A Curious Statement

[Travis Gordy]

James:  As an aural tuner i knew at once why "buy the Yamaha and make your
tuner happy" was said. I shall never forget my first experience tuning a
Yamaha console.  It was some time in the 1950s.  I had never heard of
Yamaha or any other Japanese piano.  The tone was so pure and clean and
stable and sterile (all the reasons some people prefer American and other
makes)  that I was enthralled.  I did not know a piano could be made to
sound that good.  I could easily hear everything I was supposed to hear to
set a good temperament  and complete tuning.  Why couldn't American
manufacturers make pianos that good?  To this day I find Yamaha and Kawai
pianos the most satisfying to tune.

Now listen me out before jumping in. My mother was a fine musician and
piano teacher with two Steinways she called professional uprights.  K-52s I
guess.  At the request of the parents of one of her pupils I recommended
they buy my favorite studio, a Yamaha U1.  I was anxious for  mother to
experience the beautiful sound.  She couldn't stand it.  Why did I think it
so great?  I was speechless, and I learned an important lesson. Many people
do not like the "sterile" sound. She was hooked on the Steinway sound and I
don't knock that one bit. I have since observed that  what I find the
easiest and most satisfying to tune does not always give the most
satisfying concert experience.  If I was a pianist I would better
understand the difference.  Recently a teacher I tune for selected a
Steinway B over a Yamaha C7, saying there was no comparison.  She had been
using a poorly rebuilt Steinway L for many years.  In the ' 70s another
teacher customer selected a Kimball 5' 8"over a Kawai 5' 10" saying she
couldn"t get the sound she wanted from the Kawai. (IMHO that Kimball was
the poorest piano being made at that time.)  Many people that grew up with
what I call the American sound spinets and consoles do not like the softer
more mellow less brilliant imported pianos.  I think it unfortunate that
Baldwin is now making there small pianos like some imports with almost no
sustain (or sound) in the top two octaves.  IMO

Travis Gordy   RPT
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> From: pianoman <pianoman@inlink.com>
> To: pianotech@ptg.org
> Subject: A Curious Statement
> Date: Tuesday, April 28, 1998 6:49 AM
> 
> Hi List,
> In the discussion on Petrof Vs Yamaha C-3 someone said to purchase to buy
> the Yamaha and make your tuner happy.  A curious statement at best.  Why
> would that makes piano tuners happy?  Could it be consistent quality,
> consistent tone, consistent great factory assistance if needed,
consistent
> everything I can possibly think of. 
> 	 I have never seen a Petrof live, only seen pictures and read about
them. 
> My question is that if it makes the tuner happy, how can that be so bad
> knowing the things I look for in a piano to make it enduring.
> James Grebe
> R.P.T. of the P.T.G. from St. Louis, MO. USA, Earth
> pianoman@inlink.com
> "A wonderful thing happens when you start promoting--Opportunities for
> work.". 
>