Success Downunder

[Delwin D Fandrich]

G'day to you, too, Mark...

The Sydney APTTA Convention did, indeed, go extremely well.  Mark, perhaps
due to his being downunder, is downplaying its success.  There may only have
been a bit over 100 delegates, but they were quite an enthusiastic lot.

Due to my own teaching schedule, I was only able to attend a couple of
classes.  The first half of Mark's class on Action Design Basics was one of
them.  It was very well done and I was looking forward to the second half
when an opportunity arose to visit the Powerhouse Museum and examine their
Stuart piano.  Since this would be the only opportunity I would have to see
the Stuart piano, I took it.  Both the Museum and the piano are impressive.

I also attended Ron Overs' classes in which he presented his new grand
action.  The design of this action is quite different from the conventional
Renner/Steinway style action and I'm sure we'll be seeing more of it in the
future.  He has worked hard to reduce sliding friction to a practical
minimum by paying careful attention to the geometry relationships between
the various parts.  The model action and the action used in the piano he had
on display worked quite well.  Ron and his crew had worked many long hours
getting the piano ready for the convention and the action was not fine
regulated nor were the hammers as carefully voiced as he would have liked.
Even so, the action felt quite good.  It will be interesting to watch the
progress of this action as it goes through long-term testing and refinement
on its way to production.

In the exhibit hall, aside from those exhibits mentioned by Mark, I was
finally able to check out the shifting vertical action and keyset offered by
Apollo.  I had looked at this action in prototype form in the late 1980s
when it was being offered to various US manufacturers -- none were
interested, sadly -- and it was nice to see it actually installed and
working in a piano.

Aside from the classes offered and the exhibits, the meal and social
functions were outstanding.  The lunches that were offered at the Convention
Center (overlooking Darling Harbor) were among the best I have ever had at a
convention site.  The banquet at the Dockside Restaurant (also overlooking
Darling Harbor) was great.  The Guild simply took over the entire
restaurant.  Ron Overs brought his piano over and we were entertained by a
solo piano performance and, later, a trio.

All in all, a great convention.  Geoffrey Pollard and his crew did an
outstanding job!  Barb and I had a great time.  My thanks to you all for
inviting me.

Del
Delwin D Fandrich
Piano Designer & Builder
Hoquiam, Washington  USA
E.mail:  pianobuilders@olynet.com
Web Site:  http://pianobuilders.olynet.com/






----- Original Message -----
From: <markbolsius@optusnet.com.au>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: July 19, 2000 4:57 AM
Subject: Success Downunder


> G'day all,
>
> Well I promised I'd get back onto the list as soon as the Sydney APTTA
Convention was done with, and we finished on Sunday night.
>
> Despite being a relatively small convention (a bit over 100 delegates) I
think it went extremely well. Ron Overs was the star of the show lifting the
veils on his new grand action, fitted to a Samick 225 rim and soundboard,
with his own scale, bridges and some soundboard mods, this action reduces
friction to unbelievable levels. Downweight was 50 gms and upweight was a
bit over 40 gms.
>
> All I can say is that it was a delight to play giving great control and
unbelievably fast.
>
> From the US we invited Del Fandrich to come over and give a five class
series on the soundboard ( agreat success) Mitch Keil revealed the inner
secrets of Reyburn CyberTuner and Gayle Mair and Roger Wheelock shared the
possibilities of Dampp-Chaser. Lucien Hut covered tone production from a
different perspective and Dr Al Sanderson SAT'd us as well.
>
> Local techs shared thoughts on Action Design Basics (yours truly),
Prepping new pianos, Player restoration materials, damper installation and
regulation and all sorts of stuff including an expert in hearing doing some
research on specific professions.
>
> But of course the best stuff was the social events where one and all
shared a wonderful sense of bon homie as well as enjoying pre-Olympic
Sydney.
>
> I look forward to picking the threads you've all been chatting about and
having the time to respond occassionally.
>
> Nice to be back
> Cheers
> Mark Bolsius