Huh…can I get a source on this that delves into it more? I played the cello in an orchestra, solos, and chamber music for about 10 years growing up and I’ve literally never heard anyone mention I or anyone else should’ve been putting my finger in a slightly different place for C# and Db. I suspect this is for all intents and purposes not true in the 21st century.
You will adjust without even realizing. You'll change your pitch to sound right in relation to everyone around you. This probably means that in practice your finger is slightly up or down depending.
It is also a reason why when playing an A, many prefer moving the hand to 4th position on the D string, rather than using the A-string with no finger. Partly because you can make a better tone (add vibrato if wanted), but you can also intonate.
> You will adjust without even realizing. […] This probably means
This might be true once in a while on very slow chords or the final resolving chord of a piece, maybe, but this sounds like assumption to me based on it being theoretically possible, and not evidence that it actually happens often. From experience, it sure seems like years upon years of equal tone muscle memory, from having to play with other instruments, is far more likely to dominate finger placement. Not to mention everyone being used to equal tone - having equal tone sensibility as to what sounds right. Sounding right in relation to everyone around you is still valid in 12-TET. Enharmonic micro intonations are almost certainly not happening during fast sequences, and because of that, the argument that it’s subconscious and imperceptible seems implausible - professional musicians absolutely would notice a change in finger placement depending on context, because of key changes, because of abrupt fast-slow resolutions, because of chords and arpeggios and situations where open strings are called for, etc. etc..
You didn't miss out on much. My cello teacher mentioned it to me early on, in passing, but it's basically useless trivia until you actually have enough control for it to make a difference. From observing my kids go through music study, I'd say it emerges as something to actually think about at the college level.
Instead, I switched to the double bass, joined the jazz band, and majored in physics. ;-)
I think "sweetening without realizing" may be a thing. You've assimilated the sound of classical (or whatever) music through listening. You can hear how you want the note sound in your head, and your finger goes there.
I’m responding to this part of the parent’s post: On all fretless instruments, including most bowed strings and the human voice, enharmonic equivalent notes still have different pitches. The subtle differences in intonation is incredibly important and noticeable on the violin, for example.
Yes exactly, and one would intonate it slightly differently by ear depending on what role the note has in the current harmony is the idea.
Presume a base note of A is being played and the violin plays a C# functioning as the major third of an A major chord. The ear would want to play the C# justly intonated to the root note A, or maybe a compromise somewhere between equal temperament and just intonation.
