<HTML>In a message dated 4/5/02 11:29:12 AM Central Standard Time, dm.porritt@verizon.net writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">I think soft hammers break more strings than hard ones.  Why? Because the pianist wants a certain sound for the fff climax of the piece.  If the hammers are soft, he/she has to hit the keys harder. Still not enough sound, hit them harder yet.  Bang!  It happens all the time. dave </BLOCKQUOTE> I do agree that a pianist wants to hear a loud sound, and he will play hard, but I don't think it is necessarily the condition of the hammers. The same pianist who broke strings on his B, didn't break them on the D in the concert hall, either before the concert when he practiced, and during the concert. And he played the Rach 3, quite a loud and boisterous piece, to say the least. I think part of the problem is the playing technique. Some pianist have a technique that will cause strings to break, regardless whether they are soft or not. A very good jazz player in St. Louis had reputation of breaking strings. It was something in his attacking the notes that caused strings to break. A lot of fundamental churches break strings, because they constantly play hard. So I don't think it is all related to the condition of hammers. Wim </HTML>