?? Voice ??

[Barbara Richmond]

Joe,

Ok, I'll be brave.  Pliers (vise grips) were sort of popular some years
back, but it seems they are politically incorrect these days.  I learned to
use them to soften up really hard shoulders (not lacquered ones!) to make
needling possible where sustain was lacking.  Using vise-grips would cause
cupping on the shoulder and then next, one would needle enough to remove the
cupping.  Worked great to open up the sound on certain pianos.  I won't
mention any names, but I learned it from factory tech reps--so somebody
thought it was OK back then.  ;-)   Aw heck, things go in and out of
fashion, except perhaps for orange shag carpeting and flocked wallpaper.

As with any voicing method (and there are a mess of them), the secret is to
proceed with caution, since hammers can get destroyed by overdoing anything.


Barbara Richmond, RPT
Peoria, IL Chapter





> Joe Goss says:
>
> >But other methods, chemicals, filing, fabric softener, steam, side
needling,
> >but as yet no use of pliers.
> >
> >
> Joe, I have used pliers in the past with no real long-lasting affects.
> Perhaps I was using the wrong technique(fairly self-taught on that one).
> I did apply some good ole Yankee ingenuity and common sense..obviously
> my common sense needs some work.
>
> Recovering Yankee,
> Phil Bondi(Fl)
>
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