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<DIV>"When he arrived home his Kawai didn't play like those
(Steinways)..."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Counting his blessings? <FONT size=2> (Why am I
thinking of Steven Colbert's "The Word" segment.....)
;-)</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>"(I was thinking surprise pal you didn't buy a Steinway)"</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Counting his blessings again? But he did buy a Kawai.
Where does the reverence for Steinway come from? My experience
suggests that, without major surgery, the run-of-the-mill Kawai will play
better than the run-of-the-mill Steinway. I find Kawai piano actions to be much
more consistently set up properly.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>"...he explained he'd had 3 techs in to make it play more like a Steinway
and none had been able to."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Well, they obviously had not been trained and equipped to
add six leads to each key and paint the icky green goo on all the action
centers.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>"When I arrived downweight was 62 grams after 2 & 1/2 days I had it at
52 in the bass and 50 through the rest of the keyboard."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>This sounds like nothing more than the fact that the piano
had never been properly prepped. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Good show though, it's always fun and
rewarding to bring that much pleasure into someone's piano playing
(especially after dropping $25K - or whatever - on a new piano!). No doubt it
was a rewarding experience for you.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Terry Farrell</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr
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<DIV>Hi Dave,</DIV>
<DIV>About a year and a half ago I had a call from a city 80 miles north of me
from a gentleman who had purchased a Kawai RX-5 18 months prior. During the
intervening time he had made a business trip to New York and somehow talked
his way into Steinway headquarters and was allowed to play some of the pianos
kept there for visiting artists. When he arrived home his Kawai didn't play
like those(I was thinking surprise pal you didn't buy a Steinway)he explained
he'd had 3 techs in to make it play more like a Steinway and none had been
able to. He then called Kawai who gave him MY name( grabbing at straws I'm
certain, they'd never given it out before)and he wanted to know if I thought I
could, he would pay my time and milage both ways. I agreed and blocked out 3
days a few weeks off. I then called several people for advice, I had some
ideas but am not an expert on Steinway touch, just very familiar w/Kawai's. I
managed to talk to Don Mannino who among other things, easing balance rail
holes, using McLube on keypins, setting key height as close to spec as
possible(Kawai machines their keybeds very carefully and key height can
make a big difference) mentioned very specifically polishing the
capstans. I took along my Dremel tool and cake of Jeweler's rouge and along
with the other things polished those capstans very carefully. When I arrived
downweight was 62 grams after 2 & 1/2 days I had it at 52 in the bass and
50 through the rest of the keyboard. The man was smiling, even when he wrote
the check! </DIV>
<DIV>I am a firm believer in polishing capstans, always with a cotton buffer
and jewelers rouge, it is a regular part of my regulation.</DIV>
<DIV><BR>Michael Magness</DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>