth's figures were of use only to organ tuners.
Table 219·1= William Braid White's "Table III" Showing the Beat Frequencies of the Intervals. 20
I n :m IV v VI vu vm
Note Frequencies of Notes Minor Thirds Major Thirds Fourths Fifths Minor Sixths Major Sixths
c 129.3 7.0 5.1 0.60 0.45 8.5 6.0
C-sharp 137.0 7.5 5.5 0.60 0.50 9.0 6.5
D 8.0 6.0 0.65 0.50 9 . .5 7.0
D-sharp 153.7 8.5 6.1 0.70 0.55 10.0 7.0
E 162.9 9.0 6.5 0.75 0.55 10.5 7.5
F 172.6 9.5 7.0 0.80 0.60 11.0 8.0
F-sharp 182.8 10;0 7.5 0.85 0.65 11.5 8.5
G 193.7 10.5 8.0 0.90 0.65 12.5 9.0
G-sharp 205.2 11.0 8.5 0.95 0.70 13.0 9.5
A 217.5 12.0 9.0 1.00 0.75 14.0 10.0
A-sharp 230.4 12.5 9.5 1.00 0.80 14.5 10.5
B 244.1 13.0 10.0 1.10 0.85 15.5 l l.O
c 258.6 14.0 10.5 1.20 0.90 16.5 12.0
C-sharp 274.0 15.0 11.0 1.25 0.95 17.5 12.5
D 290.2 16.5 11.5 1.30 1.00 18.5 13.0
D-sharp 307.5 17.5 12.5 1.40 1.10 19.5 14.0
E 325.9 18.0 13.0 1.50 1.20 20.5
F 345.3 19.0 14.0 1.60 1.20
F-sharp 365.7 21.0 14.5 1.70
G 387.5 21.0 15.0 1.80
G-sharp 410.5 22.0 16.5
A 435.0 23.5
460.8
sixms, ar,e .,,.,,.,.0 " " , , " thanjµst intonatioJl' inter-
intcJna.tiort intetvals.
any interval of a kirtif increase
ias.mu n chromatically up the. scale. (This
1
be more obvious
third law consists intervals exist. The fourtho-fifth equal-beating
the ratio 4 to 2 octave is seen by columns five and six; Beginning with .the sixth figure in column
one can see that the figures correspond first figures from column. five, except for a few errors by White.
Lll~evv1sc;,, by comparing the fourth figure of column eight with the first figure of column three, the minor third-major
"'"'''t1n rr test for the ratio 6 to 3 octave is apparent. By comparing the ninth figure of column four with the
1
of column seven, the minor sixth-major third equal-beating test for the ratio 8 to 4 octave is seen. This
last test was not mentioned by White, but Alexander John Ellis published this in 1885 in the second English edition
On the Sensations Of Tone.
fourth law consists of certain comparison tests. When a fourth shares a common lower tone with a fifth, the
must beat faster than the fifth. This is seen by comparing columns five and six equally. When afourth shares
common upper tone with a fifth, the fourth must beat faster. This is seen by comparing the third figure of column
with the beginning of column six. White did not mention th~se tests, but Alexander John Ellis. explained them
in the first English edition of Helmholtz's On the Sensations Of Torte. When a major third shares a common
lower tone with a major sixth, the major sixth must beat faster. This is the test for proving that the fourth that exists
between the upper note of the third and the upper note of the sixth is wide. This is seen by comparing columns four
and eight equally. In a root position minor triad, the minor third must beat faster than the major third. This is the
· test for proving that the ratio 6 to 4 fifth in the triad is narrow. This is seen by comparing the first figure of column
three with the fourth figure of column four. These last two tests were not mentioned by White, but they were published
by Oliver Cromwell Faust and Charles E. Ewing in 1913. In all cases, when a minor third shares a common tone
with a major third, the minor third beats faster. This is observed by comparing a number from column three with
the four appropriate numbers in column four.
In addition to all the above, there is a. class of equal-beating tests that are untrue according to theory only when
many decimal places are considered. When these figures are rounded as in White's "Table III," they appear to be
true. In any case, in practical tuning they are true enough, and they are excellent for preventing the 'inharmonicity'
from octaves and fifths from or distorting the thirds and sixths. These tests were not recorded by White
or any other authors previous to 1917, but they certainly must have been noticed by some tuners who studied White's
"Table III" in 1917. Observe that the sixth figure of column four matches the beginning of column three. This shows
that a major third above a minor third beats the same speed as the minor third when the lower tones of both intervals
are a fourth apart. Notice that the third figure of column four matches the beginning of column eight. This shows
that a major sixth beats the same speed as a major third when the lower tone of the major third is a major second
higher than the lower t911~ of the major sixth. The four.th figure of column three is the same as the beginning of column
seven. shows that a sixth beats the same speed lower tone of the minor third
is a minor third higher than the lower tone of the minor sixth. The seventh figure of column eight is the same as the
beginning of column seven. This shows that a minor sixth beats the same speed as a higher major sixth when the lower
tones of both intervals are a tritone Minor sixths within the temperament octave are inefficient, difficult intervals
to listen to, so they are rarely used. Therefore, these last two tests are also rarely used. There are other equal-beating
tests that are beyond the range of White's table; e.g., the major third-major tenth equal-beating test for the ratio 4
to 2 octave. Nevertheless, White did explain this test.
In conclusion, all the laws for testing the truth of equal temperament were available to the readers of William Braid
White's "Table III'' in 1917; therefore it is possible that some of these tuners tuned as well as any of the tuners work-
ing today. In defense of the notion that White was one of these tuners, the following is offered: White published the
Miller tables, and he advised that all tuners "ought" to follow them. In 1906, White wrote, "The major thirds and
sixths are tested continually as the tuning proceeds, and thus is provided a sure guide to the correctness of the fourths
and fifths. " 21 The latter is a most significant statement. Interpreting this literally, White applied far greater numbers
of testing intervals than are apparent in the latest bearing plan that he published. In fact, he would have done the exten-
sive checking that was outlined for Jerry Cree Fischer in 1907 in Section 204 of the present work. As a minimum,
he would have tested as thoroughly as Charles E. Ewing did in 1913 (see Section 217 of the present work). In 1915
White wrote, ''All the tests recommended in the previous chapter should be used constantly during the progress of
the work, for the tuning will not be good otherwise .... Constant testing, note by note, is therefore absolutely essen-
tial. " 22 "The test Thirds and and the test are used the work. " 23 The
tance concerning White's statements thus far is that White used all the intervals for each note as
until the end of to do this This
.e
:·~~.
:. ·. ·• . Step:
slfoUld.
-~1i!~9 iJlinor
.... •··. .· · . . . . ......... •·• .·. . . . . ·. . . . . • . ..· . . .. . .. . . . . .. .· .. ~~~y·~~tt'.~~oi::third•ht t1te beating plan
t!f~•·. . p~~l!.&~~.,!~i~oJ11•1d~s ~~st~d!;Qtily t~•;\\(JtjteiSl li1ist;i11tte(~oiti1~fti~t• tn4€.l'.st.;Minor: idJJth$. ~ve ne~eJii been con-
$igeit@ \i~ef\it;i!l t~{!lP~la,metit: settjng;i•••· •• . . · .• . . . . ·· . ...:.·.· < .. . · . , · .·. ·
;.. ~illiam.]l(~dWl\ite. ob~iously applied. most of th~ tempering techniques that were known. It is a. mystezy. there-
... . ~f.t~~'""'l\Y:f.. ..idat~t 0utUne•the$eprocedures in: his beating plan. Perhaps it was be<.1ause of his vow :in the
fatQtY· Not~t·~;1 is:b9o~;.tq ~~ep:;allth~ inst:rµctiolJs ''simple~? '
··r~·~ifi~1ifi~ia·' ·I!~~~itstra11&~dr·1&~·itin'~·¥~hi~;ain~hi~1 • ifiii:iJG)j~·WNJJN~vl~·(:tu1yt•1~n): 29 (July

2~. ~~Ii): 12.' wlt~ ptiblisf:l:e',;firt New York every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill.)
• 1
2illl>seph 'f~tMUl b~tiRat~~ilil?q~~!: ·. . ~tl'M\.1Sie'al.J~t¢rval.s~ \Vith Explanations and Demonstrations of the

. P~)·sj~al:~~~~~~ ·lta;iutd \ft~ ~~C:al" lfl<l~ti(}fiof S0iert~e «)th~ Aril'Of Tlining~'' 'lite Tuner's Magazine (De~
.:.•cember 1914)~ 'f""l't~ ·•
·White, Modem Piana• Tumngand Allied A(ts, h'i 69, 88, (This book was completed in 1915.)
· .,;;,.~ · ir of Pi l.MecluJri,sms together with 'tuning as Sc,ence and Art, 135.
~f . . g/4nd)t .....
7, .. :J~t. :: ·. · .·;. ·. · . : .: .....·• "'·'"· .

j . ·...•.. ·.. .·· .. ·::·:.: ..·.
·S. '5il,ill(J~f\Volfe~q~fi~·A: Treatise ~n tlie A.t'tofPlaitoJofitr. 'Construction, rev. ed .• (Henley-on-Thames,·O:itfordshire: Gresham
Book~1 · · ) 1• 133. tlfe .first .edition ~as,Jn 1916. .. . .• . . • ...
·g. W(S: 1 • "A Shott Sfill.tyln .Acottstics•RetatlV't'To:l!(lilal Tefuperament," The Tuners' Magazine (August 1914): 22.
10. Ro\)'ert M'Connick, ''The Correct Temperartient( The Tun"rs' Magazine (August 1914): 1.
H\ · American 6tiil6 '(jffiamf~uii~l!I~ , 1 ~.A ~~mg;·~~ 'tltei·ffjnel'sr,iM(Jgazine (Februacy l'l14): 24.
1.~.1iWillfaD)·ll~1iid:.Wbite*·.~t:\\(~atW~Are~Uoil13'.~~.rm~:fUqer$'•Magazine (Pebruaty 1913): 8.
~:J• :\\(bite;. '~.A. Uerl:tot:1s~rati.on1of t)ie EqpM Temperament,:'i> 29.
. ·1~.. Il)id..·····12,.. ••
¥ . "' . . .
15. Il)id. ·• ·. ·· ..
16. William Sraid Whiie. "A ~estionoftemperawent," The Music Trade Review (July 29, 1911): 45.
p. L11~re11ce•.~1Jtcl\s..N~l<fer. l'irst. St.eps i'{I. Plano, Thni~g (Lq~don: Musical Opinion, 1939), 42.
l ~~. ·~!!e1 . ' 1*\..!'l~~~!l~trl~tion oi il1e ~"l.l!# Telllpeirawe!lt, '' ·ti.
l?· :\\(nf~e, Miiatfrli fidit() Tuf!inif and Ailiffti 4rts. 8.1.
20. Ibid.
2i:,,",White, . .'flteot)! and.J111at:tice. .ojUia~Qrt~~il4il'S:.· .lU"';Eh~,fJt$t ~ditiqn...ot:.,tlli§l,\looi:. w<ts Rrii;lte.Q i.nJ~.
.. 2'$.~l.~~~. ·:Miidaff#·:ltn:i!.::mtltffi•~lftl:4llt«tl~~s.'~f~6; ·
2~, lllidiF11 k .•
i~.;.lb!d•..
~•.•, lbid'<J,.1.12,( ·. .•. ;. ·
26; Ibid:;85,
How THE 'CLASSIC BEARING PLAN'
MIGHT HAVE BEEN UTILIZED BY THE BEST TUNERS OF 1917
he following bearit1g plan and instructions are a composite of the best tempering techniques known through the
·T·····
· ·.
year 1917. Compare this method with those outlined on page 635 and in Sections 200, 209, and 218. The bear-
ing plan used may have been invented by Howard Willet Pyle in 1884. Pyle published this in 1906. The testing proce-
dures used are modeled after those of Henry Fisher of 1892, Hermann Smith of 1893, Jerry Cree Fischer of 1907,
W. A. Butterfield of 1910, Leon 0. Underhill of 1911, Oliver Cromwell Faust of 1913, and, in particular,
Charles E. Ewing of 1913. The acoustical laws gleaned from the calculations of Joseph C. Miller of 1911 and 1914
as rounded and published by William Braid White in 1917 are applied. In 1917, the standard pitch was A above middle
C being 435 Hz. In the following instructions, White's beat frequency numbers are corrected and transposed to the
modern pitch for A being 440 Hz. All the trial chords are deleted according to the philosophy of Henry Fisher of
1892. Any tuner of 1917 who applied the following techniques would have tempered as well as the finest technicians
of today. It is up to the reader to decide for himself as to what extent that this might have been done during the earlier
part of the twentieth century.
TUNING . •EQUAE TEMPERAMENT BY EAR IN 1917
T une the following quarter notes in the order written. Play the intervals written in half notes as testing intervals.
Listen for beats among the nearly-coinciding harmonics. The locations of the nearly-coinciding harmonics are
represented by the black notes without stems in the treble clef above the testing intervals.
Beating occurs at this high The tuning fork is at the location of the nearly-
location between the nearly- coinciding harmonics of the major tenth Ab C
Tune Cto a coinciding harmonics of the
tuning fork at tempered interval below.
Test
l
standard pitch.
Tuned Tune Equal beating
l
before just r----------i
i
Tune
i
Test interval
L___ _ _ _ _ _ _J
Play low A~ first with the tuning fork, then

just (Wide) with middle C. Readjust middle C until both
Flatten Ab from C so that methods produce beats that are exactly equal.
the major third Ab C beats at If the major tenth sounded on the piano beats
an arbitrary rate of speed that slower than the low Ab sounded with the tuning
is easy to hear and comfortable fork, this indicates that the middle C is flat.
to listen to. Ab will be retuned However, if the major tenth sounded on the
later in equal temperament. piano beats faster tha.11 the low A~ sounded
with the tuning fork, this indicates that the
middle C is sharp.
Sharpen T~sf wterval Flatten
(FigilnlS denote This test proves that the fifth F C is
beats pet second) narrow. The minor third F Ai. must
beat faster than the major third A~ C.
Test
Tuned Wide
before
!•
• • •
•
t
F,'l!lt\~~ .~i.· from t so that the ml\ior sixth· i
E~ C beats at~ arbitrary rate of speed that This test proves that the fourth G C
is easy to hear and comfortable to listen to. is wide. The major sixth E~ C must
E~ will be retuned later in equal temperament. beat faster than the major third Eb G.
Test
Wide
l
Tuned Tuned
before before
0.89 0.66 0.59
i
Flatten
i
Flatten BP from D so that the major third
B~ D beats at an arbitrary rate of speed.
B~ will be retuned later in equal temperament.
Tuned
before
----t-J~-1----------------+--·-------------------~--1
-----++-+-------------->------------------!
0.99 0.89
i
i
This test proves that the fifth
GD is narrow. The minor
third G Bi> must beat faster
l Flatten
If the major sixth F D is beating too rapidly, this indicates that one
or more of the previously tempered intervals is beating too slowly.
than the major third Bi> D. If the major six1h is beating too slowly, this indicates that one or
more of' the previously tempered intervals is beating too rapidly.
Flatten
is. test proves that the fourth A D is
wide. The major sixth F D must
' ·ooat fas fer than the major third FA•
.· Crescendos denote increasing ooat speeds.
Tuned
oofore
.. ..
10.4 8.9 7.9
11.9
6.9
t
This test proves that the fifth A E is
Flatten
narrow. The minor third A C must

beat faster than the major third CR
This test proves that the fourth B E
is wide. The major sixth GE must
beat faster than the major third G B.
Test Tuned
Quasi-equal beating before
I f
I
~
ti: • • •
~.
..!:
•
I r,
'tJ"'v
-;-
11
< r 7.8
7.9
l ~
\ 0.74
0.84 0.89
tr· f..L
(JL·'
• ~
._.
~
(9-
·""'.
z ±
I .::..I•
.t'L. le..
r-
I
±
_.!'!':-
~
P':
~
~
-;- -,,,- '. l.
This is an imflonanites&
If the major third GB is beating too rapidly,
·this indiCates that one or more 'of the previousfy
tempered fourths or fifths is beating. too slowly•.
However, if the major third GB is beating too
slov:Iy, this indicates tflat. one or more of the
previously .tempered fourths or fifths is beating
too rapidly.
£21. -·Tuning Equaltemperament By Ear
Test
Tuned Wide
before
11.9
i
Flatten D from B so that the
i
major sixth D B beats at an arbitrary rate of speed. This test proves that the fourth
D will be retuned later in equal temperament. F# B is wide. The major sixth D B must
beat faster than the major third D F~.
Tuned
before
~ #..
r-"-U----l~-------~::::r=======-:~----'~-~---,------~--~--=:____~
•_____:]£ --_---ttP------+-----------------------------
- - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - ------
0.66 10.4
8.7
i
Flatten
703
Test
Quasi-equal beating
r-·---·---i
~··
---------·------·----
13.3 8.9
8.7 8.7
10.0
i
This test proves that the fifth F# C# is
narrow. The minor third F# A must
beat faster than the major third A C#.
0.89 0.94 0.99 8.2
-- ----------
i
Flatten
i
Problems often exist at this crucial test
If the major third Ab C is beating too slowly,
this indicates that one or more of the previously
tempered fourths or fifths are also beating too
slowly.
However, if the major third A~ C is beating
too rapidly, this indicates that one or more of
the previously tempered fourths or fifths are
also beating too rapidly.
i
Flatten E from C# so that the major sixth
E C# beats at an arbitrary rate of speed.
E will be retuned later in equal temperament.
Tuned
before
• •
0.66 0.70 0.74
t"c
1
'This test proves that the fourth G# C#
Flatten
is wide. The major sixth E C# must

beat faster than the major third E 0#.
10.4 7.9 8.4 8.9 13.3
105
The Siien€.e O.f Eqf¥$1Temperament
Tuned
Test Test before
Quasi~equal IJeating Quasicequal beating
~ -~------i
·~!--~------·----!
- i
i
This test proves that the fifth G# D#
Temper Bb from both
F and Eb so that the fourth
Bb Eli beats one and one-third
is narrow. The minor third G# B must times as fast as the fourth F B b.
beat faster than the major third B D#. Both intervals must be wide.
The old "Proof' interval

(See page 624.)
- - - - - - -- -- -- -----·+------·-··-· ·-----·-·-----·-·--·--------------j
1.05 l.12
---------1-------------------------------1
----·--------1---------------------·-·----·-------1
9.2 9.8
·---~----
Test
Quasi-equal beating Tuned
before
10.4 8.4
Thig teNt proves that the fuurth Bl> E~ is

wide. The major sixth GI> El> must beat
faster than the majot third GI> Bl> .
the major sixth D~ m
l
Flatten DI> from BI> so that
beats at an arbitrary rate of
speed. Db will be retuned later in equal temperament.
Test
Wide Tuned
before
! ~----·---~·-----~
•
1.18
~-~~------------
-===-
i
i
This test proves that the fourth F Bb is
Temper F from both Bb and C so that the fourth C F beats
one and one-half times as fast as the fifth B~ F. CF must be
wide and Bl> F must be narrow.
wide. The major sixth m Bl> must beat
faster than the major third Db F.
1
Quasi-equal beating
------------·-
--+-------------
------+-·--··----------·-·--
l.12 11.0 10.4
-
-=====----
Test
Test
Quasi-equal
Quasi-equal beating
I
-------------·----1---------------------l--------·-------+-----------·-----l
l------------·------1,------------------1---'-----------------+--------·---·--·-------·1
l-''"-¥'--------------1--------------4---------------+------------------~
15.8 15.0 9.4 11.0

