Q. I always read that I want a correct intonation when I restring my guitar and such... What does it mean?
A. The word "intone" literally means "in tune". So - intonation is simple whether or not you are "in tune". When Randy Jackson tells singers on Idol they are "pitchy" -- he's talking about their (poor) intonation and the fact that they did not sing "in tune". So.. when you re-string your guitar, sure, you want it to be tuned up properly ... "in tune"... That's all it means. Pretty simple, huh?
When a note/tone is "sharp" - it is slightly above where you want it to be... and if a note is "flat" - it is slightly below where you want it to be.
This is more technical -- intonation is measured in cycles per second or "hertz" . There are machines that can both generate tones based on the hertz (the ear doctor uses them to figure out if you can hear or not...) and other machines that can translate a note you are playing back into hertz.
Take the note "A" above middle C on the piano. In the USA, that note (A) would be "in tune" if it registered 440 hertz. If it registered less, it would sound "flat" , more - it would sound "sharp" - like tis
A = 335 hertz = "Flat"
A = 440 hertz = "On pitch" or "In tune"
A = 445 hertz = "Sharp"
In some European countries, they use a different standard, and "A" is 445 hertz. So if you listened to a recording of the Berlin (German) Symphony play the same piece as the NY Philharmonic... it could sound different because all the musicians tuned up to a slightly higher pitch.
Also - as notes go lower or higher, they sound "out of tune" to our ear even if they're technically "right on". So, a piano tuner will compensate by "tempering" the tuning of the piano. He/she adds a few extra hertz to each octave as they go higher... and takes a few away as they go lower. So if "Concert A" was tuned at 440 hz... they might tune the next octave up at 882 instead of the perfect 880... and the octave below at 218 instead of the "perfect" 220 hz.
You have to do that as you tune and/or set up your guitar as well. A guitar with "perfect intonation" with open strings can sound very out of tune at higher frets , even if it is tuned up perfectly.
A good guitar builder compensates for you in how they cut the fret slots and place the nut and the bridge...and on electric guitars (especially) you can adjust the bridge saddles back and forth and make other tweaks so the guitar sounds "in tune" no matter where you play it.
You didn't ask this - but for readers...
This is a big problem with really cheap "student" guitars. Even if we can get them "in tune" to play open chords at the first few frets... they can sound so out-of-tune above the fifth fret that they literally sound terrible. This is very discouraging for a beginner and one reason many quit. You can get reasonably good instruments for around $100 today - there's no reason to play something that can't be tuned properly.
Hope this helps.
Is it easier to play the accordion if you know how to play the piano?
Q. I'm 16 and i decided to learn how to play the accordion because its amazing. i was wondering if it is easier for me because i can play the piano, so can i learn how to play it by myself?
I think that the only differences are the base notes.
Which brand do you recommend? Thanks..
A. It's not just the piano keys.
The shape and contour of the keys is different.
There is no keyboard velocity control.
You've got to learn bellows control.
You've got to learn the Stradella system for the bass (not base) notes and chords.
You've got got to decide which type of accordion music you are going to play. Italian, German, French, Russian,Mexican and Cajun are all somewhat different in the voicing.
Hohner, Excelsior, Weltmeister, Dino Baffetti, Gabbinelli are all well-respected European manufacturers. There are (still) numerous Italian builders, I couldn't recommend any one over another.
Roland makes a Digital accordion.
Beware of "Italian sounding names" on Chinese instruments. These are built as entry-level instruments and often have manufacturing defects.
... There are fewer "old-world" makers every year. There are not enough sales to support the industry, and few of the younger generation are going to keep a family business alive that is struggling already no mater how romantic it may seem.
Bass guitar chords?
Q. I am trying to memorize all the bass chords for a 4 string bass. I am surprisingly having trouble finding a diagram on the internet, and don't want to pay money, because I can probably get all the info I need free. Does anyone know of a good website to try? I was not born yesterday, so I don't need to be told to yahoo or google it or use any other search engine for that matter. Please help.
A. I disagree with Sarah G that bass players do not play chords. Although it's rare that we play all the notes at once the way a guitar player would, several well known players do occasionally employ this technique. In addition, being well grounded in chord theory and structure will allow you to do things like play arpeggiated chords as a bass line, or free your guitar or piano player from playing the root (or other) note on more advanced chords (common in jazz).
On to your question, while I'm not familiar with any free chord charts specifically for bass, you can check out the arpeggio builder at:
http://www.activebass.com
(lots of other great, free content for bassists here as well)
Also, several free guitar sites exist for chord charts. You can use these guitar charts and drop the top two strings (B and high-E), as the bottom four are the same in different octaves. Just be aware of which notes you lose, and play around with different patterns (playing further up the neck will produce cleaner chords). I suggest any of these sites:
http://www.guitarnotes.com/guitar/notes2/ultimate11.shtml
http://www.all-guitar-chords.com/index.php
http://www.looknohands.com/chordhouse/
For a refresh on bass guitar chord theory, you might try:
http://www.vt2000.com/basswork/chords/baschord.htm
And for a refresh on the CAGED theory of chord construction (for guitar), I suggest:
http://www.wholenote.com/default.asp?src=l&l=9&p=1
Powered by Yahoo! Answers
Title : What exactly is intonation?
Description : Q. I always read that I want a correct intonation when I restring my guitar and such... What does it mean? A. The word "intone" ...