This post is Part 3 of a 3-part series looking at how a grand piano works. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here. The videos, titled “Pianoworks- The Series”, were produced for a Michigan Petrof piano dealer named PianoWorks and were provided to us by polarbear60. (According to polarbear60, this dealer is no longer in business. The web link at the end of the video is no good.) The explanations are similar to what I would have given to a customer back in my piano technician days and are far superior to what could be accomplished with 2-dimensional schematics.
A few comments:
- To remove the fallboard (key cover) many times this just lifts off, but in some cases there are set screws that must be loosened before removal.
- Most older pianos have the key slip held in place by screws.
- I have seen cases where the hammer might be raised as little as 1/16” and snap off on removal, usually in the top octave. On old pianos this much lift can happen by keys being in need of adjustment, so it is advisable for the technician to stand and visually check the hammers prior to sliding them under the pin block. This problem can also occur if the key frame is warped.
- Action regulation is the process of adjusting how the various action components for each note work together.
- Voicing is the process of adjusting the shape, hardness and position of the hammers.
- Tuning is the process of tightening or loosening strings to achieve the proper pitch, then setting the tuning pins correctly so that they will stay in place best possible.
[I hope this series has helped you better understand the workings of the grand piano. As always if you have a question, please leave a comment.]
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
