[CAUT] Steinway D

[Ron Nossaman]

On 1/22/2011 2:45 PM, David Love wrote:
> Well, when you consider laying out new rib arrays, making new bridges plus
> transitions, drilling for vertical hitches, adding bass floats, cut off
> bars, belly bracing, establishing new counterbearing angles, hand polishing
> new agraffes (still don't do that actually), then grinding down a strut and
> adding a rod seems like a throw away in terms of added time.

I'd guess about a half day for the first one. Maybe more.


>If I knew of
> some way to establish whether that's a problem or not I would not hesitate
> as I think it may very well have as much importance as any of those other
> features.

Nonsense. You know of a way just like I do. Spend your nickel and try 
one. Throw away the time it takes to find out, then decide if it's worth it.


>There seems to be enough people who have thought about it or who
> are commenting on it that I am suspicious.  But since don't make it worse is
> still my mantra I would be interested to know how those who do think about
> these things assess it and make a decision about whether to address it or
> not.

That sounds to me very like a decision.


>Also, how hard is too hard?  Does this 7'Baldwin that I work on that
> seems to break strings all too frequently under the heavy handed pianist who
> plays it have a capo that is too hard perhaps?

Now that's a good question. I've seen strings breaking altogether too 
frequently under the heavy hands of a number of pianists. I have no way 
to assess the hardness of the capos here, but the common factor is the 
heavy handed pianist. That strikes (sorry) me as evidence of a sort. So 
tell me, how does one determine capo hardness?


>It reminds me of a story that the late Sheldon Smith
> told me some years ago about Neil Young's piano that he worked on.  It was a
> Steinway B and he claimed to have done a retrofit on the capo bar adding a
> couple of massive metal bars to the sides of the struts to increase mass.
> He claimed it really boosted the sustain and clarity in that section.

I can certainly see how that might well be the case. Bracing and mass 
loading the belly rail (et al) will most certainly make a difference.
Ron N