Fluid tuning is a tuning system

Musical tuning

In music, there are two common meanings for tuning:* Tuning practice, the act of tuning an instrument or voice.* Tuning systems, the various systems of pitches used to tune an instrument, and their theoretical bases.-Tuning practice:...

 for the piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 and hammered dulcimer

Hammered dulcimer

The hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings...

. It was developed by Geoff Smith, a composer and musician from Brighton

Brighton

Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

Fluid tuning is accomplished by the addition of the microtonal tuning mechanism to the instrument. This mechanism enables the musician

Musician

A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....

 to alter each note individually and separately by precise microtonal intervals

Interval (music)

In music theory, an interval is a combination of two notes, or the ratio between their frequencies. Two-note combinations are also called dyads...

. With this design modification, the musician can choose either to leave the piano in 'fixed tuning', or to use the mechanism to retune any number of notes microtonally to any desired combination. The modification, therefore, allows a number of tuning layouts to be created and explored per composition, in contrast to the instrument being creatively limited to fixed tuning which is typically the culturally predominant Western

Western world

The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...

 chromatic octave

Chromatic scale

The chromatic scale is a musical scale with twelve pitches, each a semitone apart. On a modern piano or other equal-tempered instrument, all the half steps are the same size...

.

The microtonal tuning mechanism consists of a sliding bridge, a groove and buffers fitted to each note of the instrument. The bridge is in constant contact with the strings. If the musician slides the bridge along the groove to any point between the buffers, a precise microtonal interval change results.

External links

• Geoff Smith
• Composer reinvents the piano
• BBC: Out of tune, An investigation into the development of musical tuning systems