oudistcamp - 10-21-2009 at 06:53 AM
As I am reading up on Pythagoras tuning, I am also wondering if there is any relationship between the tuning intervals and the Pythagoras Theorem.
I have tried to look at both formulae sideways and upside down. Something tells me there is, but I can't put a finger to it....
Brian Prunka - 10-21-2009 at 11:38 AM
I don't think there is a relationship. Pythagoras was very interested in music and all sorts of mathematical relationships.
Pythagorean tuning is based on the 3:2 relationship of the third harmonic to the second harmonic (the interval of a 5th, and the first overtone that
produces anything other than an octave).
Marina - 10-22-2009 at 03:18 AM
Actually, all the "lima, lima, koma" stuff is conected to Pythagoras, as far as I remember from some of Taiseers lectures.
But if you are talking about the oud tuning, like, opened strings or so, that is interesting think...They (greeks) had just "lira - like" instruments,
I don't think that they had a lute kind instruments (with neck). So they did not "press" the strings in order to shorten them. Their instruments had
one string for each tone. So, the tuning of those "lira" sweeties was "kind" a diatonic, but the whole tone was 204 cent and not 200 as it is today.
But octave still was 1200 cent. Well, this cent issue in modern counting. So, let's play some music.
;-)
http://library.thinkquest.org/04apr/00275/ancient_ins.htm
Luttgutt - 10-22-2009 at 05:02 AM
For what it is worth, her is what I think:
I am guessing people are mixing between the Pythagoras theorem (wich has nothing to do with music), mixing it with the PERFECT triangle (is this the
right name?! can't recall).
The greeks believed that the numbers 1,2,3,4 make a perfect triangle (the sum is 10). And that was used to find the perfect intervals.
In the end, it is all numbers to me 
Marina - 10-22-2009 at 05:12 AM
No, the Pythagoras theorem has nothing to do with this issue.