9.2
h-..--ffi9-~"-----1~-~~1-+-~-~~4-~~--+-+~~-±f-·~--t-~~·~~-.wf.~-~---j
EquaLbeating
---===--==-
i
i
These tests prove that the fifth Bb F is narrow.
i
This test proves that the fourth C F is
This test proves that
the octave F to F is a
just 6:3 ratio octave.
The minor third Bb Db must beat faster than the wide. The major sixth Ab F must beat
major third Dl> F. The lower Db has only been faster than the major third Ab C.
temporarily tuned, but it must beat faster with the Bb
a major sixth above it than with the F a major tenth above it.
The new "Proof' interval
Narrow fifths
--~~========----~--··-----------·-- --==-
i
The contrast here should
be barely perceptible.
Wide fourths
r--- I
l 12 1.18
lrJ=hiCC ti £__ iffe=_f · #fu~J___f_rn~ l ·------- ===--=---===-

i
The contras! here
should be noticeable.
·The Sc;ienc;e Of Equal Temperament
Wide thirds
92 98 10.4 11.0 11.0

b. . . . . b i b
11:i ~ 'r t-trh J t=~1 ~ ;f ~
• 6.9 7.3 7.& 8:2 8.7 6.9 . 8.7
---~~~~,===-===~===:==========================-~===-~~
i
The contrast here
should be large.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _W_id_emajor sixths
~--
79 ~4 ~9 ~4 79
~t- " - r2: ----1----l==~--=--t-----=-__l_§___]E____J

-+---E
Narrow minor thirds

-----i
9.4 10.0 10.6 11.2 11.9 12.6 13.3 14.1 15.0 15.8 9.4 11.2 13.3 15.8
~~-+>-+--------l--~-~--- ~~~~-f h-r=t--=~f-=~1 )___·-----
--------
i
The contrast here
should be extreme.
Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating

r-------1 r---------1 1---------------i
7.9 8.4 8.2 8.9 87 9.4 92

~8 . .
~r>_=.~··· ~=t==~~lf.··==-=i=- rr~ ~~~~~n

Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating
r-----------i ,-------1 I
r ----i
11.0
9.2 9.8 10.4
the pi:evious qJ.lasi-equaI beating t¥st.s beat a little less than 2 perce11t slower than
an amo~ntto be considered in practical work; therefore, treat these intervals as
i11t~r"\lals. < >· •.. ·.. > .· •· · <) .••···• ....
a basic temperament within the comp~ss of an octave. Thefinest techniCians, however,
.,.,.,. 01""Tsatisfied with doing only the tempering outlined above. followed by tuning octaves throughout the remainder
piano. Instead, they continue to set the temperament throughout the whole piano rather than to rely on octaves
· They also strive to tune the unisons as they proceed rather than to tune only the middle strings first. As a practi-
they first tune the middle strings of the bearing section followed by the bass section. Next, they tune
•..~!''".··"·""''"""of these notes and check the temperament again from the low bass up through F above middle C. Finally,
;\J:Xe:gi11mu1g with F-shai:p above middle C, they complete the tuning of each unison as they proceed note to note through-
the remaining treble section of the piano.
tuning the remaining notes of the piano, see Section 226.
NOTE
For maintaining a6:3 ratio FF octave, the fifth B-flat Fis allowed to remain. a micro-amount slower in beating frequency than
the fourth F B-flat. This apparent contradiction is caused by inharmonicity.
7
WHY THE 'CLASSIC BEARINGPLAN' WAS PREFERRED
T he following bearing plan published by Jean Jousse in 1832 is the most musical because it follows the rules of
tonality for C major. The only problem with this plan is that three tones need to be sharpened while laying the
bearings. In setting the pins while pounding heavily on the keys, there is always the danger that the tones F, B-flat,
or E-flat could result in becoming flat. Even worse, they might move to be on the other side of the point of just intona-
tion. In this case, the intervals would become reverse tempered or inside out. As an example, the fifth FC might be-
come wider than just intonation and yet be beating the correct amount intended. Unfortunately, the tuner might not
be aware that this flattening had taken place because the beating would still be proper. This continues to be a problem
with the tone Fin Pyle's classic bearing plan. When this flattening takes place on the eight remaining tones of Jousse's
temperament, there is no problem. The fourths or fifths beat faster in this latter case, so the tuner becomes aware
of the extra flattening.
TuneCto Tuned
any desired pitch. before Proof
l l !
i~i-_r~-~L-§f-E!.~~~~~td§~f)rn ·~J l............. - ..................-.1
Flatten each of these tones. Sharpen each of these tones.
The most efficient ever devised, at least on paper, was the system by L. 0. Peltier in 1877.
The tuners at the Broadwood factory used this plan in 1885. In this, every tone was flattened, so the tuner was never
deceived while setting the pins. This plan is as follows:
Tune C to
any desired pitch.
l T
!~E=r-~~F 1 p#-=~j_,_______f#_p_ af-=I
_ _ _ _ ___J
Flatten each.of these tones.
Why· The>'Clasifc JJearing Plan' Was Preferred
:},J1 Regafdte~s of the apparent effi~iency •ofthe, Pelti~t pla~ •. 'Y'mi~m BraittWhite prnmoted the bearing plan used by
~oward)Vil.letPYl.einJ884Jo ~u9h ai,l exte11~thatit.,~e~aweestal)lished as the most commonly used plan.It became
'• the classic bearin~ plan even though the t()ne F needed to be sharpened. The reasons that this plan was successfully
taught and practiced.were historical. An explanation follows.
fa. either the Jousse or Jhe •Peltier l!earing pla~~'. th~ fi~~t niaJ9r 'b,ird t~at ~ould be listened to for. testing was CE.
Also, the first major sixth that could be listened to for testing was GE. The nineteenth"century tuners may have listened
to CE briefly, but it is more certain that they spent much time listening to the triad GCE (the second inversion of
the C major triad) for quality. The truth is that the equal tempered major third CE on middle C is too harsh, especially
in a second inversion triad at that location. Even though the tuners were intending to tune equal temperament, their
ears rebelled strongly against major thirds on middle C or above that were widened by fourteen cents. Since they be-
lieved that they c:ould not hearthe fast beats of CE anyway, they excused themselves from this responsibility. They
left E above middle C flatter than proper. The smaller major third CE nevertheless still sounded harsh to them, and
they honestly believed it was in equal temperament. The tone F wa~tempered last in the Peltier bearing plan. At this
point when the temperament setting was ending, the tuners were only concerned that there would be no wolf between
F and C. Using the Jousse or Peltier methods explains why the analyses done by Alexander John Ellis in 1885 showed
that piano tuners were not tuning equal temperament. They were tuning well temperament or Victorian temperament instead.
The slow beating major third CE was not corrected until the classic bearing plan became common. In this, the low
F was tuned first rather than last. Unfortunately, F had to be sharpened from middle C. By tempering low F first,
the major third FA became the first major third available for testing. In this lower position in the scale, musical ears
were not offended by fourteen cent wide equal tempered major thirds. Thus, FA was tempered correctly. In the next
step, the tone E above middle C was tempered, but now one was forced. to temper E high enough so that the major
sixth GE would beat slightly faster than FD. Parallel major sixths were new at this time in history, and musical ears
had to overcome the shock of how sharp in pitch that E above middle C must be in equal temperament.
In conclusion, it should be apparent that the bearing plans used in history helped to mold the styles of temperaments
used. Thus, the classic Howard Willet Pyle bearing plan was in no small measure responsible for the introduction
of equal temperament into common practice.
Throughout history, the stronger that tonality was in music compositions, the stronger was the tonality in tempera-
ment practice. Only when atonal music compositions became accepted as classics did equal temperament become firmly
established in practice.
LISTING···O:F' IDSTORlCAI.J DEVELOPMEN1S
Information known by Marin Mersenne in J 636 or before included:

The laws of fundamental string vibrations and frequencies.
The causes of beats at the fundamental pitches.
The laws of harmonics or overtones except that their cause was still unknown and therefore was improperly explained.
The ratios of the common intervals, dieses, commas, and schisma.
The ratios of the Greek enharmonic, chromatic, and diatonic scales.
The ratios of many just intonation systems, especially for keyboards constructed with more than 13 key levers
per octave.
The meaning of the word 'temperament' as distinct from the word 'tuning.'
The meaning of the term 'well-tempered; (In 1636 a well-tempered fifth was tempered narrow by 1A syntonic
comma.)
The ratios of Pythagorean temperament.
The ratios of 1A comma meantone te>rn"'''""'"""'"t
A meantone temperament bearing plan consisting of a circle of fifths and octaves.
The ratios ofexperimental temperaments.
The ratios of equal temperament.
The measurements for the placing of frets on stringed instruments (lutes, viols, etc.) intended for use in equal
temperament or quasi-equal temperament.
The fact that instruments could not be tuned in equal temperament by ear. (Thus, meantone t""'""·ni
ment was
William Noble and Thomas Pigot, independently, 1673-
William Holder, 1694-

The beginning tuning note in England at this time was middle C.
Gottfried Keller, 1707-

The word 'Tryall' was used for test-chord. Root position and second inversion major triads were used.
Major thirds as well as fifths were used in (Fourths were still not ""Pl'""""·
Alexander Makolm, 1721-

Well temperament was beginning to surpass meantone temperament in usage.
Roger North, 1726-

the
'The beat.ffe~\le'ncfesof fifths.,t many pitch levels.were published for Smith's equal·beating meantone tempera-
meiit~i Pief(o'l\lit,~nts;;nt~Mltqne te~~rarnent~ and Christiaan. Huygens's meantone temperament so that these
tem~raffi~Jtts Cll'Ofd be tt1•111···11the4>'teeil.rilly co.il(~ti~nne11 on grgans. ·Even though fourths were. still not
.listt?n~4fP. 4Wd be~t& were g.ti1:1 !l<>tJist~n~dJo l!t t~e ~~jit~Jqi~a, ,o{\f"1,lP~.,~H~~·· t~~ b~~s ()f ~ach fifth were
listen¢d to for 15 secon(ls with the help of two men serving as be counters usirt!··m~~econdHran<l$ q:fl'.watches
or pendidums~ 1'.4e xes1d1.s. Qn grgans (;Ol.llQ ~ave bee11 f~irly accurate. It was explained that when various tem-
pered, intervals ofakind were identical itlilieir sizes as: in 'regular' temperament, their beat frequencies must
increase proportionately when they are2played highet in the scale, Smith respelled the \VOf~ '.t~~r .~s. 'trial.'
Equal temperament ~ad been ~ropqs~ in. England.
Jean-J;~q~es Rousseau, i,68-

The ditonic comma rather than the syn.tonic cQnuna was shared by tempered fifths in theory.
George Fredericli Bandel, in instructions questionably attributed to him, c. 1780-

The. fifths.. were tempered less th.an the. major thirds. in the natural diatonk keys.
William Jones,. 1781-:-

The term ''equal temperament'' was used.
Tbe ratio of an eq\lal teip.pen1mt:Pt seniitone was c:alc:ulated by Mr. Davis.
Jones propos~ \hat .musici~ns should try. using equal temperament.
John Bland, 1790-

.The ttinl:ng fort· fore became a commow·tool·,fopimtlsmans•and.tunei:s. ·
Thomas Young, 1799-

.... 'J:hefourthwasdntroduced as. an interval ta tqne by.
The bearing sectio1t·was teducedto tweNe Mtes:
Musicians were beginning to consider using equal temperament for keyboard instruments, but well temperament
was still considered to be the best. Well temperament was almost universal in practice;
Youngformalized th!' ideal repr~se~tativ~eighteenth..century well temperament. He perfected the form of har-
monic balance. .. . .. ' . . . . . .
John Robison, 1801-

The fourth-fifth 4 to 2 ratio octave te~t was proposed for adoption by tuners.
Equal temperament failed in prac::tice.
Robison proposed that the Aaron and Keller ineantone temperaments should be used on harpsichords and pianofortes
as well as on organs.
By this time, the·roning profession had separated from the music teaching and performance profession.
Robison propos~d that thetheoretfcillly correct organ methods Of tempering be applied to harpsichords and piano-
fortes.
Tlie Kimberger one~half syntonic well tempetament wa~ introduced to the British without John Robison's blessing.
715
The first practicalinstructiQns for attempting to tune equal temperament on pianofortes were published in Boston.
~~\li9i!*'~~~£~lt.Af:~ .,B';(;.;;,;:;;c,\)''''' F·.

'· ''~l 'i'fi~ d.istincti~~~.etw~~l~:'J~al-~ean~1'att.d1 theQretically correct tempering . techniques·. was clarified.
::'l?'trriing equa1rteri}pe~~e~tft>~·:t!slJis;jl,l~.tt4mtt11.lati91l' tec~iques· w!:ls. prnl)osed.
,,,,., ·. .;..r.<z~;(;>~~; .~ \t.{ ;1·~1.~,;":, ,./ /'"'v·:··?.
M:~~q~~,. 9(.~~~l'~,ririg i&~l,qg!.~~!Il, by ~~~ f6~~aP,,J?roxiR1~!i~g equal temperament were published.

e.:.Jr~;,~F1s1C)~ '. . ' : ;, , ', , . ': . , )· . , , .
The term meantone 'temperament• was qsed, possibly four centuries after this style of temperament was first
Pl"ilcfjced. .· , . . ...·. . . .... · . . .
Smyth:published;thebeatfrequenciesfortheminorthirds. majorthitds, fourths ,'fiftfis. minor sixths, and majo.-
·sixthsof equal temperamentatthe standa.-d pitch of C::;:;.240 Hz. The figures were given fo.- beats per fifteen
seconqs for 'organ roners ..
A bearing plan,with test intervals was fumisbed. This marks the point where equal temperament was possible
on.organs•
Alexander,.Metcalf Fishel;', l.818..-

A. mod:inM meantone temperament was calculated. from the frequency of occurrences of :musical intervals used
.... J!1 t.b¢ ~otpp~~~.~t2I1~R~ the t(ipes.
Johann Christian 'Gottlieb Graripner ~ .181~:_
TM :wont. 'pia11~· withoµtthe 'forte' .was use9,
Johann Nepomuk Hummel, 1&29-

The use of the"·Ar,,tuning< fork was.0r@t.'lommended#,to..&he,,,Briiish:.. ,,, ''"''"···'· '
'' .. '' ' ,•, ·. '·~ ••. ' ,'cf· .·· .
:·''' ,,,,;,,p,-,.:,,,;.,~·'<',10~?hW1c''0'-'0.«'.~-w,:,f"~····~, ''
. . .
···IbeJ\<>tes ~fuly~'filid ~elo\\.' the.. ~e~ti11g sect(()n were, tempered by. me.ans. of :fifths and fourths.
The octaves were not timed directly. Octaves were played and heard only in the trials.
Johil'.ftli ·Heinrich Stheibler, 1834-

The Stuttgart.Congre~s of Ph1sfQfSt& approv~ct bfScileibler's proposal to standardize A at 440 Hz .
•' ~~hejJ:tle:!
.
tll!:niyfll,,~tured
·,;,
"
sets of 13 tuning forks in equal temperament.
"
The Tuner's Guide, 1840-

The quasi-equal temperament type of tuning was said to be universally practiced on pianos.
i\tex"afider ·Jolnl Ellis,: 187~~

The impr6v~a:~qa)'45e~ting. methodwheretiy the fourths beat faster than the fifths when the fourths and fifths
· ~II~:f.t;d C()tpn1on upper 1ones apd also· when they shared common lower tones WaS> proposed,
, · ·'· .;~;};:fi0,. un0'}\l:al"o11hold.m0thod. is· fast,going. out o:f.. us0•..' •

'+yv·<;xvN~'>>F~+''·'Y,•· \ '. \.'.; '"'··+··: ':'.'·1ff$f''"'f"·30',Y.'l:'}f·<."1"1f/t\UV))%te''"~":"~~": ., ,. ·;·>tP·;': ,·~.",-,,. +"~·"'"'Yo,<\'(·';'\'';'\'N .·':·•· ,,,'<''' .:
~, >"·· · .· ··< ,-. :" :~'.,. . :.>.: :: :,',;~~ . ,:;{::1¥~:~{7~0~v;-~:,:. <'.,: ~):si:v::'"'\;::'~'..,'.,'.:'1 '. ..·~t}.:/.' ~" ~
orsans that are tuned in accordance
'\i': :', ':, ;'. 'fr"
The temperament .. war tSc . . . . . . w?~w~ tmdW'Q~. firle

with the old rules and according to the unequal temperament."
Ellis detetmined. described, and used the micro-interval that he named a 'cent.•
Pyle, used th~ bearing plan that later became the most commoiity;rptacticetH'.l~am:ns: plan Of
; }' "' ".
the twentieth century.
Roug~ty\ 44.~ eerc~nt of.the tuners were J~nl.i:1S: }Vell temperamen.t ~~·calling Jt eq,u~l!eJnpfi:rament. Only about
25 percent of the pfano tuners were tililiiig fair imitations of equaltemn~ta.ment. · ·
The minor sixth=major third 8 w 4 ratio ,octave test was publish~d.
'{~e µiim:>r, tN!d-m~or sixth 6 to 3 ratio octave. test was published.
1ttward Qufnc~ Norton, 1887-

Tuners were beginning to listen to beats at. the: loc'ations of the nearly-coinciding harmonics.
Tests for evenly progressing beat frequencies on chromatic major thirds and major tenths were used.
William Staunton~. 18.89......

Vfctqrfan temperament vyas still common. in practi~e. This style of temperament was called "shades or degrees
of equal temperament.'' ;
Major sixths were added as testing intervals, but minor thirds and minor sixths were considered unsatisfactory
trials, ''being confusing .to th~ ear.'' Tuners could now comprehend and count beats up to nine per second,
and trial chords were now considered obsolete.
' 'tile equat-beaiing'tecllniques fottempei:ing fifths and 'fourths were banned.
William. Braid. White, .1906-

Tuners were expected to hear and control major sixths up through eleven beats per second.
Jerry Cree Fi$cher, 1907..,....

