Zoom Maths Club - Pythagorean Tuning and Equal Temperament - Mr Damian Haigh
26th September 2020
Modern pianos and many other instruments such as guitars or saxophones are designed to be able to be played in any key. However, this has not always been the case for musical instruments, and the mathematics of this is intriguing. In this session, we'll explore the difference between the simple ratio / just-intonation tuning that seemed right to Pythagoras (and still seems right to violinists) and the geometric or equal-temperament tuning that pianos and guitars use. Although the versatile equal-temperament system seems much more sensible, to some musicians it is an ugly approximation to pure tuning. We'll try to figure out what's going on here.