<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; =
charset=iso-8859-1">
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2722" name=GENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Greetings all,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Nope, I don't have hearing problems (at =
least, I
hope not), but I have a customer who has developed a neurological =
problem that
affects his hearing. His piano, a Seiler 8' grand, model =
240.
This is a piano I started servicing 13 or 14 years ago, then I moved =
away. Now
I'm back and have been asked to service it again. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>While I was gone the piano had some =
work done on it
and the tech used plastic and acetone on the hammers. Whoa! =
Anyway,
I was pretty shocked at the sound and did what I could to get rid of the =
plastic
sizzle the first time I saw it. The owner was pleased with what I
did, but I still wasn't totally happy with the voicing. I =
figured I'd
try to do more with each visit (we're on a quarterly schedule).
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>So, yesterday, I did some minor filing =
and
needling, working to remove what was left of the sizzle and improve the =
bloom
and sustain. I thought it was coming along, but =
was reluctant to
bring the attack down too much. As it turns out, I could have done =
more,
because when I e-mailed the customer this morning, asking him if the =
tone had
improved, he said it was still too harsh. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Ah. Hmmm.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT><FONT face=Arial =
size=2></FONT><FONT
face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I see my choices as really going after =
those
extremely hard hammers with motorized needling and/or softener, or =
replace them
with something softer like the Ronsen Wurzens. The =
customer was
very interested when I mentioned going to a softer hammer. I =
guess
I'm looking for the hammer that would be the easiest to control and hold =
the
voicing longer. I keep thinking these hard hammers will always =
need a lot
of voicing.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Actually, I've never really liked the =
sound of this
instrument. The sound is thin and nasal. I'm afraid my =
attempts
to open up the hammers with traditional needling haven't been very
successful. Maybe all I need to do is bring out =
the big
guns to make a difference. Or, (unless I destroy the hammers) =
will it
always sound like a piano with hard hammers? </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>This case is somewhat more complicated =
than others
because of the hearing disorder.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>The more I write this, the more I think =
I should
just replace the hammers and quit fooling around with those bits of
granite. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Comments?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT><FONT face=Arial =
size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Oh, yeah, there's another =
question. I've
never heard a piano with an Edwards String Cover on it. How does =
it affect
tone and or volume?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Thanks much,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Barbara =
Richmond</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>