Tuners were expected tohear and i::ohtrot minor thirds up through twelve beats per second.
The major third~major tenth 4 to 2 ratio octave test was published.
"Many good tuners" tuned close to mathematically exact, theoretically correct equal temperament.
W. A. Butterfield, 1910-
The major, third-major sev.enteenth 4 to 1 ratio double octave or fifteenth test was published.
Oliver Cromwell Faust and Charles E. Ewing, 1913-
717
APPENDICES
·~I\ JE:xpeJ1imental l,lei:t~lpg:Jl~an.,, .. ~ f ~Y· n., • ~·~·· .• ,,7~9

Tuning Equal Temperament .... ; . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Tuning the Notes. Bel9w and Above the Bearing Section in
~11~ Te~ee~am~11t . .. . . . .. . . . . .. . .. . .. .. .. . .. . . . . 730
221. Vano~s:re~t('·. '.':1 ~\. • • • • • . . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 736
22s. Inhai-moriicity . : ..... : : , ~ : : .......... ~ : .. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . 739

229. The General L0catio"fi~ Where Various Sizes of Octaves are ·
Tuned:, .... '. ..•............................................ 746
230'. Tests for Octaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 747
231. A Catalogue of Test l11tervals through Eight Harmonics ............. 752
232. The Ftequen~ies ahd\.Bel}t Frequencies: oi Equal Temperament ........ 766
· 233.. Metronome Speeds at A11"'440 Hz for Fifths and Fourths
Between F and Fin Equal Temperament. ....................... 768
AN EXPERIMENTAE BEARING PLAN
T hree major problems exist in the classic Howard Willet Pyle bearing plan. First, one must temper several notes
before there are any thirds or sixths available for testing which can reveal possible errors in the fourths and fifths
(see page 635). If any errors are found, extra time is required for retuning the beginning notes. Second, when two
major thirds can finally be compared they are so distant from each other, and so different in their beat frequencies,
that the test has little value (see page 701, measure four). Third, and most detrimental of all, when the tuner arrives
at G-sharp (A-flat), he often finds that the major third A-flat C is beating too slowly (see page 704, measure six).
If he attempts to correct this, then the fourth A-flat D-flat beats too fast. Of course, this means that at the beginning
of the temperament the fourths and fifths were tempered too close to pure and the first major sixth FD was allowed
to beat too rapidly. Unfortunately, this is not revealed until one reaches G-sharp (A-flat) which is three-fourths of
the way through the bearing section. Also, when A-flat is reached, if the major third A-flat C is beating too rapidly,
one could find that he has actually tuned John Marsh's meantone temperament from 1809! Two techniques must be
applied to prevent this. First, the specific beat frequencies must be well imbedded in the subconscious mind. Second,
one must listen well to the first equal-beating test as soon as it is available (see page 702, measure five).
Otherwise, extensive retuning will be necessary.
The present author submits an experimental bearing plan in Section 225. Notice that as soon as only three notes
have been tempered there are two chromatically adjacent major thirds that can be tested. 1 After two
more tones, all six chromatic tones within a fourth have been tempered.
As one might notice, the first notes tempered are the problem notes A-flat and D-flat from the classic Pyle bearing
plan. Solving the problem in the beginning allows one to proceed through the remainder of the work without fear that
a surprise will nearthe end work over
After the temperament Within a fourth is a within a tTitone is done. This is followed tem-
peraments within a fifth, minor sixth, major sixth, minor seventh, major seventh, and finally the octave F to F, all
tuned in order.
The advantage of this of is without exception, all the testing intervals are kept
adjacent as they are formed. There are no testing intervals that leap randomly all over the bearing section as in the
classic system.
Every bearing system has its drawbacks. In this proposed method the problem is that one must be able to compare
the fast beat of minor thirds among the beginning notes; therefore, this system is not recommended for
novice tuners. learning piano tuning, the classic Pyle system is better, regardless of its serious difficulties.
Modem tuners experiment with various new bearing plans in their quest for greater efficiency-and also for a refreshing
change. (No pianist wishes to play only one piece throughout his entire life.) The present author has used a multitude
of bearing plans, but has discovered the one basic truth: None is intrinsically superior. One often becomes highly en-
thusiastic about a new bearing plan but discovers in the end that, as in the historical temperaments, when one
is gained, another is lost. Tempering requires a certain amount of work, and there is simply no way to
The author wishes to apologize in advance if the following bearing plan has been published by someone
in country. Otherwise, it has not come to his attention.
NOTE
L
the
nec:esi;itv of this extra step.
Fol! novice tunersfthe system otttlined•of,l gages698,:-7H is recommendedF.The following is for ~xperienced .tuners
ottly. Tune the following quarter notes in the order written. Play the intervals written in half notes as testi:i:tg intervals.
Listen for fjeats among· the. nearly-coineic:ting harmonics.
c;·:Cres.;enctos denote.increasing beat frequencies:
~· Decrescendos denote·· decfoasmg beaifteque:ildies.
'fe~t.interval
···(wide)
TuneCtoa
tuning fork:at Tuned (Fig~s denote
stam.l\\fd p~k;h;..· before. beats per second) Tuned

before
... ~'.·.··
!
···•.•··
..........0~1~01~'\\'ir~~im.~iiJ!l!Jit~."'·••1 .
tuning fork, tlien with rriictdle C.
Test Test for the proper increase in beat frequencies:

Tuned
(Wide) before The beats of A C# The bt}ats of A C
should be 6% faster should be 36% faster
!
d.94
than those of Ab C.
S.2 S.7
than those of A C#.
S.7 11.9
Mfff ~, ttr.·
Flatten
I
't
If the minor third A C beats over 36% faster
II
than the major third A €#, this indicates

that one or both of the previo11sly tempered
!§ · orthatthe
ioowMe:
Tune A to a Test interval
tuning fork at Tuned (Wide)
standard pitch. before (f~gures denote
beats per second)
l l Test Tuned
before
Equal beating
~
'-
l
± t-
IL ±
I I
----,
~ ~LZ: ••
I -·
-?:L 1111_ ?2
~ w
~ 8.7
~ ~· ~ ~
19- .-!! -¥- kr: ---I
""'I·
-,L
+ :F
I
±
T
I
:r
~- ~
Play low F first with the tuning fork, Tune

i i
Sharpen
then with the A above middle C. just
Test Test for the proper increase in beat frequencies:

Tuned
t l
before (Wide) Tuned The beats of AC# The beats of A C
l 0.94
before should be 6% faster
than those of A~ C,
8.2
--~1
8.7
should be 36% faster
than those of A Ctt .
I
8.7
·1
11.9
!t22Ei filL=_: #f ==ti . ~~=fcff:== P~-='=.-~t~~~

i i
Flatten Sharpen
i
If the minor lhird A C beats over 36% faster
than the major third A C#, this indicates
that one or both of the previously tempered
major thirds is not wide enough, or that the
previously tempered fourth is too wide.
The. Science. Of Equal·Temperanu~m
From either of the above bearing plans, continue as follows:
Test for the proper increase in beat frequencies: Tuned
J
Tuned The beats of Ab C~ The beats of G# B before
~~~-/-~-·~_t_~
before should be 6% slower
than those of AC.
1-------r
l I 1.9
~
~~l-_---_c-=-~-=--1 - b~·+- - - -~~1~r==--=::::::=__'--====--"
· ~n-*-\----·-.----!Jd
1!2 D
t=+---•_.
i
Flatten
-====== i
Sharpen
Test
Test Tuned
before The beats of G C
The beat speed of each successive should be 6% slower
interval should decrease by 6%. than those of Ab Db.
---.· -·--------~-=~-
This completes the setting of a basic temperament

within the compass of a perfect fourth.
Test
Test
The beat speed of each successive
The beat speed of each successive interval should decrease by 6%. interval should decrease by 6%.
l
8.7 8.2 7.8
l
within the compass of a tritone.
0:6~''
.,,~
'rf
Temper F# from both Band C#
so that the fourth F# B is wide
and the fifth F# C# is narrow.
Test
The beat speed of each successive interval should decrease by 6%.
12.6 11.!) 11.2 10.6
J1~=~~r
10.0
~ ~tr ~r ,~r
Test
Test The beats of A C#
The beat speed of each successive should be 14.3% slower
interval should decrea.se by 6%. than those of F# A.
8.7 8.2 7.8 8.7

10.0
n2~~ ···¥f
' l
II
within the compass of a perfect fifth.
T~mpet .F from both Bb. and C
so that the fourth F Bb is wide
anlftftefifth F c is narrow.
Test
The beat speed of e,ac~ suc~essive interval should decrease by 6% ..
lt.9 H.2 . 10.6 10.0 9.4
,~r
! ttr ~~ ij~r
Te~t.
The beat speed of each successive inter\tal should decrease by 6%.
Test. Test
The beats of A~ C Tuned The beats of A D
shouldbe 14.~'/'q:slower:. before should be 50% faster Test
than those of G D.
I
· tli~J~()8~C'.!j~,A~·. . Quasi-equal beating
8.2 0.66 0.99 9.2
Temper b from both G and A

so that the fourth A D is wide
... and the· fifth. G. D l!!':fWIQW,
·· 1tllI$'.~~iiinfi\i~m~it!rnA:29~Ktm!~~m~lari,ienf
W!~~!l.Ul~tt!>ID.,l!l's ()f.it'IJl.ipor~iiuh'.
Test Test
The beats of FD Tllfted The beats of A# D#
should'be 14.3% faster before should be 50% faster Test
than those of FA. than those of G# D#. Quasi-equal beating
7.9
6.9 l 0.70 1.05
10.0
9.8
ll#tf 1~¥ ff ~
t
Temper D# from lloth G# and A#
so that the fourtll: Alt P# is wide
and the fifth Git D# ls narrow.

within the compass of a major sixth.
Test
,Tess,. The beats.of F#'D#
Test
'Fhe beat speed: of eaGh SUGGessive should be 6% faster
Quasi-equal beating interval should increase by 6%. than those of F D.
8.2 8.7 9.2 9.8 7.9 8.4
1rr bf fr 1F if
725
The·· Seience. OfEquat Teinperanient
'the beats of B: Dlf

shOuld be l4c3% slower
than those ofGlf B.
-----·==-
Temper E from both A and B

so that the fourth B E is wide
and the fifth A Eis narrow.

within the compass of a minor seventh.
Test
The beats of B E
should be 50% faster Test Test
than those of A E. Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating
r--· r--·--
0.74 1.12 10.4 8.9
8.7
Test Test
The beat speed of each successive
interval shOllld increase 6%.
10.4 7.9 8.4

Tuning Equal Temperament
Test Test
The beats of c E The beat&- of G. E Tuned
should be 14.3% slower should be 14.3% faster before
than those Of A C. than those ofG B ..
11.9
10.4 8.9
7.8
l r=
=l=---=-~mt~.----------------tif-------++11kf__ _±=:_~
-----
i
Temper F from both Bl> and C
so that the fourth C F is wide
and the fifth Bl> Fis narrow.

within the compass of a major seventh.
Test
Test
Just
The beats of C F
should be 50% faster Test Test 0.00
!
than those of Bl> F. Quasi-equal beating Equal beating
I I --i r-------·----i
0.79 1.18 11.0 9.4
9.2
L____________J
Test
Quasi-equal beating
Test
The beat of each successive interval should increase by 6%.
--- -----------
The:Science Of.Equal. 'J!emperarnent
Test
the beat Speed Of each successive interval Shcmld in!';tease by 6%.
r--
8.9 9.4
7.9 S.4
t --------= -~··____J
Test
The beat speed of each successive interval should increase by 6%.
,------------
1·3 3· 14.l 15.0 15.8 13 3
~
1E 1~ra #~r :t '' u #r _f f__#[_~1L J

9.4 10.0 119 126 . ~ . ..
110.6 . U.2 · · . 11.2 9.4
Test
The beat speed of each succesive interval should increase by 6%.
r-
0 74 0.79
!f-2: i _ Af'•===-··i=··=··ff~~~=- .J-_ ~=~i_---------1]

~~~=====================================-
Test
The beats of m F
should be 14.3% slower
than those of Bb Db .
l
Test
The beats of A~
F
Test should be 14.3% faster
The beat of each successive interval should increase by 6%. than those of A~ C.
0.79 0.84 089 094 099 LOS M 112 l.18

