Bone keytops

[Horace Greeley]

At 09:19 AM 2/19/96 -0700, you wrote:
>Paul,
>The only experience I've had was with Bella Davidovich (sp?) several years
>ago. She insisted on rubbing the ivories with a candle. Since I had never
>encountered this, I was a bit uneasy letting her do it; but she told me (in
>her halting English) that this was the only was she could play. Her manager
>told me that she felt it gave her a better grasp and that she did it on every
>piano she played. Tho it took me a little elbow grease to clean them off
>afterwards, the ivories have shown no after effects.
>Gina Carter
>

So, Bella graduated to candles?

She used to use hairspray (as did, as someone else noted, Rubenstein).
Unlike him, however, she used it with a certain extravagent Russian-ness.  I
hope the candle wax was easier to remove...

Absolutely worth the work, however.  Simply exquisite Rachmaninoff and Chopin.

Best,

Horace