What Does JUST INTONATION Sound Like?This is a question for which there is no simple answer—Just Intonation can sound quite different in the hands of different composers. Much depends on the aesthetic preferences of the person using it. Terry Riley doesn't sound much like Harry Partch, nor does Lou Harrison sound much like Glen Branca. How would you answer the question "what does twelve-tone equal temperament sound like?" Does it sound like Mozart or Beethoven, or like Scott Joplin, or Elvis, or the Ramones? Of course it can sound like any or all of the above. So with Just Intonation. However, although it is difficult to simply characterize the quality of Just Intonation (or equal temperament) as applied to a wide range of musical styles, it is easy enough to demonstrate the differences in quality of just vs tempered intervals. As a first step in this direction we offer two MP3 files, one for interval comparisons and one for chord comparisons. Each has a corresponding PDF file documenting what is heard in the MP3.
Additional sound files from recent issues of 1/1 are here. |