trumpet blower88

Now I'm curious... If someone in America were to buy a trumpet made in a Europe, say an Eclipse for example. Would they have problems with tuning to a=440? Are Eclipse trumpets made to tune at a=442?

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-David Jacques

rowuk

Vince, you have a point! It doesn't matter what we call it, when it is your turn, you have to match the rest. There are reasons (like room temperature and humidity that goes up when a lot of people are present) why the pitch goes up and down when playing. Who cares? If you come in flatter than the rest, it is your fault!
I know of no critic who checks the tuning of an orchestra while performing. Maybe the frustrated would have something to write about?

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

trumpetnick

With Spada you can this too, Vullgano! I can by the tunning slide too, but never do ...unless I want to get an A trumpet...never tried this in the orchestra though...
Oups...my understanding of english terms ....Chuck explained to me that I did not quite understand the meaning of "tunning on the bell crook"...Well, it seems that I don't. Leigh's "copyright" or something like...I have a tinning bell going off the 3rd valve piston. Sorry guys. I think that my English is fine but not always the understanding of specialised vocabulary like "reverse leadpipe", "tunning on the bell crook" etc....

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Spada Bach B flat 72, leadpipe 2L/DWMM1.5C
Spada Bach C 256, leadpipe 2LQ/DWMM1.5C
1956 Olds Ambassador Cornet
Spada Custom Piccolo

If you don't know where you are going, you 'll end up someplace else

WildCat

Some horns are hard to make work in any calibration, since they're just made badly enough to where nothing really lines up too well. That would probably be the worst case scenario.
Generally though, you can make any standard instrument work within a reasonably different tuning setting. It takes more of just accepting it than anything else. If you've ever played along with a Philharmonia Orchestra recording, it's different than the new York Phil, Vienna, or Concertgebouw. With a few minutes though, and shifting your mode of thinking, it's doable.

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Vince K.

WildCat

Very well said, but...it's just a poor orchestra, to be honest.

This is loosely related, but it's almost a precautionary measure to learn to lip things down, and just tune above the pitch. Has anybody actually played in an ensemble that's gone flat (due to a non-temperature-related issue)?

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Vince K.

Vulgano Brother

I don't remember the math, but a german dissertation I read stated that if we play the melody "Mein Hut, der hat drei Ecken" (Carnival of Venice) with perfectly tuned intervals, we'd be a quarter tone flat by the end. If we are really playing "in tune", a held note (like the root becoming a third) is going to shift our reference.

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trumpjosh

This in an enormous pet peeve of mine. What's wrong with A=440? Why does everyone feel the need to start pushing the pitch higher after beginning a rehearsal and/or concert? I have NEVER been with a group that goes flat (unless it's cold and we're playing outdoors).

It drives me up the wall and makes it incredibly hard for me to "get comfortable" with the pitch. Sorry to rant, but you guys have just hit the sorest of sore spots for me! I don't have perfect pitch, but my pitch is pretty decent, I think. I can usually tell by listening to a group whether they're in the A=440 ballpark or if they're blowing sharp. Nothing feels worse when you're playing than having to continually push your slide in and lip up to blend in with an ensemble. My sound gets bright, I get tired more quickly, and I wind up chipping notes (esp. on top of the staff) because I'm jamming the pitch up - sometimes 20-30 cents or more. GRRRR!!!

I should have my morning coffee before I get started on these threads, heh.

Alex Yates

Maybe a morning "microbrew" might do the trick?

(I feel your pain on the pitch issues Josh. Church gigs wear me out in a New York minute because there is usually a battle of pitch centers or one just doesn't exist.)

trpt2345

My friend Chuck Parrish has always said, "I'd rather be sharp than out of tune."

Michael McLaughlin

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Chicago MM

rowuk

Josh,
I guess you are playing the wrong instrument! If 440 is such an issue, you should have taken up 1st oboe or concertmaster violin or building tuning forks. The force would then be with you!
The phenomenon about going sharp is easy to explain: the instruments get warm, the room that you play in gets warm AND we have all learned that a sharp 3rd is a good thing.
In truth, 440 is as arbitrary as any other pitch in history.
If you get off of your horse and push your tuning slide in enough, your face will be very thankful, your sound will get back to normal and the chance of cracking a note will go down. The first thing that Dave Monette tells his clients is to push the tuning slide in and RELAX. In the beginning, it feels like lipping down, but in fact, you have found the true pitch center! It works, I did it! 10 years ago. Playing with more tension than is absolutely necessary makes no sense. Tuning slides are there to make sure that the horn is acoustically positioned where it does us the minimum amount of harm.
Morning coffee, unless it is decaf, only raises your blood pressure, which probably would make this even worse for you. A cup of warm milk (or bottle of wine) has the opposite effect......................

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.