Wohltemperierung

Wohltemperierung, or well temperament, refers to a family of tuning systems developed for keyboard instruments in the 17th and 18th centuries. In a well-tempered tuning, the octave is divided into 12 semitones, but unlike equal temperament, the size of intervals is not identical across all keys. The goal is to allow playing in a wide range of keys with acceptable intonation while preserving as much consonance as possible in the commonly used keys. Different well-tempered tunings distribute the syntonic comma in various ways, so the character of each key can differ noticeably.

Historical context and development: Well temperaments emerged as composers and keyboard players sought greater modulation freedom beyond the limited keys of earlier meantone tunings, without sacrificing all-key usability. Several distinct systems were proposed and used in practice, including Werckmeister, Kirnberger, Vallotti, and Young temperaments. Each system offers a particular compromise between purity of intervals in common keys and the viability of distant keys.

Cultural and musical impact: The term Wohltemperierung is closely associated with the Baroque and early Classical periods. A landmark illustration is Johann Sebastian Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier, a collection of preludes and fugues in all major and minor keys, which demonstrated that a keyboard tuned in a well temperament could handle extensive modulation. The concept helped pave the way for later tuning developments and influenced composers’ choices about key relationships during this era.

Relation to modern practice: With the rise of equal temperament in the 19th century, the strict distinctions of well temperaments diminished in mainstream practice. Today, well temperament is studied for historical performance practice and for understanding the tonal color this approach imparted to 17th- and 18th-century music.