Phone messasge about S&S

[Richard Oliver Snelson]

I think you have a broken string.  It's across others causing the buzzing.

harvey 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)