source file: mills2.txt Date: Sat, 8 Mar 1997 20:46:47 -0800 Subject: Re: AD3 ? From: Gary Morrison -------------------- Begin Original Message -------------------- Message text written by INTERNET:tuning@ella.mills.edu "I have always been under the impression that "European As" were 442/43- but I suppose it could have been a dream! " -------------------- End Original Message -------------------- The Berlin Philharmonic, at least under ol' Herbie's direction (I'm not sure about when they play under Daniel Barenboim), tuned at AD8Hz. In the mid 1800s, while Boehm developed the modern flute, A was standardized at 435Hz, and the current-day flute does not fully account for the upward drift (they merely shorten the head joint, and have not adjusted the toneholes relative to each other. In Bach's time absolute pitch was even flatter still. Rumor has it that it was close to C%6Hz, although I don't know that for sure. The only explanation I've heard for this upward drift was from my bassoon teacher from back in high school: "Nobody wants to be flat". OK... Received: from ns.ezh.nl [137.174.112.59] by vbv40.ezh.nl with SMTP-OpenVMS via TCP/IP; Sun, 9 Mar 1997 05:50 +0100 Received: by ns.ezh.nl; (5.65v3.2/1.3/10May95) id AA10032; Sun, 9 Mar 1997 05:50:01 +0100 Received: from ella.mills.edu by ns (smtpxd); id XA09514 Received: from by ella.mills.edu via SMTP (940816.SGI.8.6.9/930416.SGI) id UAA02818; Sat, 8 Mar 1997 20:48:34 -0800 Date: Sat, 8 Mar 1997 20:48:34 -0800 Message-Id: <199703082345_MC2-124D-A3A1@compuserve.com> Errors-To: madole@mills.edu Reply-To: tuning@ella.mills.edu Originator: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Sender: tuning@ella.mills.edu