[CAUT] F..riction

[Fred Sturm]

On Dec 1, 2010, at 5:58 PM, Fred Sturm wrote:

> 	Back to the touch scenario, putting the hammer back down, the feel  
> of the action from the moment of impact of the rep lever with the  
> drop screw through aftertouch is arguably the very most important  
> element.


	I just had some practical experience with a customer that confirmed  
this. He purchased a rebuilt Steinway A a couple weeks ago, new action  
parts, etc. I found it "chaotic" when I tried it out for him before  
purchase, but said I could deal with it fairly easily. First home  
visit I traveled and squared hammers, leveled strings and tuned.  
Second visit I regulated. Most of the regulation was evening things  
out (let off was near blocking to 4 mm, drop was 2 - 6 mm, rep springs  
were jumpy, aftertouch was a bit excessive and uneven). After I was  
done - "done for today, time to go home" - he sat down at it and asked  
what I had done to lighten the touch. It was "much easier to play."
	The answer is that, first, everything is much more consistent and  
predictable. But second, yes, I made it quite a bit lighter overall,  
but only with respect to the feel of the rep spring at the bottom of  
the keystroke. Contact time is later and shorter (less compression),  
and the spring resistance is less. Net effect is a very noticeable  
increase in control and experience of less resistance - lighter.
	I have harped on this in many posts over the years - the importance  
of drop and aftertouch - not just to be annoying, but because I  
believe it has far more effect than most people think. Not just the  
crisp feel of simultaneous drop and let off contact, not just the  
evenness of how much more the key goes down through and beyond that  
contact (though those are very important), but also with a very  
tactile aspect that has to do with weight resistance. And, BTW, this  
is perhaps the most important difference between the feel of a grand  
and an upright (this collection of things as part of the touch -  
obviously including the fact that the hammer is horizontal and  
providing counterweight). The touch at the bottom of an upright  
keystroke is completely different.
Regards,
Fred Sturm
fssturm at unm.edu
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." Twain