Mike, My approach in dealing with this at UCLA was a little different than what others have done in that, rather than fit an entire action, I simply fit another stack. Answers, well, sort of anyway, to your questions: At 08:23 AM 12/10/1998 -0500, you wrote: > I recall Ken Sloan teaching in a class on how he built a second >action for a concert grand at Oberlin so that pianists could have two >options of voicing with one piano. Hmm - A class I would like to see. > What I want to know is, has anyone >else done this? Yes, a couple of times. >How much does it cost? Depends on the approach. Mine was cheaper in some ways, more expensive in others. > Who did the keyset, keyframe, >action rails etc? I used the existing keyframe/keyset, and built the second action from a second stack. > Did both actions use NY hammers or other "genuine >parts"? Both actions on each instrument had NY hammers, with other parts from Renner (modified). > How well did this work? Extremely. Most of the folks were unaware of the changes. > What unexpected pitfalls were there? Lots of geometry issues with either method, I suspect. One big issue, which Ken may comment on, was plate height. Too high on both Ds. Also, I had not really thought through the problems of having to change the checks and capstans with each switch. >Was Steinway willing to do this? You've got to be kidding. > How much of the work could you do >yourself? All. In another instance, not dissimilar from the one Ken describes, I did do a completely separate action, and it was on the basis of the headaches encountered with that project that I went with separate stacks at UCLA. > Where do you store it? Lockers backstage. > Has it made your job a headache in >anyway, (i.e. artists making you pull the action twenty times so they >can make up their mind which one to use)? This sort of gets into the philosophical area generally titled: "And how do you approach concert work to begin with?" Sorry, that's very glib. No, I did not allow the kind of personal abuse you mention to occur. That was largely the case because, at the time, I was spending a good deal of time listening to live and recorded performances of a great many pianists, and simply decided which stack to install without consultation. For that matter, the only reason S&S ever knew (if anyone remembers now) is that Richard Probst caught me making the switch one time... >This would make a great >Journal Article. Yep - Talk with Ken. > I am seriously considering making a recommendation to do this given >that artists can't agree on how bright a piano should be, and we have >one D which must please all. I rather suspect that in the scenario you describe that having two completely separate actions would be preferable, if you really need/want to do this at all. While it was, for me, a good thing to have that flexibility, it certainly did introduce a good deal of additional labor. (On that point, I am not sure that either method is significantly "better" than the other; both have advantages.) It was fun. I was a good deal younger. Besides, nowdays, most pianists think of piano keys as 88 on/off switches. Brighter is better, as long as there is still tone. Best to all. Horace Horace Greeley, CNA, MCP, RPT Systems Analyst/Engineer Controller's Office Stanford University email: hgreeley@leland.stanford.edu voice mail: 650.725.9062 fax: 650.725.8014
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