Using a Tuner

[phcook]

The only thing to remember:

in most case, just tune with drones, by ear. In case you use an electronic tuner, 10 cents is nothing, and doesn't matter. All the rest is joke.

Best

[billh]

Lorenzo, sorry to seem stupid, but if we are tuning to A=440Hz, but we want to play with others, then would we tune a B set to equal B or just B?

Also, even though people are saying "just intonation", the UPs are always tuned to the drones, so can we really say that all notes on UPs are truly justly tuned?

Thx,

djm

If you're playing a B set with others, you can tune it to anything you like
since they are already tuning down to you. Unless said person is, say, a box player playing a B/C box, or a concertina, etc. Which raises its own problems.

If just intonation versus equal temperament comes into it at all, i.e. you are playing with something other than a fixed-pitch instrument like a concertina or accordion or piano (flat pipes and piano - shudder!) then you will just end up tuning to whatever works for all of you. IOW it's totally academic.

If everybody has great intonation and control, they, like you, will tune to your drones. As for what you tune your drones to, well, tune them to wherever your chanter reed wants to be on the day.

- Bill

[ballysodare]

More on this:

http://home.earthlink.net/~kgann/histune.html
An Introduction to Historical Tunings

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~emacpher/
Ewan Macpherson UMich. Homepage

Cheers