Phone messasge about S&S

[Jon Page]

Without a clear description of the tone my first thought is:
Damper tray return coil spring resonating.

'tis a puzzlement,

Jon Page


At 08:02 PM 11/20/1999 -0500, you wrote:
>Hello list. I need your ideas.
>
>Sorry to interrupt this beautiful fall weekend. I normally don't
>participate in the [after-the-fact] puzzlers that are presented here,
>mainly because the resulting guesses take up so much bandwidth, and the
>writer already knows the answer to the puzzle. This is the other kind --
>client far away, and limited information is known at the moment. So, I'm
>presenting the situation, along with my thoughts, and reaching out for
>other possibilities...
>
>Verbatim phone message heard tonight, including almost non-existent verbal
>pauses:
>"Hi Jim, this is <client> calling. There's something terribly wrong with
>the Steinway to the point where it's really not even playable but it's some
>kind of horrible buzzing sound on many of the keys and it... it almost
>sounds like there's a note sounding through but it's out of tune
>[translation: the note or sound, not the piano] and it certainly isn't the
>one I'm striking; so I don't know what's wrong but it's awful. Thanks. Bye.
>
>Note the panic superlatives... "terribly", "horrible", "awful".
>
>My return call to the client, prior to writing this message, netted -her-
>answering machine. While waiting for a "live" person to gather more
>details, I've had the following thoughts about questions and possible
>remote tests. I'd like any other suggestions to consider for remote
>diagnosis, because I really don't want to drive 300 miles round-trip to
>extract a pencil! <g>
>
>Information about the client/piano:
>* 1961 S&S 'L' ;
>* Has C/C system;
>* Tuned every three months;
>* Tuned and random single note voicing last week;
>* Tuning is rock steady except for an occasional unison, at worst 3~5c
>change across seasons, according to my records.
>* Client is a teacher, and picky. Everything becomes an emergency (claims
>tuning is bad when one unison has drifted... which is why I make sure the
>tuning is steady).
>
>Possible phone questions to client, based on phone message:
>Q: When did this start?
>Q: Is it constant, or intermittent?
>Q: Can phenomenon be duplicated?
>Q: Occurs with or without any pedal activity?
>Q: Any lessons involving sostenuto work this past week? (See additional
below]
>Q: Which area (bass, treble, all) affected?
>Q: Certain specific notes, or global?
>Q: [your ideas?]
>
>Possible suggestions for the client to try to isolate condition:
>* Exercising shift (unacorda) pedal up and down about six times without
>playing;
>* Quickly and lightly drag (upside down) fingernail across strings a couple
>octaves at a time;
>* [your ideas?]
>
>Possibly important:
>Client has recently been teaching one or more advanced students a pedal
>technique involving using ALL three pedals (holding down shift with left
>foot, and diagonally reaching across to sostenuto... or something like
>that. I can't personally get my feet in that position, but this sounds like
>a potential area of trouble considering the S&S sostenuto system.
>
>My thoughts, based on track record and condition of piano:
>* Keyframe guide plate(s) worn, or have shifted (not likely);
>* I left cheekblocks loose last week after minor voicing (NOT);
>* Hammer spacing shifted (not likely);
>* Damper is stuck on sostenuto tab; piano is ghosting;
>* A pencil or other object really did get in soundboard area (never
>happened before);
>* Dampp-Chaser component vibrating (never happened before);
>* Above-mentioned 3-pedal work, causing -something- to get
>stuck/bent/misaligned... but what?
>
>Whatever this turns out to be, it -will- be something simple. Thanks for
>any ideas that I've not considered.
>
>
>
>
>Jim Harvey, RPT
>Greenwood, SC
>harvey@greenwood.net
>________________________
>I'm glad it's not my piano!
>              -- Richard Davenport (date unknown)
>  
Jon Page,  Harwich Port,  Cape Cod,  Mass.  mailto:jpage@capecod.net
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