ON TEMPERAMENT. 



161 



rate ; scales in common use were tuned perfectly true, or very 

 nearly true, and the error was accumulated in other keys 

 which were supposed to be less needed ; they were termed 

 wolves. Of course, there was a consequent condition in 

 dealing with this old tuning that the player should limit him- 

 self to a prescribed circle, and should never modulate into 

 these forbidden keys ; Afe and Bfc| were wolves ; I speak from 

 memory, as it does not matter which, so long as you understand 

 that some were excluded. This temperament had many merits, 

 and some organists even of the present time prefer it to the 

 equitonic. I am not at all sure that I should not prefer it 

 myself. It specially had the advantage of retaining the third 

 of the scale correct ; but it had on the other hand the fault 

 of flattening the very sensitive fifth to its injury. Of this I 

 shall speak again, but I may show you a table which I abbre- 

 viated from Mr. Curwen's work, who I believe derived it origin- 

 ally from Mr. Ellis, wherein I have put down the numbers re- 

 spectively of the three temperaments. In the middle is the true 

 temperament, there is the ordinary equal temperament on one 

 side as used for pianofortes and harmoniums, and the unequal 

 temperament on the other. 



The reason that this system became insufficient for the 

 needs of players dates back as far as the time of Bach, who 

 wrote a great work called The, Well-tempered, or Well-tuned 

 Keyboard; he therein aimed at getting perfect freedom of 

 modulation into all keys ; but the geniuses who first made 

 use of this system and required it, were Mozart and Beethoven. 



VOL. II. M 



