equal temperament
- noun
- /ˈiːkwəl ˈtɛmpərəmənt/
- Specialized
:
temperamento igual
- This became known as "equal temperament," and sharps and flats became "enharmonic equivalents."
Examples
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Their performances were closer to equal temperament than just intonation, which Kopiez attributed to long-term intonation practice with equal temperament.
Academic text (2015) -
It doesn't have all those restrictions of meter and equal temperament.
Academic text (2015) -
Their performances were closer to equal temperament than just intonation, which Kopiez attributed to long-term intonation practice with equal temperament.
Academic text (2015) -
In equal temperament, each note is spaced so that the interval between any two adjacent semitones is the same.
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Musicians often prefer equal temperament because it allows them to play in any key without retuning their instruments.
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The piano is tuned using the equal temperament system, ensuring that all keys sound harmonious together.
How Even
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines 'equal' (having the same measured amount) with 'temperament' (a method of tuning), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it is a tuning system with equal-sized steps between notes. Although the concept is technical, the meaning follows directly from standard compositional logic and similar labels exist cross-linguistically, making it readily understandable.
Etymology
Equal temperament comes from the idea of making every step in the musical scale the same size, so the space from a note to the same note higher is divided into equal parts. The word equal shows the idea and temperament here means the way of tuning. That's why the phrase means tuning that makes every key 'equally in tune'.