source file: mills2.txt Date: Sat, 8 Mar 1997 15:04:55 -0800 Subject: AD3 ? From: Lydia Ayers I agree with Daniel Wolf that Indian tuning varies. Using the solfeggio system, Sa Ri Ga Ma Pa Da Ni Sa, which is used similarly to Do, Re Me ... , the starting point for fsingers is very flexible. I've seen Sa shown most often in western notation starting on C. So I would expect A to correspond to Da rather than Ni. According to Danielou (Northern Indian Music) which is controversioal, but which is the one that I've seen which actually gives a precise tuning, the tuning for Da could be 5/3 or 27/16 if it is major, depending on the raga, and 8/5 or 128/81 if it is minor (da komal). The major seventh (ni tibravra)can be either 15/8 or 243/128 (which is fairly sharp). Basically one of the principal tunings for each pitch is just iand one is Pythagorean. Danielou's hypothesis is that each raga uses a specific pitch, depending on which way it's tuned. Some ethnomusicaologists don't agree with him, but I've trined the tunings of some of his ragas, and they sound realistic, so I think it's likely that his informants did tune this way, at least at the time he made his study (would have been early in th e20e w20th Century, I think). Now some fixed pitch instruments and even equal temperament are also affecting Indian tuning, to some degree, though on an instrument such as the mandolin(?) S!) Srinivas does bend the pitch sometimes. Even so, and even though he's a famous virtuoso, I'd rather hear a sitar any day. Best, Lydia Ayers Received: from ns.ezh.nl [137.174.112.59] by vbv40.ezh.nl with SMTP-OpenVMS via TCP/IP; Sun, 9 Mar 1997 05:48 +0100 Received: by ns.ezh.nl; (5.65v3.2/1.3/10May95) id AA09933; Sun, 9 Mar 1997 05:48:15 +0100 Received: from ella.mills.edu by ns (smtpxd); id XA10046 Received: from by ella.mills.edu via SMTP (940816.SGI.8.6.9/930416.SGI) id UAA02748; Sat, 8 Mar 1997 20:46:47 -0800 Date: Sat, 8 Mar 1997 20:46:47 -0800 Message-Id: <199703082343_MC2-124D-A396@compuserve.com> Errors-To: madole@mills.edu Reply-To: tuning@ella.mills.edu Originator: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Sender: tuning@ella.mills.edu