[pianotech] Tone building in the modern piano

[Tony Caught]

Hi David,

I am sure that most pianist have their preferred tuners and I am also sure
that those pianists are influenced by their tuner in some way. I agree that
tone in any musical instrument is a personal thing. However the piano tuner
gets to hear more pianos and talks to more pianists than does the pianist.

But the average home player is totally reliant on the tuners judgement and I
am sure that if there was a quick fix that could make a modern piano sound
better in the treble we would all be doing it.

You as a tuner would have to be as unsatisfied as I am with the modern piano
and the manufactured faults that makes it mediocre in tone, so leak in some
places and strong in others.

How can we make them better.

Not the Steinways or the Bose's but the Samicks and Pearl River stuff.

Tony


Tony Caught
acaught at internode.on.net


-----Original Message-----
From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of David Love
Sent: Wednesday, 19 May 2010 11:10 PM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: Re: [pianotech] Tone building in the modern piano

All great considerations and especially relevant for those who are doing
real tone building with soundboard and scale design and accompanying hammer
selection.  You discover pretty quickly that there are choices to be made
and each of those impacts the overall outcome in some way that's not always
that obvious.  While all pianos can be manipulated somewhat within the scope
of the their own designs certain things that you do push you in a direction
that is to some degree irrevocable.  That's true with hammer selection as
well.  Even the most skilled voicing can't hide the difference, say, between
Premium Blue and a Ronsen Bacon Felt hammer.  That's also true with
soundboard and scale design (or condition).  Trying to define the tonal goal
and then decide what components of the design contribute to that goal is
very difficult especially when you start looking at more subtle differences.
Compounding the problem is that all the work we do is custom work really.
We are creating musical instruments that ultimately others will play (not
us) and their tastes have to be part of the equation as well.  I've
certainly liked piano setups that players didn't and vice versa.  So while I
have to constantly assess my own personal goals it also requires that I keep
my own tastes out of it as well.  

The ideal piano is one that can do everything, produce a dark warm color
rich sound as well as a violent crash when needed.  It sure is hard to make
that happen though.  So far, it appears that choices the range of potential
is much wider that the range of achievability.  But I'm open to how those
two might be brought more in line with each other.   

David Love
www.davidlovepianos.com