Touch design for concert pianists

[andre oorebeek]

Hello Stéphane, mon Ami,

You know... allow me to remind you, that while doing the work we love  
so much, we gain insight and experience, day after day. We are very  
much involved in what we do.
I know you, you are the same.
Then, after however much time it takes, we slowly grow into true  
professional tuner/technicians and that is the time when we start to  
develop out own way of 'looking at things', bases on what we have  
learned over the years.
It is the time for writing books, it is the time for teaching, it is  
the time for getting payed back for all the efforts we put into this  
truly beautiful profession.
As we mature in our profession, we are entitled to have 'our own  
opinion'.
We have gone a long way and we have learned not just quite a lot, but  
actually very much.
This is what 'gives' us professional authority, and this 'authority'  
we must use when it comes to dealing with the case you described here.

We remain 'humble technicians' but at the same time we have a valid  
story to tell.
If the grand piano you described here is a healthy instrument, then of  
course you listen to what the owner has to say about it, and do what  
ever you can to optimize it, to answer the needs of that person.
Don't get distracted by what 'the teacher' thinks, but use your hard  
won knowledge and, based upon that, do what YOU think is right.
It is very wise to listen and consult, and then it's time to decide  
what to do.
It is comparable to being a doctor ;
A doctor listens to a patient, draws his/her conclusion and acts,  
based on his/her acquired authority.

A good doctor is a good doctor.

friendly greetings
from
André Oorebeek

Antoni van Leeuwenhoekweg 15
1401 VW Bussum
the Netherlands

tel :   0031 - 35 6975840
gsm : 0031 - 652388008

concertpianoservice at planet.nl
www.concertpianoservice.nl

"where music is,
no harm can be"


On Aug 7, 2008, at 10:14 PM, Stéphane Collin wrote:

> Hi all.
>
> Thanks for valuable insights so far.
>
> It is my understanding that the motto behind this touch weight issue  
> is that
> a serious professional pianist should play at home on some "heavier"  
> action
> than anything he is likely to encounter in concert situation, to  
> avoid the
> premature fatigue at half the program.
> I can understand this.
> Also, I totally agree on the sad fact that pianists don't have a  
> clue of
> what is happening.  They just repeat what their teachers said.  This  
> is
> curious, as oboe players all can change and shape their reeds  
> themselves,
> and all guitar players can all pertinently choose and change their  
> strings,
> etc.  but pianists don't want to know anything about their  
> instrument : they
> just want a good technician do it for them, that is, a technician  
> authorized
> by their own teacher, who thought the same way.
> Too often I realized than my (ok this is relative, but then)  
> enlightened
> advise is of no value compared to what any pianist with a curriculum  
> might
> say.  Also, people, especially people who don't know about it, tend  
> to trust
> the authorized guy, not the enlightened one.
> Yet, I want to stay open to what they feel.  I'm just trying to put to
> myself the right limits beyond whose problems will occur.
> Alas, up till now, I never succeeded to make any client understand  
> that
> piano health is not about temperature, but about humidity level  
> swings over
> time.  Not any of them.  Any.  So about touch weight, I'm quite  
> hopeless.
>
> Bah...
>
> Best regards.
>
> Stéphane Collin.
>
>
>