[pianotech] Acoustic vs. digital - there's the question!

[Matthew Todd]

Chuck,
 
How would you explain to a customer more to their level what you said about "The beautiful, shimmering sound that remains, is the vibration of the strings that are harmonically related to the notes I played"?

TODD PIANO WORKS 
Matthew Todd, Piano Technician 
(979) 248-9578
http://www.toddpianoworks.com

From: Chuck Behm <behmpiano at gmail.com>
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Sent: Saturday, September 3, 2011 10:09 AM
Subject: [pianotech] Acoustic vs. digital - there's the question!


>But who knows how things will develop. it would be awfully attractive to conservatories and concert halls if a really good electronic instrument was avalable at a fraction of the cost of a Steinway D.

Best regards,

David.<

Hi David and all. I'm not an expert in the least when it comes to digital keyboards, so I'm just wondering if my perception of the difference between the two species of instruments is correct. 

Whenever I have a tuning customer broach the subject of abandoning their acoustic piano and going with a digital for whatever reasons, I ask them if they would like a demonstration of the advantage of the acoustic piano. (They always say yes).

To illustrate the full sound that the acoustic piano achieves, I open lid, remove the music rack, and with the sustain pedal down I play a chord with my right hand. Then, quickly I use the thumb of my left hand to stop the vibration of the notes I've just played, while keeping the sustain pedal down.

The beautiful, shimmering sound that remains, I explain, is the vibration of the strings that are harmonically related to the notes I played, which gives the chord a richer, more three dimensional sound. 

I then play the opening to a piece that has particularly haunting chords, lingering on each one with the sustain pedal down to get the full effect.

A digital instrument, by comparison, would in essence play backed the recorded sounds of the notes I just played, with nothing more - a very 2 dimensional sound, and very unsatisfying, at least in my book.

I compare the sound of the acoustic piano to a live person standing in front of you and that of the digital to a cardboard cutout of the same person. Looks similar, but not at all the real thing.

If I was a musician playing on a stage in front of an audience, I would no more wish to play on a keyboard, no matter how gussied up it was, than I would want to serve frozen Swanson's TV dinners to guests sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner. (Yum, those turkey bits and pieces look sooo appetizing!)

Now, here's my question to all of you. Is that description still valid, or have the makers of digital keyboards developed a sound that really compares to that of an acoustic piano? I frankly haven't kept up with developments occurring in the manufacture of digital instruments, because I simply have no passion for them. Glorified boat anchors, as far as I'm concerned.

Please correct me if I'm way off base. I realize that I am highly prejudiced on the topic, but what do you expect from a piano technician. Thanks so much.  Chuck Behm
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