079
r-------i
(6 b 11.0 9.4
.
-----i
8.2
i~t..~~ITJ1t . ~t-_.tt--1=]
Quasi-equal fieating
10.4 11.0
9.2 9:8
n.2
~ J~~
10.0
.... t II
Theoretically, the major thirds in the above quasi-equal beating tests beat a little less than 2 percent sfower than
the other intervals. This is too small an.amount to be considered in practical work; therefore, treat these intervals as
if they were equal-beating pairs of intervals.
This completes the setting of a basic temperathen\ within the compass of an octave. The finest technicians, however,
are not satisfied with doing only the tempering outlined above followed by tuning octaves throughout the remainder
of the piano. Instead~ they.continue to se\ the temperament throughout the whole piano rather than to rely on octaves
alone. They also strive to tune the unisons as they proceed rather than to tune only the middle strings first. As a practi-
cal compromise, they first tune the middle strings of the bearing .section followed by the bass section. Next, they tune
the unisons ~f these notes: and check.the temperam.:mt ag.ain from the low bass \lP. through F above .middle C. Finally,
beginning With F-sharp at:Jo~e middle C; they complete· Ute tuning of each unison as they proceed note to note through-
. · · · outthe remaining tn~ble s~tion of the piano.
For tuning the remaining notes of the piano, see Section 226.
129
F ·allowing i• an examp!li fQr tuniqg illltt t!ist!l!l!l a\,.1ow mi.i.Je c .•fter il\O. Jl ·ro Ji'. remp•r,•m"1t M1
set to
perfection. Continue to use these methods as low in the bass as the quality of the piano permits. This is usually
bee~
~~~'1iJ'?rW~,~~~Q9,~)o~esf .f.• ·
Tuned
bef9~e
Test
1 •Optional test:
·cEmustbe
wide for testing.
The beats of BA
than thOse ofE B.
n~1s F 'lf ~···
t
Tune
just Decrescendos denote de~asing beat speeds.
Tesf· Test
The beats of E G Test Test
Equal beating
should be 36% fastet Quasi-equal beating Quasi-equal beating
than tho~.e of EC!#.
I~ II
A just
6:3 ratio
· Test octave
This sequence of intervals should. show an even decrease in beat speeds.
!
ttF 3
*The adjecti~e 'parallel' is applied. to those ihtervals that require perceptible evenly changing best frequencies.
, Jl'ollowing 'is an example for tuning and testing F~sharp above middle C after all the unisons up through F above
middle C have been finished and after the basic section of the piano has been rechecked or corrected for perfection
equal temperament. Continue to use this method for all notes up through F, an octave and a fourth above middle C.
Test Test Test

Tuned The beats of D B The beats of A Fil The beats of Cil Fil
before should be 14.3% faster ·should be 14.3% faster should be 50% faster
than those of D Fil. than those of A Cil. than those of B Fil.
1
i
Tune
just
Te~'·
Equal beating Quasi-equal beating
A just
4:2 ratio
octave Quasi-just
This test is not used after
the A above middle C is tuned.
!
731
II
l
·Ttute
jti~t
For the ~ost experlen~ed tuners, these tests ~e optional.
Just Quasi-just
TJ:lis fest isfiOf used after
the A above middle C is tuned.
! !
>f<Th~ adjective 'parallel' is applied to those intervals that require perceptible evenly changing beat frequencies.
Following is an example for tuning and testing F-sharp an octave and a tritone above middle C after all the unisons
up t<1 th.is pc,ifit h~Ve'lt~~~:::fittt~!!~:' ~!J:;~l{~~,t~~,f~t'IY~~~tt~i:t'i~ ~unnem~fifntent Corttifttre to use this rnethod at
'latstthrctugh'th~~llmf'fftglmM'C'6tt'the'pmttl1: Dep'errdfltg'trn the quruiey ofthe piano, measure two below is optional.
·nmed
1'efo~···
just The beats of C# F#
l
than th<>se of B F#. Equal J>e&dng
..... 1:..o!t;:;;;;
<
It r~7~...,-:-:~-_'.L.~~~~~~~~-+-~~~~~~~~~--+~-t1::-~~~-,--~-~~"'~~~~~~~~~-=11~~~-~~~---1
... \~~~"""'-="':-c;:-~==c..==-:..,~~~=~~~-=-~-=-~~t::.:.:.~~...:=.~~~---'-=~~__:__:__i:--1t'---~~~-+-~~~~~'---···~~~~+-~~~_J
An abridgment that is satisfactory for experienced tuners is to apply only the tests noted below. In this case (after
All ther1nis<?ns thrQllgh the secon4 highest c:are completed), !111 the octaves, twelf!ll.s, fifteenths and parallel* major
·. enteenths are played once as a wnole. Arly necessary corrections are then made. Depending on the quality of the
measure two below is optional.
Tuned
before Tune
just
/
l I ~
.!+·- ~ ~
.!+ ._,.
ililil' P" ~
Equal beating
"I _c, ::i..l: I I P" ~ ~·

~
... ~
( I
t _..__,. f2.
~
I ~·
:..\I
-;:;-
~=
~;;~ .............::= :::;:~:;:: ~ ~
~ ~
t
*The adjective 'parallel' is: applied to those intervals that require perceptible evenly changing beat frequencies.
733
The Science Of Equ,al Temperament
Following is an example for tuning and testing the highest C-sharp in the piano.
The common harmonic of this minor chord in

first inversion should sound the same pitch
Tuned Just as the highest c~ on the piano.
tI
before (or Quasi-just)
--- ·--~-----1
i
Tune i
just This interval should produce a buzz
which indicates that it is tempered.
Continue to use this method for the remaining highest tones on the piano.
As a final test, check triple octaves (containing 4 unisons) throughout the whole keyboard. Checking the triple oc-
taves is a severe test. The fewer the overall beats, the finer is the tuning. Play slowly, and do not use the pedals while
checking these intervals.
~---·----- -----·----------~
Testing foutths, fifths, twelfths, and nineteenths for just intonation, narrowness, or wideness.
G C is.ajust .G C is narrow.
4:3 ratio fourtb'
t i
Equlilbeating Equal beating
Dec~scendos qenote decreasing beat speeds. ~rescendos denote increasing beat speeds.
Test
CG is a just CG is a just
C G is narrow. 6:4 ratio fifth. 3:2 ratio fifth. CG is wide.
t· ···········m•~·•w•••· :, r
Equal beating
Deci:escendos denote decreasing beat spetids. Crescendos denote increasing beat speeds.
CG.is. ajust CG isajust
6:2 ratio twel~h. 3: I ratio twelfth. CG is wide.
Equal beating
i
~----_J
Equal beating
i
Test
CG is a just
CG is narrow. 6: 1 ratio nineteenth. CG is wide.
--i
L-~-----.J
Equal beating

i
Beat frequency proportions of testing-pairs used for equal temperament.
The beats of C# F# The beats of B D The beats of B E

should be 50% faster should be 36% faster should be 33.5% faster
than those of .B F# . than those of B D~ . than those of B F# .
:----·-----1 1-----~----1 i------------1

Tlie Sdence Of fiqual Temperament
Testing tifths: . . · .· . .< < Testing fourths:

~---·~---~~--·· -· .
-~·--·-·--·~·-. -·-.·.·-· -.. -1
·C""-,~-·
The beats of D B
The beats ofD B The beats B D of should be 14.3% faster
should be 14.3% faster should be 14.3% faster than those of D F# .
than those of D F#. DF#.
i------·-·~---r
i
Testing refinement:
The beats of D B
The beats of B D should be 1.87% faster
should be 1.87% faster than those of E G# .
than those of E G#.
~------------------i
In the last two measures, the differences are less than 2 percent; therefore, these beat frequencies are taken to be
equal. This is customary practice for tuning instructions. In general, the smallest difference that one is expected to
comprehend is the 6 percent difference between any equal-tempered interval and the same interval played one semitone
higher or lower.
The 6 percent figure is. based on the following:
Yi 12 r;:;
2 12 or "2 = .0594631, the
100 Xl .0594631 --
.INHARMONICITY
I nharmonicity is the quality whereby the harmonic series of a tone of a musical instrument does not conform to
theory. This word is usually associated with pianos. Pianos are among the most inharmonic of instruments. This
is explained as follows.
When a string vibrates as a whole, the sound of a fundamental pitch is created. According to theory, a vibrating
string, in addition to vibrating as a whole, also vibrates in halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths, etc., into an infinite
number of small parts. Each small part also vibrates to create its own pitch which is called a harmonic. When a string
vibrates in halves, each half creates a harmonic pitch which is one octave above the fundamental pitch. The reason
for this is that the half portions of the string are twice as short as the whole length of the string; therefore, according
to the laws of Vincenzo Galilei (?-1591), the. frequency is two times as great as the fundamental frequency. If the
upper tone of the octave vibrates two times as fast as the lower tone of the octave, this proves that an octave has a
ratio of two to one.
Ill the same way, when a string vibrates in thirds, or three equal parts, the harmonic created is a twelfth above
fundamental pitch. Its frequency is three times that of the fundamental; therefore, the interval called a twelfth has
a ratio of three to one. This process continues indefinitely for ail the remaining tones of the harmonic series.
The keyboard design developed historically in the tonality of C major. The harmonic series is therefore easy to
memorize as an extended dominant seventh chord on G. Following are of a series of harmonics extended
upward from the low tone G.
The fundamental
_J
The three hannonic series
of a three string unison
L_~_ ___J
The two hannonic
series of an octave
i
The upper tone
toneG in just intonation in just intonation of the octave
• • ··~~li~iiJ·fitffequel}cY
. . lxtlte h~qnics
~t·tlfe' pJ&itc:JS have
:~9(: riut-oNUtte interval
. . .• . . .. , s~i'ingt) ...
.Ac~o . .. . . ... . . . . .. . . .. ·. . .. octa,V~ 1s
. el: tojffl ot afln fre-
qy~nc~; foa harntonic. fro!Jl the lower tone of .tlfe ~ct_1tve ~se~~e above• ex~p,le~~ ~?\\',~ye~~ on .eiapos. this does not
happefJfQt thefolfow1ng reasons: Wilen a st11yg divides 1tself.1nto halves 1 thtrds, fourths, etc .• ae,cord1ng to theory,
it is because a string theoretically js a.line which has no dimensions except length. Thus, this theoretical string has
. lJO \Vi~t~ anP.hhas uo stiffitess when not under tension. Nodes are points of rest that are betw.een the separate divisions
o:ta strfngthanuevibratin$· Notice the following example of a vibrating string that happens to be dividing itself into
siJi equal part~. ·
· "fhe.stringJn th~;bQvee1i~PJe i~~loseto.theory because)tha&very littlewidtn c0wpare,d.to.its Iength.. This string

}Ja& the width of. tli1~dnkl· l~ne. 911. papei; ()theiwise, tl\e std11g . C()uld not be seen., The significance. of this is that the
nodes on tJti!i s~riflg a.re on.I:y, tf\e size~ of the smallest Perceptible qots. A poiIJt, according to. mathematical theory.
has nod~m.ensions at l\U. Th~oretically~ a point cannot be seen. The five rwcial points on th\s printed paper are no
larger than We• Wicitb:oJme P.ripted:.inlc,}ine representipg the. tfteoretical string. When. a :vihraring theoretical string
div\4e&It~e]f ipto six ¢qual. parts, each. ParHs exactly one-sixth of the length of the whole string because the nodes
are points· that have m:t dimensions. Each part of ttte .· vib:tating theoretical string is exactly six times as short as the
1¢ilgf}l o:f fheyw}Jole sttipg;. tqerefotei·it.s:freque.~c~ is,e}(actly six times as gi;eatas that of the whole string, and it creates
thei,si~th· hatn:i.oQi~ whichJs five ove.~ones ot partial~ above. the. fundamental tone. The.fundamental tone is always
lmown.as.the haffll0nic,•.tlumhe~. one••~':the.: ~th. ha¥mon~c o~ the tlieoretical. string makes an interval .with the funda-
mepW tone; or first batn)onic~. this interval: has an exact. ratio of six to. one•
. iianos have strinss that. al"e unusually thicJ:c compared to their lengths.· Thick strings .also divide themselves into
a.gte/ilt.Pl!mhero:fequalfy •. sizedsmallparts .. How~verf in these cases, the nodes must take up at least as much dimen-
si~~.~..as the strings are in their thklmesses. If a nodal point were not as large.as the string is thick, then the string
necessarily. must be in a broken condition. ··
. wihe.~~i:~~~~~Jh~.~ le iven above is :.aced next to a~&{~~rim!ft\!3irw~~thl~~~;rrji~lv~~ ~~:~ifsa~~i
teifs1ofi:'"'nol1ce 1 r s~gffienlS"ofthe thick.'stdng are shortet than in the thin string. More
ly, in the thicker string,;·each vibrating segment is more than six times shorter than the length of the whole string.
~XQJ:'e•. wKe,\l:a thi~k !itt;\)]g qiy!ae$(1~~10nto six eqµ~ly sizt:d parts, each part vibrates more than six times as
fast as the fundamental' tone. In condusion;the sixth harmonic of a thick string creates an interval with the fundamental
tb~t has a ratio that is greater than six to one. This same acoustical phenomenon applies also to all t\le Other harmonics
of'the harmonic series on pianos. · ·
tnhtirmonicitY
Atnin string thatis creating sixth harmonic.
I I 11 11 I I I I
I I 11 I I I I I I
)_ )_ )__)
nodes have dimensions that are at !east as wide as the string is thick.
From the above acoustical phenomena, it is seen the thicker a string is compared to its
harmonic series is enlarged and distorted compared to This is called inharmonicity. Small
tain the greatest amounts of inharmonicity. In these, the upper tones of the beatless octaves have rreqrn~nc:1es
more than twice the frequencies of the lower tones of these octaves; the notes of the
three times the frequencies of the fundamental tones; and the frequencies of upper harmonics are expanded more
and more toward in to their or positions in the harmonic series. This is known from elec-
tronic frequency machines.
Concert grand pianos contain less inharmonicity in their bass tones than do small uprights. Concert grand strings
are thinner compared to their lengths. Harpsichords contain even less inharmonicity for the same reasons. This is a
major reason why the larger instruments are considered better. More than for the increase in volume of tone, it is
the increase in harmoniousness that is desirable in the larger instruments.
In the example on the following there are two harmonic series from two G fundamentals an octave
At the top of the next page it not be apparent that the harmonic series constructed from the lower
tone G is larger than that constructed from the upper tone. It is as if the larger harmonic series for the lower tone
on rubber music paper that was stretched a little. This was done because the strings for the bass tones
thicker to their than are the toward the treble section.
lhe. Scien.re Of Equal Temperament
-------.
---~---~:II'---~----~
i
A thinner string
(compared to its length) A thicker string
(compared to its length)
In the next figure givenbelow is an example of tuning a ratio two to one octave. It is considered a just intonation
2: l octave because. the frequency of the second harmonic of the fundamental of the lower tone is identical to the fre-
quency of the first harmonic or fundamental tone of the upper tone of the octave. However, the harmonic series from
the lower tone of the octave is stretched upwards compared to that of the upper tone of the octave because this octave
is tuned on a piano. This example was created by placing the two harmonic series from the above figure next to each
other so that the differences in size can be seen on paper. Notice that the position of the second harmonic of the upper
tone does not quite match the fourth harmonic of the lower tone. The relative positions of the third and sixth harmonics
deviate even more. The fourth and eighth harmonics match even less. This condition worsens among the higher har-
monics. The eighth and sixteenth harmonics do not even appear to be the same note. This is an inharmonic condition.
Every harmonic from the harmonic series of the upper tone of the octaveis beating except for the fundamental tone
itself. This is caused by piano inharmonicity. Compare the figure given below for pianos with the musical example
given on page 739 which represents theory whereby the upper harmonics of the upper tone coincide with those of
the lower tone.
These visual examples are exaggerated a little so that the perspective easily be seen on paper. The purpose
they serve is to reveal the acoustic law that on highly inharmonic pianos one cannot tune more than one pair of harmon-
ics at the same together in just intonation. The only exception to this rule is in the tuning of unisons.
In the following the octave is a intonation ratio 2: 1 octave, but it is not a ratio 4:2 octave, 6:3 octave,
etc., because the upper harmonics do not coincide. beat.
A Octave
- - - - - - { j f ; - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ·- 1 / f J - - - - -
~-¥--------------- ~
------------------·----~--0----------
one must make .a~sthetic deci~iq~s·.conc~rn!ngwhich
1ust1r1to1iat1:on asup.1:so11s in the next figure, the fourth and ~econd harinonics
v..,,_.. v,~. Notice that the second harmonic··ofthe lower
is flatter than There .is a small amount of beating at this
point, but the upper n<>•""'''""~" are1miPl't>\le(:i' nqticethat the octave has grown larger
in size compared to the ratio 2: l octave,
ln the same way, in the sec()nd figure given below, the sixth and third harmonics are in a just intonation unison
to create a ratio 6:3 octave. This octave has grown still larger in size. This is the size of octave that is usually used
in the F to F bearing section of the piano. It is an excellent compromise size because the upper and lower harmonics
are out-oMune to rather equal degrees. The ratio 8:4 octave outlined in a later figure is also an excellent compromise
size for the same reasons. There are also ratio 10:5, 12:6, 14:7, 16:8, 18:9, etc., octaves.
An extreme such as the ratio 16:8 octavt: outlined.in the last figure given in this section is usually fast beating at
the fundamentals and quite distorted sounding. On the smallest upright pianos, it may not even sound like an octave.
Aesthetic judgments must be used concerning which size octaves to use in various locations in the piano. The gen-
eral tradition is outlined in Section 229. On highly inharmonic pianos choices must always be made. As an example,
on small uprights an octave cannot be a ratio 6:3 and 8:4 at the same time. On large concert grands, the ratios 6:3
and 8:4 can coexist, however. That is one reason that concert grands are the easiest pianos to tune. They allow closer
to theoretically correct tuning.
On inharmonic pianos, the more complex the octave ratios, the larger the octaves. The simplest ratio 2: 1 is the
smallest octave, but on pianos the frequencies of this octave are still in a ratio that is greater than 2: 1 even though
there is no beating between the two fundamentals. This is caused by inharmonicity.
A 4:2 Octave
- - - - · - - - ·--~··-----~---·-----
---·--·-#-----------------.-----------·-
This octave is larger than a 2 to l octave.
A 6:3
This is a medium-large octave.

A 16:8 Octave
'.fhis .last example Is a. yeJY large G to Ji octave that usually sounds distorted.
The reasons that the• Sftl~llest sized octaves are used in the high treble sections of pianos while the largest octaves
are used in the low basses are as follows: In the high treble section, the high upper harmonics of the upper notes of
theoctaves.~re..nol•cle~llly··bef1r8';;th~r~fore5••·it•!.t•·U.ninl~ttntmwhetbeF thesemhrgttunbe1mt· ha.rmonieS' ·are beating or
....:uat..lt.3.m4>teimPQ~··mi'·l1ie:t\lll.o;,fta~ootals. are·in tune· as a just intonation ratio 2: l octave because these lower
barmonic.s are clearly heard . ~onversely, acousticians maintain that the first harmonics or fundamental tones in the
low bass do not exist on pianos. 'Ihe ear supplies the s??lid of these fund~~tals to the mind. It ts a psychological
:response f:mmheamigaIJtfletipperhatmonfe'sWhia':h ate stfo11g attd cleat f:tomithe tow bass tones. Also, the difference-tones
contribute. Since the pitches of the upper harmonics oflow bass octaves are more easily discerned thanthe fundamental
tones themselves, it is.more important that the upper harmonics be inju~lintonation. Thus. ratio 8:4 octaves are com-
monly used in tfle low bass, > ..
By tuning th~ low hann~pi.~~;pfttjg~•tr~hl~:()ctaves in just intonation and by tuning the high harmonics of low bass
o~{avesjn just int()natiqn, lit~ V(~intains tbt; harmonics throughout the middle range of the piano in the best just intona-
tion condition. This is important, It is in the middle range of pianos that everything is most clearly heard by musicians.
The conditions among the ·harmonics affect the quality of sound as heard by musicians. Regardless of the latter, these
techniques of tuning are th' easiest t? ap~ly by the tu.ner. Listening to middle range harmonjcs is less strain for the ear.
It should be dear that ~~m:v<rs qn pi<m;0 s tintst be; exp({Ilded and made larger in order to sound in just intonation
among the aesthetically s~le~~~ pa~r$: of c~i11cidin,g harmonics. This ~ the basis for why the best piano tuners have
stated that they "stretch" tfl.eir octaves to be :flatter in the bass and sharper in the trebl.e. This is a natural phenomenon
caused by inhamionicity. ?\fdvice tuners, however, very commonly 1Ilisinterpretthe instructions of experienced tuners.
•cw··~ ~'ftrey:~easilymgetmd:n:ri:m:pres!liontllaf it'isgoi5d ttfstrekh the octaves in the frebfo to be even sharper or wider than in
j{l&t iptonatfon fot the. sake of brilliancy. Music. psychol?gists have revealed that. the ear desires tt> hear tones sharper
·•han·th1'y·should beintlm'l!igh treble: NeVeftfte1ess, ·it Is improper to stretclf afiyl>ctaves beyond the degrees demanded
fdtpiore
t~~<{(fed
: .ecO.irted.
<5Mmi:>ff th1J~''th~fe''are. twafourtl1s for
.~~pipe11~.e~t nfs(9cy h~~li~~n.(Pf~uce
b(latfrequencies as muc~ as l'oss1 ... .· . . . . ....... '· . .. • . . ... . . .· . . ·. ·•.· ·.. j bey~nd the 1_1oint demaflded by inhar-
nfcity opposes thj~ pfiiJQs..,pl)~c~J}ues,~·foih~dJilo~~~s~:~'ot tiing:iiiil\~I}1\i1per ....~Jt~#}Vttfiout extra unnatural
~rtetching of octaves. follow the instructions in Section 226. Also note Sections 229 and 230..
• > •• The fact that octaves on pianos are tuned to be larger than they should be according to the original ratio 2 to 1
tlteocy does not mean that equal temperament is not being applied. If the tuner compares all the sixths, thirds, tenths,
!nd sevente~nths 1:1nd if he tnsure~ that the P,rogressive beat frequencies are all in proper order, the piano will be in
equal temperament. More deady~ no·matterhowJi;tts.e.an QC~Ve might be, the semitones within this octave will be
· ?:l in.~dr sizes (or at least equal in practical rounded figures); therefore, the instrument is in equal temperament
ording to the ear. ·
THE GENERAL< LOCATIONS
WHERE VARIOUS SIZES OF OCTAVES ARE TUNED
Many tuners adjust the width

of these octaves, placing them
somewhere in between the 4:2
and the 6:3 ratios in size.
l~-----1
/f::
r-_.,.,....~....,..-·- - - - - - - - - - - - - - + - - - - - - /--'1,.. ·~ - ----------.-""19-.,______,__________ ,_____________
r:z=-:---- ---------..-·--~---+-------,-~-'-1-·P"
H!llt-------------l-----_,.__-~-+-'F~'-"'-----+------+--------1------------~
-- .
_______
_,_P!'t':_.
:_:-:.------~~~-"----/-c-;-~-"---~--~---+-------------'----------------~------------
-_-_-__-__--_-_-----===~
___,_t"'_-~--:-~---+-'----·-:::-:::__-::::_=======~-~=---~~~---j__,_-_-_
~ :-- F ~-
L _______________ .__________J L __________ __J
4:2 ratio 2: l ratio
octaves octaves
1 L __ _ _ _~
6:3 ratio
~---_____J octaves
8:4ratio
octaves
TESTS FOR OCTAVES
The locations where one should listen for the absence of beating while tuning various sizes of octaves.
Beatless
harmonics
(Listen here
for the absence
of beats while
testing the Beatless Beatless Beatless Beatless
interval below) harmonics Beatless harmonics harmonics harmonics
harmonics
l l
2: 1 ratio
octave 4: l ratio
6:3 ratio octave double octave
i
10:5 ratio
i
8:4 ratio
octave
octave octave
Examples of testing various octaves and double octaves follow.

The. Science Of Eqiral Temperamt1nt
Tu11e as a just Test Tune as a just Test Tune as ajust Test

10:5octave. 8:4 octave. 6:3octave.
+---+-----------------I
Equal beating
r- Equal beating Equal beating
i--------1 r-------1
F
Tune as a just Tune as a just
2:1 octave. 4:1 double octave.
Tune as a just Test Test
4:2octave. Equal beating Equal beating
Test 1--------i
! Equal beating
----i
·----+-------------------~--·---------------··---
for various
Tune as a just
2:1 octave. This is the
Test most common test: Test Test
Equal beating Equal beating Equal beating Equal beating
1--------------1 1--------1 1-------·----1 ,---·--·-.
f
----------.,
I
Tune as a just
4:2 octave. This is the
Test most common test: Test Test
I _A
! Equal beating
r--
---~--~----~~-~---~~-------~
~
"Equal beating Equal beating Equal beating
~------i
~----·------j-------·------+-----------;~----'---~-----+-------------H
I i""' IJll ----4.rz---~--1------~~~~~~-+-----~f"J~---~-+-~~------e:L------::
(
,~~ ~ rI
Tune as a just This is the

6:3 octave. Test
most common test:
Equal beating
--------~1
r-
"'
Equal beating
-----i
t!It~---------+- --~----------+----·-_- __·--:-_--:-_-_~_-_::-_-_-_-H_,_.

__- __-__-_-_-_-_----y----_-
!---L-fff---+.-_---
. - - - - - - - - - ~------------.--------j'---
__-_=:_:_-:::_-_-,..---.----------j11--~-----~--::-=-_·-::__-=--=--::--~_-_-_-_--l'u"":.i'I..-=----_-_-_-=------=--=----------i-;;
'-------f""------~-~--~-~"----------------- I ---+-----------~
Tune as a just This is the

8:4 octave. most common test
---------·-+-------·-----------------+-l
Test
Equal beating
--F- --
8va bassa ___________ ... _

i
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - J
This is the
most common. test:
Turre. iis a just

10:5. octave. Equal beating
_A ·. . I
t<m--...iJL"-·~--·;-t-_:_--_-_-_-_-_-_·-..!h-"'1...i']...,:;[._-_-_-_-_-_-_
± ~
...;:;.a~c::::_-:::_c::::_·:=_c::::_c::::_-:::.-=..+-~----~----_-_-_~_-_-_-_-_-_-_-._-_-~:_----+1-_·~~----_-=..·=====-~~~~----_-_--H
....
@;)
Test Test
~ r r-- l
L
-')::
,__.,,...._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 1 - - + - - - - - - - t - - - - - + - H - - - - - - + ' - t - - - - - - - - + - - - - - - - - - - - - - H
L
I u
t--
r.
8va bassa ____ _ - J
Tune as a just Test This is the

12:6 octave Equal beating most common test:
r 1
I ft
l~-H-
1 @;) ~
< Equal beating
tf--,_c--V~~~~~-~~-~~~~--+~--~~~-~-r-~-
1-'1= -------··----+-+-----------l--·----------+----·----------------------1
\,_·_L
___ · 40~
i"------~. ----·---··___,·
__ J~.-+-~---·-···----·~·-···-"----1.+r;"'--·-·--------·-~--.~-~--=-~:=¥:7:_.~======-~--~===---1··,~'..,.7-_.-_-_----~.-:.-:_-_--~---·-~-~+1
8va bassa __ .. ______________ .. - J

Tests For Octaves
Tune as a just Test

14:7 octave Equal beating
0 a_
- -+--
w
Equal beating
I I
? ~·
-------
------- ~ - - ~--····-----~
+-- +--
i9= ~
I
8va bassa _____ _ - - J
Test
Tune as a just
11
16:8 octave.
I !
--¥ -· --·· -
~-+-------·-·---·-
v Equal beating
~---.-
--i
&-
f2- f2-
,~-----·-----------·- - · - · - - - -
---
F~ ill!fl/J·
·-
·~
~- t---
~ j9:
8va bassa ______ _ - J

Introduction
The following eight just intervals taken in order from the harmonic series form a subharmonic series by their differ-
ence tones. The original just intervals are notated in white notes. The difference tones are notated in black notes without
stems.
2:1
4:3 5:4 8:7 9:8
,,,,...
- T
JZ.•
•
.. . ~;Mflh~,!\bm'~ ~!ff~tcn~e,:tQ1t~~Jtmil!Q~~~·mt;~~veii1i1i;:;~~s<Y arr~~g;;,~rig vertical harmoni~ f11shioni are notated
below. This is known as the ·~hord of nature' because every interval within this chord contains coinciding harmonics
althesingle: pitch ofC. twcrnctaves above.mictdle C. Allthe matchingharm.onics coincide exactly; therefore, the 'chord
of nature'. is in just intonation.
All the harmonics

The Chord of Nature coincide at high C.
/~
~ •
-
:.ii 2
r.,,
~ "'lZ: r'""
• .4t:J·
<
I
.. "''-~L
:lill.
o•••·••!
zz• .t:JI. !fl······
....~
" t
Tf(rl>ugh Eight Harmonics
tones of the chord of nature create twetity eightjust intervals

4
as follows:
3:2 6:5 7:6 8:7
3:1
~ 4:2 5:3 6:4 7:5 8:6
~
t ~
-
~ "[7 ~
@) ~
.~· --------- ~ ~ -~~

J:'. f" -
19- ---
- _L•
z ± :F
I
IL,_.
f" ~. --
4:1 5:1
e
~~
5:2 6:3 7:4 8:5 6:2 7:3 8:4
':£ l2
@)
(L (L
~ ~ ~
t--
.....,
(ii>-__
!~ 1_ t--
19-
~
pt"
p- !.,.-,_
"'""·
_!::'_ t""' i...-..
P': -.
L pt" 2 (" 2
6:1 7:1 8:1
f _/j_
e 7:2 8:3
~ 8:2
e
I~ (2_ r.;-
' @)
(L
t--
'
~ ~ J,.-,
pt" l!:2_ ~ l'.:I '41.
?'{h;~'~
'.'·a.t. ·..!.!,1.~l~l~.
1
~~L
W.: • : . e. n.·.. cY ~·· th.. . edrit.·.
N ••• ·.·.·'.'t~
.. ..1· g
. . . . etV..a.1. . bem. .!li"l··Vr~.··.in.··~tt.·.'
•. '.'s,t.e>f!··· • .".''rO.~Je.CI.
. .P ~, .ta . ·. .Jie. ·.,. .. l' fi§.t.',.·.m,
.·. ·.. '.in
~t thtn'!1tti' qf:.tlli:s.·seC,..ti(jn.) If the beat :frequencies are: notidentica1,. this Pt.
pered ot altered ·interval. ··
~•• l'o~.~a~hof tll~ t\Ven.ty-eight just intervals from the eight-note chord of nature there are six pairs.of equal-beating
t~~tfng mtefv!;tl.si:t~(n1~!~~ betow,. The notes of the just intervals being tested are notated as white notes. The notes
q~ tl,t~..~1fa~!J~ ~~t:~f;.!\l!t~Jl · · ,~~..!l{~ 1J~f&ted 11sblack notes without stems. Each measure ~.n the
~11?\\'i~g e»am9les co~taj .•...•. , .• · ·•· ·.· ·.. • •. ,1, .,, ,,, •. .• .. · • · .,~,.l~~.~~~t~,~~,m~I!~~ ll~in!~ abo~e ~~ equaJ~bea~ing
11ttef\ta,ls:{!te,gi\?"en so.that one can· knowwhere one sfi .· of beatingBiiltweentwQ: nearly comc1dmg harmomcs.
;\s an exaihpib. a ratio number 5:3 signifies that one must listen to the fifth harmonic of the lower tone of the test
interval and· also to the third harmonic of the upper tone of the interval. Bothharmonics are at the same general pitch
\evel; ••Ther~ .is always beating at this pitcfUevel between the two llearly coinciding harmoni.cs of the interval unless
m~'tesfliiteivalhappens to be inj11§t intoilation. lri.diis case,.the two harmonics. woulcl contain identicalfrequencies
of pi(C,.h, and no beating wol1ld exist <::~ution~ Whenever th.en.umber seven is involved in listening for beats, be certain
tll1,1t ){Q\J l.isten to tfie. seve1'th harmonfo a.nd nQ\ the sjxth .. ,lri the following examples all listening for beating should
~e done only at the pigp C, twQ. Q~tayes at>ove .lfiiddle C. Transpose these sample tests to wherever they are needed.
Catalogue of Test Intervals
Test
Just 2: I OCtl!Ve fairs of equaf•beating test intervals
(The solid rlote!I must be mlsturted from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
l 3:1 4:1
-& 4:2
5:1
-G 5:2
6:1
-& 6:2
7:1
-G 7:2
8:1
-& 8:2
Test
Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
Just 3:2 fifth
(The solid notes.nn1st be nlistufied frotli the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
1 •
2:1 3:1
6:3 . 7:2 7:3 8:2 8:3
Test Pairs o(equal-beating test intervals
..
Jus~S;4 •. Q.'he. sqJid,m>t~s. must be IJ:!is~n~d (t~m tll~ giyenrati<>s in, order to crea~e audibl.tl beats for the testing.)
major' third 4:1 5:1
4:2 5:2 4:3 5:3 6:4 6:5 7:4 7:5 8:4 8:5
- -·-
/ ~
;!I ~ :.a_
•
~1
(
.r,"
'-.: ll
' tO ~·
_.::_
-- ---
-f
ktl ... t..~ Ji,,. -& 1-- -& _b_...,. -& Ji,,. -& l- -& ~
,1 ~·
7
,.,~
_l_c_
T
-&
-'-
J;• JT"":-':'c~ JI':'-' JI':'-'
--- - - ~
__.
:E:~
• - y~
.
7//E
Test
Pili'!fOfequat~beating test rntet'Vllts
Just6:5
.. - -
minor third (The solid notes must be mistuned from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
5:1 .. 6:1
I -# 5:2 . 6:2 5:3 6:3 5:4 6:4 7:5 7:6 8:5 8:6
- -
- - .. •
(1
I ~L
I r,
~ "Ll:
.·.«)·
I
< +
h~ l,.,. _b_..,.
•-
L_ 1.- 1-- J.. co.
I -.._. F
\~ ::r
~·Jl':fjr; ~- ""'
"--"
~~ ......
y
..K.~
""'
"-"
x.- ......
"--"
--- -
..K.~
~"'
x.~
:.a_ -
;
155
Temperament
Test
Pafrs ofequal-beating test intervals
7:6sma!I
minor third (The, ~oW notes must be mistuned fro'11 the given ratios in order to _crel;lte audible beats for the testing.}
1--------~-:--
6•1 n
6:2 7:2 6::3 7:3 6:4 7:4 6:5 7:5 8:6 8:7
1--~~~l'.1"'"'--_-+---H---- ----1---~--------+-__._-~----.--- t - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - " f - - - - - - - - - H I
~
~
* *
+
Test (The solid notes must be mis tuned from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
Just 8:7
8:1
-·
maximum tone 7 :l
ft -- •
-
7:2 8:2 7:3 8:3 7:4 8:4 7:5 8:5 7:6 8:6
71·
r-
~
.!IL • __.__ .!IL --+----
@J
- ~
* *
~
--_.__-
_b___
-q: .LL .......
.._.
u """' u
...-...
..__,
u
,--,.
___u____
-- -~-
,,--.,,
u
1t
? . ~
____,_______________ u
"'--" "-" "'--" ~
-----------
t -----------
Test
Just 3:1
twelfth Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
(The solid notes must be mistuned from the ratios in order to create audible beats for the
2:1 4:1 5:1 6:1 7:1 8:1

-0- 6:3 -0- 7:3 -0- 8:3
Test
Just 5:3 Pairs of equal-~arlng test intervals
Illajor sixth
(The solid notes must be mtsttirted from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
=t
1 ... ... -
3:1
-
5:1
.
3:2 5:2
.,,.
4:3
_.ii
5:4 6:3 ·. 6:5 7:3 7:5 8:3 8:5
'I
··~
".,,"
....IJ
ii a
.:.::..
±
u
.['"
_U
-·
... ...
• ::n:: I :n: D. ...
i~
1_ i.::._ l- le.. ~ ~ 1_I!-:"
... 1_......
n ,-_I•
~·~ i-
"
L
¥_""::': Ji': ...... y~
---- ~
---- -
.--
•
~~
-
Test Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
Just6:4 (The solid notes must be mjstuned from tht!: given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
fifth
~
... ...
4:1
- -
6:1
4:2 6:2 4:3 6:3 5:4 6:5 7:4 7:6 8:4 8:6
/
-:;ii
,,., ""
-"-
.. --.
,1 ~
•J
IT
.. _::_ -2:_
---
1<
-- --.
j
<
~l
\
-11..]l•
-z·
_.,£
,,,_.
II\:
i-
F
-0-
......
~
-0-
.......
........
-0-
-
ri
lit
~ bt- -0-
• .- ..
-0-
......
.......
_,._
Just.8:6 (The $olid 11,ote~ must be. mistm1ed f:tom the giveri. .ratios in orqer to create audible beats for the testin,g:)
fourth
~1 8:1
9: •- •- 6:2 8:2 6:3 8:3 6:4 8:4 6:5 8:5 7:6 8:7
---
_;.;_
I!
""ll _.__ ._,.
!i tl' 1)
1
F
f' .. ..
~
••
iiiII ~ r-""'· I
.......
-':..
Cl< ~ ~ -ht ~ .......
---
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
.L. ';J. U. ·..t.1 _U_ _U_ _ll_ ~ ~
' ~ 7
Test
Just 4:1
double
octilv~ ·. : PaitS:'Of equal-be!lting test intervals
('rhe solidnotea mlistbe mistuil~dfrom tlie glvenratios iii brder to create audible beats for the testing.)
2:1 3:1 5:1 6:1 7:1 8:1
~ -e-
-_._ 4:2 -e-
-··
4:3
--e- .S.:4 -e-
-· 6:4
--e- 7:4 -e-
-
8:4
'~
~i
..:. :::- ~ -"~
----e-
-'..
_._ _._
·• ....:.
~I :I'll'~~ -"-
'. : ~v
;4 ·..;
~ -e- -e- -e- -e- -e-
··,
•l _,,. 1--
.·s
;
~
z
~
~ ··· .
....:.
::::: ]T__"'!'!"
--- - .-
• - - ---
231. A Catalogue Of Test lntervals Through Ei'ght Harmonics
Test
Just 5:2 Pairs of equal•beating test intervals
major (The solid notes must be mis tuned from, the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing;)
tenth ,---"----
2:1 5:1
• • 3:2 5:3 4:2 5:4 6:2 6:5 7:2 7:5 8:2 8:5
Test
Just 6:3
octave
(The solid notes must be mistuned from the ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
3:1 6:1
• 5:3 6:5 7:3 7:6 8:3 8:6
Test
Just 7:4 Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
minor (The solid notes must be mistmied from the ratios in order lo create audible beats for the
seventh
4:1 7:1
• 4:2 7:2 4:3 7:3 5:4 7:5 6:4 7:6 8:4 8:7
0
8:7
Test
Just 5·:1
major tenth Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
(~e solid notes must be. mlstuned rrom the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
i 2:1 . 3:1 4:1 6:1 7:1 8:1
ft -e- -e-
- - -- --&
5:2 5:3 5:4 -& 6:5 -& 7:5 -& 8:5
- - - ~
"l· f'\ ..
~ ~·
•.1. •
"""':" 711 """':"
=
~v
.... =
~';I
·.-1 #
/·
~ t...... ~~ ~-
k"' .·.""' ----
1.-
- 1-
- ....
::y .......
-.._...cv t""'~
'~
.~ ::Y'-' ~ ~ ~~
7· ~ ~
....__
\
Test
Justq;'l P~s of equal-beating Je~\ intervals
tweffth
(The solid notes must be mistuned from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
·.1 • -:;'"
l 2:1
.... ....
... -.
6:1
~
3:2 6:3 8·2
-
• .l.•?1 .··
.i,· I .:J:. fiil. :fi: :IT _ll_ = _ll_ _u_ tT
T.
.·x:
eJ
FI I
.... ....
1j f• ~··
~
\P::-
~
t...... ~
..... ==
~""
····~= _ ..
~ '""
_::::_::_
I
. ""
...,
1.-
~- bt
-~
•
_;_ ...:.:..
..
......
-. ....
~
"-"'
7:5 6:3• 7:6'" 8;3 8:1

Just8:4 (The solid .notes must be misruned from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
octave
4:1 8:1
~
L
•-·- • -·-
4:2 8:2 4:3 8:3 5:4 8:5 6:4 8:6 7:4 8:7
__fj
tr " --- • - ·-
-q:
_;L_
fr
r.l.
-e-
D .
-e-
(.)
-e-
D.
1.~
x.- x.-
1..-.
D
-e-
··-- .u
-e-
---- .-_
lJ"""
Test
Just6:1
nineteenth Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
. (The solid notes must be mistuned from the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 7:1 8:1
~ --e- 6:2
--e- 6:3
--e- 6:4 -e-
-
6:5 -e-
-
7:6 -e-
- 8:6
/ 9: • •
I
..
r.
~
-" "'IZ: ,. _._

i: ' .J·
<
• •
;~ i
-- ~ ~
......
--- -
-'io.X_.
.-... ...... ....... .-...
;I¥ ·r-"!'.= = ~ -= === ~
~
-¥ I
.::
> ~ .:.;_ ;_
151
The Science OJEqual•1emperament
Test
Jusf7:2
,-
minor Pairs qf eq1ml·beating test intervals
fourteenth
l
(The solid notes must be mistuned ftom the given ratios in order to create audible beats for the testing.)
------i.
2:1 7:1
• • 3:2 7:3 4:2 7:4 5:2 7:5 6:2 7:6 8:2 8:7
'rJl:----,-- .=---=-·-~--------~---·----- ------·---.-----------~--·------~
f'--r.#j ...
H1...--+"t2"---·-tt--'l....,..J'--~-·----l'--'I~I~----·--i--·.£_,.:)_,,______j:==..l.:;-..l.~=========1=~l~l_ _ _ _ _-+-_,._,
l.Jc_ _ _ ___
r~ll"l'\..t+-+---+t--------+--.....---...•---t-----·--+-----------+----------1---~·-------+~
,~~~~~IL~-1---'--H--------+-l-'""'-/Jf!l_~J!llll.~-+--.---·.---+-------~-----+----------~
't r~~}:.-:-+....,_---+t-----...,.--··---+---~----.......---+--------;-~--+~~~~~11>-··--+-.----......
~---t----"'---4-Hl!I
L r' ..._, ~ 0----+- -----~~"t--+----~'L.7--t-:I--....--.,._,"""'+--t~
Test
Just 8:3 Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
eleventh
(The solid notes must be mistuned from the ratios in order to create audible beats for the
l 3:1
• •
8:1
Test
Just 7:1
minor
twenty-first Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
I
2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1 8:1
-0- 7:2 -0- 7:3 -0- 7:4 -0 7:5 ·0- 7:6 e- 8:7
--~--~------f----------·-----Hlf
--------·t--------+11
- - - - - - · - + - - - - · - - - - - - - +..
8:4 6:2 8:7
••
Test
Just 8:1
triple octave Pairs of equal-beating test intervals
2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1 7:1
~
e -&
-
8:2
--&. 8:3
--& 8:4 -&
-
8:5 e-
-
8:6 -&
-- 8:7
--
/
""
r:, ""'- •:
•
I
'
., r·e;F
ij
--- •
'(
-'i:
L.
'---
JI n n n
~-
y- ~
TT
... --- TT ---- --- Li-
An Exception to the Rule

For every interval that is outlined above, there is one point whereby equal-beating effects can be obtained even
tfiough the interval is not in just intonation. This pfienomenon causes confusion, and it appears to negate the rule. As
an example, note tfie following tempered major sixth that is to be tested for just intonation.
Equal beating
!
736Hz 551 Hz (Figures denote
~~~~
t w w
t r
Auxiliary tone
Not equal beating
(Figures denote
:; beats per second)
4.0 12.0
440Hz Auxiliary tone

