Touch design for concert pianists

[Leslie Bartlett]

Jon Page wrote:
> Too often students are instructed that technique is force and not 
> finesse.
>
> Can you check the touch weight on his piano to get an idea of what he 
> expects?
>
The organist at the church where I do choirs part-time learned to play 
on on a Gulbranson spinet.  After 20 years of piano, she finished as an 
organ major, and did graduate work at Eastman in organ.  I'll stack her 
sight reading, musicality, nuance against many "professional" pianists.  
I've asked her how she did it on such a piece of junk, to which she 
responded, "It was all we could afford, and I wanted to do music, and so 
used what we had."  A former organist, now and MD, and unfortunately a 
quadriplegic, learned on an instrument equally bad, being an excellent 
pianist and not so good an organist.  He also commented that making 
music was important to him and he used what was available in his home.  
Strong desire to make music seems to be more important than the quality 
of touchweight and a fancy piano.  Being a keyboard cripple, I am only 
to repeat the experience of others, but people seem quite often to make 
do with what they have for many years and not find that a detriment to 
making fine music.
les bartlett
houston