I've never played with one of these before so I could be wrong, but the way I understand it is that the solenoid creates a magnetic field when you run current through the coil, and the metal cylinder/core is sucked into that field. So at rest, the core would be sitting somewhat below the level of the coil with the rod sticking up, and then when activated, the core jumps up so it's fully inside the coil and the rod pushes the back of the piano key up. I imagine it's some combination of gravity, the key weight, and maybe a spring underneath that brings the core back to rest position.
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Anthony Willey, RPT
http://willeypianotuning.comhttp://pianometer.com------------------------------