Out of tune

[Valerie Stephenson]

Hi friends:  I love this topic.  There are so many things that could cause out of tune bells.  First, as it hasn’t been mentioned is the electricity that runs those fans, or even just the lights.  The “pitch” of electricity runs on a fine line between what we would call Bb or B natural.  Knowing that actually got me thru dictation in early theory classes as I don’t have perfect pitch (and have pity on those who do cause it can drive you nuts in some cases.) 

    Add the electrical “hum” to the wind factor of the fans, plus 30 years difference in the molding materials (dye lots, another issue), and you will be hard put to find a perfectly matched set.  That, along with the actual room temperature adds to the stew.    I’ve just gotten used to it as a natural “vibrato” within this particular instrument.  After all, in a wind or string instrument, operated by a human (we hope) most tuning factors can be adjusted on site, at will, with any group.  This will never be for handbells when mixing sets, even of the same “breed”.   

 

    I’m terrible at math in general, yet love these theoretical issues.  I would doubt that the human ear would agree with a perfect pitch match between a C3 and a C7, no matter the brand.  It would have to be “tempered”.

 

    On last thought, IF you could make all pitches match, it would make for very dull too pure music.  My Jr/Sr H.S. band director had every one of us sit with an oscilloscope (or whatever it was.. I was about 12 at this point) to test us with our instrument to see how divergent various notes were.  Try asking a bell ringer to do that with a bell !  LV  

 

PS:  Of course a funny from Val:  I had to play glockenspiel in marching band, ostensibly to save “my lip” for concert clarinet, but really cause I could read both clefs and I knew he wouldn’t make me a majorette!!  In one group marching band performance on some football field, Mr. Swor asked that only I play the glock (I’m sure enraging other groups)... but he HAD perfect pitch, was a perfectionist, had migraines, you name it.  Can you picture about 6-7 bands with glocks of all kinds playing anything “in tune”?  Ours was a heavy true glock, not the lighter almost toy glocks.  My mother always blamed him for my back problems !  She was right, of course.  Enjoy your pitch variations.  LV