4/27/2023 0 Comments Moving grand piano tie theactionIt’s best for a beginner to play on a piano that feels comfortable with a sound that they connect with emotionally. A beginner is less flexible in their ability to adjust to different piano types because they are more limited in their technical skills. It takes different techniques to play on pianos that have a light, medium, or heavy touch. GB: From beginner piano students all the way to concert pianists, why is the concept of touch so important?ĭS: Pianists use technique to control their sound and play expressively. ![]() GB: In your opinion, what constitutes a satisfying piano touch?ĭS: A piano with satisfying touch gives the pianist comfortable control of tone across the keyboard and at all dynamic levels (from pianissimo to fortissimo). When we touch the keys, that tactile connection is the bridge between what we seek and the tone we desire. I’ve never really thought about it but you’re right, before we play, we make decisions, we pre-determine what sound we want to come out of the instrument that sits in front of us. Glen Barkman:In its simplest form, can you define what touch is?ĭavid Stanwood: Touch is the tactile connection between musical intention and piano tone. I hope you will find this not only interesting but also challenge your thinking about how we approach piano playing, performance and the technical angles of piano touch. So what we’re going to attempt to do is start with the basics and work our way forward through some of the more complex questions. The only problem is, it’s a little like speaking with a Formula One mechanic and asking “how does the car work?” It’s difficult to take these highly complex calculations and make them easily understandable. He has spent decades studying, pouring over data to understand what it is that we FEEL under our fingers at the piano ~ what it is that makes the piano satisfying to play. ![]() ![]() (Metrology being the science of measurement). Today we have the privilege of speaking with David Stanwood, a piano technician who also happens to be a published author specializing in piano touch metrology. If people only knew how many calculations go into the engineering of a single instrument, they would be astounded. “There are piano mathematicians?” was the reply. I was speaking with someone recently about this blog post on touch, describing it as “an interview with a piano mathematician”.
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