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David, Bob, et al,<br>
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At 09:21 PM 11/5/00 -0500, you wrote:<br>
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<blockquote type=cite cite>I understand the Yamaha action is considerably
different from the Shiedmayer. You should check them both out, but
don't ignore another of the currently running threads... A-440
policy. What range of pitch do celestes come in
anyway?</blockquote><br>
The Yamaha is probably whatever is left over from Deagan (remember tuning
forks?), which was left over from Jenco, which was kludged from
Mustel. It is an oddly balanced system of dependent levers.
Changing something in one place seldom has the desired effect, as it is
changing something else somewhere else. (I know, pianos are like
that. Only, this is ridiculously more so). Each of these
actions has gone through several versions as different engineers have
tried to "fix" things. Try to find someone who has an
older Mustel who will let you take pictures, measurements, etc.
<br>
<br>
My highly prejudiced observation is that, since Yamaha has not left
anything alone that they have bought, chances are that the version of
celeste they now build has also been Yamafied. So, do you want a
celeste that sounds like a celeste, or something that kinda-sorta-maybe
is in the ball park. Rather right up there with how you want pianos
to sound, too.<br>
<br>
Hands down - get the money, and go with the biggest Schiedmeyer you can
get.<br>
<br>
As to pitch, I have promised myself to finish up my now
way-to-long-standing work on the Kissin review before sounding off on
pitch...too much. The short version is that, except for the guild,
and a very few others, 440 as a standard is about as dead as the dodo -
and has been for years. (The important issue is obviously to not
screw up instruments by making such violent changes...if you can convince
others of things that we know from experience to be essentially
self-evident.) That being said, if you buy a real celeste, chances
are that the bars are going to be cold-rolled steel (that's how they get
that sound). That being the case, they will be less susceptible to
pitch changes than a piano (yes, it's a generalization), and one should
shoot for a _reasonable_ average pitch, and then have the thing made 1 Hz
higher. So, if most of the groups who will be working with this
instrument tune to 442, get it tuned to 443. These are complex
things which some folks have already touched on a bit. The most
important thing is that there is simply no one-size-fits-all
answer. More on all of this if I ever get that damned Kissin thing
finished. My apologies.<br>
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More later.<br>
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Best to all.<br>
<br>
Horace<br>
<br>
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<blockquote type=cite cite>At 04:14 PM 11/03/2000 -0700, you wrote:
<br>
<blockquote type=cite cite><font face="Book Antiqua, Bookman" color="#0000FF">Dear
List,</font><br>
<br>
<font face="Book Antiqua, Bookman" color="#0000FF">Our Orchestra is
looking for a Celeste. Would anyone out there have any information as
makers etc?</font><br>
<br>
<font face="Book Antiqua, Bookman" color="#0000FF">Thanks in
advance,</font><br>
<br>
<font face="Book Antiqua, Bookman" color="#0000FF">Bob
</font><br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<font face="Book Antiqua, Bookman" color="#0000FF">Robert Moffatt
<br>
Moffatt & Sons Piano Service<br>
Calgary, Alberta<br>
Canada</font></blockquote></blockquote></html>