Hammers

[Paul N. Bailey]

      Hammers- how long can they last, how good can they sound and how much
work will it take to keep them sounding that good? My personal preference is Ari
Isaac's hammers. They last a long, long,
long time, and they sound fabulous. They are relatively easy to voice, and the
voicing lasts thru a lot of playing.

      I am not a rebuilder, so I called Peter Clark, and here is some of his
response: In 1982 and'83 he installed Isaac hammers in a S&S D and a Yamaha
concert grand. These are performance and workhorse pianos in academic settings.
By now, 14 and 13 years later, the hammers have been filed once, lightly, and
are holding up very well, sounding very good, the end nowhere in sight.
Similarly,
a 5'8" M&H got Isaac hammers in '86, has been in a practice room (16 hrs./day)
and the hammers are still 'near new'' and giving excellent service. Peter also
installed Isaac hammers in a Bosendorfer Imperial in 1986, which is used for
recording.

      Peter Clark invites 'phone calls at 916-278-6737 (CAL STATE Sacramento).

      Dale Erwin does lots of rebuilding, especially Steinway and other fine
American pianos. Dale has tried many hammers and now uses Isaac hammers
exclusively, for the tone and the longevity, both of the hammer itself and of
the voicing.

      Dale also welcomes 'phone calls at  209- 577-8397.

      The theory is Isaac hammers are not soft, nor are they hard. They act
like variable rate compression springs, compressing and rebounding. To me, this
is not theory, this is how it works.
For further explanation call Peter or Dale.

      Until I experienced Isaac hammers in my own piano and other pianos, I had
no idea of the dynamic range available, both in volume and tone color.
Piano-forte means "quiet-and-loud", but it also means "soft-and-strong".
(4/17/96) Yesterday I did the first in-home tuning of a turn-of-century
Behr Bros. ur. which Dale re-built; extensive soundboard and rib work,
restringing and new (Isaac)
hammers, otherwise more of an action restoration than rebuilding....Anyhow, the
touch and tone is such that the piano reads the player's mind. The volume and
tone color range invite and encourage emotional engagement and artistically
sophisticated performance. There is attack, but the sustain is also excellent;
perhaps more important, the richness and complexity of the harmonic shine
supports the reiforcement of long sustained tones by the moving voices above and
below. The owners just love it, can hardly believe Grandma's broken down old
pianna now soounds so wonderful.

      I am grateful for the practical aspects, but it is the sound that makes
me a believer.

                                                Paul Bailey