44
votes
Why do E♯ and F♮ not sound the same (according to Wikipedia)?
I think this particular phrasing is rather confusing, as it is trying to talk about two concepts at the same time: enharmonic equivalence, and intonation.
The concept of intonation (and temperament, ...
- 46.1k
42
votes
Accepted
Why do E♯ and F♮ not sound the same (according to Wikipedia)?
The thing is that the "some tunings that define the notes in that way" in the Wikipedia quote include the most common tuning today, 12-tone equal temperament (12-TET). So, E# and F natural do usually ...
- 14.2k
22
votes
Accepted
Cello pressed at half length higher than harmonic?
This happens on all stringed instruments. There are two reasons for that.
As you already noticed yourself, pressing down the string does require bending it a little, i.e. stretching, which increases ...
- 35.6k
18
votes
Accepted
Bridge intonation patterns on stringed instruments
I'm actually planning to make a YouTube video about intonation to delve into this phenomenon.
The short answer is that is depends upon the cross-sectional area of the tension-bearing part of the ...
- 346
17
votes
Accepted
Are these indentations on the frets of my Acoustic for intonation? Can I apply this to the frets of my Electric?
That's fret wear. The strings have slowly eroded away some of the fret material, leaving those dents. Over a long enough time, they become deep enough to cause problems.
When the fret wear is bad ...
- 57.7k
15
votes
Accepted
Why was Le Concert Spirituel playing out of tune at Proms 2012?
You are right, it is because they are using very old horns known as natural horns which had no valves or holes. They had known limitations and were quite difficult to play. You can see and hear a ...
- 839
13
votes
Was equal temperament caused by the invention of the piano, or was it inevitable?
The earliest use of equal temperament was on fretted instruments with fixed frets. The ratio of 17:18 for the string length for successive frets is a good approximation to equal temperament. The ...
- 211
12
votes
Accepted
Why is Stratocaster Low E-String Intonation at Limit?
Assuming your A and D strings are intonated correctly, the length of that E looks about right, maybe even a little too far back.
As in the comments, check the neck relief and the action, and get ...
- 196k
11
votes
Theory confusion
I suggest reading this answer first (where I derive the stuff I talk about here with some extra graphics).
Western music is derived from diatonic scales, like the one created by all the white keys on ...
- 35.6k
11
votes
Accepted
How can I improve my violin intonation for enharmonic notes?
Intonation in classical music is one of the things where there isn't a single, catch-all rule that you can just apply to get it “right”. Really, it's part of an interpretation. Perhaps the only thing ...
- 35.6k
11
votes
Problems with playing high notes (17-20th fret on e-string)
The top string is a little too low, so as you get to the dusty end, it's catching on the fretwire of fret 20. If that's the only problem, raising the saddle on the the string should be enough to get ...
- 196k
11
votes
Accepted
How does string age affect intonation?
I've been curious about this too. I imagine this is the same phenomenon that violinists refer to as a string "going false." The effect is the location of pitches becomes inconsistent along ...
- 18.7k
10
votes
Was equal temperament caused by the invention of the piano, or was it inevitable?
Even without the piano (or even keyboard instruments), there were other forces pushing toward something close to equal temperament.
The common narrative is that chromatic music was instrumental in ...
- 12.7k
10
votes
Accepted
If the resolution of human hearing is approximately five cents, how can musicians play works with intonation changes of less than five cents?
With a bit of training, a good musician can hear differences of 2 cents, and with significant talent and/or a lot of practice, 1 cent.
I base the above statement on my personal experience with ...
- 6,359
10
votes
How does string age affect intonation?
tl,dr: Finger gunk.
It's the same reason why strings become dull over time. When playing. the oil, sweat and salt from your fingers interacts with the string and results in corrosion and accumulation.
...
- 1,860
9
votes
What are other intonations that exist in music?
There are a few other types of intonation:
Ptolemaic sequence - a tuning for the diatonic scale proposed by Ptolemy
It is produced through a tetrachord consisting of a greater tone (9:8), lesser ...
9
votes
Accepted
Is a cappella xenharmonic by default?
I admire a lot of Adam's work, but I think he's exaggerating a bit about the reasons why choirs get off pitch. (Though he's stating a commonly held belief -- or perhaps common excuse.) Yes, most ...
- 12.7k
9
votes
Do people with perfect pitch distinguish between equal temperament and just temperament?
My experience about this: even people without perfect pitch can distinguish between temperaments.
As an example, when I play a pipe organ with unequal temperament, some chords sound very pure, without ...
- 471
9
votes
Are these indentations on the frets of my Acoustic for intonation? Can I apply this to the frets of my Electric?
Those fret indentations are wear caused by playing. No manufactures would put them in on purpose.
My first move would be to consider that the neck is actually too close to the bridge. Maybe it could ...
- 196k
9
votes
Intonation problem at 20th fret (top 3 strings only) - Harley Benton SC-550
It sounds like you probably have one high fret, causing it to choke the string.
Strictly speaking, you need a fret rocker to test for this, but any good, solid short straight edge can be pressed into ...
- 27.9k
7
votes
Bridge intonation patterns on stringed instruments
tl;dr: the saddle position depends on the action, the thickness of the string's core and its Young's modulus, because these factors govern how much the string tension goes up in fingered notes.
My ...
- 35.6k
6
votes
B -> C and E -> F, No Sharp?
The layout of a piano keyboard always puzzled me. For many years I asked music professionals why was it so illogical - no one seemed to know. Eventually, the best answer I found was that early ...
- 61
6
votes
Theory confusion
Violins are fretless instruments, whereas guitars have frets. This means that the placement of the guitar fret determines the placement of this A♭/G♯. A violinist, however, can move their finger ever ...
- 84.9k
6
votes
Accepted
Fretted notes consistantly ~10cents sharp across the fretboard compared to open
If all the fretted notes are in tune (pretty much) with each other, the problem is most likely at the nut, not the bridge. Either the strings are too high in the nut or the distance from the nut to ...
- 6,532
6
votes
How is intonation set on acoustic guitar
On an electric guitar you set the intonation by moving the bridge saddles closer to or further away from the nut. On an acoustic guitar you file a little bevel in the top of the bridge saddle so that ...
- 2,795
6
votes
If the resolution of human hearing is approximately five cents, how can musicians play works with intonation changes of less than five cents?
At one point I did some exercises in pitch difference and could usually hear whether a second note was lower, higher or the same when the difference was 5 cents. I struggled with a 2 cent difference ...
- 61
6
votes
Do people with perfect pitch distinguish between equal temperament and just temperament?
My experience with musicians with perfect pitch (I don't have it myself), is that their pitch sense is 12TET (twelve-tone equal temperament) and in other tuning systems pitches would be identifiable, ...
- 92.5k
6
votes
Do people with perfect pitch distinguish between equal temperament and just temperament?
This doesn't really have anything to do with perfect pitch. Equal vs just temperament is about relative pitch, not absolute.
Only in equal temperament does a certain frequency have a unique matching ...
- 187
6
votes
My clarinet is playing flat - how can I fix it?
The first thing to try is playing another clarinet. If that's flat as well, it's you. If not, start looking for mechanical solutions. But it seems unlikely that what seems to be a standard, ...
- 94.8k
6
votes
My clarinet is playing flat - how can I fix it?
With an instrument that is consistently playing flat, the first thing to try would be a new barrel. Your 66mm barrel is the standard, but you can easily find a 65mm or 64mm to try. The shorter barrel ...
- 2,678
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