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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Yes, Richard, I agree with the =
sharp
business. There are many pianos I simply cannot get my fingers in =
between them!
Height also plays a major role in this. As for those older pianos, the
Brinsmeads in particular I find extremely good tonally. Even very old =
uprights
with the una-corda (L) pedal. The strings are remarkable too – =
notice the
coppery finish on the lower steel strings – not the covered ones =
– I
have found they respond very well indeed to pitch raising – even =
from G#=440
!<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Regards<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>=
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Michael =
G.(UK)<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span lang=EN-US
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;font-weight:bold'>From:</spa=
n></font></b><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span lang=EN-US =
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>
Byeway222@aol.com [mailto:Byeway222@aol.com] <br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> 06 October 2005 =
00:00<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> pianotech@ptg.org<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> Re: Odd =
dimensions of
sharps.</span></font><span lang=EN-US><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span =
style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>Hi Michael =
and List,<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>=
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<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>I had forgotten about those round =
fronted
sharps on Collards (I think Brinsmead did them as well). =
It's
amazing that they went to all the trouble of cutting the ivory to =
accommodate
them, in fact, tonally most of those pianos were not worth all the =
trouble and
decent materials which often went into them. They all sounded =
as
though they had been strung with loose knicker =
elastic.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>=
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<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>However, the subject of sharps and =
their
size and shape has always interested me as a pianist as well as a
technician. I have always been conscious of sharps being =
comfortable or
uncomfortable and I think that pianists often do not realise =
that one
of the many reasons they don't like the 'feel' of a piano is, in =
fact the sharps.
I have a very good and immediate comparison in a college here, =
where I
have a Steinway B and a Yamaha S6 in the same room. All the upper =
end of
the market Yamahas have rather 'chunky' sharps with quite an =
exaggerated
front bevel. I believe that they are made from some sort of =
composite
material which resembles wood. The Steinway still has much neater =
and
thinner sharps which I have now found, from questioning pianists, =
they
prefer. Oddly, the smaller and cheaper Yamahas have plastic sharps =
with
much neater ( and in my opinion) more comfortable dimensions. =
Over
the years, my recollections of different keyboards often takes me =
back to
a really super Knabe grand. There are very few in =
<st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">UK</st1:place></st1:country-region>, =
but this
was a stunning piano musically, but it had the most incredibly 'short' =
sharps I
have ever come accross. You felt as though you were going to collide =
with the
nameboard at any minute.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>=
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span =
style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>It would be interesting to hear =
other
opinions on this whole business of keyboards and their 'feel' as a =
result of
materials and their size and shaping. Just as the recently
discussed Wurzen front punchings appear to be part of a general =
building
up of agreeable feel and tone, so, I feel this business of
keyboard materials, design and finish are also a very important =
part of
the picture.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>=
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