@stevesong said:
Laurent:
My piano is more than 100 years old but it has an accelerated action from the late 1940's and relatively new hammers. What I've discovered is that if you have basic instrument that is good what you need is a great technican who will work with you to achieve the sound and keyboard response you want. A piano is not condemned to have one kind of sound or one kind of response - - almost every aspect of its performance can be modified. My technician asks me: "Do you like the action as it is or would you like it to be heavier or lighter? What kind of sound do you want in the bass, midrange, treble? What tuning do you want?" etc. People unfamiliar with what a truly good technician can achieve often think that a particular piano's sound and response are relatively fixed - - and that there is only one correct tempered tuning, but, in my experience, this is not so.
And, speaking age, would you characterize a 350 year old Amati viola or a 300 year old Stradivarius violin as very "old" - - with the implication that their great age made them less good than currently produced instruments? Like my piano, these instruments have been modified - - none, for example, have the original necks. (The original necks were much shorter than those used on modern instruments. Violinists and composers wanted to extend the high range of the instrument. To achieve this, the original necks were replaced with longer ones.)
The most magnificent viola I've ever heard is the Amati owned by Masumi Per Rostad, violist of the Pacifica Quartet. It is slightly larger than the standard sized viola (it was made before there was a "standard" size for the viola) but, despite its being over 350 years old, there is nothing geriatric about its huge and beautiful sound - - at least in Masumi's hands.
Stevesong, a good technician can do a lot of things…change the hammers, pick them and make small holes to get a softer sound.
Within a certain limite, a very good and rare technician can even move the entire keyboard and find a better sound balance.
You can't compare a 100 years old Steinway with a Stradivarius ! or compare their prices and their avaibility, there is nothing common…
The Steinways pianos and technique have changed a lot over he years.
If your technician achieved a very good sound, that's perfect, but the steinway of today is complelty different, the way of playing it too.
I mean you technician seems very talented but the fact that your piano is labeled "steinway" or "x" may have not hat much to do with his today's sound.
The "good" Steinways start after 1970. Before, there was a lot of imperfections that have been improved with the time.
