[CAUT] sostenuto

[Fred Sturm]

On Feb 7, 2008, at 7:31 AM, Fred Sturm wrote:

>> PS -- You say, "Or play every key hard, but that takes a lot more  
>> time and energy."
>>
>> And then you say, "Ain't no shortcuts."
>>
>> Exactly.  8^)  Play each of those keys hard!
> Well, okay, but I have found that if I have visually inspected, have  
> the upstop rail right, and have done the other checking for height  
> of the rod, I  never have a problem with dampers passing. So it is  
> redundant for me. Might be a good final check to be sure I wasn't  
> asleep at the wheel, and might have missed the upstop or something,  
> I suppose.
>>
	Just a wee bit more, and then I'll shut up. I used to evaluate in  
ways similar to what Kent has been describing. And it led to  
frustration. Why?
	I guess we should start with the assumption that we are talking S&S  
(other, belly rail mounted systems, are pretty obvious to adjust  
because it is all right in front of you). I would start as the S&S  
manual recommends, measuring tab height and transferring to sostenuto  
rod height, with the prescribed difference. The rod height is measured  
to the blade at rest. Well, there can easily be problems with that  
transfer. Where is "at rest?" It is determined by the bend in that  
brass staple the monkey grabs (the monkey binds between the rod and  
the staple, determining the place where the system stops). If it isn't  
right, you remove the monkey, bend the staple, and replace (also,  
perhaps the felt on the monkey has been replaced with a too thick felt  
at some point, also leading to problems in where the rest position  
happens). I didn't know that. Also, the back rail, and hence the rod,  
can easily be a bit "off the bench" due to the glides (the concave  
Steinway keybed means the glides pretty much always hold the back or  
front rail up). Result: yours truly would almost always end up with  
the rod at not quite the right height, more often than not low.
	Then I'd install the action, and adjust for in and out. "It's hitting  
the tabs, I need to pull it out," and so I would adjust the in/out  
position of the rod based on getting as close to brushing the tabs as  
possible. So the rod would often be a bit low and a bit out away from  
the tabs. Thus it wouldn't swing as far under as desired (the blade at  
full pedal would be under the tabs 1 - 2 mm less than one would want).
	Checking for function, I'd usually find dampers that passed. Endless  
loop, leading to frustration and less than stellar results. I haven't  
mentioned pedal adjustment, but that entered in as well, in a "who  
knows where it ends up" kind of way. The rod could go only 2/3 of its  
travel and I'd be none the wiser, leading of course to more passing  
dampers.
	So now, though I do rough set height with the gauge (taking care that  
the backrail is solidly down and the monkey is rotated correctly), I  
fine adjust height relative to in/out. Putting the action in, I adjust  
the rod so that the round part at rest is just away from the tabs,  
just enough for safe clearance. Now I press the pedal, and if the  
blade scuffs some tabs, I know the rod needs to go up (at least in the  
area where tabs are being scuffed). And I physically inspect how far  
the rod rotates. If it doesn't rotate enough, I know what to do  
(remove a bit of stop felt from the trapwork or adjust the pedal rod  
or whatever).
	Doing it this way, I know for certain that when the rod is in the on  
position, the blade will be so far forward that the tabs of other  
dampers can't possibly skip. And, yes, I tend to pull up on at least a  
few to doublecheck myself, but I don't feel the need to play every  
note hard.
	I'm sure there are any number of other sequences that produce good  
results. This is the one I find most efficient and least frustrating.

Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico
fssturm at unm.edu