Kawai Question (long reply)

[Don Mannino]

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From: 	Avery Todd[SMTP:atodd@UH.EDU]
Sent: 	Wednesday, April 23, 1997 3:26 PM
To: 	pianotech@byu.edu
Subject: 	Kawai Question

P.S. BTW, Don M., you're more than welcome to comment on it too. :-)

Well, I try not to speak out too much.  I am aware that my opinions
may be taken with a grain of salt, given that the source of my
livelihood is Kawai. But since you asked . . . .

If I may I'd like to give a little history of the development of the
EX piano, in the hopes that it will help people understand it's
position in the market a little better.

Around 1980 Kawai opened it's modern grand piano factory near
Hamamatsu. This is one of those super modern piano factories you've
heard about in Japan, where everything is geared towards efficiency
and precision. Alongside the factory and office buildings is a little
lake with another building alongside, which is the Kawai R&D
laboratory. This has the anechoic chamber and all the computerized
measurement and analysis equipment, and has a large workshop area, so
that they can build things and roll them right into the lab and test
them. This whole department is referred to as the "Laboratory" by
Kawai employees.  It is a place where most piano technicians would
give anything to work, at least long enough to learn 10% of what they
know.

Besides doing research, the Kawai R&D lab makes pianos. Each piano is
a little different from the next because each one is testing some new
small design change. These are the EX pianos. The laboratory can only
produce 30 or so EX pianos in this way per year, and these are the
instruments that are Kawai's premier concert instruments.  Since the
early '80s this facility has made only about 400 EX pianos.

The laboratory also makes the RX-A piano. That model piano is finished
off (regulation and voicing) in the production factory, but the
instrument is made in the R&D laboratory.

At Kawai America we currently have 4 EX pianos in the showroom or out
on local loan. The oldest is #36, and the youngest (a super powerful
instrument) is #376. #36 was on loan to a University for many years (I
believe the University decided to buy one finally - I'm not sure
though), and just had a new set of hammers and shanks installed. This
piano doesn't have the power of the new EX pianos, but has a similar
full, round tone quality that sings nicely. I was interested to see
that it has all single-tied treble strings - the new ones are more
traditionally strung.

I have played and tuned many fine concert pianos over the years, and I
have picked my favorites out - I can remember a very fine Mason &
Hamlin or two; 3 or 4 really wonderful Steinway Ds (mostly New York,
as I've only seen a couple of Hamburg Ds up close), and one big mama
Fazioli that I thought had great potential and power (but was voiced a
bit thin and bright for me).  The new EX pianos that we have here are
in the same category in my humble (and unavoidably biased) opinion.

They do vary. One will be a little less powerful but will sing
beautifully. The next will blow the windows out and sound similar to
one of those huge, fat toned New York Ds. But even with the
variability the quality of sound and action are consistently up there
with the best instruments.

We name some of the pianos after Greek gods after they have been used
a little and establish a personality.

We have one here now (Aphrodite) which has the widest dynamic range of
any piano I have played - when it first came it had been affected by
excess humidity (it was pouring rain when they wrapped the action and
sealed the piano, and the silica gel couldn't handle it all) so was
terribly soft and mushy sounding - I thought we had a real dog. One of
the head voicers from Japan (Mr. Otake, for those who have met him)
was coming, so he voiced the piano up, then evened things out, and
this piano has become everyone's favorite. It is incredibly warm and
rich when played softly, has a clean and pure tone, and could be
played comfortably in any living room. When you dig into it roars, and
will fill any concert hall. Really an amazing piano.

Prof. Merzhanov (from the Moscow Conservatory and the Rachmaninov
competition) performed on it here in L.A. last fall, and he asked if
we could ship it to Moscow for the next competition!

We have another EX (as yet unnamed) which I thought was our least
gifted of the new instruments, but which was loaned to Awadagin Pratt
for some concerts and master classes last week. It had been a bit weak
in tone (he was playing the Brahms first concerto, I think) so I spent
a day bringing the tone up a little and increasing the power in the
mid-treble a bit. He has now requested that this same instrument be
used for some of his future concerts. In light of the comparison
between this and the other EXs we have on hand I was very surprised
that he liked it so much - but this helped give me perspective on how
a concert pianist would rank it compared to all the pianos he sees.

Well, enough. Sorry this is so long, but I can't help that it is a
favorite subject, and I usually bite my tongue (maybe sit on my hands
is a better description) and try not to spout off too much.  I am very
fortunate to be able to work on (and practice on at lunch time!) these
instruments.

I'll refrain from further gushing now.

By the way, a rumor was circulated by a competitor last summer
regarding the pianists' overwhelming choice of the EX at the William
Kapell competition. This rumor accused Kawai of paying money (the
rumor was even specific! $2,000!) to competitors if they used the
Kawai. This is ridiculous and, of course, untrue. First of all, what a
hollow success that would be once word got out! Second, anyone who
knows Kawai's spending policy in marketing knows that the idea is
pretty absurd.  The pianists had their choice of pianos, and most of
them just liked the Kawai better.

I mentioned this rumor to Sing Hai Su, the second prize winner, when I
tuned for her in January. She laughed and said, "I wish that were
true! I could use the money!"

Don Mannino RPT, Manager
Kawai Piano Technical Support, U.S. and Canada
(Don_Mannino@compuserve.com or DonMannino@worldnet.att.net)


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