Hi List,
I think it was I who started this thread by asking if anyone had any
good info to impart to a Master Class regarding some kind of technical
awareness for the average piano student. I found the Kuerti article to
be informative though somewhat dated.
No one has, however, mentioned the sidebar article that ran in the
Journal, "Anton Kuerti's Step-by-Step Guide for Determining if your
Piano is in Good Regulation". I'm not sure if it ran in Clavier.
I finally got around to typing it out and I include it below. This
sidebar was more of what I had in mind to give to a university student
(or any pianist) to enlighten them as to the condition of their
instrument. Not necessarily to encourage them to service said
instrument!
I have posted this in Plain Text. If anyone would like a formatted .rtf
file of this, please email off list.
Regards,
Phil Romano
Coastal Carolina University
Conway, South Carolina
Anton Kuerti's
Step-By-Step Guide
FOR DETERMINING IF YOUR PIANO IS IN GOOD REGULATION
PIANOS NEED FREQUENT REGULATING
Most people are aware of the need to tune pianos regularly. What they
often do not realize, unfortunately, is that tuning is only a small part
of the care needed to keep a piano in first-rate condition. Poorly
regulated pianos are a nightmare for the performer, often making it
impossible for him to give his listeners a meaningful musical
experience. Equally important, they hinder students in their efforts to
develop technique, for many ways of playing are impossible when the
regulation is faulty.
A common misconception is that when a knowledgeable pianist asks the
technician to make some changes in the regulation of a piano, it is
because he wants the piano to be specifically adjusted to his own
personal preferences. While personal preferences of course do exist, the
average piano is so far from being regulated in accordance with the
normal, correct standards that the pianists request are usually just a
desperate attempt to restore these standard, reasonable norms.
Regular adjustment of a piano is necessary because the mechanism
contains many felt and leather parts
that become compressed and worn through use and are considerably
affected by varying moisture content due to seasonal changes in the
relative humidity of the air.
(APPLIES TO GRAND PIANOS ONLY)
Materials needed: 20 pennies, a ruler, a doctor's tongue depressor or
piece of cardboard, a pencil with an eraser.
Preparation: Remove the music rack and bring a good lamp or flashlight
to the piano.
1. Jack Position and Obvious Defects:
Strike each note on the piano very forcefully, release it very slowly,
and then play it a second time FF. Notes which fail to play on the first
blow probably have the jack too far forward, those which fail on the
second probably have it set too high. Since this will be the only test
in which all the notes of the piano will be struck, check at the same
time for missing ivories or strings, clicks or vibrations, notes that do
not function, etc.
2. Weighting and Friction in Centers
Press down the damper pedal (on right) and place a stack of twelve
pennies at the front edge of a white key. Gradually add pennies, one by
one, until the key starts to move down. It should take at least 13 and
no more than 19 pennies to start the key moving. Check a number of
different keys. Adjacent keys should not vary more than the weight of
two pennies. After the key has moved down, remove one penny at a time
until the key rises almost completely to its rest position. There should
be an absolute minimum of 6, preferably 7 pennies left on it. Be careful
not to allow pennies to fall between keys!
3. Striking Distance:
To measure the striking distance simply take a piece of stiff paper or a
doctor's tongue fall depressor, measure off 1 3/4" with a pencil, and
insert it between two strings until it barely rests on the surface of
the hammer. The pencil mark should then be even with the underside of
the string. It is even easier to measure if you if you make a notch at
the correct distance. You can feel the string with the notch and observe
the bottom end, which should just touch the hammer. The distance should
be within 1/8" of the 1 3/4" standard. Check with the eye to see
that the hammer line is perfectly level and even. If the hammer shanks
(the long arms to which the hammer heads are attached) are resting on
the felt cushions below them, it is almost certain that the hammers are
resting too far from the strings, as there should be a gap of roughly
1/4" between the shanks and the cushions. This and some other
measurements are difficult to measure in the low bass and high treble,
so it may be best to confine your checking to the middle registers.
4. Let-off and Lubrication:
Press down a key very slowly, observing carefully where the hammer stops
rising and starts to fall back down. This should be 1/16" from the
string, the thickness of a penny. Up to 1/8" is acceptable for any note
and for the low bass notes with single strings, even slightly more than
1/8". Check many notes to see that this adjustment is even. Listen
carefully while pushing the key down, especially near the bottom of the
key, where resistance increases. Any creaking or squeaking indicates the
need for lubrication.
5. Drop and Aftertouch:
Again depress a key very slowly, and this time observe how far the
hammer falls after it changes direction. This should be at least 1/16"
and not more than 3/16" at the most. Depress and hold down a chromatic
series of notes in this manner, and check to see that the hammers all
end up in a straight line. If you play any of the notes too strongly
when doing this, they will be caught by the backchecks and appear to be
much too low, so if any of them seem far out of line, try them again
even more gently. After the hammer drops, it should be possible to push
the key slightly further down before hitting bottom.
6. Back-checks:
Strike a fairly hard blow, keeping the key down. The hammer should be
caught firmly when it rebounds and not bounce back up toward the string.
It should be caught clearly higher than the half way point between the
resting point of the hammers and the strings, ideally about 5/8" from
the strings. Now play a series of notes simultaneously and check to see
that the line of caught hammers is reasonably straight. (A deviation of
1/8" or so would be acceptable in this case while it would not be in
tests 3, 4, or 5).
7. Repetition Springs:
Strike a firm blow and then very gradually start to release the key,
observing the hammer carefully. At a certain moment it should start to
rise on its own. This motion should be gradual, not jerky, but also not
too slow, perhaps about like a rather slow gesture by a conductor. Check
for evenness, as usual. It is impossible to judge the springs if the
back-checks are not working properly.
