Honky Tonk Tuning

[D.L. Bullock]

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment
I have had customers call me after buying a new piano.  They said the tuner
from the piano store had just tuned it and he ruined the sound of the piano.
In the store it sounded just like Aunt Maudie's piano, but now it sounds
dead.  I went and found a perfectly tuned spinet.  I tuned one string to
celeste with the other two strings and the customer was ecstatically happy.
I collected my check and left with another happy customer.  Everytime
thereafter, I would tune that piano straight and then celeste it, leaving a
loyal happy customer.

Come on guys.  Well, Kernberger, Mean.  GET REAL.

What you want for a so-called Honky Tonk tuning is a simple celeste tuning.
We do that all the time on pipe organs.  You  tune the piano the normal way.
Then you simply lower one string  (of your choice) in each unison until
undulation is heard.  Like in a pipe organ you may adjust the speed to your
liking.  A Flute Celeste is the slowest beat frequency.  A Viole Celeste is
the fastest.  A Gemshorn is in between.  Most stops called "Celeste" are
tuned sharp of pitch.  A rank called "Unda Maris is tuned flat of pitch.  If
it is a theater style organ celestes are faster than a classical.  You may
tune a piano celeste string sharp or flat.  I don't think it would make a
difference.

Whatever you are tuning, the bass section should be a slow undulation with a
gradual increase in speed of beats as you go up in pitch.  The highest notes
will be fastest.  I have found in organs that if you use the meter for
tuning, you may tune them from 5 cents to 12 cents away from pitch.  Choose
and stick with your number though.  On a pipe organ you can usually turn off
the straight rank and tune the celeste rank to the meter by itself.  If you
set the whole rank 10 cents off you will get the gradual increase in speed
automatically.  Some tuners do not use the meter.but use their ears to keep
the speed of undulation gradually faster as they go up.  That works, too.
Being lazy like I am, here lately, I have merely stuck to the meter for
tuning the celestes.  I set a flute Celeste to 5-7 cents sharp and a Viole
Celeste is set to 10 cents for a real sizzle in those strings.

In very large organs you may find three rank Celestes.  That would be a
straight tuned rank, a sharp tuned rank and a flat tuned rank.  Those are
extremely rare.  Sometimes they are called "Chorus"  i.e. Viole Chorus,
Flute Chorus.  The Wanamaker organ in Philly has those all over.



D.L. Bullock    St. Louis
www.thepianoworld.com

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/06/c1/32/dd/attachment.htm

---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--