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<p>Clark Sprague wrote:
<blockquote TYPE=CITE>List: Muchas Gracias to Antares, who said volumes
for all of the non-experts
<br>out there, who are looking to the "experts" for advice on how to improve
our
<br>skills. We want to be as good as we can be, and we need your
help. Thanks!
<br>Clark Sprague</blockquote>
Hmmm.. So we are going to be going back and forth a bit on this on. As
usual, we end up talking about several things at the same time so I'll
try to address the main points as I see them.
<p>Number 1. To all those "newbies" out there who are looking to this list
for help I have the following bit of advice. Start building yourself a
library of reference books. And above all, read them and re-read them.
When you have time and opportunity sit with an action and a good chapter
on grand regulation, and observe what happens as you step through the proceedure.
Go to any and all classes you can on any subject about tuning and regulating.
You may hear many things over and over, but there is always some new tidbit
or perspective that can be helpfull at these things. If you are in Canada
and America then find you nearest RPT and get some instruction, at least
from time to time. Not every RPT is a concert level tech, but all of them
are clever enough to be of great help to someone just starting out.
<p>All this being said, you must understand this. No amount of literature,
advice, or instruction is going to be of much help <i>Until</i> you begin
to build and understanding of how the action works. There are no shortcuts
to knowledge and experience. If you are going to get good, then it is <i>you</i>
who are going to be doing the getting. It is'nt always easy to avoid confusion,
and it can be frustrating to try and find and assimilate knowledge (more
on that below). But stay with it and you will get there.
<p>Number 2. With regard to the apparent difference of opinion between
Antares and myself (at least). We two probably are not all that far apart
in the end. At least previous discussions I have had with specs guys always
end up in us finding out that we agree on more then we disagree. I view
this buisness of grand regulations as being parted into two main schools.
Which I loosely refer to the specs guys, and the non-specs guys. One approach
I see a lot of techs, including RPT's use is to bring out their measuring
devices, and meticiously set each point of regulation to specs. Often enough
the result of such a method is that the action plays like a mac truck.
Regulating proceedures written down by factories rarely include setting
things like action spread, checking basic action geometry and the like.
If those are not <i>very</i> correct relative to the specs you are using,
the specs wont work. Where as the non - specs approach can <i>always</i>
achieve a very satisfactory result because its nature is basically to accept
the present geometry for what it is, and make it work. This can be of course
misused too. One can take too many things for granted for sure. In the
end tho the best regulations are a result of a kind of synthesis of these
two approaches and rely on a well developed understanding of how the action
works. Either way.. understanding is the key.
<p>One other point.. Books.. I have always been amazed by how difficult
it is to find good, easy to review and procur, technical books. There are
few in print. So a few points of advice. The easiest one is to get ahold
of is the Reblitz book, which is a good book, but is short and in the end
only one book. Get it tho if you dont have it. Secondly start collecting
action regulating proceedures available for just about every make of grand.
Dealerships often enough have them laying around or can order them. Third
go to the conventions you can and take care of every piece of literature
you get as part of a class, or get just handed to you. Lastly there are
a few internet related sites, like Randi Potters. I have no knowledge of
the quality of his material, but plenty of folks over there do, talk to
them and get their recommendations about what books or videos to buy. And
as a suggestion to the PTG, It would be nice of you guys to include a page
on your site that lists every book relative to piano work available and
to work at developing this page as a resource center for new and old techs
alike. Just my opinion.
<p>I doooo hope this clears up things a bit.
<p>Richard Brekne
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