(C# is flatter than
in the previous example.)
A just 5:3 ratio

major sixth A. F# : Equal beating
733.333~3 az 551Hz (Figures denote
beats per second)
! 4.0 4.0
m't~ l#r II
r
440Hz
l
A just 5:3 ratio
major sixth AF#: Equal beating
733.33333 Hz 549fJz (Figures denote
beats per second)
4.0 4.0
II
i t
Flatter
Auxiliary tone
f i
Sharper
Auxiliary tone
Following is: an example of how an octave coufd be 43.83.105 cent!!wider than a just octave even though the tests
intimate that it is in jus" intonation. The lesson to be;learned from·thi!ris if.one is in doubt. move the auxiliary tone
a little as a double check.
J:?.qual tieating J:?.qual beating
240Hz (Figure~ denote 240Hz (Figures denote
142.2Hz beats per second) 94.8 Hz beats per second)
! ! 9.0
9.0 ! ! 6.0
6.0
11?: f Ibr ibf f llf 'br l&r ~ II

t
117Hz
i
Auxiliary tone f
The test for
t
117Hz i i
a 6:3 ratio octave Auxiliary tone The test for
a 4:2 ratio octave
765
Equal; Temperament·Between F and F
Frequencies of Notes
F 349,2282314
E 329.6275569
g.:.flat 311.1269837
D 293.6647679
C-sharp 277.1826310
MiddfoC 261.6255653
H 246.9416506
n-flat 233.0818808
A 220. 0000000
G-sharp 207.6523488
G 195.9977180
F-sharp 184.9972114
F 174.6141157
Beats of Fourths
Middle CF Ll8243l100"
1.116068313
B-flat E-flat 1.053428131
AD• 0. 994303640
G-'sharp C-sharp 0.938497766
GC . 0.885823932
F-sharp B 0.836106455
FB-flat 0.789179407)
equal beating
B-flat F 0. 789179407
AE 0.744886120
G-sharp D-sharp 0. 703078932
GD 0.663618216
F-sharp C-sharp 0.626372116
F Middle C 0.591216550
l. O''
G-sharp B U.20583961
GB-flat t 6. 57690416
F-:sharp A 9.983268137
FA-:ffat 9.422950345
B~~ts of 1\fajor Sixths 1

. . ..] . .·• equal beating
A-flat F 9 .422950345
GE 8.894080861
F~sharpi Q~sharp 8.394894381
Fn· ·. . ' . 7 .923125()~7
Beats of Major Third.~

D-flat F 10.99977085
Middle.CE 10.38240126
BD.:sharp 9.799681749
B-flat D 9.249667730
AC-sharp 8. 730523906
A-flat C 8.240517245
GB 7. 778012547
F-sharpi A-sharp 7.341466251
FA 6.929421417
Beats of the Octave

