Soundboard Thoughts of Marilyn Monroe

[Delwin D Fandrich]

jpiesik@arinc.com wrote:

>      So, Jim, you make a very good point regarding old growth timber verses
>      today's highly processed woods. It's true that they do not make things
>      (and cannot because the materials are no longer available) the way
>      they used to. You must agree, though, that the rim, plate, and case
>      are not replaceable. Thus, as you stated, all piano parts are not
>      replaceable. The "soul" of the piano is not a replaceable part,
>      either. In humans the soul is born with us and dies with us. No doctor
>      can cut out and replace our soul. Same with a piano. If you lose the
>      plate, or rim, or case of a piano, you'll have an impossible time
>      resurrecting it. The soundboard is, however, replaceable. I do not
>      agree it is the "soul" of the piano, same way as the physical human
>      heart is not our soul. If we have a weak heart, we can get a new one,
>      via transplant, but we are still left with our original soul - no
>      matter what they cut out of us. Same is true for a piano. We might
>      change it's performance with a new part (e.g., soundboard, hammers,
>      strings, keys), but since we cannot change the plate, rim, or case we
>      cannot change the "soul" of the piano. I fully realize that the piano
>      is a sum of its parts, and the superiority of the parts vary from
>      piano to piano. Sometimes, one piano will end up with all glorious
>      parts, and we have a glorious piano. I'll bet there is an element of
>      luck (divine intervention) when this happens!
>
>      Best Regards,
>
>      John P.

----------------------------

John,

Mostly its a matter of good design and competent assembly. Of picking and choosing good elements and then fitting them
together in an appropriate manner. In the end, luck is not really an issue.

Regards,

Del