User:Hotcrystal0/Earth31 ideas

This page is an unorganized dump for ideas for my Earth#31 worldbuilding project, where 31edo becomes the predominant tuning system in the world.

PM exchange on the conwaylife.com forums between me and Cole:

So after reading your "Earth10" thing, I've had this idea in my mind of a world where 31edo becomes the dominant tuning system. 31edo has had some historical significance, so it's probably not that hard to get out a story of how it became the dominant tuning system. By the way, I don't have an account on xen wiki despite often lurking it. I can't really remember how I got interested in xenharmonic music, so I can't really register for an account.

Interesting.

I am beating my head over a similar problem, namely what if the world used 7edo as its main tuning system.

Regarding 31edo, it should not be hard for someone to work out that 1/4 comma meantone fifths close in a circle of almost 31, even more so than 12, and then design a 31 tone Halberstadt keyboard. However the cognitive shock would be massive.

I’ve put more thought into it (and also registered an account on xen wiki), and I’ve thought of this: When 31edo became popularized, initially instruments usually played a 12-note subset of 31edo consisting of notes in a circle of fifths from Eb to G#, then a 21- note subset consisting of all the natural notes, their sharps, and their flats. Only after then were instruments made that could play all of 31edo. Using septimal (and to an extent undecimal) harmony really starts becoming popular in the 20th century.

In all seriousness, I think a 31-tone instrument is very difficult to mass produce. Contrary to the mass production of pianos in our timeline would this timeline also prioritize small, portable instruments?

Drone's "random change in history":

uhh um the UK did not immediately dismantle all its computers after winning WWII

This:

I'm going to have both the US and the UK be extremely LGBTQ+-friendly in the Earth31 world