removing lids on performance pianos

[Avery Todd]

Rob,

   I kind of like Joel's idea about cutting off the pins.
   Another thought comes to mind, though. Are these pianos in fairly large
halls? If so (& maybe even if not), what does this do to the projection of
sound, especially when with an orchestra?
   Maybe some listening experiments could be conducted and the results
could be used as an argument for not removing the lids.
   Just a thought.

Avery

>Here at the university we have two primary concert pianos- a new
>Steinway D, and a Baldwin SD-10, about ten years old.
>
>For some reason there has become an increasing popularity here regarding
>removing the lids of the grands entirely for performances. It started
>with a few performances with two grands nested together, (not uncommon
>for the front piano in such situations). But then a few performers
>wanted to try removing it for solo performances. Even the orchestra
>decided to give it a go recently. It would appear that once people found
>out that the lid was removable everyone now wants to try it. I fear the
>trend may have become permenant in spite of my protests.
>
>I am concerned about repeated lid removal, as this has caused stress on
>the hinges, lost hinge/bent pins, scratches on the lid, etc. If this is
>going to become a popular practice, what solutions might there be to
>make removal faster with less structural stress? Has anyone delt with
>this problem before?
>
>I thought about drilling out the hinge holes a bit oversized and
>inserting a costom pin- perhaps a pin with a hole drilled through the
>end with a removable cottor pin. Maybe even a small cable attached so
>that the pins don't become lost. Any thoughts?
>
>Rob Goodale, RPT
>Northern Arizona University


___________________________
Avery Todd, RPT
Moores School of Music
University of Houston
Houston, TX 77204-4893
713-743-3226
atodd@uh.edu
http://www.music.uh.edu/