Seasonal Intonation Issues

October 7, 2009 by John Ericson 5280No comments yet...http://hornmatters.com/2009/10/seasonal-intonation-issues/Seasonal+Intonation+Issues2009-10-08+02%3A29%3A40John+Ericson

The seasons are changing. One thing I have seen little remarked upon but something to keep in the back of your mind is that when playing a brass instrument in a cold location your instrument will play flatter than in a warm location with the slides set the same. With the change of seasons your slide placement will change for sure, and even during the year you will find that due to the temperature variations of different performance venues you may have to adjust your main slide fairly drastically to play in tune.

Over the summer I was practicing most often in a space that was over 80 degrees. Right now we are in a transitional period where the indoor temperatures are generally dropping to the winter levels, and in my own case I will end up practicing normally in a space that is less than 70 degrees. So the ultimate shift is something just over 15 degrees at home. At my office it is less of a shift but still is notable.

Compounding things further is that if you are practicing with piano the warm temperatures will make their instrument go flat while the same temperatures will make a horn go sharp. Depending on where the piano is and when it was last tuned you may need to adjust quite a ways to match it.

One of the work conditions negotiated by a professional orchestra would be a temperature clause. From the master agreement of the Nashville Symphony from back when I was there (dated 1994) we read for example,

The Orchestra shall not be required to play any indoor service if the temperature is less than sixty-five (65) degrees Fahrenheit or greater than eighty (80) degrees Fahrenheit.

The Orchestra shall not be required to play any outdoor service if the temperature is less than sixty-five (65) degrees Fahrenheit or greater than one hundred (100) degrees Fahrenheit.

There are further items in this section including that the orchestra will not perform in direct sunlight. While comfort is part of the issue for this rule, another big element is the intonation issue addressed above and ultimately also accuracy and clams, temperature extremes and changes impact everything.  Something to keep in mind in your horn playing.