On Wednesday Dec. 21, 1994 Richard West wrote: >When it comes down to it, you can't beat a new piano. The reality of this somewhat self-righteous and truthful statement Richard has said is what I hope is beginning to change the approach of many serious rebuilders. Why rebuild a fifty-year old piano that when done well will end up costing more than a medium priced grand piano? Grand pianos in the price range between twelve and eighteen thousand dollars are generally a good buy and come with a warranty and hopefully dealer integrity. Unless it is a Steinway my advice usually to buyers is to shop for new instead of old. In my opinion, a properly rebuilt Steinway is *unbeatable*, although without the correct factory parts I could not attain performance results. The majority of rebuilt Steinways I have seen do not measure up to the expected standard of performance touch and tone requirements. It is not easy to achieve. Rebuilding criteria for the average seventy-five year old Steinway B in our shop includes new soundboard and bridges. New Steinway bridges can be ordered. They come with oversized caps requiring the setting of downbearing and typical bridge procedures. The advantage is the bridge comes with a new crown and one does not have to worry about any voids in the old root which can be a difficulty when dealing with an old bridge. We use Steinway wrestplanks for authenticity and their quality although the Bolduc block is just as good. Careful reshaping of the V-bar and front duplexes along with new agraffes and new rear duplex scales should yield superior results. Don't forget schraffed bass strings from Mapes. Actions: Keep the keyframe and topstack frame and chuck the rest. Probably could keep the sostenuto rail and mounting brackets. A quality job of refinishing with new hardware for the case and an injection of the curse of perfectionism for your craftsmanship and you can and will have surpassed new piano standards. There are countless rebuilding shops working on the edge of survival. If the results of the work don't measure up to new piano standards the customer may have doubts later about their decision to having their piano rebuilt or having purchased a restored instrument. I know there other unique issues in each individual piano evaluation combined with the needs, budget, and expectations of the customer that need to be taken into consideration, however, when performance expections are the issue it is important to leave no stones unturned. I hope my rebuilding colleagues continue to raise their standards so our unique corner of the industry thrives and survives. Merry Christmas and a happy new year! Brent.Fischer@ASU.EDU Arizona State University/Tempe
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