Dear Esteemed Colleagues,
I am turning to this wonderful resource of people for assistance. I am teaching a class at this upcoming convention called Contemporary Standards for Piano Restoration. This class was first inspired by a conversation I had with Larry Fine prior to the publishing of Practical Piano Valuation, co-authored by Steve Cohen, in which he asked how much rebuilding added to the value of a piano. The obvious question that comes to mind is what do you mean by rebuilding? The second impetus for this class is to address the whole "Steinwas" debate and whether a rebuilt piano could be as good as a new one.
I am seeking feedback from any and all of you. Think "new piano standard." What do you expect to find in the most complete rebuild? Beyond just new components, new soundboard, keyset, backaction etc. etc., what do we consider a first-rate job? It could be something small like refelting the sostenuto hole, or perhaps actually finishing the job with a thorough regulation and voicing, rather than saying I'll finish it in the house when it settles in…like I've ever done that! ;)
If you have something special that you do or know of, I would also be interested in that, short of completely sharing any proprietary stuff, although that's cool too. For example, I have my system of preloading the board with the exact amount of string pressure while I am setting bearing.
Beyond this class, I am looking to continue this research, and if there is value, I will share the research here or perhaps in the journal. Please feel free to share your thoughts here or you can email me privately at jude@absolute-piano.com. If you have any pictures to share, that would be wonderful. Let me know if I have permission to use these and they will of course be fully credited.
As always, much appreciation to this wonderful group,
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Jude Reveley, RPT
President
Absolute Piano Restoration, Inc.
Lowell, Massachusetts
978-323-4545
www.absolute-piano.com------------------------------