Topperpiano@aol.com wrote: > Let's talk about pianos. > ...... Your turn. > TP Funny to read these posts so far and find that just about all the pianos mentioned are 75 + years old. And the youngest one of the group was 50 years old. I wonder how much of these are origional parts and design. And I wonder how one can account for this given the <<fact>> that wood and pianos dont age... they atrophosize. I've got to admit I am astounded by many of the surviving quality grand pianos from that golden age of building. I ran into a Steinway A today... serial 207xxx signatures from the early -mid 20's from pianotechs. A New York instrument looked like it had the origional hammers on still. Not all that much used.. but this nice old mahogany stained case needed quite the refinnishing job. The insides had been cleaned out a couple years back they told me... nothing new.. just cleaning. Evidently there had been about 4 cm of dust that had accumulated. I had to tune it up for this years drop-in concerts for the UiB's contribution to Festspill 2004. Just incredible that this instrument still had so much to give. Clarity and depth of tone. Not really thinned out at all. Some of the lower bass strings were a bit tubby.... thats about all you could really point at. Still... all in all the most astounding piano sound I have to date heard is our brand new Yamaha CF III. I still have a hard time believeing this is a Yamaha. The tenor has that baritone quality that you could die for... and the midtreble up to the highest notes simply melt into the ears in the most sensuous musical manner I have ever heard from a piano. And the touch.... which in the end is what I've come to believe its really all about... the touch is simply heaven. One student commented the other day she was simply dumbfounded by the transparency of this instrument. She had to only sit down and start runing her fingers across the keyboard and the piano took care of all the rest for her. I've only run into 2 other newer CF III's in the recent past and wasnt all that impressed... but this one is simply amazing. And if it is representative of what Yamaha stands for today and in the future.... then I am indeed fearfull for Steinway. Cheers RicB
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