Mistery Pitch Swings

[MR ROLAND KAPLAN]

-- [ From: Roland Kaplan * EMC.Ver #2.5.3 ] --
 Expanded recipient data:
 To:   Jelving                  \ America On-Line: (JElving)

List,
	Pitch swings?  A few years ago I tuned a Steinway D for an outdoors(!)
concert featuring Ottmar Liebert.  Tuning was done on a nice dry summer
afternoon.  No problems during the sound check.  Went over tuning after
sound check.  No problems.  High stratus moves in from over the hills to
the west, wet marine air moves in, temperature drops, humidity and temp
goes from 90 degrees and 30% to 55 degrees and 95%.  And the piano -- it
became unusable.  It produced a tonality from outer space, while the
other instuments stayed on pitch.  I talked with the band during
intermission. They understood exactly what had happened. We declared the
piano a lost cause.
	Would any of you who use a cybertuner have been able to say "Give me a
20 minute intermission and I'll put this piano back on pitch?"  (It had
risen to about A446)
	This unscheduled pitch raise, courtesy of the weather, is not what had
been happening at this venue.  It caught all of us by surprise.  In my
area, south of San Francisco, the weather pattern in the summer is
normally similar to what I described.  But in this case it was more
extreme.
	The next concert featured Diane Schuur,  who, besides accompanying
herself at the piano, has an incredible sense of intonation.  I arranged
with the stage crew to have spotlights shining on the piano at all times
-- a cross between a tanning salon and a damp chaser.  The piano
remained on pitch.

Roland Kaplan

-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------

> Date: Thursday, 19-Dec-96 01:25 AM
>
> From: Jelving                  \ America On-Line: (JElving)
> To:   Pianotech-L              \ Internet:    (pianotech@byu.edu)
> cc:   PTG-L Reply              \ Internet:    (ptg-l@prairienet.org)
>
> Subject: Mistery Pitch Swings
>
> Dear Fellow Techs -
>
> Today I was tuning in a church (Oh! Another church story!) and had a
very
> unusual occurrance and am looking for some help in explaining it to
myself.
>
> To preface the story, I was at the same church to tune 2 pianos in
August of
> this year. One piano, an *inexpensive* grand, I had been servicing
since it was
> new, and it is fairly well settled in. The 2nd piano was new to me
(recently
> donated, I think). It is a Wurlitzer 41 in. console, 1980's vintage.
On that
> service call I did a pitch raise of 34.3 cents (according to my SAT),
and tuned
> it to A440. The Temperature was 77 and Relative Humidity was 46%.
>
> Today when I returned for another tuning, I expected the pitch to have
dropped
> some, as is usual, and be out of tune with itself. But what to my
wondering
> ears should appear, but a piano that was slightly flat in the bass (as
> expected), and from the bass break up 24.9 cents sharp. The humidity
was 58%
> (not a wide varience), but the temperature in the room was 60 degrees.
>
> Now the grand was in a different building, but also without heat. (T=
59,
> RH=53%) This piano was slightly sharp, mostly in the extreme treble,
but not to
> the degree that the console was.
>
> I should also say that both piano were tuned on the same days, using
the same
> SAT and set of ears.
>
> My question is: What would cause this wild raise in pitch in the
console,
> especially above the bass/tenor break? My curiosity is really piqued.
I would
> appreciate any ideas from any of you.
>
> John Elving, RPT
> Elving's Piano Service
> Sacramento, CA (home of the 1997 California State PTG Convention)
>

-------- REPLY, End of original message --------