[CAUT] CAF

[Fred Sturm]

On Aug 18, 2009, at 9:41 AM, Jeff Tanner wrote:

> I would bet that the music wasn't originally composed with this  
> technique in mind, but that modern "interpretation" has altered the  
> original intention of the music.  If today's action designs have  
> trouble with it, imagine what the design limitations of early  
> composers, or even modern composers' instruments would be like.  We  
> all know that the composer's pianos are among the lowest on the  
> priority list, and they are the types that just don't expect much of  
> their pianos beyond rough tuning.


	I suggest that no piano technician should presume to tell a pianist  
what kind of technique to use. Nor should we have the attitude that we  
know what pianos are capable of because of our own expertise. Pianists  
come up with ways of approaching the keyboard through trial and error  
and endless hours of refinement. If they have been able to achieve the  
effect they want on one piano, they want to be able to achieve at  
least a similar effect on another. Pianists (at the top end of the  
profession) are constantly pushing the limits. It is our job to try to  
accommodate their needs. At least that is my attitude. Yours may differ.
	Good composers for the piano actually have a very good idea of what a  
piano is capable of, and they tend to push limits as well. Neither  
they nor good pianists are interested in the excuses of piano  
technicians. When Alicia de Larrocha showed me the kind of repetition  
she needed to play the Ravel concerto (and demonstrated quite clearly  
that there were notes that weren't functioning well enough), she was  
quite clear that this was possible on pianos that were well prepped -  
she should know, she has played on hundreds. It was my job to try to  
make the piano I had prepped meet her demands. (This was maybe 15  
years ago. At the time, I thought I had prepped that piano pretty  
well, and that its repetition was about as good as it gets. I was  
wrong, and I thank her for pointing it out).
	BTW, modern piano actions differ considerably from classical and  
romantic period instruments, and in many ways those earlier  
instruments were capable of things modern instruments can't do,  
especially in terms of facility, clarity and speed. All the added mass  
and lower ratio has made the modern piano less capable in some areas,  
while more capable in others.
Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico
fssturm at unm.edu





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