Absolute pitches and are the concern of the performer, but relative pitches are the concern of the listener. Who's more important? ;-)
This is why I mainly worry that a relative-pitch notation may present a steeper learning curve. Advanced players typically need to be able to think at least somewhat in both relative pitches and absolute pitches at the same time anyway. Absolute pitches because that's what many instruments demand, and relative pitches, because that's where a lot of the meaning is, which informs other aspects of the performance. But it typically takes more practice to learn to think in both ways at once.
> Also remember, that different pitches have different textures, otherwise we'd never play in a keys other than C.
I did propose that pieces could indicate their intended key.
Absolute pitches are the concern of the performer. Correct. Also consider that the performer is the one who is looking at the sheet music, and not the listener.
This is why I mainly worry that a relative-pitch notation may present a steeper learning curve. Advanced players typically need to be able to think at least somewhat in both relative pitches and absolute pitches at the same time anyway. Absolute pitches because that's what many instruments demand, and relative pitches, because that's where a lot of the meaning is, which informs other aspects of the performance. But it typically takes more practice to learn to think in both ways at once.
> Also remember, that different pitches have different textures, otherwise we'd never play in a keys other than C.
I did propose that pieces could indicate their intended key.