[CAUT] Thumbtacks in hammers!

[Daniel Gurnee]

Humboldt State University has performed works requiring a Cimbalom type
sound which I provided not with tacks but staples.  A light sound can be
obtained using paper straples and a heavies sound with shop staples.  The
staples are placed at the crown of the hammer crosswise and clamped to the
sides.  The impact on playing keeps the staple in place and does no damage
to the hammer.

Daniel Gurnee, RPT retired from HSU




on 10/8/04 4:15 AM, Victor Belanger at vbela@MIT.EDU wrote:

> How ironic!
> 
> Next week I have to prep a piano for Lou Harrison's Symphony #3, and
> in the score there are instructions of installing thumb tack in the
> hammers.
> At first I thought to myself "what kind of piece of s&%t  of a piano
> can I put on stage" but then I looked at the score and it is somewhat
> demanding.
> It does not make me happy but, I chose an upright and I will take it
> as it is and find out what needs to be done after. If I need to
> change the hammers, then that is what I will need to do; sadly.
> 
> Anyone with other kind of experiences with thumbtack that could
> recommend a few pointers.
> 
> Best.
> 
> Victor Belanger
> MIT
> 
> ----- Original message ---------------------------------------->
> From: John Minor <jminor@uiuc.edu>
> To: caut <caut@ptg.org>
> Received: Wed, 6 Oct 2004 10:55:11 -0500
> Subject: [CAUT] Thumbtacks in hammers!
> 
>> Well, it finally happened. Every university technician fears
>> that one day the following will happen in their school:
> 
>> A recently rebuilt Steinway B was used for a performance of
>> Stravinsky's RAGTIME. The piece calls for cymbalum so, in it's
>> place a piano had thumb tacks pushed into the hammer felt to
>> imitate the sound. This was for a NEW MUSIC performance here
>> at the University of Illinois.
> 
>> I wrote a nice email to the performing arts center director
>> where the atrocity was committed and informed them the hammers
>> would need to be replaced at a cost of $400 for the parts.
>> Unfortunately, I failed to mention the 30 or so hours it could
>> take to bore and hang the new set!
> 
>> The department directors spoke and the offenders were
>> supposedly "spoken to" about the matter. Personally I'd rather
>> have had the chance to talk to people face to face and ask,
>> "What were you thinking?" There seems to be an attitude of
>> "I'll do anything I darn well feel like doing" among many in
>> our music department. Is that an isolated attitude?
> 
> 
>> John Minor
>> University of Illinois
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