trichords unisons

[Farrell]

WOW! I would sure like to sit and listen to you tune unisons. I'll bet I could sure learn a thing or two. I've had a good number of compliments from other tuners about my unisons. But I know that clearly I get them pretty good and then say "good enough". Good enough depends, of course on whether I am tuning a neglected 80-cent flat Kimball spinet or if I am tuning a performance piano that is serviced frequently for a professional pianist - I may spend a similar amount of time on both tunings, but I can tell you for sure that the good piano will have much cleaner unisons.

I should think maybe a good thing for you to do, if possible, would be to sit next to some good tuners while they tune unisons and just listen to when they call it "good enough". Are you going to Chicago? That might be a real good opportunity to see what others are doing. That will at least give you a clear idea of what others do - not to say that means you need to do the same, of course. But I know that it can be comforting to have a good idea of what the competition is up to!

Sometimes I find that your unisons improve greatly if you don't let the note sustain too long!   ;-)
Isn't that what dampers are for?

Terry Farrell
  
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Benny L. Tucker" <precisionpiano@alltel.net>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Tuesday, May 28, 2002 10:52 PM
Subject: trichords unisons


> Hi list,
>     I've been going crazy lately, "most folks think I'm already there",
> trying to get my unisons perfect! I've read a lot in the archives about
> unison tuning, and I get plenty of practice everyday at the plant.
>     I'm just trying to evaluate my own tuning standards. I don't think I'm
> incompetent, but maybe.
>     Problem: 3 years now tuning at the Yamaha factory, 2 years moonlighting
> on my own after work, and yet I still can't set a "perfect unison" without
> taking considerable time.
>     I would think my unisons would pass the RPT unison test, but I've never
> been satisfied with meeting minimum standards. To put it another way, I love
> this profession dearly, and yes, I want to be better than average.
>     I may be looking at this wrong, but to me a perfect unison should not
> have ANY rolling of ANY partial for the duration of the sound. Is this to
> much to ask for, or is this the way most of you folks normally tune?
>     On home and Church tunings, I mostly just try to get the unisons as
> clean as I can for as long as possible before the higher partials start to
> slow roll.
> I can do the perfect unisons, but for me that means striking the key, and
> waiting, and waiting , and waiting for the slow roll then move the hammer
> "more like add or release pressure", while pounding, then when I think I've
> got it right let it ring and wait, and wait and wait etc. You get the
> picture.
> At my level of experience, it could take me several hours to get each and
> every unison "completely beatless".
>     What is the accepted standard, if there is one. How do you define the
> perfect and/or the acceptable unison.
>     FWIW, I have absolutely no trouble with the bass or the high treble,
> it's that dang tenor section. It seems like the better I get, the more I can
> hear, the worse I actually tune.
>     Comments anyone?
> 
> Benny L. Tucker
> Yamaha Factory Tuner
> Precision Piano Tuning & Repair
> Thomaston, Ga.
> 
> 
> 
>