[CAUT] capsizing / catstrophic action failure

[Ric Brekne]

Hey there Fred.

I pretty much thought this was where you were coming from.  And I agree 
one hundred percent.  There are really quite a few exceptions to the 
rules out there... pianos that really sound wonderfull in their own 
right what ought to sound horrible if we are to believe all that we get 
served up.  Thats a real can of worms I know... and its one of my pet 
peeves... allowing large enough room for differences in .... taste.

A funny story I heard running around here in Europe a few years back 
told about how most of the European manufacturers let themselves get too 
influenced by K.Fenner whom of course was a very capable designer in his 
own right and had very definate ideas about how a piano ought to be 
built.... what principles to lay to ground as it were.  The result was 
that many of these same instruments started to loose their own sound and 
instead sounded more and more like each other.  A few brands held out 
and survived.  I guess the main point is that there are a lot of ways to 
do things... and we probably can explain a lot less then we think we 
can.  And there are certainly an awfull lot of exceptions to some of the 
absolute truths that have been handed down through the years up to and 
including the present.

I for one, am really glad for the variety.

Cheers
RicB


Hi Ric,
    I'm not really making any strong claims one way or another. Simply
observing that experience often contradicts "wisdom." I know we've all
probably heard that more DB = stronger attack, less sustain. Less DB = less
attack, more sustain. It makes sense in terms of physics, at least I believe
it does.
    But going out in the field and measuring pianos is a different kettle of
fish. I listen to the piano, come to a conclusion about its tonal output.
Now I measure. I often don't find what I have been led to expect. I often
enough find the opposite. Cognitive dissonance, I think is the appropriate
word. People can be pretty suggestible, and hear what they expect. Which is
why I try to listen first, then measure.
    I do realize that measuring a strung piano at pitch doesn't tell the
whole story. Problem is, that's all most of us have in front of us to
measure. At any rate, I intended no particular strong point of view. I was
just trying to state what I have observed, which doesn't always coincide
with accepted wisdom. Pianos are pretty complex creatures, I think <g>.
Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico


On 3/7/06 3:32 AM, "Ric Brekne" <ricbrek at broadpark.no> wrote:

 > That said... I think I understand where Fred is comming from and if I
 > understand that correctly... well I'd aggree. Fred... if you'd care to
 > specify more closely what was on your mind I for one would find it
 > interesting.
 >
 > Cheers
 > RicB