The action of a grand piano is truly a mechanical marvel. Even though it was perfected before the turn of the last century, its remarkable design is still in use today. Although the operation of a grand piano may seem simple from the outside, inside it is in fact highly complex. Just as an accomplished athlete can make a difficult skill “look easy,” the efficiency of the grand piano action makes a very complicated set of motions seem simple. In fact, it is anything but simple.
When a note on your piano is played, the energy from your finger instantly puts a carefully balanced system of levers and springs into motion. Five pivot points simultaneously swing the combination of parts into action. Felt cushions at all contact points prevent action noise from intruding upon the music produced.
The primary reason that the action of a grand piano goes out of regulation is that the felt parts (over two dozen per note) which are so important to its functioning become worn and compressed with age and use. As this compression occurs, adjustments to the contact points which were made when the piano was new no longer are accurate. As this happens, a gradual loss of performance occurs. Lost motion in the action prevents maximum power from being transmitted from the keys to the strings when forte is called for. Early release of the hammers causes misfiring notes when subtle pianissimos are attempted. Double-striking notes become an annoyance. Although the change occurs over time, at some point it starts to become obvious that the piano is not at peak performance. Pivot Points
Regulating your piano will go a long way towards seeing to it that whoever sits down to play will find it a truly satisfying experience. The piano will perform with more precision and evenness so that the musician may lose him or herself in the music. (How nice it would be to have a guest say, “Oh, your piano plays beautifully. Would you mind if I sit here for awhile and enjoy it?”)
If other repairs are needed, is it necessary to make them first?
It’s highly recommended that all important repair work involving the action of your piano be completed before the instrument is regulated. That way, the work will result in the maximum benefit.
Hammers in a grand piano
One might compare regulating a piano to painting an automobile. If the body of a car had not been cared for in years and had taken a real beating it would make no sense whatsoever to take expensive paint and spray it over rust and dents without preparing the surface beforehand. All important body work would need to be done before the paint would be applied, otherwise both the labor and the paint would be pretty much wasted.
In a similar way, if a piano has not been maintained on a regular basis, it should be looked over carefully to determine what repairs are needed in preparation for regulating. Hammers may be badly worn and in need of replacement (see photo at right) or shaping. Action parts may need repairing or alignment. Key bushings might need to be replaced or resized. Any repair which would have an effect on the regulation process should be accomplished first, before the time-consuming job of setting adjustments is made. Otherwise, a great deal of backtracking might be necessary down the road when adjustments which were made once are thrown off by new parts or repairs.
Get More Info : Piano Humidity Control
Websites : https://www.newyorkpianoworks.com/
Contact Us : Piano Finish Repair
No comments:
Post a Comment