just intonation

Tuning built from pure small-number ratios: flawless in one key, unusable in the others.

Tuning built from pure small-number frequency ratios, so chords in one key lock and shimmer with no beating at all. The catch: tune pure for C and you are unusable in F sharp, because the pure intervals do not fit the other keys. equal temperament trades that purity for freedom.

Learn it: The math behind music

The one-sentence definition at the top is the same one the Theory Aide extension shows as a tooltip inside Ableton Live. Hover any dotted term for its own.