[CAUT] Steinway extra-bore-length

[Fred Sturm]

On Jun 4, 2010, at 10:04 PM, David Love wrote:

> Are you suggesting then that when you press the needles in you are  
> actually
> feeling for the gaps between the fibers?  I agree that fewer  
> insertions to
> achieve the goal is better the more insertions and I suppose it  
> could be
> argued that generally the press method will result in fewer  
> insertions.
> Beyond that, however, I don't think I'm inclined to go for the  
> mechanics of
> fiber response to press versus stab as the reason.  I do think that  
> it's
> probably better for the less experienced to use the press method.  For
> someone who has achieved a level of skill for hitting their mark and  
> at the
> desired depth I don't see any reason not to use the stab method.  I  
> think we
> may agree that generally speaking the press method will yield better  
> results
> with less damage but I'm not sure if we agree as to the reason.


	No, certainly it is impossible to feel the gap between the fibers,  
and the needle is so large relative to fiber size that it is always  
going to tear some while going in. I am simply saying that a somewhat  
slower insertion will tear less fibers and will produce more spreading  
of fibers. Also, that with a slower insertion I can feel what is  
happening, and feel the condition of the felt (both initially and as  
the voicing proceeds) much better. For me, the tactile is probably as  
important as what I hear in deciding what to do, if not more so, and I  
need as much information as I can get. Also, starting with the needle  
at the surface of the hammer, I can achieve more precision with where  
it is inserted (usually with the help of a finger of the hand  
supporting the hammer). I find it more efficient in the long run to  
know that I have absolutely certainly inserted a needle in every 2 sq  
mm (or whatever) of X surface of the hammer, rather than be pretty  
sure I might have, as with the most precise stabbing I have been able  
to accomplish. Maybe you are much better at precise motor skill in  
that area than I am.
	I should clarify that I am not slow. I work pretty rapidly, and  
probably finish a hammer in the same amount of time as a stab method  
would require for a pretty skilled voicer. Also, I am not really  
wanting to say that people who press are better voicers than people  
who stab. I am simply pointing out a certain way of looking at the  
question of voicing, one that I have arrived at after a lot of  
experimentation (including plenty of stab voicing, and even a bit of  
glovers - though I NEVER use glovers needles any more. There are other  
methods that yield better results and are less destructive for those  
nasty hammers).
Regards,
Fred Sturm
fssturm at unm.edu
http://www.youtube.com/fredsturm