Larger piano? was Re: Decibel Levels

[Wimblees@AOL.COM]

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Del

Are you saying that a larger piano (lets say 7') in a church will not 
necessarily produce a larger sound than a smaller piano, (lets say 5')? 

One problems we have in this industry is that a small piano is being used in 
a large sanctuary, where the piano player pounds the daylights out of the 
keys, in order to be heard. (which results in broken strings) What I have 
been trying to convince some churches is that they need a larger piano to 
produce more volume, so that the piano player doesn't have to pound so hard. 
But now, from what you say, a larger piano will not help. Or am I missing 
something?

Wim 


In a message dated 12/30/00 7:04:02 PM Central Standard Time, 
pianobuilders@olynet.com writes:
> 
> This brings up an interesting question. Are physically larger pianos
> necessarily louder than their smaller counterparts?
> 
> Fortunately, I can give a definitive answer to this question: and that is
> definitely maybe.
> 
> Some years ago I was able to directly compare--an un-rehearsed demonstration
> before a live audience of piano teachers and piano players, along with a few
> technicians thrown in for good measure--the upright piano we were then
> making with a Bosendorfer Imperial. From C=88 down to something below C=28
> the upright had both more acoustical power and longer sustain. In other
> words, through most of the musical range normally used in normal music.
> 
> There are a lot of different elements of design and construction that go
> into determining a piano's potential power output, but physical size is not
> one of them.
> 
> Most commonly it is assumed that the longer scales of the large piano makes
> them potentially louder. But through most of the scale there is not all that
> much difference in scale length. At least not in their potential scale
> length.
> 
> Nor does the potentially larger size of the soundboard help. Piano
> soundboards are not amplifiers and bigger is not better. Most piano
> soundboards are larger than necessary. The functional area of the soundboard
> used in the upright was one the smallest of any piano I know of--various
> cutoff bars limited its functional size. Certainly it was smaller that that
> of the Bosendorfer Imperial.
> 
> There is clearly an advantage to having shear size available when building a
> piano, but absolute power output is not one of them. What the extra size of
> pianos such as the Bosendorfer Imperial does give--at least potentially--is
> tone quality and clarity through the first two to two-and-a-half octaves
> that comes from the much longer, and less massively loaded, bass string. But
> this advantage disappears about two to two-and-a-half octaves up the scale.
> 
> 



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