[CAUT] Pianos for piano performance majors

[Fred Sturm]

On 4/1/06 2:09 AM, "Paul Williams RPT" <pno2nr at whidbey.com> wrote:

> Hi all.  When I play a piano (tech stuff out of the way and as a musician) I
> want to feel comfortable with the instrument.  I want it to be smooth and
> even, and depending on the type of music, either bright. light and lively,
> such as would be expected for jazz; or I would want even and mellow for Chopin
> or 
> Debussy. ..  I believe all pianos should be brought to the highest capability
> they can attain.  Sometimes a Yamaha or even a Kawai can produce confidence in
> the player that would please them.  I, however, still prefer a Steinway or
> Bosendorfer, but perhaps I am too educated in the production of those pianos.
> I do enjoy Yamahas and some Kawais although I find the Kawai doesn't quite get
> great sound when brought up to fff, but maybe I haven't learned enough on
> their potentials.  I agree that the correct hammer should fit the piano, but
> generalizing a particular "brand" is a bit hasty.  Many fine hammer producers
> are available and many can be adjusted for the piano at hand.  Please
> respond....
> Paul T Williams RPT and pianist
> pno2nr at whidbey.com

Hi Paul,
    I try not to generalize about brands. There are significant things that
can be said about differences between brands which have to do with design
and execution, but when you get to the top of the lines, it largely becomes
a matter of taste, IMO. For example, there are those who claim that as a
concerto piano, cutting through and powering past an orchestra, a Steinway D
can¹t be beat. I don¹t have the experience to have an opinion: how many of
us have heard a significant number of concertos on enough other instruments
to have enough of a basis to make a judgment? But, regardless, this only
touches on one, rather specialized use of the piano. I am personally more
interested in the piano as a solo or chamber instrument.
    In my comments about hammers, I was trying to get at a rather subtle
thing which comes from my personal experience trying out various pianos.
There is a certain magic generated sometimes, when you simply connect with
an instrument. I have had experience with a few instruments that really had
something extra special, to my own subjective ear. They just had more depth
and breadth of tone color than any other instrument I had played, and I
could achieve very subtle effects of layering of both dynamics and color.
It¹s not just the individual voice of the instrument I am talking about, but
the range of responsiveness.
    I came to the conclusion that it was largely hammers: probably the felt
itself, plus the voicing technique. My tentative guess is that, in addition
to needle placement and sensitivity of the fingers and hands to how the felt
feels while inserting needles, it also included the way in which they were
inserted: pressed in instead of jabbed. My impression is that, for instance,
one of the common shortfalls of many Yamahas is caused by the common jabbing
technique taught at the factory. This seems to me to lead to a monochrome
color. German techs by and large are adamant about slow and firm insertion
to avoid tearing the felt (to the extent possible). I think they are
probably right.
    At any rate, I think there can be a real difference of tonal range in a
needled hard-pressed (but not too hard) hammer that can¹t be achieved with a
lacquered hammer, although a lacquered hammer can be voiced very nicely
indeed. It¹s subtle and maybe splitting hairs for many, but it resonates
with me with my pianist cap on, and I try to find the way to achieve it with
tech cap on. Sometimes I think I get close.
Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico


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