In a message dated 3/29/02 10:03:10 AM, Wimblees@AOL.COM writes: << with the exception of a few pianists, key length does not seem to be an issue, especially considering the fact that there is such a wide difference from one piano to another. >> It's the distance from the sharp to the end of the key that makes a big difference. I have been aware of this since my college days way before I became a tech. Not only is there a difference between the length of the keys, believe it or not, sometimes there is a difference in the width of the key. When I was practicing for my graduate recital, I ended up on the same Kawai piano often enough to realize that something was amiss. I kept hitting cracks when I played octaves. Convinced that the octave was wider than other pianos, I measure on a piece of paper the width of the octave and found that I was correct. On this piano, the keys were slightly wider. I never practiced on that piano again. Tom Sivak
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