8. Touch Depth:
Place a stack of six pennies on a white key, and press it down until it
touches bottom securely, but without pushing too hard. The surface of
the top penny should be even with the adjacent keys, or slightly lower,
particularly on concert grands. It should not be lower than the bottom
surface of the ivory key covering. A depth of seven pennies (about
.420") would be the absolute maximum permissible for a concert grand,
and would definitely be too deep for smaller instruments. Check with the
eye to make sure the keys are level both when at rest and when
depressed. Check the touch depth in the middle and at the extreme ends
of the keyboard, as it may be off in one place more than another.
Finally, press some black keys down quite firmly. They should stop at
least 1/16" above the surface of the white keys, the thickness of one
penny.
9. Keys:
Lift some white keys above their normal resting position. They should
return promptly to their original position. Now hold a key firmly and
try to move it backwards and forwards. There should be no free play at
all in this direction. Check for play to the left and right. There
should be some, but not enough to allow the keys to touch each other.
Slap some of the black keys to their right and left, and see if you can
hear them hitting the adjacent notes.
10. Hammers:
Press down a note softly while looking straight down at the hammer. It
should be squarely under all three strings. It is all right for it to be
slightly to the right of center, as long as it is clear that the string
on the left will be solidly struck. Examine the grooves on the hammers,
and the shape of the hammer heads. There should be no deep grooves, and
the surface should not be flat. A groove as deep as the thickness of a
string would be unacceptable for concert purposes. In the treble the
grooves should not be longer than 1/8". From about A-440 down, they may
be longer.
11. Pedals and Dampers:
After checking for squeaks (check the damper pedal particularly for
rapid lifting, and the soft pedal when pressed slowly), depress the
damper pedal very slowly, and watch the dampers. There should be some
free play before the dampers start to rise, but after the pedal has been
about 1/4" they should start to rise quite uniformly. Next, observe a
hammer and a damper as you press a key down slowly. The damper should
start to lift when the hammer is about half way to the string. When the
note is held down, try lifting
the damper higher with the fingers. The free play here should be very
small. If it possible to lift the damper more than 1/8", the damper stop
rail needs adjustment. Play a series of loud staccato chords and listen
for notes that do not disappear rapidly enough. Finally, with the soft
pedal down, damp the middle and right strings with a rubber eraser. Now
play the note. Only a thud should be heard, no sustained sound.
12. Middle Pedal:
Middle pedals are almost always out of order, and they are the least
important of all the piano's various regulations. Play a chord in the
bass, and while holding it, push down the middle pedal. Release the keys
and the chord should remain sustained. After trying several different
chords, press down the damper pedal, and while holding it down, press
down the middle pedal. Now hold down the middle pedal while releasing
the damper pedal, and watch the dampers. None of them should drop. Now
release the middle pedal and push it down again. While holding it, play
notes all over the keyboard loudly. None of them should be sustained by
the pedal.
To be suitable for concert performances, a piano should pass all the
above tests with the possible exception of number 12.
-----Original Message-----
From: caut-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of
Horace Greeley
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2004 6:29 PM
To: College and University Technicians
Subject: RE: Kuerti article
Alan, et al,
At 04:15 PM 3/23/2004, you wrote:
>Hey folks,
>
>Has anyone made contact with Mr Kuerti? Just reread the article. This
>is really an amazing piece expecially given the date of writing. So
>what that several of the "fixes" are now considered to be problems
>rather than solutions. There is still so much good information in it
>that I wish all pianists knew it by heart. I hope to be teaching a
>class for teachers and pianists this summer and would like to have his
>permission to use it, even in its dated form. Thanks.
I had sent an EM to the last known-good address I had for Mr. Kuerti,
and
have had no response to date. I believe that he is listed in Musical
America, and can probably be reached through his management (from that
listing).
As I think I originally noted, he has always been most gracious in
allowing
people to use that material, given appropriate acknowledgement; and
really
cannot imagine that he would not do so again. Still, it is best to be
sure.
Best of luck with your class! I am sure that you will learn at least as
much as the "students" do!
Horace
>Alan
>
>____________________________________________
>Alan McCoy, RPT
>Eastern Washington University
>509-359-4627
>amccoy@mail.ewu.edu
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: caut-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of
>Horace Greeley
>Sent: Tuesday, March 02, 2004 8:55 AM
>To: College and University Technicians
>Subject: Re: Kuerti article
>
>At 08:25 AM 3/2/2004, you wrote:
> >I've just begun reading the article. This is a fabulous article for
> >the PTG to request permission for reproduction!
>
>I used that article for years when doing different types of
>presentations/classes/seminars. Kuerti was always most generous in
>giving permission - obviously when properly credited.
>
>I have sent an EM to the last place I knew how to reach him to see if
>he is still amenable to such use. It has been a while, so I may not
>have correct current data.
>
>Best.
>
>Horace
>
>
>
> >Jeff
> >
> >On Tuesday, March 2, 2004, at 11:15 AM, Jeff Tanner wrote:
> >
> >>I did just locate the article in the bound periodicals section of
> >>our music library. Jeff
> >>
> >>On Tuesday, March 2, 2004, at 11:03 AM, Horace Greeley wrote:
> >>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>Jeff,
> >>>
> >>>It does...well, at least I found it in the wee-small, but it does
> >>>not appear to have a searchable archive. If someone does find such
> >>>a thing, please do post it.
> >>>
> >>>Thanks very much.
> >>>
> >>>Horace
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>At 07:46 AM 3/2/2004, you wrote:
> >>>
> >>>I don't think Clavier has a web site.
> >>>Jeff
> >
> >_______________________________________________
> >caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
>
>
>_______________________________________________
>caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
>
>_______________________________________________
>caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
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