William Ford | 14 JAN 2025
Microtonality has long fascinated composers and performers alike, offering a rich tapestry of tonal possibilities beyond the constraints of traditional Western tuning systems. In this discussion, composer/arranger Matthew Sheeran and GRAMMY®-winning guitarist and composer John Schneider discuss how microtonality opens the door to new ways of understanding the concepts of pitch and harmony.
Sheeran’s recently released Acoustic Microtonal, on Cedille Records, is his work to transcribe the microtonal electronic music of Easley Blackwood for traditional orchestral instruments. In addition, Matthew has been making waves in the music industry with his unique arrangements of tracks from superstars like Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa, Lizzo, KT Tunstall, and many more.
The preeminent American guitarist, John Schneider, is a one-time Grammy winner and three-time nominee. He is also the voice of KPFK’s weekly radio show “Global Village” and the founder of MicroFest Records.
The transcript below provides a detailed look at their thoughts on the challenges, innovations, and expressive potential of microtonality. Whether you’re a seasoned composer, a curious listener, or an avid supporter of new music, this dialogue sheds light on one of the most innovative areas in modern composition.
These excerpts have been edited for length and clarity.
Composer/Arranger Matthew Sheeran
William Ford: Can you define microtonality?
Matthew Sheeran: Microtonality refers to using notes that aren’t found in the standard 12-note system most Western music uses. To explain, the piano has 12 notes in an octave, which make up the chromatic scale. But in other musical traditions and systems, there are additional notes between those 12. For instance, many non-Western cultures use scales that include these “in-between” notes. To them, our music might sound microtonal because it uses notes they don’t.
Matthew Sheeran
Microtonality comes in many forms. One way to explore it is through “equal temperament,” where an octave is divided into equal parts. The standard 12-tone system divides the octave into 12 equal parts. But you can divide it into other numbers, like 5, 7, or even 24, to create entirely different musical worlds.
WF: How does this work in practice?
MS: Imagine a clock: we divide it into 12 hours. But what if we had 13 or 16 hours instead? The concept is similar with music. Dividing an octave into 13 notes creates an unfamiliar sound because it doesn’t relate to the 12-note system at all. Dividing it into 16 notes still has some connections, but it starts introducing new, alien tones.
The composer Easley Blackwood explored divisions of the octave from 13 to 24 notes. Each division creates its own unique musical landscape. For instance, the 21-note division might inspire Baroque-style music, while 18 notes could resemble Stravinsky. A 23-note division, being a prime number, has no overlap with the 12-tone system, so Blackwood drew inspiration from Balinese gamelan scales.
WF: How did you create this music?
MS: We recorded musicians playing as close as possible to the microtonal scales using standard instruments. Then, we fine-tuned their recordings to fit the microtonal system. It’s a bit like translating a text into another language—some things don’t translate perfectly, so adjustments are needed to preserve meaning and expression.
WF: Is microtonality hard to notate?
MS: Yes, and this is a challenge for Western notation systems, which were designed for 12-tone music. Even within Western music, scales like the whole-tone or octatonic scales don’t fit neatly into the system. With microtonal music, the problem becomes even bigger because it introduces notes and relationships that the traditional system doesn’t accommodate well.
WF: Where does microtonality stand in music today?
MS: Microtonality is still in its early stages, similar to when Schoenberg first introduced atonal music. His work initially sounded radical, but it followed structures familiar to late Romantic music. Over time, musicians adapted to playing atonal music. Microtonal music might follow a similar path—what feels experimental now could become more natural for performers in the future.
GRAMMY® winner Guitarist Jack Schneider
John Schneider: The moment that changed my life was when I returned to the U.S. and someone introduced me to a guitar with the frets in different positions. I was stunned. I had been giving a talk about my discoveries at a conference, and the person after me spoke about moving the frets and using alternate tuning systems. I thought, What is this about? Afterward, he played for me for an hour, and it completely transformed my perspective.
John Schneider
The idea that the 12 frets we use in an octave are historically determined and arbitrary blew my mind. The human ear can hear over 500 notes in an octave, yet we only use 12. What are we missing? That realization led me to explore music from other cultures, like Indian, Persian, and Arabic traditions, where they use far more notes than Western music. I also discovered that Western music has its own rich history of alternative tunings, which inspired much of my work, including this album.
William Ford: So alternative tunings would be considered microtonal from the perspective of the 12-tone equal temperament system?
JS: Exactly. Microtonal music refers to anything outside the standard 12-tone equal-tempered scale. Interestingly, there’s a school of thought called just intonation, which uses acoustically pure intervals based on the harmonic series. This series determines what’s truly in tune from a physical perspective. Ironically, modern equal temperament, which we consider “normal,” is microtonal because it deviates from these natural intervals.
WF: How did you get involved with refretted guitars?
JS: It all started with Bach. I discovered—later than I’d like to admit—that Bach’s music wasn’t originally played in modern equal temperament. That revelation pushed me to explore who else was experimenting with tuning. I came across composers like Harry Partch, Lou Harrison, and La Monte Young, and I realized there was so much more to learn. Most of the albums I’ve put out focus on these “fringe” tunings.
Someone once asked me, Can’t you just do a normal album? I thought, sure, but why? Everyone does normal. That’s when I decided to tune pieces the way Bach’s harpsichord or organ would have been tuned and to explore historical tunings from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Renaissance tuning, for example, is even more diverse than Bach’s well temperament, which itself isn’t equal temperament.
My goal became showing people what this music sounds like from a historical tuning perspective. The guitar is perfect for this because, with a plucked string instrument, you can not only hear the microtonality but see it too.
WF: Sometimes, it sounds out of tune to me.
JS: It’s out of tune with your expectations—what you’re used to hearing. Lou Harrison, who detested equal temperament, said that people’s ears get stuck in those grooves, unable to escape them. Western classical music misses out on a vast diversity of sound because it’s so locked into regular scales. But with microtonal music, you can hear and appreciate something entirely new, something beyond what the traditional canon offers.
Thanks to technology, we now have access to all kinds of music from around the world, whenever we want. It’s an incredible time to explore these new sounds and expand our horizons. ■
Watch a video of the complete interview EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Matthew Sheeran: smatalent.com/matt-sheeran
- jack Schneider: jackschneidermusic.com
Read more by William Ford.
