touchweight

[Otto Keyes]

Some good points here, Bob.  Through blunders over the years, I have come to
the conclusion that it is really unnecessary, & often counter-productive, to
have everything match the specs. exactly.  It is much more important that it
feel even.  Key travel & after-touch are a good case-in-point.  It is less
important to the performer that there may be a few (or even several)
thousandths difference in actual travel or after-touch, than the keys feel
as if they travel the same.  There are so many variables which affect the
feel of the key that precise measurements are not possible, or even
desirable at times.  As Fred Drasche used to tell me early on in my career,
"Measure, but regulate by how the action feels."

This is an inexact profession, not well suited for the unbending
perfectionist.  I had to learn to bend.  More important than the rules of
regulation, are the relationships therein.  And, as Bob mentioned, voicing
can be a huge factor.  All the notes can regulate out exactly, & even feel
the same through the key stroke, but if the voicing is uneven, each note
will have to be played differently to get them to sound even.  This scenario
can drive a slightly unbalanced, "didn't-quite-make-the-concert-circuit
pianist-on-the-eve-of-a-performance" around the bend; and you, as the piano
technician, will be a passenger on that decidely unpleasant ride.  Even
ratty hammers & marginal regulation can be brought around with some
expedient regulation & judicious voicing.  Just give enough time for the
performer to get used to your adjustments, if at all possible.  Wholesale,
last-minute over-hauls wil seldom make anyone happy, & you'll go home
wondering why you chose this picky profession.  Been there, done that, ain't
no fun.

Otto

Piano Technician
University of Idaho
208-885-7918
----- Original Message -----
From: <BobDavis88@aol.com>
To: <caut@ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, September 19, 2002 10:34 AM
Subject: Re: touchweight


> Ray,
>
> By all means measure the down/up weights, but even if they are NOT
perfectly
> even, don't assume that this is the most productive place to start. I have
> found a surprising tolerance for unevenness in this area.
>
> I have a pianist friend whose sensitivity to the instrument I trust, and
who
> is not only very verbal but also patient when I grill him on a the feel of
a
> particular action. I have found that if there is an action which he
> experiences as particularly even or particularly uneven, it will not
> necessarily measure out so, either in friction or balance weight, and that
> with two pianos right next to each other, the "heavier" one may measure
> lighter than the "lighter" one.
>
> It's also instructive to tune concert instruments where a different person
> plays them each time, and each player will be annoyed by, or accepting of,
> different things. In all cases, though, they're looking for
> control/predictability, then variety. I'd guess that if your time is
limited,
> evenness in voicing is the most important feedback component of feel, then
> things like resistance through letoff, repetition speed, and key bushing
> slop, THEN evenness in weight.
>
> Not to say that you shouldn't pay attention to weight and friction. Of
course
> everything should be adjusted absolutely perfectly in the best of worlds,
and
> you don't know which of the various parameters THIS pianist will respond
most
> to. When we overhaul an action we pay particular attention to getting the
> balance weight evenly graduated, within very small tolerances, often
smaller
> than you will find from the factory. Then we try to get the friction
smoothed
> out. I'm just saying that balance weight, which is a dynamic, indirect
> measure of inertia under actual playing conditions, and becomes more
evident
> the faster you play, is more important than static downweight
measurements.
> Friction in the shank center is only one component of the resistance the
> player feels in actual playing.
>
> Under time pressure, I'd ask the player exactly what he is having trouble
> doing, and use that as an indicator as to what to look at first, of the
list
> of useful things others have mentioned.
>
> Good luck,
> Bob Davis
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