FF 0. 000000000
767
Middle CF 70.94598600
BE 66.96409&79
B-flat E-flat 63.20568783
AD 59.65821840
0-sharp c.. sharp 56.30986593
GC 53.14943594
FO:sharp B 50.16638732
FB-flat F 47.35076441
AE 44.69316720
G-sharp D-sharp 42.18473590
GD 39.81709294
F .. sharp C-sharp 37.58232694
F middle C 35.47299300
GLOSSARY
Bearing pfan:
the sequence or order in which the sample notes in the mid-range of a keyboard instrument are tuned.
Bearing section:
the group of tones in the middle of a keyboard instrument that the tuner arranges into the correct interval relation-
ships with each other. These tones are then used as samples for tuning the remainder of the instrument.
Bearings:
See bearing section.
Beat frequency:
the number of beats heard per second.
Beats:
a phenomenon heard as waverings, flutterings, pulsations, or a vibrato that is caused by an interval that is tem-
or is out-of-tune. The harmonics of the interval do not coincide. Opposite frequency phases of the
non-coinciding (conflicting) harmonics cause periodic cancellations of the tones of the harmonics.
Cent:
one twelve-hundredth of a just intonation octave. The ratio of one cent is 120~2 or 2Yi 200 or 1.0005778.
~r~u·t11>r" of the
Temperament as practiced on keyboard instruments the nineteenth and before was tem-
perament; that is, the various semitones differed in their sizes or ratios, and of the 24 major minor
scales its own unique interval relationships. This in tum caused each tonality or key center to have
special qualities or effects known as the 'characters of the ' A piece performed in C major sounded very
different from the same piece performed in B major or C-sharp major. Except psychologically, or second-hand
through the music expression itself, and except for being higher or lower in pitch, the of the
cannot exist on pianos tuned in equal temperament. For a description of some characters of the keys, see Section 43.
Comma:
the difference between two sets of just intervals or combinations of just intervals. A comma always exists and
creates wolf intervals in various locations of an· instrument with a conventional that is in
tuning or in other systems which are dose to just tuning. Commas prevent the intervals used on a conventional
keyboard from being justly in tune at the same time. The reasons for this are as follows:
The superparticular ratio just intervals are never multiples of each other. If one interval is not a multiple
of another just interval, then the sum of a series of one kind of just interval will never equal the sum of a series
11:•
then: 2A+a
:Hut this is a contradktiQn because two to anyi ~q()lenun:ib~r1 power will always be even and three to any whole
number power will always be odd. This proof sliows that no possible number of octaves can ever equal any pos-
sible number ()f fifths.A cottuna must therefore exist . The same type of proof can be used for all other superpar-
ticulat t~tiojtlst.i.nt~rv~l ct)mbi.n11ti~ms . The.result is that there are an infinite number of possible commas.
So mattwo sets o~inf~:tVat&"~ajl·~~sn:ia!J~.t(}.!ital~e s~e time on the limited conventional keyb~~r~· a <:omma
must be either su}'.)tracted frc:>:tn or adqe.d f!l' iJ,tJeast.Qne.Ju~t h.iteryal .itl e.ye.ey. jugt. funi~g system, and fliis alteration
ttifnllf<frms~ theinte:tVat into ahopelessly out-of~tunewoifinte:tVakfag1~~1'th~ ditonie commads the difference be-
tween twelve fifths and seven octaves. If twelve just fifths are tuned from E-flat as follows: E-flat B-flat F C
1J
G D ·A E f-shll.~ <;;:::sqaro O,.shan> l)::-sqarp, anci if. seve.n Just octaves are tuned from E-flat as follows: E-flat
E,;-fla'tJHlat ~~t1~(:E-t1aJ.Fi~ttafJHJ~Hkt111 <l,iffere.pce t>etwee.n I>-shll. . .e
.!\Qa.l F;-flat. is th.e ditonic
conlfua{5ilt. sJnce Uiere:~re.:Ii<i(etil)hiiff lfo . no
.•. • •oii\ieritiOithl ffoyboard, Ui~i . ~~ D-'sharp 6ecaiise the
key lever must be used for an octave of Ute origilial E-flat. In other words, the fifth G~sharp D~sharp and all
the Qcfaves E-fla~ tq~-.f1.at coQl~ never both be in tune on the keyboard at. the s,ame time. A choice must be made,
and tradition favors. the octave; Thereforef the final fifth G-sharp D-sharp must be altered by one ditonic comma
to become G-sh!Jrp ~-~at which is then an unusable wolf interval. Wolf intervals are never tuned or tempered
directly; they are the differences that are left over and left untuned at the. end of th.e tuning scheme.
Diatonic (not ditonic);

This refers to sc!Jles such as the common C major and A minor scales. Diatonic scales do not include the chro-
matic scale which consists oruy of semitones or the enharmonic scale which contains quarter tones.
Di,~!'!~:~ #~!~~~.;~~is~
the white keyg; on the modem piano.
Didymic comma:.
See syntonic comrm:i.
· th.e differenc~J)efweeh ·a sharp: rurcr·a fiat tuned C>ri the same key. As an example, the· diesis or difference between
G.:.shan> and.A-flat in Pietro Aar~n·s meantone tem,perament is a comma that is 41. 05886 cents in size. The diesis
ip .l?yt,JJ!ag~J:~~n ~~p!ifiO~ m~ 9.itl,l\\!c com,m~. V\llli~fi is 23.46 cents in size. The sizes of various dieses differ de-
.· pending on·tlJe temperament·•system. 1 fhere are· no dieses ·in equal temperament.
Ditone: ·
a J?ythagoreah majof thitd c;teilted by''the exce~s· of four just fifths over two just octaves. Its ratiO is 81 to 64.
A <f,itone is ofl.e syri.tonic cottuna or 21.50629 cents larger than a just intonation ratio 5 to 4 major third. A ditone
consists of two major tones.
Ditonic (not diatdfiic) comma:

