da needles

[David Ilvedson]

I agree with the "stingy" use of the needles.  I've had pianist say they would rather 
have too bright than dull.  They can deal with bright but dull is...well dull.

David I.

On 13 Jan 2003 at 21:06, antares@euronet.nl wrote:

> Hi David,
> 
> What you described is something that happens to most technicians on
> 'the frontier'. I have had this experience a couple of times and
> indeed, the only lesson to be learned is that basically voicing for so
> called important people should always be done in their presence. The
> other lesson we always have to learn is to be stingy with da needles.
> I have learned this in particular with my most difficult and demanding
> customer : the Concertgebouw. My personal ear told me to make the
> Steinway 'beautiful' and so very very acceptable... The acoustics of
> the hall and the combination of pianist and orchestra told me I was
> wrong. It was a terrifying lesson.
> 
> In the end I was fighting, literally, for power. Squeeze, push, bang,
> needle, file, regulate etc...if only for more power. It is a painful
> lesson, but invaluable for the future.
> 
> My sympathy, and think of the gorgeous California sun! Hey!
> 
> Friendly greetings from,
> 
> Antares
> 
> Where 'music' is, no harm can be.......
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On maandag, jan 13, 2003, at 16:19 Europe/Amsterdam, David Andersen
> wrote:
> 
> > Hello all-----I had a traumatic time on Friday; I'm still affected
> > by it today, Sunday, but I'm moving on.
> >
> > Tuned and did a complete voicing ten days ago on a Steinway D, early
> > '80's, with 8-year-old Abel hammers, Renner shanks &
> > whippens---hammers had been described as "hard to control" by the
> > owner (a wealthy lady, very nice and smart, who has set up her house
> > as a performance venue with the D and a Hamburg C next to it) and
> > are scheduled to be replaced in late spring---the owner LOVED the
> > tuning and voicing I had done, and had agreed that I would come back
> > to tune and tweak the piano before the performance last
> > night--Saturday-- by a rather famous performer and teacher. Friday
> > was the only time we could both schedule the time.....***mistake
> > #1***.....performance pianos should be worked on as close to the
> > performance as possible.....So.  I got there on Friday, met the
> > artist---very kind, nice, self-effacing woman---heard her play; and
> > we both agreed that the treble was strident, and the rest of the
> > piano was pretty OK---perhaps a little on the bright side, but OK. 
> > She left for lunch, saying she would be back in 1.5 hours to help me
> > with the voicing. Meanwhile, the owner told me how many hours the
> > piano had been played since I tuned and voiced it last (about 15-20
> > relatively easy hours---not at concert force) and further told me
> > that the piano would be played at least 4-6 hours before the
> > performance, by the artist, AT concert force.
> >
> > OK then.  I tuned the piano; the temperament was still almost
> > perfect; the notes at the low end of the treble bridge had come
> > loose a little; the whole capo section was slightly low; the bass
> > unisons were subtly phasing.  With the fresh tuning, the hammers
> > sounded even more strident than they had. The tuning, with coffee
> > break, had taken about 1.3 hours. I asked if the artist was back,
> > was told not yet. ****Mistake #2****:  never stick a needle in a
> > hammer without the artist present, if at all possible. Let the
> > artist play the freshly tuned piano---there may be a big enough
> > psycho-acoustic illusion happening that they say---"it sounds
> > great---you don't need to do anything else..."  or they may say go
> > ahead with the voicing.
> >
> > So---due to a combination of subtle ego and sincere confidence that
> > I knew enough about this set of hammers, and Abels in general, to
> > make a nice positve change, I started voicing. ***Mistaker # 3:
> > never assume your preference in piano tone, or the owner's
> > preference, in this case, is the artist's preference.  I had in my
> > mind the intent to serve the owner's tone perception.  Sincere, and
> > usually good, but wrong in that situation. I got the stridency out
> > of the treble, and then the rest of the piano sounded a bit out of
> > balance with the newly-voiced treble, so I went over the rest of the
> > piano very lightly in my usual conservative way---mark the notes
> > that don't fit their neighbors, make them fit their neighbors, and
> > listen again.  When I was done---maybe a half-hour later, the piano
> > sounded, to me, very beautiful:  golden and throaty at piano and
> > mezzo, starting to snarl at forte, and snarling & snapping at double
> > forte.  I played it, and the owner and I oohed and aahed over the
> > sound.
> >
> > In about 15 minutes (1.5 hours late) the artist returned,
> > immediately sat down at the piano, played, and said, "what did you
> > do to this?" I said, "I took the stridency out of the top, as we
> > agreed, and then balanced the rest of the piano to the top." She
> > said, "Well, you've killed the middle of the piano...."  and I saw
> > all the trust and good will leave her body, and leave the situation.
> >  She then made continual over-the-top, apocryphal statements about
> > the piano being dead, the hammers being "gone," the "quality" being
> > "gone out of the piano."
> >
> > I was freaking.  Every statement she made about the piano was like a
> > body blow, and I took it personally. I realized, with a sinking
> > heart, that she would not be collaborative and work with me, through
> > filing, pounding, ironing, or subtle lacquering,  to get back the
> > edge or snarl at low volume that she had liked. I was, as far as she
> > was concerned, Typhoid Mary.  I did the right thing; I did not yell,
> > scream, or debate her; I took responsibility for my mistake, and
> > offered to help in any way possible to rectify the situation. I
> > offered to come back the next day---the day of the concert---hours
> > before the concert on my dime and work with the piano----and
> > actually, I knew the hammers would come up and be fine if she played
> > them 4-6 hours.  But SHE had zero trust in that. In her eyes, I was
> > toast, and I knew her fear and panic would affect and probably
> > engulf the owner. I don't expect to hear from the owner again.
> >
> > So, I felt bad for a day, then I moved on; I realized I did
> > everything I could do, I acted in an honorable professional manner,
> > and I took the hit.  That's show biz.
> >
> > I will never stick a needle in a performance piano again without
> > making my best efforts to have the artist with me.  I will
> > rededicate myself to being a conservative voicer.  I will not allow
> > an artist's fear, lack of trust, and ignorance about how a piano
> > works to affect me so deeply.
> >
> > Hope this helps someone in some way........my best to all.....
> >
> > David Andersen
> > Malibu, CA
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > pianotech list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
> >
> 
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