Re: Re: Slide Tuning


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Posted by Rick Denney on October 02, 2003 at 09:34:53:

In Reply to: Re: Slide Tuning posted by donnie mac on October 01, 2003 at 17:49:45:

In tune with what?

Good intonation is primarily marked by people who play the same notes at the same pitch, next by people who play a workable pitch within the key and harmonic structure of the ensembles, and last (or not at all) by conforming to any given tuning system. Equal temperament is especially troublesome. It is designed for pianos to be able to strike a reasonable compromise and still play in any key. Brass musicians, however, should tune themselves to provide the greatest resonance in the ensemble given the harmonic structure of the music, and that is not at all an equally tempered scale.

I'm of the opinion that the better players, who have better pitch sense and control of their intonation, owe it to the ensemble to avoid clashing with those who aren't as able to hear their pitch and make the appropriate adjustments. Where does that leave that CC player in your example?

Anyone who brings a CC tuba to a band should understand the responsibilities that go with it. The intonation tendencies of the tuba will likely not line up with other instruments automatically, and it is therefore required that the player do what is best for the ensemble.

I know that Klaus will roast me for stating this opinion as he has in the past, but I rest on the conviction that intonation is a shared responsibility that places a greater burden on those with the greater skill.

Now, as for the Cerveny 683, some tubas play the third partial a bit flat. Some (Conn 2xJ's for example) play that partial extremely flat. A 1-3 fingering on the F is the common fix, and it brings with it the ability to fine tune using the first valve slide.

Rick "who has more trouble with the fourth partial and who blames his ears, not his horns" Denney


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