Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum FAQ - Piano Forum How Long Does Voicing Last?

I had some voicing done last summer with pleasing results. However now the treble is getting bright again.

How long will needling last? The piano is played 1-2 hours a day.

It lasts until you no longer like how the piano sounds.

There are different types of voicing. Deep needling is pretty much a permanent change. Shallow needling wont last nearly as long, a lot depends on how much you are playing. Adding lacquer is also relatively permanent. Hammer filing and shaping will need to be redone regularly based on use and expectation. There are many different voicing techniques for different outcomes, so deep needling and hammer hardeners may or may not be appropriate. Your ear will also adjust to the ideosyncracies of your instrument as the voicing goes.
If you are playing Liszt and Rachmaninoff at a high level for 1 -2 hours a day, the voicing wont last as long as if you are playing Bach and Mozart. It also, as BDB pointed out, really depends on your taste.

One thing that I should add is that often tuning corrects what people feel are voicing problems.

And often, voicing corrects what sounds like tuning problems.

A little voicing at every visit keeps the piano sounding great (25-35 minutes)

Manitou - Pianist - Technician

How long does voicing last?

It's like asking how long do tires last.

Depends on how you drive.

Depends on the type of tire.

Depends on how many miles you go. OK, we know you play 1-2 hours a day. But we don't know how hard.

So really the answer depends on the individual circumstance as well as how sensitive you are to the voicing. Some people get bothered sooner, others later.

But overall, the need for voicing is related to wear. As they wear, you will need more voicing.

Regards,

Rick Clark

There are different types of voicing. Deep needling is pretty much a permanent change. Shallow needling wont last nearly as long, a lot depends on how much you are playing. Adding lacquer is also relatively permanent. Hammer filing and shaping will need to be redone regularly based on use and expectation. There are many different voicing techniques for different outcomes, so deep needling and hammer hardeners may or may not be appropriate. Your ear will also adjust to the ideosyncracies of your instrument as the voicing goes.
If you are playing Liszt and Rachmaninoff at a high level for 1 -2 hours a day, the voicing wont last as long as if you are playing Bach and Mozart. It also, as BDB pointed out, really depends on your taste.

--------------------
Keith D Kerman
PianoCraft
Bluthner, Mason & Hamlin, Steingraeber, Irmler, Breitmann, Stanwood Precision Touch Design, Rebuilds
www.pianocraft.net
keith@pianocraft.net


Thank you for the thoughtful reply.

I believe the voicing work done last summer was shallow needling and reshaping of the hammers. As I said, the results were very good, just not permanent.

Also, I want the piano to sound and play perfectly. All the time. (Even though I don't). My expectations may not be reasonable given the myriad of factors involved.

There's usually only two main factors, the skill of your tech and the size of your wallet. Horowitz had this sort of work done to his pianos constantly.

pianos never sound and play perfectly all the time. unless you have the tech come every day, or better, twice a day, and then don't play the piano.

pianos are constantly changing. the best thing to do is decide how much you are willing to spend a year on this kind of maintenance, then put yourself on a regular maintenance schedule accordingly.

and then, when the piano has its inevitable bad days, just ignore it!

there are indeed a myriad of factors, and the biggest ones are temperature and humidity. to optimize your chances of maintaining voicing perfection (despite lots of playing), control the room's climate as much as possible. position the piano away from all doors, windows, and vents. keep doors and windows in that room closed at all times. maintain the humdity and temperature at constant levels. the optimal is 42 percent humidity and 68 degrees F. keep the lid closed and the fallboard down.

oh, and don't play it.

at least there will be days your piano sounds wonderful, too!

rpb1965,

what kind of piano do you have?