Avery: I was glad to see Daniel Dover's post which included Stephen Birkett's summary. I included Stephen's summary in my report to one of my schools a couple years ago; I have not seen any summary more comprehensive than Stephen's. But your post unleashed within me the need to respond. There is one type of period piano which has not easily been classified, but which I believe has enormous importance: the mid-nineteenth-century Erard 8' concert grand. Closest to the Streicher on Stephen's list, this instrument is also closer to the modern piano than the Streicher. While no piano fully dominated the concert stage, the Erard was the piano used by Liszt from the first piano recitals of his early days, and for the next 30 or 40 years. It was the instrument which Liszt "heard" his music with, and which the other important composers of piano literature during the period had to contend with; it was the most powerful-sounding instrument of the pre-modern piano era. Liszt's archetypal competitor, Brahms, demanded it for a concerto as late as the 1860s. Even Debussy and Ravel's pianos were Erards of non-modern design. Tonally very different from the modern piano, the Erard was approximately a 12 ton stringing scale, higher than most of its contemporaries; it did not use cast steel wire (brighter, softer wire was used) nor did it have a cast plate, but instead it used metal bars fastened in the back to a substantial hitch pin plate and in the front to the pinblock; it was straight-strung. The entire damper action, including dampers, was below the strings, and was very quick. And, of course, these pianos were the only non-modern pianos with the Erard double escapement action. Certainly the importance of this instrument's place in the evolution of piano design - a unique combination of the double-escapement action, leather-covered hammers, and period frame/stringing design - combined with the dominance the Erard had in mid-nineteenth century concert halls, should result in its place on any university's period piano list. A number of forces work against the Erard's place in the "fortepiano" or historical piano world. Erards from the mid-nineteenth-century exist in quantities, and seem to retain the "old piano" stigma without the more recent "fortepiano" glow we reserve for earlier pianos. Unlike the more easily reproducible 5 octave instruments, the Erard is a very complex beast, would be an extremely costly thing to reproduce, and I know of no one who has enough data to do it. I have speculated that the Erard soundboard is of more modern concept, relying on a crowned/downbearing structure not easily restored (I have stared at my Paris Erard soundboard at length, and hope to study this structure during the restoration). This soundboard structure might be considerably more responsive in reproduction than in restoration (soundboard replacement might not be feasible - or even responsible - in the Erard). The existence of quite a number of recordings on the Erard (Emanuel Ax's 2 CD Sony Classical a couple years ago may be the most well-known), as well as the increase in the Erard's place at symposiums and in literature on performance practice, demonstrate the growing awareness of the importance of the Erard in understanding mid-nineteenth-century piano literature. But I expect a day when it will be as important for understanding mid-nineteenth-century piano literature as the 5 to 6 octave fortepianos have been in understanding late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century literature. I am indebted to Stephen Birkett for much of this information, but I don't know if Stephen agrees with my conclusions and would welcome his and others' responses. I, for one, look forward to being able to play the Liszt B-minor Sonata on an Erard restoration, or sing "Comment Disaientis" accompanied by one. Bill Shull, RPT University of Redlands, La Sierra University In a message dated 3/7/01 7:13:25 AM Pacific Standard Time, atodd@UH.EDU writes: << List, Was just wondering if any of you have to service/maintain a Fortepiano at your school. I received a call yesterday from a faculty member that said there may be money to buy one, he's forming a committee and wondered what I thought about it and if I'd be willing to serve on that committee. Of course, I said yes. My question(s): 1. Is there much difference in the maintenance and regulation of these instruments compared to the modern grand? 2. What about the tuning? Stability, pitch level, etc. 3. Is there someplace I can get information about all this? 4. What are good brands/sources? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Avery P.S. Just what I need. Another instrument to maintain. :-) >>
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