Touch design for concert pianists

[Norm Barrett]

All this talk about concert pianists makes me think about the Horowitz 
Steinway piano. I am not a concert pianist but when that piano was on 
tour here in Memphis I did get to play on it. The touch was so light you 
felt that you could breathe on the keys and they would play. So much for 
heavy touch.
Norm Barrett
Memphis, TN

Ed Sutton wrote:
> Stephane-
>
> If you must make the change, I favor adding clips to the hammer shanks.
> My reasoning is that this is "working weight," i.e. the effort of the 
> performer is converted into an accelerated mass that strikes the string.
> There is a relationship between the effort and the sound produced.
> It is also easy to add, easy to remove, and you can adjust the weight 
> by sliding it along the shank.
> Adding weight to the key backs just makes it hard to play.
>
> Ed S.
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Stéphane Collin" <collin.s at skynet.be>
> To: "'Pianotech List'" <pianotech at ptg.org>
> Sent: Thursday, August 07, 2008 4:14 PM
> Subject: RE: Touch design for concert pianists
>
>
>> 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.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>