when to not pitch raise?

[Ricard de La Rosa]

Richard Moody wrote:

> Is there a compelling reason to alter pitch by only 1 cps?   A piano
> 'breathes" half a cps either way. And that is a lot, if it swings more
> than that you got problems. If a piano were at 439 and the requirements
> are for 440, and only one tuning alotted, for a performance, I wouldn't
> raise it.  But then again I never really (vary rarely) had pianos off as
> much as 1 Hz.  Even if they came off a truck and got set up in a cold
> arena.  In house pianos were always dead on, or if they began to creep, it
> was watched for a few shows, then a seperate appointment was made to do a
> pitch raise.  The idea was to have a pitch that would be stable for weeks
> or months at a time.  Perhaps I was in a better than average climate
> though......
>
> Richard Moody
>
> ----------
> > From: Mark Graham <magraham@bw.edu>
> > To: pianotech@ptg.org
> > Subject: Re: YOUR LOCAL ORCHESTRA'S CONCERT PITCH.  WHAT IS IT?
> > Date: Sunday, November 08, 1998 1:07 PM
> >
> > I know we've rehashed this before, but it just isn't true that it takes
> > more than one tuning to get a piano from A441 to A440. I do it almost
> > every day, often in concert situations, and so do most people on this
> > list, I would guess.
> >
> > In a friendly, respectful tone (really),
> > Mark Graham
> > Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music
> > Berea, Ohio
> >
> >

  I admit that I have tired to "gloss over" pitch changes of as much as 2
cents deviation at A440 (for example) but simply find myself wasting time.

Of course, "subjectively" the job is a success.  But when one really begins to
check everything, not only aurally but WITH THE SCOPE, then it is obvious that
the pitch change CHANGED....back toward the level at which it was discovered.

My humble observations only.

Over and out on this one for me,


Ricard