A Struggle to Integrate: Microtones in the Western World

[ashfpd]

This is a research paper that I have been working on that I feel relates to Quantum Music. Specifically, I believe that Quantum music can significantly progress through adopting microtonal tuning systems. It presents more inputs and outputs that could aid in exploring new models for information processing. I attached my abstract below. Happy to contribute to the community!

Western music has historically resisted microtonal tuning systems due to perceptual unfamiliarity and concerns surrounding consonance in polyphonic harmony. This study investigates which microtonal tuning system—Hermode Tuning, 24-Tone Equal Temperament (24-TET), or Quarter-Comma Meantone—most effectively integrates into Western listening contexts.
Using an arts-based research methodology, four stylistically controlled musical compositions (three microtonal and one 12-Tone Equal Temperament control) were digitally composed in Logic Pro X. Forty-five Western listeners evaluated each piece through a structured Likert-scale survey measuring overall impression, familiarity, listenability, and perceived uniqueness.
Results indicate that Hermode Tuning closely mirrors 12-Tone Equal Temperament across all evaluative categories, achieving equivalent mean scores in overall impression and listenability, while 24-TET and Quarter-Comma Meantone produced more variable and ambiguous listener responses.
These findings suggest that adaptive tuning systems such as Hermode Tuning provide a perceptually viable pathway for introducing microtonality into Western music without alienating audiences. While limited by sample size and compositional scope, this research contributes empirical listener-based evidence to microtonal discourse and highlights the potential of computational tuning systems to expand harmonic language within Western musical frameworks.

[omarcostahamido]

Hi @ashfpd 👋
Thanks for sharing. I agree that there is no reason why Quantum Music shouldn't be able to adopt microtonal tuning systems.
Looking forward to see how you develop this line of research and articulate it with quantum computing.
Good luck!
OCH