<!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 6.00.2900.2180" name=GENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hi Andre,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>You wrote:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=#0000ff>Take for instance a hammer nr 30. which is a =
fairly big
hammer.<BR>If it is a 'good' quality hammer, it will have tension from =
the basis
to the crown.<BR>If you don't needle that hammer (like you have not =
needled your
new hammers), the tension will remain the same and there will nt be much =
distortion of the felt because this hammer will be reasonably hard. In =
other
words : it is a tough spring.. too tough actually.<BR>That's why we =
needle it
and we start needling it in the cushion area.<BR>Now you have a cushion, =
and now
the distortion starts when you hit the strings. The needled area, the =
cushion
area, will act as a damper, as a suspension area, and, like the =
suspension in a
car, it will act like a spring. In other words, the hammer will distort =
a little
(it is a small thing after all).<BR>The sound will have changed because =
of the
damper. and the tone is less powerful, and less bright than before, =
because of
the lower partials which will become more powerful.<BR>The more you =
needle, like
if you don't know what you were doing, the more lower partials you will =
hear and
the higher partial will vanish into the universe (where they come from
haha).<BR>Therefor, you need a map of the hammer, you need lessons from =
a
seasoned voicing technician, good ears, developed ears, and a sound =
voicing
technique.<BR><BR>Thank you for your scientific approach.<BR>I am a kind =
of
moron when it comes to science, but I am more of a practical
technician.<BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=#0000ff><FONT color=#000000>I'll do voicing work, =
of course,
but it will be very minimal at first. I'll save more extensive =
voicing
until after I rescale/restring. I must confess that I'm somewhat =
afraid of
voicing technicians, as I've not had particularly good experiences with =
them in
the past. Perhaps I've just been a fussy client. ;-) I =
eventually found that I got closer to what I wanted by voicing the =
hammers
myself than by hiring someone else to do it. Of course if you were =
here,
I'd gladly entrust my piano to you! I'm thinking that I should =
perhaps try
to attend a good voicing workshop at the next convention. =
No? Or
perhaps I can find someone I like locally -- by trying out a number of =
older
pianos, seeing how I like them, and then finding out who got them that
way.</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Question: As long as I use =
reasonable care
and don't tear up the fiber structure of the hammer, is all needling =
reversable
with ironing and/or age hardening?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Anyway, what you describe rings =
true. Now
that the felt is setting in, it's a bit on the bright side. At =
least it
rises to brightness rather suddenly at mp/mf levels of play. It =
would be
nice to smooth this transition somewhat. I'll be in touch, very =
soon, once
I've given the hammers a bit more chance to settle in and stabilize, and =
once I
have a bit more time on my hands. First comes action work, though =
-- a new
letoff button rail, and then a full regulation.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=#0000ff><FONT face=Arial color=#000000
size=2>Peace,</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=#0000ff><FONT face=Arial color=#000000
size=2>Sarah</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=#0000ff><FONT face=Arial color=#000000
size=2></FONT> </DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>