Mason & Hamlin AA scale

[Bec and John]

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Hi Terry (and Dean),

I think with these issues we need to tread humbly, that's the key. I=20
personally am not convinced that piano design is anymore unnecessarily=20=

stagnant than, say, flute design (random choice to make a point, I know=20=

nothing about flute design), but I don't want to let that get in the=20
way of being open to possible improvements. The opposing viewpoint=20
should have the same tone.

I do question whether certain changes in piano design would result in=20
rejection from the public. One that comes to mind is the bflat break=20
I've read Del and Ron O. complaining about.  Most people won't notice=20
on their own, and I think Steinway is respectable enough to survive any=20=

initial criticism.

I feel compelled to write of my own absurdly limited thought on the=20
bflat break on the bass bridge. I have the L and I like the sound. It's=20=

quite a smooth transition from the bass to the treble, more so than=20
even a Baldwin SD10, SF10 and Steinway B, all of which don't break on=20
the bflat. Of course it could just be my piano in particular :)

- John


> I think we also tend to forget that major piano manufacturers are=20
> factories that produce a product and they try to sell as many of them=20=

> that they can. Not unlike automobiles. There are some, perhaps like=20
> Yamaha and Kawai that target a very wide swath of the piano consuming=20=

> public - much like Ford, GM and Toyota. And there are others such as=20=

> Bosendorfer, Fazioli and Mason and Hamlin that target a narrow segment=20=

> of the piano buying public - much like Ferrari and Lamborghini.
> =A0
> Now if the average piano-playing Joe on the street has some money=20
> and=A0wants a great piano, he might go and buy a Bosendorfer or a=20
> Fazioli. If Joe wants a fast car he might go buy a Ferrari or a=20
> Lamborghini. But if Joe is a professional race car driver - or even a=20=

> serious amateur race car driver, where does he go for a really fast=20
> car? Well, he might buy that Corvette of Ferrari, but he takes it=20
> right over to his favorite hi-performance race car mechanic who strips=20=

> the car down, does a bunch of modifications=A0and rebuilds it so that =
it=20
> is really fast. Recently I read an article in Road & Track about=20
> buying a new $200K Ferrari and doing just that to it - taking it all=20=

> apart and improving the suspension, the drive train, the engine, etc.=20=

> Even makers of super high-performance automobiles such as Ferrari and=20=

> Lamborghini make many concessions in the design and construction of=20
> their cars to appeal to a target swath of the public. They simply=20
> cannot build the fastest car possible and stay in business - they=20
> would only sell a couple dozen of them.
> =A0
> Any serious race car enthusiast knows perfectly well that if you want=20=

> to win a race, you will not do it in a car straight from=A0any =
factory.
> =A0
> What makes pianos any different?
> =A0
> I suspect we should stop belly-aching about why don't piano=20
> manufacturers build better pianos - I think that is just part of how=20=

> it is and will always be. I think we should rejoice that we can do=20
> things that a factory simply cannot do.
> =A0
> I respect Henry Ford for his inventions and ingenuity, but I'm also=20
> glad those that followed him in the automobile industry realized his=20=

> product could be improved upon. I have all the respect in the world=20
> for the 1890s designers at Steinway, Mason and Hamlin, Bosendorfer,=20
> etc., but I still don't see how that should keep us from building a=20
> better piano.
> =A0
> Terry Farrell
> =A0
>
> What=92s being left out of the discussion on why it is hard to =
implement=20
> changes in piano design is how pianos are marketed and sold. Pianos=20
> are sold by piano salesmen, most of whom know very little about=20
> pianos, but they can parrot selling features. They are sold to a=20
> customer who usually has even less knowledge of pianos, most of whom=20=

> have no idea on what a good piano sounds like, a customer who has=20
> probably played less than a dozen pianos in his entire life. =A0In =
such=20
> a climate, name recognition, perceived reputation and mystique reign=20=

> supreme. Innovations are ridiculed as unproven.
> =A0
>
> Dean May=A0=A0=A0=A0 =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0cell 812.239.3359=20=

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