voicing techniques by the Yamaha master (long)

[ETomlinCF3@aol.com]

Richard and list,

My time spent with the Yamaha concert tech from Japan was very rewarding
indeed.
It is very hard to explain in words what was learned, but here goes a good
try.  Of course after the finest regulation and tuning he began to move
chromatically up and down the piano with lightning speed almost as fast as one
would gliss with one finger... but with precise technique.  Getting an overall
feel for the pianos voicing.  Then he layed hammers forward and in groups of
three he grasped the group with left hand...thumb next to shank, and index
finger on other side.( supported with a voicing block)  He pulled them
together as if they were one solid hammer.  If you grabbed more than three you
would damage the center pin joint he explained.  Then he made a dot on the
hammer molding half  way between the molding and the shank(not half way from
the top of the hammer).  He then began his thrusts with a 6 mm needle into the
shoulder on the back side with fire. Starting at two thirty, pointing the
strokes straight at the imaginary dot, and moved back and forth in the group
of three up to the 11 o'clock position on all three hammers.  He hit each
hammer ten to fifteen times a side.  On the side facing the keys(front side)
he did the same, being carefull to point the needles almost straight down with
total precision at the dot.  On this side he voiced to the 2 o'clock position.
(because of hammer flex in stroke)

After each fury of needles he packed the felt back with the handle of his
voicing tool.  He instructed that it may take up to thirty times a side with
very fast motion on each shoulder in bass and mid section up to 15 and maybe 5
to 10 a side in the high treble.  He then listened carefully to the voicing
saying that the speed of thrust was the key to this.  He said I voiced too
slowly.  That is why his voicing was more effective.  He said the same number
of thrusts would ruin good hammers with my approach.  (I hate admitting this
to the group)  I was there to learn and wanted the best information...so I
endured his chiding.  He then began filing the hammers lightly.  I wish I
could show a video of this procedure.  He said to use a flat padal not a
contoured padal.  You remove felt by thin layers.  He used a stroke that
stayed perfectly flat with a long follow through motion and rolled the hammer
into the stroke with his left hand.  It was poetry to watch this happen.  He
kept saying ... "patience is key to great voiced pianos".  Every hammer should
be filed lightly to contour to strings.  He also said never remove the groove
completely.  Just every layer up to the groove, giving the correct shape.
Then he began the final voicing.

This was amazing to me.  Sometimes when he played a note that sounded dull he
said "string not level do you hear that?" of course I said ..."yes". ( all I
had heard was a dull hammer that needed packing or juice)  He then string
leveled and said that is why he filed hammers so he knew it was the string not
the hammers.  Then retuned that string and listened again.  He cleaned up most
of the voicing with the leveling of strings.

Then when he found a bright hammer he muted two of the strings in fast
repetition to find the offending bright string (or better said...groove).  He
then had a voicing tool with two needles set at 2 mm.  He then voiced in the
crown with one maybe two slow strokes in the offending groove.  He then
satisfied the entire keyboard and went back to voice the final voicing.

He began to move again with lightning speed up and down the piano keys as a
great chromatic glissando.  Listening for sections of the piano ot individual
notes that may need a little voicing.  I have to say you had to be there.  I
wish I could demonstrate this technique in person because it was amazing.  You
would think that after all this that the piano would be so mellow that it
would sound like cotton balls hitting the strings but it was warm and dynamic
at the same time.  No loss of power at all.  The voicing took three hours or
more.

I am sorry for the long post but it was shortened as much as possible.  Thank
you to Yamaha for such a fine class on voicing technique.  Thank you Terry
Niimi for the class I will never forget.

Ed Tomlinson
Tomlinson Tuning and Repair
Vancouver Wa

<< This also
 > was a week of discovery of new techniques from Terry Niimi of
 Japan.  His
 > voicing class has changed how I will voice forever.  
 > 
 > Ed Tomlinson
 > Tomlinson Tuning and Repair
 > Vancouver Wa
 
 How does he voice? 
 
 Richard the Curious >>