Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 6 days ago
In 2021, an anonymous paper — known today as the “Fafner1988” duration study — began circulating in conservatories and academic circles. It has often been cited as evidence that Beethoven’s music must have been performed much faster than we think today.
In this podcast episode, Stefan and I take a careful look at how the paper works — and why its reasoning leads to circular conclusions that continue to push the tradition toward faster and faster tempos.
We discuss why historical concert durations and metronome markings are not the same kind of evidence, how statistics can be misapplied in music history, and what happens when data is used to confirm assumptions rather than test them.
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Instant access to our Recordings on Bandcamp: authenticsound.bandcamp.com
Check out our CD/Vinyl recordings here: ▶authenticsound.org/recordings
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🙋Join our Patreon community and help us create more content▶patreon.com/authenticsound
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📩Stay informed! Join our mailinglist (yes we have one too!) 👉bit.ly/as-mailinglist
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📱 Website: ▶authenticsound.org
In 2021, an anonymous paper — known today as the “Fafner1988” duration study — began circulating in conservatories and academic circles. It has often been cited as evidence that Beethoven’s music must have been performed much faster than we think today.
In this podcast episode, Stefan and I take a careful look at how the paper works — and why its reasoning leads to circular conclusions that continue to push the tradition toward faster and faster tempos.
We discuss why historical concert durations and metronome markings are not the same kind of evidence, how statistics can be misapplied in music history, and what happens when data is used to confirm assumptions rather than test them.
--
Instant access to our Recordings on Bandcamp: authenticsound.bandcamp.com
Check out our CD/Vinyl recordings here: ▶authenticsound.org/recordings
--
🙋Join our Patreon community and help us create more content▶patreon.com/authenticsound
--
📩Stay informed! Join our mailinglist (yes we have one too!) 👉bit.ly/as-mailinglist
--
📱 Website: ▶authenticsound.org
