source file: m1381.txt
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1998 09:13:59 -0500 (CDT)

Subject: Indian tuning

From: Paul Hahn <Paul-Hahn@library.wustl.edu>

On Thu, 9 Apr 1998, Joseph L Monzo wrote:
> Unfortunately, as Harry Partch pointed out at least 25 years ago,
> Indian music has been drifting closer and closer to 12-eq ever
> since the British took over, and as far as I know it's still drifting
> (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

Sambamoorthy has done careful studies with recordings of traditional
Indian musicians and concluded much the same thing.  OTOH, just because
the starting point may be (for practical purposes) 12TET doesn't mean
that all the wonderful bends and glides aren't essential to the music.

>               Hopefully, the widespread availability of
> re-tuning on synthesizers and computers can correct
> some of this before it's lost forever.

On Thu, 9 Apr 1998, Bill Alves wrote:
> The availability of tunable synths as a replacement for the harmonium or as
> another addition to Indian music came up some time ago, but I haven't yet
> heard of any Indian musicians who have taken up the idea.

I've asked on rec.music.classical.india (I think that's the name) and
gotten a few responses from people who are trying to use a 22-tone
5-limit JI scale on synths--in fact, I've posted the scale here, with a
proposed modification which Mohan Ayyar responded to.  Mohan, are you
still out there?

--pH <manynote@lib-rary.wustl.edu> http://library.wustl.edu/~manynote
    O
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