the excess~f!~el~e.ju~ffl{t,fis ~vei ~¢ven'ju~toctilv~~: Its ratio is 531441 to 524288, and it is 23.46 cents in
size. This is afso Imown as the Pythagorean comma.
Qt~wing:
a condition that happens when the harmonics of a strong tone are so powerful that they pull or 'draw' the weaker
harmoni€lS: of·a•weak tone into tune Without heatsreven though the·:weaker tone is not in tune with the strong
. . . !~:!e···· ·} .
.•..~~!.}.~.,~. .I?r.2~!.r1.!te. . .i~.S?. • ~2~.~!t~,~~~H~.i~J~!gs ?!~ans. Dra';"iD,~ deceives the tury~r ~n,toJJelieving that the
···• out.,.oi,,.funt%t•mte1¥a1S;·llfe .. B:)USt.•1ntonati0n, · ··
any system Of teinperrurt~'ftftl1~tHivi<les· tfie· ()~!avf i~t~ urtits \Xlliicll ate a1l equ~ iii siz~: Tti~· ~tilrtclir~'European
eqt1a1ttiniPeranient divides the octave into tWeive urlits of equal size which are called seinitones. There are an
i11finite.nt1t11b~!.O~Qt~~l'~O,~si~l~equa1temperaments which divide the octave into equal sized units npging from
t\$p.tq.igfinify.iU ll$m~t)lt.J~lhe~e~.·~U.9Je.s.~.~,~~()fakind are identical in interval relationships;. therefore, there
ar~ no coJor;.contrasts bet~een~th~ ~~Y~ " ~~.~~riet'.Y'.. td'fe~~~.(~x~el]t }'itch} during modulations in any equal
·'tein.·" . ; ·''"" ... ;Ftit
. H.erainem ..•.•... •·•funin°'th'e'
.. ·.·.ts cdmino.tr
..
··a.rd equalt
. .
'lifueni~~S'e~fSeift~n~\l21 and 22s •...
. . .. ' . ··. . ..... ·; " ;•; .. • ;• .. ·
Equal-beating
,.,.
"
te1Dpera,ment?
'
~~'. '·""',' '' •, ' . ' ' ·'
any temperall1ent that contains two or more intervals that beat exactly the same speed. In this c~se. the intervals
can never be of the same size. ·
the measure of the number of complete vibrations (to and fro) a sounding musical medium generates each second.
This is a~breviated as Hz. E.g., the fr~<:tUeJ!cy·26l.626 Hz is.heard as thepitchnamed middle Cort the piano.
This means that a middle C piano string actually vibrates back and forth as a whole 261.626 times per second.
Harmonic:
a subdivisidn of a solJ1lding tort~. When a soun:dirtg generator (e.g., a string) vibrates back and forth as a whole,
it creates the fundamental tone Which is .heard as the basic identifying pitch of the tone, but at the same time
the generator is vibrating as a whole it is also vibr~ting in halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths,. sevenths, etc.,
· to infin:ify. These smaller segments of the vibrating'generator have faster frequencies of their own which create
·higher .and fi•iqter pitcliesJ~nown ·a~ ljaf1l19ttics. ~el.ati~e strengths or amJ>litudes Qf the various harmonics deter-
mine tbe patiicu,lar type.. of Hl!a,Mty pi;:odl.lc~d b~ a $()9tt<:lil)g generator. E.g., th,e cf)aracteristic sound of the clarinet
in contrast to that.of the viQ)iµi$ s\e~pni.lled by th.~ ~treqgth§, wea1cnesses, additions, or absences of certain harmonics.
Harmonic balance:
GoQ<l harmorrtc· ~~a,n,ce· e~ist&· w.h~t~~,·sp~s:.,oj.th~'ttli}~l,thirds, chang•·8•aduaU;y,fromsmalles&,to largest in
the order"Of•nrodttmti'on,,fml».c,f&B..ftat:major 6Jti.~ft~t~major and then change gradually fromlargestto smallest
iri the order of modulation from C-sharp or E·sharp major to C major. For perfect harmonic balance and form,
see Table7l-2and Figure 11-1.
Harmonic series:
a series of tones known as harmonics which result from a vibrating musical generator that vibrates as a whole
and also in an infinite number ofsmaller sesnients all at the same time. E.g., as the generator vibrates as a whole,
a strong and loud•fundamerital tone<is f.lreated, and this tone is. the basic identifyirtg pitch of the complete overall
sound of the vibrating generator. The generatof also vibrates in two halves which create a weaker tone one octave
above the fundamental tone~ it also vibrates in .three thirds which create a weak tone one octave plus a fifth above
the fundamental tone; and it also vibrates in smaller and smaller segments which create weaker and higher pitched
tones theoretically into i11finity. The ipteo/alS: ~eµin or,Jer from in betwee!l each .harmonic of the harmonic
series consist Cl.f~<!<'.tilver fi,fth,, fourth, ln~jut third, minor third, small minor third, maximum tone, major tone,
minor tone, mini.muin tone, thtee: quarter tone, etc.~ and smaller and smaller tones to infinity,
· Ha:nnonie waste:
There is harmonic waste whe11twe:r a fifth is wider than .a j:qst fifth, ..a f{ngth is narrower thllJl a just. fourth, a
major thifd i1l'narfowel'lhatt a j1m:mll'jll't third; a'f'lr'mifmFthirdis w~·tban a just minor third;: etc. The latter
.in~~ . .
ei:se tem~F@dr,1nte.ii¥WSxcm
r
·. tp.·e vm!.~J§, ~~ ~.'.~}.·m::'."'~.i·~jo... sixths. fr
. ... ,; aJid nI~~r
omc
111
":;:~r :.::>Y\'s·., ,,,::·±·r:;./...:·~:~·.:
EX'AMPLE2
0-sl)arp C = 418. cents
EO~s~ai-p = . 400. cents
!la!~<lWtC:6 · , ::;;, g~~· c¢nt~
>tOTAL .• ,;:;1, 1200 cents
EXAMPLE 3
0-sharp C = 414 cents
EO·sharp·· ;;=. 400 cents
just CE ""'· 386 eeµt~
TO'rAL =1200cent~' ,!
•• "· " <
·In' the ·a~ove ~~amp'l~s, 'tJiCI toblls must equal· 1200 cents because a just· octave is 1200 cents in ·size. In most
• ten1~er~eht~~ the ~ajoll tlri~ds are tempere<t wide if !hey are tempered'. In example 2, the major third CE is
. . r~vetsel:e~perei:fbediuse it is tempered 4 ~ents naiTi::>w. Below are the totals of the tempetings. This sbows when
CE is tenlpered 4 cents narrow there is a total of 8 cents harmonic waste. The duty of the tuner. is to reduce
the temperings andresulting beatings as much as possible and to eliminate harmonic waste.
TOTAL temperings = 42 cents
EXAMPLE2
c •.,£,'"':f2'~~1t; )
.,. tvc:e
n~rrow
= 14' certts
= .4 c«mts
TQ¥Ai tel,iiperi!lgs = 50 cents
\ 'C'•','
EX'.AMPtf:) ·~
0-sharp C = 28 cents
.. dJ~Q-s!iarp = 14.cents
jtjstC.E = Q.Cefl.tS
42. .(i~tS.(•••··· .
Nam~d after Heinrich Rttdof f Hertz (UJS?-1894), one Hem is one cycle or one complete to and·'frbl vititation
perseconQ.
lnliat4iij~~iJ~; ···
the ~~.w eby the 1t~rmorit~·s~iii~;iJ~~i;t~~;ff~~;tJJ.e~iy4by <li(fet.en~ gegrees.pµ va~pus t{)nes. of~· l)lusical
ibs .eiit/ ...·. ·n tum cause~ the'it1fol'Vatsl&deviite•t¥bm thlb()ry and'tS~iiQ1@:tli§tt11t~lt~f.~~tts.~ of inharmo-
ni~ity is the inherent, unavo:fdablyimpe:riectdesign of a particular instrument. Smaller orcheapei: pian~s·cpntain
more inllaf1llonicity than lai:ger or mpre expensive ones, See Section 228.
Interval:
the tonal distance between two pitches as it is perceived by the mind. Also, it is the ratio between two frequencies.
Intonation:
the relationship or degree of ~n-tune,n~.s~ betw~~n two or more musical tones.
Irregular temperament:
a system which uses more than one si~e of~ fi~ during scale construction. Most temperament in practice before
the twentieth century was irregulartemperament.
Just:
an adjective meaning pure or completely in tune accordihg to the modem English meaning; that is, there is no
beating. ·
Just b>.tenah
The terms 'justinterval,' 'pure interval,' a"nd 'natural interval' are synonymous, and they denominate any simple
ratio interval that is unaltel'ed~ untem}le.t.~~Md.<;;o.w · tunt; 'Y!Qlout an beatin or wa\'eriI1g. Two simul-
wi~eusly~oUildin~mnes:Ctell't~ ~~.~UntmitJ ifatt~~l!b~ Jt .. armoliie: . . ·. . ·rttMWftft'''tt'ffiftttionic
of the second tone; Jtist intervals are the ultimate It\ harmoniousness. s·ome commonly knowri j'ust intervals are
the ratios 1:2 Qctave.of.l200·~ent~, 2:3 fifth of 702. cents. 3:4 fourth of 4~8 cents., 4:5 major third of386 cents,
• 5;Jf trt.tn~r third of~16 ce11ts, and 6:7 !lJll~l .minor third of 267 ceJlts. lt:ic~el!t for the octave which is exactly
1200 cents in size, the cerits values of tne other intervals ate given in rounded numbers.
Just intonation:
any sa,nodty ..:o1\$f~~led ftolltJIJst .Wteq~l&,: JustJnton~hoJI filso m~ans a tllning scheme whereby all the intervals
of the scale are cre;ited by means just intel'ValS.
Just tuning:
the Vl'dcegs of pfacin~ ~11 t~e tones of the p~~ve a,t th~ircortect freqqencies by mea"ns of tuning only just intervals
of simple r;itio. T~!lt.is; :n&temperingfs Oo~~tf:frtltigffd~t t1te tuning scheme. The tunings Qf Pythagoras, Ptolemy,
and other ancforit Greeks. were alt val'ious forms of Just tuning. The antonym of just tuning is temperament.
Key-<olor: ·
..a.c.on~.fition caused l:>l':1lflequal temperall1ent. Each scale in unequal temperament contains its own unique qualities
or effects which are contrasted agaifrsflMse of otherscmesht·the manner of colors in a painting. The more un-
~~~l:tfilli·tem}Jeta~~~"·~~greatei:.the.col9t ..c.~ntt;is.t!l., ....Ihj.~is the basis of the 'characters of the keys' (q.v.).
There is no .key'-cofqrl,iti(Jn in eqUaffe"H1p~tamem. See· Sections 42-44:
773
re~m tuning) from the set of infinite number of possible
e11U ~~eantone temperament' without
l}ird6rsfoo . . . ti~':th~t"> . . 6tt-~t ~'<s;5ffitQntd c~mma ~eantone
• . ·...·. t>Y:,Pfetrd/i~ ... ij;pu~lished in 1523. The ,broader usage of the term 'meantotle temperament' in-
cl~des !be infinif~ n~~~~~ of . · ~X~!e~ufarctemper~e9ts ~q11~qh1g fifths that are from th. to }4 syntonic comma
~arr?~~.... ,jl)~ j\ls{ infori~tioti . ·. Si· "rlJese mi;,anfone t~mperainen~s lia-ve the following characteristics when they
are fuii~d in the ronality. of c major
,There are two WJioJetont\fs~afes*constructed from equat:.sized tones which are B-flat C DEF-sharp G-sharp,
··~itd·E.,~~t F G. ~.· ~· .·.. ..
c Jsmean between lJi:
c~shairplis me~ betwe ~=~h~· l l
;; • .
, ••. ;
Dis mean betWeen C-s anti l C'an'd E, lfan·d F, n::.ffafand F-sharp,. A and G.
is
E. mean between D and F-sharp, C-sharp and G, c and G-sharp, Band A.
E is1ne~I1 between lMlat apdJJ •.C and B-tlat.
F~sharo:J* mean betwee~ ·.~.·. o~s~~rp; (;,.sharp andB.
<lis tl1~~ between P.an~,"~ andB-flat, E-fl~' anttvll~ D amtrc,
J\Js.meilfi bet\Veep a. $~~~'. .. :flat, G and\B, JI-sharp and c. F and C-sharp, E and D.
B-flat is mean betweetiF.'ajtclR~f1at, .. .
. ft;~~:J1l~~n··~e~~~~~;.~.~~·~~sn~~t..<l;~~b~rn ,lljt~;9 •....F.-sh11rp aµ~ .E.
~~fo;~·~~ ;;;~~i;th ~;~t~~·. th~"~b~~~ ·;e~~l~~ te~peraments e~istedonfy in theory except on organs. In prac-
tic~.Je!llP~.r~enf"~ll~;ill'eJ!uf!lr on harpsichorps lljtd, pianQfortes until at least 1887. Therefore, the meanin~ of
the·;tetm.meant°'ne: tenJJ]~r3tllent. tttUSt also in~Iuqe the c()tl1mon vulgar irregular sixteenth-century temperaments
an4 m~ s.~~.~'1l~~ ttt~ifi~ meafiton~,.tetl1p~r3tllentlk 'fhese temperaments contained. key-coloring that supported
the 'ch~ra~ters. ()fthe keys.; E;ven thou the. latter tetl1 erament · · the m . and broad
... , .. ·. ...·.· ,, . ·........... •·• 'f)el~g those
.Uier theoretical or iireg\llar as prac-
~:;1~~l~don
•fil•)lJ
lc'::ll• d.H.Yll)l: • .. • :
. l •.• •
of an 1nfor-vafin'meantone
•? l •A• •.l l ' •< ) l • .• •• l l
e e . . .. ... · .. ·. wo q.v. . .. · ourths, augmented thirds, diminished sixths,

etc., are all WQlfsounds because themajor thirds are either insufficiently tempered or not teutpered at all with
the result that a key tuned as a sharp cannot be used as a flat, or vice versa. For example, whe11 the instrument
is ~ned. iP:. C m~()r •.the: rais.e~ .(ceys.,:f-s.. and ]l,,fi~t ere.ate a wolf diminished fourth which does not .sound
li~e ~~);$.~$~~~~.~lt.Jtltt~j~~,tJ.1*1' . . . . . nJf::8-.flat is retuned as A'-sharp for. the third F·sharp A-sharp,
then.~~Jl~~viou$1y good majt:)~ third B-flat D becomes the ouN>f-tune sounding wolf diminished fourth A-sharp
D. In meaptone temperament, only• two out of each set of three contiguous major thirds which comprise an octave
can beJ~ tqneatthe.same time . 'fh'us, only.two-th~rds of the majorthirds and triads are usable in meantone tem-
•· ·Jl.~f . . . . ~l!~f~tm~.~JfQ!lll • . .fJ!q~(li.~~.!llt\f~flJ'lgq~; ~ t)!e meaJlfQJl~; tempefame.}\tS rilJlge from be-
fug )J·i· . . ~\V•:lJ.l J;if~ . . .... ~· .~ S~nt(lttfo; C0!11!11~ tlleantone temperament to being 9 .217 cents
wideiin . ·..· · •.•• . . t¢:RQmieu's M. n ~;c~111ma. meantone temperament. The majoF thirds are absolutely pure
onlyr in.J?ietrO.Aaton's ~ s.yritonjo coinmd meantone temperament. (The diminished fourths, however. are not
Glqssary
inclµded in the set of major thirds in the meantone temperaments.) For tuning Aaron's meantone temperament,
see Section q.
Melodic series:
the listing of the numbers of equal parts from one to infinity that an octave may be divided into. Thus, an octave
may be divided into one part (retained as a complete octave), two equal parts (two tritones), three equal parts
(three major thirds), four equal parts (four minor thirds), etc., to infinity. There are no pure intervals except
the octave in any temperament based on the melodic series. Equal temperament is based on the melodic series,
not the harmonic series.
Modified meantone temperament~
restrictive irregular meantone temperament. In some modified meantone temperaments, the wolf fifth is elimi-
nated; but in these, modulation is still limited because the diminished fourths are larger than Pythagorean ditones
or major thirds.
Natural interval:
any interval found in the harmonic series. Natural intervals are just intervals.
Pitch:
frequency as it is comprehended by the mind.
Proof:
an interval that is used as a final test to prove that the notes in the bearing section have been tempered properly.
One note of the proof interval is the first note tuned in the bearing plan while the other note is the last note tuned.
If the tempering was not done properly, the proof interval often will sound like a wolf interval.
Ptolemaic comma:
See syntonic comma.
Pure interval:
See just interval.
Pythagorean comma:
See ditonic comma.
Pythagorean thirds or sixths:

any major or minor thirds or sixths which are altered from just intonation by one syntonic comma.
Pythagorean triads:
triads whereby the fourths or fifths are just; the major thirds or major sixths are each one syntonic comma wide;
and the minor thirds or minor sixths are each one syntonic comma narrow.
Pythagorean .....,....1.,.
the earliest form of just tuning. Only pure fifths are used for constructing the Pythagorean that is, all the
tones are tuned by means of either fifths or inverted (fourths). There are no pure simple ratio thirds or
sixths in Pythagorean tuning. Thus, although Pythagorean tuning is just tuning, it does not contain any just into-
nation major and minor triads. Pythagorean tuning has been used throughout ancient and medieval times, and
it is the basis of our Western music. Even today, string orchestras have a tendency to tune in Pythagorean. It
has been the most extensively used system in history.
Glossary
the tenn used for a, modern piano black key. These keys were light colored in previous centuries, so the term
black key is misleading.
Ratio:
A ratio asit is used in this work is the proportion of one frequency to another, and it is used to identify an inter-
val. As an example, the just major thirdis identified by the ratio 5 to 4 (or 4 to 5). This is also written as 5:4,
%, or 1.25 (or 4:5, 3, or 0.8). This is based on the following:
The just major third as we traditionally understand it is the natural interval found between the fourth and the
fifth degrees of the harmonic series (q. v.). It is also found between the eighth and tenth degrees, the sixteenth
and twentiethdegrees, etc., but the ratios 8:1(), 16:20, etc., allreduce to 4:5.
The fifth harmonic of the lower tone of'a just major . coincides \Vith the fourth harmonic of the upper
tone. It is· at this point of harmonic· intersection· (two octaves plus one major third above the· lower tone of the
major third) that the tuner must listen when tuning a just major third. A tuner must also listen at this point for
beats when tempering an unjust major third.
Four fifths of a fundamental string length with constant tension produces a tone one just major third above
the tone of the original fundamental string length. Five fourths of a fundamental string length with constant ten-
sion produces a tone one just major third below the tone of the original fundamental string length.
Four fifths of a fundamental frequency produces a tone one just major third below the tone of the original
fundamental frequency. Five fourths of a fundamental frequency produces a tone one just major third above the
tone of the original fundamental frequency.
In conclusion, all of the above mentioned numbers are either the numbers 5 or 4; therefore, the ratio of a
just major third is 5 to 4.
Regular temperament or tuning:

a system that uses only one size of a fifth during scale construction. When an the octaves are pure and there
are only twelve tones to the octave, the one diminished sixth is not included as a member of the set of fifths.
Many of the theoretically correct meantone temperaments, the standard equal temperament, and Pythagorean tun-
are , ...,.....,.,
Restrictive temperament or tuning:

a system in which one or more tones cannot be used enharmonically; that is, there is at least one whereby
a choice must be made. as to if should be tuned and used as a sharp or whether it should be tuned and
to use the key for both a sharp and a flat always causes a wolf to sound because
cannot be used as an
be used as a etc. Restrictive systems include
all the just tunings and all the meantone temperaments, In restrictive temperaments modulation is limited.
The number of scale used in a of music is the number of counted in line of fourths
stretching between the sharp and the flat furthest removed from the tonic center. Music written for twelve
or fewer not a key tuned as a flat must also serve as a sharp, or vice versa. As
an would not both be found in the same piece of movement. This music sounds
most harmonious in meantone temperament which contains only twelve usable scale degrees. In contrast to this,
the well and equal temperaments· allow the usage of an unlimited number of scale that a tuned
as G-sharp could also be as an F-triple flat, etc. Music more than twelve scale
degrees but nevertheless preserving a strong. tonic key center sounds most harmonious in well Complete
atonal music best in
Schisma~
amforo-comma that is the difference between the ditonic comma and the syntonic comma. Its ratio is 32805: 32768,
and it is 1 cents in size,
Glossary
Semi~meantone temperament:
one of the termsusedto denominate equal temperament before the term 'equal temperament' was created. It is
derived from the factthat all the semitones in equal temperament are meantones.
Setting the temperament:

See laying the bearings.
Superparticuiar ratios:
ratios whereby the numerator and the denominator have a difference of one. 1h, 213, % , %, %, %, etc., are all
superparticular ratios from the harmonic series.
Syntonic comma:
sometimes called the Ptolemaic comma or the Didymic comma. It is the difference between a ditone (Pythagorean
major third) and a just major third. Its ratio is 81:80. and it is 21.50629 cents in size.
Temperament:
a musical scale in which the sizes of one or more of its natural intervals has been altered (q.v., tempering) so
that all or at least a large portion of its intervals can be made to fit within an artificial man-made pattern such
as the conventional organ, harpsichord, or piano keyboard arrangement. The antonym of temperament is just
tuning (q. v.) whereby only a small portion of the just intervals can be made to fit within the conventional key-
board limits. In just tuning, the empty spaces where just intervals cannot be made to fit are occupied by the false
wolf intervals (q.v.). The elimination of wolf sounds is the purpose of a temperament.
Temperament recital:
a concert that utilizes several keyboard instruments, each tuned in a different style or temperament. Each musical
selection can then be performed in the style of temperament originally used by the composer.
Tempering:
the act of the size of a just interval (q. v.). The interval is thus made a small amount either larger or
smaller, and this alteration puts the interval out-of-tune to a tolerable degree and causes it to beat. The purpose
in tempering is to increase the harmonic resources by adding more usable triads to a tuning system. This is ex-
plained as follows:
The intervals used on a conventional keyboard can never all be in tune at the same time because of the
"'"'""'\"'"'""''n of which in turn crea~e wolf intervals a intonation such as
Monochord No. 1 is tuned on a conventional keyboard, then only one-half the major and minor triads are
usable while the remaining half of the triads are unusable because of the many wolf intervals.
purpose in one or more intervals is to divide a comn1a into two or more to be shared by
the tempered intervals. Then the extremely out-of-tune qualities of the wolf intervals likewise be divided
and shared by the intervals. The final result is that the unusable wolf intervals are then im-
proved enough to become musically usable, thereby adding several more usable and minor triads to the
limited number of usable triads found in the original just tuning. One reason to temper illustrated by the follow-
ing ex:1m·me
A conventional keyboard gives the appearance that three contiguous thirds equal an octave. The ratio
of a major third is %which in rounded numbers is 386 cents in size. The ratio of three contiguous just
thirds is (%)3. ·The ratio of a octave is Yi which is exactly 1200 cents in Now it can be seen that three
just major thirds do not equal one octave because (%)3 or 12%4 does not equal Ji. Also, it can be seen that three
just major thirds (each being 386 cents) equal only 1158 cents which is 42 cents short from being a true
octave of 1200 cents. If the octave C to C is tuned at exactly 1200 cents and if the thirds CE and
EG-sharp are tuned just at 386 cents each, then the diminished fourth C (which is not tuned
but which is left over as the result of two thirds from one is 428 cents in size
and is a wolf because it is 42 cents larger than a major third. The only way to reduce the size of the unusable
uuurn""'""'"' fourth C to either alone or else both CE and
C is transformed into the and usable third A-fiat C. The
·trnfc>t~ifc~l,;·;~~l~~l:irtumperamtettt!·
temper~~nt tqµ~a: #~~~,~~~~ i~ ~~ij~t~fu~~e\tlil~Pi!J;itleQnf ·• .rt js als? ;~l1¥ .~ystfm of tempframent that utilizes
me· p~itjctpI~.~J\t.~~~n .·~· ~<),~e ~€)flWt~~;~~ av~~i~~!a.~.~mt.<>f:.s,,i:tii!far typ~· U!!~t;Y~s: ~~~.be~i,l.{UJ1~~~~~~~b .~~,tJ>ber
of the pair of intervals willbe ~~adty. the same s~e. This 1lleans that the hvo members of .the l?fllt: of intervals
ca~rl.e-ver b~a!~t th: sart1~rate of:sp:e~d·J~~; ba~ic ~Jes ofth~oretic~lly c~rrect temperament are. as follows:
· ;~):.·Wfi~~~;f~y~,i.~ . '.t~~s11nt~:aJgt~~a liftti·i~tettWeredandwhe11 the lower tone of the fourth
@dtlie JQWer. ton . ·. . · . . . . . . . af~.~~ same t9~e. then the fourth beats approximate,Iy 1~ times as fast
as' t!le fifth. , / ; ·• • : •tr··. . . ,, ·/ ..·.·. ·. ·.
2. When~ fori11h fs te\TIJ?~re9 6YJli~ satlle Clegree a firili' is.; tempered and..when the upper torie of the fourth
and the upper tone 6f the fifth are the same tone, then the fourth beats approximately 1~ times as fast
as the fifth.
TonaJity;
the preservation of the psychblo~foatfeeiihg of t~st ;dtlring musical performance when the tonic key center is
· reached~·Ifi'•aftou'Sttcsrthe definitiotroftonality ismore specific as foUows: In the just tunings and meantoqe tem-
peraments, flats cannot be used rriusicaily as sharps, and sharps cannot be used musically as flats; therefore a
cho~ce mu~fl:le' made whe~ (Umfig ea<;h rids~ key whether to tune it as a flat or a sharp. When the raised keys
ai;e·wn~.a~:Q;0$~~~¥".tl~f,f':,.sJiatp,(l+~bE1tp·'~ttd B~flat; the acoustic tonality of c maj()r and·Aminor is created;
as
.\Vberl. .tli'e r~sed k;ey~;are tu.rte& ~~harp~ 1 .fa"t1af+ F~sharp,. A-flat, and lMlat, the acoustic tonality· of F major
and D minor :is created; when. the raised keys are tuned as C-sharp, D-sharp, p:..sharp, G-sharp, and B~flat, the
....:iSi()Msti,c.J()!lcUl.1Y;.Qf,1J;;.Ql!li()i. a!!~;.l,i..D!.iUQtz.;lSc;~IeAt~~ti:~0;'.Jihe.;acQ1Jl!~~lity.ofa;.music.ctJniPEJ'Sition does not
•·•;d1.·•"'1')J~
..•.....•• s•am
··· ••...• ~wJh¥!llli'"'k'"'"'"ti·
~t~'llf·~~~ . .tt.~~.'ll<T.~;!1\vi..e
. 1Jll.~"1!f'"~~,.~.s~...... . .... if,l....s . .,.... •.. . . m· otieufii··q··uaior
._"..,..;·~•t.:·?comi\ffftl"tt··IJ1Jter .... e · · ven as· cale ls tuned, thestronger
une
is; i.ts' M~ic tonality.. · •
a. thre,e~note cl:i.Qr<l consisting of: tliree i.Qtervals.
' ,'t'<, '"',,','",'.\';' '
anlntental or·triad•'use'di'totest·them:m~s that have been tuned in order to determine when they are played together
th'iit' thef''t'lfttdl:tce:· the·proi'fet niusi·cal effo~t.
Tuning:
,~~:~ ~~~tj;I!I.'\Jq!1!PtJ~. ~!>~p~f~~~(()~.~···1ti~~ttil1ihg'''o(a •jqstinton~tion tu11ing• whicli is a musical scale
whe>:etiyall th,e tones ofdi~,~c~.e ~>:e tune.4'tly means of just intonation intervals. Thus, a tuning is not a tempera-
1lltl!Hg;v .}'.; <7> .a.•~u~ingj~ th,e CQm17l~Je.d. wl.)d{ llY a tuner who tuned an instrument according to some scheme
()fJt;'!~.J?er~fnenHQr bining). · . ·.· · · · ·
.......:,·~g-·a;~~er~~··!~l!in~'Js'ffie''skiil' 'Q:f iciJiistfrig musical ~itches so that they produce. the proper f~equencies.
Glossary
tJI)r¢stri¢tiv~ ternper~trU~!1tt
a sy$terii jrt w~ich ~11.9f th~ ~o.nes •can.· be Used enhanponiqally; that is, .allof the keys that.· are tuned as·. sharps
can also be used musically as flats, and all of the keys that are tuned as flats can also be used musically as sharps
because tl1edieses (q.v.)are either small ?r nonexistent with theresult that no wolf intervals (q.v .) will sound.
All the well temperaments and equal temperament are unrestrictive temperaments. In these, one can modulate
freely through all the keys.
Ut:
a syllable that represents the note C on the keyboard. This usage dates from the eleventh century.
Victorian temperament:
the variety of well temperament that was practiced during the nineteenth century. by those tuners who thought
that they were. tuning equal temperament. For tuning this, see Sections 73 and 163 to 165.
Vulgar temperament:
an early historical term meaning the common established temperament.
Well temperament:
the leading harpsichord and pianoforte temperament of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It is unrestrictive
temperament in which one can modulate freely through all the keys without encountering wolf intervals. Unlike
in equal temperament (another unrestrictive temperament), well temperament contains key-coloring that supports
the 'characters of the keys' (q.v .), harmonic balance (q.v.), and a pleasing and orderly variety while modulating.
Most of the harpsichord and pianoforte music of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries required that the instru-
ments be 'well tuned' or 'well tempered.' For a history of the term 'well temperament,' see page 9, page 294
note 5, pages 173-74, and study Sections 20, 42, 174.
Wolf:
an interval that is considered too far out-of-tune to use in music performance. A wolf is usually notated as aug-
mented or diminished, and its ratio is complicated. Wolf intervals exist because of the phenomenon of commas
(q.v.), and they are the untuned differences left over at the ends of schemes. Historical tradition deter-
mines the following descriptive rules:
An octave is a wolf if it is altered even a little from just intonation.
A fifth or a is a wolf if it is altered by .more than one-half ditonic comma from
A a a if it is more than one ~"'"~"'~ cmnrnta
just intonation.
A narrow minor third does not become a wolf because it transforms into a wide 6:7 ratio small minor third
harmonic series to be objectionable.
The term 'wolf' must have originated in the past when it was realized that the wolf interval E-flat G-sharp, when
sustained on an organ tuned in Pythagorean tuning, like the off-key howling in the distance of two wolves
at a time when wolves still roamed in Europe.
BIBUOGRAPHY
(~o~efSpeUin~, ~apltruli1ttidn~ ~c1·~~1fcm1tfoJtiSlt<1flil~a11 cr&~etjf~~poS:gitif~ift1the orisin~l. Natnes listed· for diction-

. arles
,, ''.''k .'. '
·~~·· e~¢yclo~dja~b' '.)·'are
'i. ,, ,,,,,, /1 '~ pJ» ''" ,~,\
undetstood1 to. be 'either the authots 1 con1}:jillhg ''editors1 bf sftofi'S<Jrsi) '
. ' ..·····
''" ·' ' '" :
1
i."'' •' ·, ' ·:

1 1
Aaron, Jlie,tr~ (14~5'"'154$}

Thoacane/l°' De u,, Mvsica, Vinegl':' ~p,~~~s~ p,~,!'I ~~W~di11g 1 ~tMa~e~ de.\JiWi? ,•l. si~, Ji~p1"ll1t. ,New York:
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Alembert (s6e n~Al~trib~rt)
Ambrose, Warren (1656.'...?)
The Tonometer. London: J. Cluer and A. Catnp~ell, 1725.
American·· Guild· of Piano Tuners

~ 11\; W~ing;' 1 ·~·ilt1rets' Magazine (~in~i~~ti: $Unµter L Bales) (February 1914): 24.
l\nm,y»tQUs ;;
Reviews of Lord Stanb~pe•. ''Principl~ of the Science of tuning Instruments with fixed Tones,'' and John Farey,
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A Correspondent. ''Ontll~ EJ1;llibition and Harmonic Eff~ts, of tile Rev. Mr. Liston's Euharmonic Organ."
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Augustinus, Saint.Aurelius(354-43(}) .
'.'On Musfo f381-391A.D.}." Writings of Saint Augustine. Translated by Robert Catesby Taliaferro. Vol. 2.
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1• ••, ••
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i,. MµziQ,. 216, .400
•c•'l:'. ~:1;1·361
A.arQn~ 'fietrd'(ml\lllnfohe temperament} ·Cooke, Jan1es F., 661
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~tyantrNiles, 631 Couperin, Francois, 151:-52, 154,
116, 204,774
Qulp\;Y~ Hans vori, 535 18?, 354
· i,ye mea1ttbne, .ii:xii,
')', ' 'g'l, 114 .. .... ?t •nu~faia;.· c1111rt~s;1639'"'40 Cran1er, Johann Baptist; 53.S
•·¢ompadsons t9:
tfo1fer, ~llarls, 81 11 13
1 Croft, William, 116
equal temperament. 14
Butt¢r6etti~ w. A., 6M-73, 694, 697, Croker, Temple Henry, 111
717 Crotch, Willian1, 372
meanton~ temperaments, 37, 56,
Cumberland, Duke of, 311
H2, 231,. 298-99, 382-83 c
We\1Jemper1µ11eut~, 134;
114.::.15; 111, 319 · butcott, John wfilt,·29s, 311
D
influence of, tl, 57, 251, 275, Cavallo; Tiberius, 226-28, 275, 354
3;4:1,.~5'.5;311:...7'),, 413;431 qt~l)~rs'" ~p.hraim, 224c-25 D' Alembert, Jean-Le Rond, 187,
Robert Smith's revival, 90, 92-95, 'characters of the keys' and key-color 189-213, 230, 252, 267, 273, 319,
IQ9;-H) absence of (in regular 342, 545, 552
:•·······t~ifi~SJ, •3~36~ 39•·413~16 •.. ~eJl11Ji;~<!ll\le~ts. a.J4..e<ipal . Daniell, Cha:des A., 1, 430
Alemb~~ (~ee b 'Alemb~tt) · temperan1ent), 1, 6;~, 45, 63, Davis, 174, 187-88, 190
Aml!rt:can fluild o:f P,iano Tuners, Th~. 152-53, 154 .n.7, 154 ·n.20, Debussy, Claude, 2, 252, 371, 539,
. \ 636 69~· 693' . .. 190-91, 215, 293--,94, 425, 569
,,'.' '": ~ ~"
'
Aristoxenus, H, 15, 173, 187, 251

'
455-56, 517-18, 579, 610, 769, De Morgan,. Augustus, 4, 455-66,
J\udsley,. G1:1orge Ashdown, 625.,.30 773 472-84, 539
AugustjnlJS; (SAiiitl Aurelius, 8 effects and descriptions of, 62-63,
74, 151~53, 155.,.57' 188,.190, E
294, 401, 517
B .El>h~dtr ..CJ<>l~hilf Friedrich, 155
....... eJ{PlMl!ll9»,•.9.f~. ";1it;;;4~., §4-.§~,J~l~...
.Jll~J!\tlit~l'·; ~~~J~~;~i~.!l~t~.i~+;: ~~" 191, 294~ 5~7.:..18, 580.:..82, 769, Edwards, c. X., 3'11.:::19, 595, 111
623, 635 173 electronic tuning, xv, xxiii
Ellis, Alexa!ider John [quasi-equal
...... l\ll£.f:t1 .•. Q ~~~a~~i~~,,. ..... in equal temperament, 157, 518,
582 ·······
Mi;!: ilMl!c!er& of tlle ~trys,' temperatnetttl
157, 518, 582 ·in meantone temperaments, 9, analyses, 1-2, 534-60, 713
and equal temperament, 2, 4, 9, 44-45, 47, 74, 190-91, 230, influence of, 485, 518, 568, 588,
65,594 401, 774 595, 620, 6.41, 646, 656, 665,
and;.W~ll t~Jl1peram,ent, 62-63, 65, in 'l1:!asi~~u~ t~mperaments, xxi, 695, 716-17
tuning of, 493-98, 561-67.
J1;.~g....... ·. .•. . .·. . .·.....· ... ; ; ..;· . ;). . 63. 517'-J9
i11f!\t~jl~t)of, xxii, 277, 352, 362, in well temperaments (and writings of, 6, 230, 484, 502
380 Victorian temperaments), 6, 9, Elliston, Thomas, 610-14
Banowetz, Joseph, 65 64-65, 151-53, 154 n.20, equal temperament, xxii, xxiii, 3 n.13,
Barber, Samuel, 252 · 154 n.28, 157, 188, 227, '9-10, 766-68, 771
Barraud, J., 241 251-52, 274-'-75,.293-94, 341. Euclid, 95, 595
Beau"gtand, 1$, l7, 181 40l,-2, 406, 417, 42.5, 455-57, Euler, Leonhard, 95
Beethoven, Ludwig va:fi, 362 579 Ewing, Charles E., 682-88, 694-95,
Bemetzr!e(fer, AilfC)n;; 25, 325,-41, 716 non~tra~ltionally arranged, 33(}, 697, 717 .
Bennett, \ViIHam Stemdale, 535 339, 417, 456 Eximeno, Antonio, 328
·;.ti.1::~35,·559 .··
Charpentier, Marc Antoine, 155-56,
:1Qfui~ :21,9,.a42; 400, 432, 115 582
··· c~"JJ(iTfmpft!f:·aotieW·H1Uflfm··. 'Crottdni, Etllsl7"3Y4·· · · · F
..... £~<>R~·.~r~g$;!~J:'.~~~~ois, 406, 4~6, Fairc.hild~ Stephen,..179
···,,,,,.,.,, .•sic; "1.3s,. . ~~. 692 FalkeneF, :Rotitlrt';.. 58,. 79, 129-33,
Clark, Samuel, 117 137, 203
lndex
Farey, John [Senior!, 46, 241, Holden, John.• ll8.,-28, 230, 241, 319, L
295'."".97, 310-27, 330, 355, 371-:-72 Lambert, Johann Heinrich, 312
3go:..s1, 405, 493, 716 Holder, WiUiam [meantone
Leo, 227
Faust, Oliver Cromwell, 678-8 I, temperament}
Lewis, Thomas, 674
694-95, 697, 717 adaptatiOnS: of, 75-76, 134, 139,
Lewis, Walter, 674
Fischer, Jerry Cree, 430, 645-60, 16S, 342, 432, 493, 502, 561,
Ling-Lun, 15
694-95, 697, 717 580, 655-56
Liston, Henry, 11, 371-73, 380, 413
Fisher, Alexander Metcalf, 381-99, influence of, 55-56, 65, 92,
Liszt, Franz, 535
457, 716 152-53, 203-4, 227
Loehr, Johann Joseph, 467-71
Fisher, Henry, 583-88, 595, 615, tuning of, 37-46, 67, 113, 253, Loeschman, David, 11, 57, 371-72,
638, 645, 694, 697, 717 634, 714
380, 382
Flight, Benjamin, 413'.""16, 431, 485, Holton, Isaac Farwell, 457
Love, Charles M., 639-40
620, 716 Hook, James, 214
Love, Charles William, 639-40
Fritzen, 406 Hopkins, Edward John, 508-11
Hudleston, Lawson, 341
Hummel, Johann Nepomuk, 406-12, M
G
417-18, 432, 484, 520, 617, 716
Galilei, Galileo, 95, 154 Huygens, Christiaan, 90, 94-102, Malcolm, Alexander, 62-65, 73, 117,
Galilei, Vincenzo, 151, 154, 739 116, 129, 224 714
Gallupi, 227 Markham, Frank, 639-40
Gates, Bernard, 116 Marpurg, Friedrich Wilhelm, 2, 251,
Gathy, August, 155 I 278, 354, 406, 473, 479-83, 777
Geib, William, 484-93, 499, 520, Marsh, John, xxii, 341-51, 353, 432,
ill temperament, 293-94, 371 520, 620, 634, 673, 719
573, 611, 622, 631, 661 irregular meantone temperament (see
Gervasoni, Carlo, 155 Martin, H. T., 520-28
modified meantone temperament) Masson, Charles, 155
Glareanus, Henricus, 18, 27
Grahame, George Farquhar, 455 Maxwell, John, 191
Grammateus, Henricus [Heinrich M'Cormick, Robert, 693
J meantone temperament (see regular
Schreiber}, xxii, 9, 25-27, 330-35
Graupner, Johann Christian Gottlieb, James II (VII of Scotland), 229 meantone temperament and
400-5, 407, 417-18, 426, 484, Jones, William, 65, 173-88, 187, 190, modified meantone temperament)
520, 573, 631, 716 227, 251-53, 372, 425, 715 Merrick, A., 297, 328, 361-70, 537
Gretry, 155 Jorgensen, Owen, 12, 401 Mersenne, Marin
Guilford, Baron, 73 Jousse, Jean, 417-25, 431-32, 464, and equal temperament, 2,
512, 533, 583, 635, 682, 712-13 227
Junker, Carl Ludwig, 155 ratios, 15-17
H just intonation, 10, 733 and meantone temperament, 37-38,
Hall, W. E., 693 46
Hamilton, James Alexander, 430 tuning, 28-36
K influence 15 187,
Friedrick, 62,
203, Gottfried 342, 432,
252, 267, 400, 715 temperament] 13, 18, 27-28
Harrison, 94 comparisons to, 73, 83, 113, 118, Mersenni Mersenne)
Hasluck, Paul Nooncree, 623-24 135, 203 Mersennus (see Mersenne)
Hawkes, xxii, 11, 46, influence of, C., 697
241-50, 298-309, 319, 371-80, 299, 371, 485 modified meantone temperament, xv,
391 67' 714 xvii, xxii, 775
Hawkins, John [Sir], 62, 155 tuning of, 55-61, 85 Morgan (see De Morgan)
Haydn, Franz Joseph., 157, 229, 362, key-color and the 'characters of the Moscow, Charles E., 615-16
400 keys' (see 'characters of the nu"''"'"~' 157,
Heinse, Johann Jakob Wilhelm, 155 Kirchmann, Jakob, 95 362, 406
Hermann Ludwig Kirnberger, Johann Philipp [well
Ferdinand von, 6, 493, 502, 568, temperament]
N
695 comparisons to, xxii, 175, 194,
Hemstock, A., 413, 484, 499-502, 203-4, 275, 299, 330, 594 Nalder, Lawrence Marcus, 694
573, 611, 620, 631, 716 influence of, 251, 293, 312, 352, Nares, James, 116
nt:nuun.:. Konrad, 116-17 512 Neidhardt, Johann George, 2, 251,
Sir John Frederick Kimberger III, 267, 319 406, 473-83, 615
William, 456-57 reactions to, 203, 380, 406, 430 WiHiam, 714
Hertz, Heinrich 773 Stanhope's improved, 284-92 North, Dudley, 73
T., 535 277-!B North, Francis, 73
155 73-74,
J7~¢e~,;jWilJatd A:, (iS > ..... . SchiHih ~3 .L .i nt1
Pasqoali,·.Nfcolo,•.I1:2~07, . . !;~<J...3.0~. Schlick, . 23() > co.. ··§ t61'2o,·iss~'J93, 205,
203, ~l:;t,.;,i~, 2a.~.:~42.;.1.~lr:434
pau11;r;. Er1lst, 511
J.
Schra,der, A:.J5t'· .,, ~51 26/ .594 ·. • ' .
tuning ~f, t;5..:12, 174-86, 336-40
Schreiber, Heinrich (see Grammateus)
g~~~-;.~iG~~~f,; 15~ • •.·. :.. Schublfrt, Chd$,tian ;flri(!drich. Da11iel, . transposed Vallotti, 251-59
Peltier~ •I..~· · .·~~;~l~)i!l1!1"~~~~ ..~~;?:~,., 153, 155_:56, 582 .. •. . .. . Bemetzrieder's No. 2, 336-40
561' •!!\<J ~!¥;.<r35~i.6~~~.1~2':'.:l~;.,'t S~ti1I . Vallotti~Youhg, 330, 372, 455, 473
717 . . Se .. Victoria, Alexandrina, 536 ··.
·. •p¢pp¢t Viefql'i~n•t~fflt1~t¥rtent,. xxii, 10, 269,
~~~.··
Per~
~~be~~i111,·~ . . 1et{312 536:.:.58, 579:.:.s1·~ 179
Vogler, Georg Joseph, 406
Smith,.1:1.t!roial\g.,,,.59:4;:609, 615, 622,
Pig6t, . oma~~ 714 · 63'0!~· '·1 't6~2';J~~'t~· 1rt ··· · ·
PrelJeµf* 1 tepipe11an;ient} Snrlth, . ···.· ..•..•. · . . W
93,· It~. 175, 188, beafeounting, 3, 7, 92, 109-11, 136,
;267,.431, 594 · 143~44. 175,, 190, 224, 272-73, Wagner, Wilhelm Richard, 535
. fun ~g'2¥~;-;39~ l.~~-:6(},,JJ5 310-:-H, 352, 355, 425; 595, 645,. Wallis.•Joh~, 63 .....
·~ .. 715 · ·. · Warirlg, Wiltiam, tJ4~54, t9'3
~ritliigfof, 1~-1~. . ·.· . •. .... > •• comparisons to, 112, 226, 382, Watt, James, 4, 91, 272 ·
Preston, Joh11, 214...~~~ 1;2g, 252, 2(~1, · 467.l(flf · · · Wehrhan, Augustus, 467
342, 354~ 400- t !432 .• .. . . influence of, 57, 116::'.:17, 143, Weikert, Henri, 155
Prin~ 1 2Q~. 261~ 319,"'.~'7, 594. 154 n.10, 158, 188-90, 203, well temperament, fr, xvii, xxii, xxiii,
Prok.ofiey t Setj!eh 252 .·.... .227, 241~ 251, 310-11, 381, 9-10, 64~()6, 151:-54, 171-74, 251-
Ptoittl!li, (:l~u,~µ~~ 8,.. ~5. . .· . •·. 425,. 595,>~46 We;~~:~;~;.· 1!dr;~;· [~~ft· 779
1>y · · llw~N:.wmet. ~34-33, 635, lhe!Ult?ne t~miJeriuhent, revival of, temperament] .
J;12~lr3~ 717, .119 xxi,.90H08; 275 . . ..
r~s,··1&,.48; 2?;f •.• tuninfOf, t0~::-8 ·••·. comparisons to, 2, 9, 48 n.5, 159,
e~~··teiyptrf~~t (see .• St11ym,;<;;Jt,·<>, 352;'354, 372, 425, 179,·58()..;81
s stltutes ·fcfr equal temperament) 645, 692, 694, 716 influence of, 251-52, 330
Sorge, Georg Anc!t€l.as~ 406 writings. of, 55, 62-65, 77
Q• Spain, Hehf)l, Mf-44 Westlake,. Frederick, 594
Spillane; Dat;1iel,. ?88-93, 639 White. William Braid, 418, 636-38,
quasi"~qual temperan;ient,· xvi, xviii, Stanhope, Charles (third Earl 645, 662-67, 689'--97, 713, 717
xxiii · Stanhope), 2.84-99, 310-11,319, Wicks, Mark, 573-76, 588, 595, 611, 631
35~•·:~Ji'.~~·4'~g:J·•457 · · ·512'·'•t.· ·• Wilkies,. ''"""· · ·•·•·••
....... ".\l:'\~r •. •~§4~,j1j!;:·:·:~;T~' ~., ~ h ·' William Ill, 229
Stan}ey ,.. John,. 93. Williams, Thomas, 117
Staurlton(Wili:iml'J:>~•.xxi, ·5il.9, 594, 717 Wilso11; J9hq, 7::1. ..
St~lfl·• 1ob~n ·~ndrt:(!S'; 4Q8 Wolfefiden, Samuel, 692
2??.' 352,. 582
stieicher: Nannette' Stein, 408 Woolhouse, w. s: ·s.; 415.-:z9, 484,
substitutes for equal temperament, xv, 573, 577-78, 611, 622,. 631, ~(il
R.avel, Maqi~e:e, ~; 252. '371 xvii, xxii, xx~ii . Womum, Robert, 418
Reed, Thomas S., 580
Rees, Abr!lha ·. ·• 22;4~2.S: Sulz!lltd!?~it1ll!~~t:irg, 1..51
y
re1Witt f~wl1erlfM~'llt,.x~{''
x~H: , xxifi·;·s.m, 114; 116 Young, Thomas [well temperament}
~!}!i\!<~~911, Il~t:,~eric~.Ewart, 617-19 cpmparisons to, xxH, 277-78, 319,
R.{)l:Jls9n, JQijn1 Jtxi,. 4, 7, 57, 93, 95, T
330, 372, 418, 431-32, 473,
i12-:78, 32~~ 42(), ()46, 715 Talbot; Hirlllit S.i ;.-485~ ~22 545, 580, 594
R~mieu,.·J~an~~aptiste,,91, 215, 774 Tans'ur~ :Winiam;:;,83-:89, 129, 203, influence <>f; 275, 455, 457, 662, 715
.Rousseau,.Jean, 153,'15.5 · 205, 252, 267, 485, 715 tuningof, 251-71, 336-40
R.qµ§~~aJ.t, ·!~a.ll~!a.C:qq~s, J34-:~4, Tartipi, Giuseppe, 91, 174
157-59, 168,, 193, 203-4, 261; Tempelhof, ·Georg Friedrich von, 275
· ·i;·4o;::<rot~··4rft;.ns:···'" ·M······· ·· ····~···· ····•·· TUfiiei';95 z
R.u~J»§~eitt• A11~c:m. 53s '!'wining, 187-88 Zarlino, Gioseffo, 15,187, 251, 382-90
.· tYN/NtJtContai~i1111.theJPerfectr~n ~fllll,lltlentlticentury Temperament,. the Lost Art of Nineteenth-
Century Temperament" ondthe Science of Bqual temperament Complete with lnstmctions for Aural
and. Electronic ·TUning
Production Editor: Julie L. Loehr
Design,•· Lyrrrie A. Brown
Copy Editor: Kristine M. Blakeslee
figures composed by: .Venture Graphic Design
.Music crt!ated by: Laurence W. Key.with Score Music Publishing System@ by Passport Designs
Text composed by: Lansing Graphics in 10.5 Times Roman Book and Times Roman Book Italic
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TU§J?ERFECTION OF EIGHTEENTH,CENTURY TEMPERAMENT

