Piano Design Question

[Stephen Birkett]

Richard writes:
>In my minimal studies of piano design the 
>benefits that overstrung scales provide over a 
>straight scale are pretty simple

At least these **supposed advantages are simple 
to state. Whether these claims are actually 
achieved by the cross-strung design is 
questionable. See Poletti's article: Steinway and 
the invention of the cross-strung piano (in the 
book Matiere et Musique: The Cluny Encounter, 
Alamire, 2000 
http://64.78.63.10/web/musica/alamire/eng/index.htm), 
in which he concludes that neither of the 
"conventional" reasons is actually true, and 
proposes the real benefit was that it permitted 
the use of larger strings [this is Henry 
Steinway's word in the patent description, never 
mentioning "longer" strings] -  larger strings, 
i.e. thicker bass strings and higher tensions, 
due to rearrangement of the stringband.

>  I think that the designers of old felt that the 
>substantial benefits yielded in the quality of 
>tone produced in the bass section of the piano 
>by overstinging far outweigh any resulting 
>deficiencies (which there are of course) in the 
>tenor or anywhere else for that matterŠ which 
>makes sense to me.

I would consider Julius Bluethner a designer of 
old. In his 'Lehrbuch' for young piano builders 
(1886), he uses the cross-strung design as the 
basis for all discussion because it is 'the most 
complicated'. But he repeatedly states that there 
is no proven advantage to cross-stringing, that 
this actually permits no significant increase in 
string length, that it is easier to achieve a 
balance of tone throughout the instrument with 
the straight-strung design, and, furthermore, 
that the tonal characteristics of the 
cross-strung design could be obtained with 
suitable modifications to a straight-strung 
design, if required. In other words Bluethner, an 
eminently respected late nineteenth century piano 
builder, saw no acoustic advantage to 
cross-stringing. Since he was building 
cross-strung instruments at the time, and had 
made both, these comments cannot be dismissed as 
those of a traditionalist ranting at new ideas.

The fact that every piano manufactured worldwide 
for the past century has been cross-strung is a 
marketing and advertising coup of the highest 
magnitude, even out-widozing Bill Gates in its 
universality. It's interesting to have now 
arrived at a time when this dogma can actually be 
questioned, but, even now, commercial pressure is 
strong enough that Del writes....
>The piano we're getting ready to build will be 
>over-strung. Kind of. But it's only 6' 7" (200 
>cm) and I am interested in selling them.

Stephen

-- 
Dr Stephen Birkett, Associate Professor
Department of Systems Design Engineering
University of Waterloo, Waterloo ON Canada N2L 3G1
Associate Member, Piano Technician's Guild

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