Otto Higel Co

[Paul Kupelian]

Allen,

First of all, my method of pitch raising is to do it as one quick tuning
unless the piano is more than a half step flat, which I have not yet
encountered.  I strip mute the entire piano, then begin to set a rough
temperment which is usually sharp by a couple of beats.

After that, I quickly tune up to the first break, then down to A1 and
back to C88 tuning one string.  Next, I start with the first bi-chord and
tune the bi-chords up to the first trichord.  Next, I tune the left hand
string of each unison.  The reason for this is that you can easily pull
the strip out as you go up which exposes just the left string.  Next, I
either start back at the first trichord and do the right hand string
going back up to C88, or start at C88 and come back down.

This method has worked well for me, and I have not broken many strings as
a result.  The whole process takes 20 minutes to a half hour, and when I
recheck the pitch, it is usually right on and ready for a complete
tuning.

The reason for not doing all three strings at once is that you do not
want to add that much tension to one part of the piano, but rather to
build the tension gradually over the instrument.  Remember that when you
are pitch raising, you are adding several thousand pounds of additional
tension.

Regards,
Paul Kupelian, RPT
kupelian@oswego.edu

On Mon, 11 Mar 1996, Allen Leigh wrote:

> >. Of course, I
> > stripmute the whole piano and raise all the middle strings, then all the
> > left strings, then all the right strings.
>
> What are the pro/con of doing the center strings first, as
> described, vs. just doing all three strings on each note as you go?
>
> /Allen Leigh
> So. Jordan, UT
>