IHE LOST ART OFNINETEENTH:-CENTURY TEMPERAMENT

THE SCIENCE OF EQUAL TEMPERAMENT

THE LOST ART OF NINETEENT:ltl:CliNTURY TEMPERAMENT

THE SCIENCE OF EQUAL TEMPERAMENT

INSTRUCTIONS FOR AURAL AND liLECTRONIC TUNING

OF TABLES FOR ELECTRONIC TUNING .................................................. xv

LIST OF MISCELLANEOUS TABLES .......................................................... xix

LIST OF FIGURES SHOWING THE FORMS OF TONALITY OR HARMONIC BALANCES ............ xx

PREFACE ........................................................... ·........................ xxi

HINTS ON HOW TO USE THIS BOOK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................ xxii

APPENDICES ... ......... ................. . ................. . ............................... 718

GLOSSARY . . ................................. ... . .................. . ...... .... ............. 769

INDEX . .... . .. . . ................................. ...... ........ . ........................... 796

TEMPERAMENTS USED AS SUBSTITUTES FOR EQUAL TEMPERAMENT

REGULAR MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

TABLES SHOWING THE SIZES OF MAJOR THIRDS

REGULAR MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

MODIFIED MEANTONE TEMPERAMENTS

125.:2. tuner's Gu '(Marsh plruiY ........ , ..................... 446

6-1. The ratios of equal temperament by Marin Mersenne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

for electronic tuning are listed on pages xv-xvi.

Topic Sections with Tuning Instructions

.... 86, 100, 109, 111,

·:'~8~Wii~·~i1e·~1~I}a~i~J~:,~J~riiHt~~rc~a~~i;fvE~~·~!n~:£!i~T!11~~e~?YJ! r;:!~t:::;; fsr~~;

. .the .mo~~~Jm~e.io ~eJd;,i;.and:.sQ..accurate in

u~,,~~ ;J-) J#J #J#filiJJwtJWJfJ Itpjl

of thirds and sixths is "'"'""""''

A Summary of Late Twentieth-century Terminology:

co11s111ermg the tecords

· ®!lllrttal string vibrations and frequencies.

Table 6-i~ Th~ Rati(Js of Equ~ Temperam~nt by Marin Mersenne.

Table 6-2: Theoretical String L~ngths for Equal Temperament.

From the previous, a further simplification follows:

Table 6-5~ The Fadors or the Ratios by Mersenne.

Table 7-1:: The Tempered Pythagorean Rates by Boulliau and Corrections.

c. Taftt~1;;.fi*The·Boulltau ~hagorean TemperaDlenfTuned In the TheoreticaJIY Correct Mariner•

,,r ,:,. Check

'F . . ·~·. ·~·· '~ ~f' l Tf bF ~F' , If f

The crescendos denote increasmg: beat frequencies.

Tune the following· quarter notes in just intonation.

Tune C to Tuned Test

As a final test, check the following intervals.

new kunstlid1 Buech.

Tune the following quarter notes injust intonation.

Tune C to Tuned Test

Wide major thirds

Wide major sixths Narrow minor thirds

Temper D from both G and A. The fifth GD

Test the following intervals for increases in beat freqpencies.

1.8 2.0. 2.7 3.0

n2=Hj b~ f b& l~E lbr

Narrow 6:5 ratio

Wide 7:6 ratio

117l&,. ·@r- f . ·r· "'$ ·I·~~ .II~... #r

1.8 2.4 2.5 2.7

Wide 7:6 ratio

A zero difference 0 cents

lj.a(ur,qJ.Gr(J.un.~s, and 1:rindl!!e~~f Ha,~iJ.ny,11Holder published tuning ~nstructions ~atap~r t? be

the following quarter notes in the order written.

Test intervals and chords

Test intervals and chords

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s.· ~:;1!~!ba~~f~;;i~~~~tar~t . . .·' 'faitt¥hi~@iriJe};tW~~t Any·systeml'ret~lldiiig

?¥/ :~!1n~=~~rb~!~~~!31t~:;~!;~:!:!;,~::fi:;j~"'.~~:f0~:n~f!:i~:~ !l:i~s~!;,;~~ ::o:;~

e«ltmg ·r.~~;;:tit~tl!~~~~~/~f~~~:~b~;i~ffiWt~~;~::~::·~Jtfi:::~ ~! ~::;:~:~~~~~~in~iu:O~

· ~~,~!8~i~J::~ J'i1;(~~1» ~z~~·iYiY;,;;';~i~.y~··ri~:'·:'~7~Jlii''iiis\Jseut1!~~:~ ~:~!

~~i,~!~tt,li.;::rJ~st~~ ~I~ pl~£7d ~tween pages 212 and,. 213.