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From: galetti@uservx.afwl.af.mil
Newsgroups: comp.music
Subject: Re: Perfect Pitch as a Birth Defect....
Message-ID: <1991Apr12.095756.21793@uservx.afwl.af.mil>
Date: 12 Apr 91 09:57:56 GMT
References: <3123@esquire.dpw.com> <1991Mar19.134336.23909@ircam.fr>  <3177@esquire.dpw.com>
Organization: Phillips Laboratory - Kirtland AFB
Lines: 30

In article <3177@esquire.dpw.com>, rreid@DPW.COM (r l reid ) writes:
> In article <346@heurikon.heurikon.com> gtaylor@vme.heurikon.com (Gregory Taylor) writes:
>>I never thought of this before, but I'll bet that those tuning systems
>>that don't adhere carefully to equal temperment, or those systems which
>>involve the use of close tuning to produce "beating" tones as a part of
>>the effect [like, say, Bali] must truly be a torturous experience.
> 
> This is what I haven't been understanding about the whole concept -
> if "perfect pitch" is inborn,  does this imply that 12-to-the-8ve,
> equal temperament is somehow wired into the brain by the Creator?
> 
> The implication (that G-d was born after the invention of the piano!)
> is staggering.

Yes, and additionally it would imply that 440 Hz was also wired into the brain
as a concert A.  Why 440 Hz?  My conclusion is that perfect pitch is an 
ABILITY that some people are born with, but it must be developed through
exposure to music in a particular tuning.  Our A=440 Hz equal tempered scale
is the tuning that most of the western world perfect pitch people have.
Perhaps someone with perfect pitch in the Orient has a different concept of
perfect pitch.  Not only that, but people born with the ability might've grown
up with an out-of-tune piano.  How do you develop perfect pitch in that
environment?
>  
> Ro
  ___________________________________________________________________________
 /   Ralph Galetti                  Internet:   galetti@uservx.afwl.af.mil   \
|    PL/LITT                        Interests:  computers, music, computers   |
|    Kirtland AFB, NM 87117-6008                and music, golf, sleep.       |
 \__"No, they couldn't actually prove that it was HIS vomit" - Nigel Tufnel__/