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chrisw

Thank you Barrie, and the same to you.

chrisw

If your tuner commented on the brightness of the piano I wonder if he/she spent some time voicing the hammers and made it too dull/mellow for your taste. If this is the case the brightness will return as you play it. If no voicing was done then the issue is likely to be with the tuning. It has been ...

chrisw

Paint has not necessarily ruined it unless it is impeding the movement of the keys. It is the internal condition of the piano that matters, whether it sounds nice, keeps itself in tune and the keys move pleasantly under the fingers. I can't tell the age from your photograph but please be aware that ...

chrisw

Once again I am having thoughts of changing my upright for a grand but this time being fairly certain that there would be enough room in the dining room bay window to accommodate it. The window faces east but I would still take steps to protect the piano from sunlight. The reason for changing is to ...

chrisw

If you are asking how much is it worth or what you can sell it for I would say very little, perhaps nothing at all.

chrisw

The number of new Covid infections in the Lancaster area has dropped appreciably in the last couple of weeks and it is now much less than south Lakeland which has been put into tier 2. In fact when I wrote to my MP last week the whole of Lancashire, including Blackburn had only marginally more infec...

chrisw

It is quite strange that the serial number does not appear in the top right hand corner of the frame. The edges of the casting is also very rough, not up to Kemble's usual standard. Lastly wonder why the Kemble name or a letter K was not cast into the frame itself . Perhaps it was a mid 1970's model...

chrisw

This guy is very good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFTZi96YtKw

chrisw

CGAF in the left hand, but which C are you starting on ? If it is middle C then thumb on middle C , 3 on G, 2 on A and 4 on F. If lower C, 5 on C, 2 on G, thumb on A and 3 on F. When there is a sequence of notes and when it is possible it is a good idea to put the fingers down on the notes and keep ...

chrisw

I hope you are staying well Barrie and that your activities are not being perturbed too much by the current covid restrictions.

chrisw

It sounds to me that this U3S ticks all the boxes. Congratulations.

chrisw

Judging from articles on the internet, the Kawai BL-12 seems to be a respected piano and I would imagine an equal to the U1. I cannot comment on the condition of the hammers. If I was to purchase a second hand piano from a home near to the sea at least I would be reassured that it hadn't been kept i...

chrisw

I guess my friend must be dealing with Park Pianos. She told me that she traded her grand with the people she originally purchased it from (MusicBox Pianos) and is expecting her new upright soon. They have already collected the grand piano.

chrisw

Are you aware of the Yamaha dealership in north Manchester, Musicbox pianos in Bury Old Road ? They seem to be able to get new Yamaha stock at present according to a friend who is expecting delivery of a new upright in the next couple of weeks.

chrisw

You must have visited the Schimmel dealership in Deansgate but it sounds as though you preferred the Yamaha. From what you say I am not at all impressed with the sales pitch on either piano showing that you have to trust your own judgement. However if the Yamaha really has been on the shop floor for...

chrisw

The best advice I can offer is to set your budget and play as many pianos as you can buying the one that you fall in love with. Try not to analyse the specification, the size or the brand but select the piano that gives you the most joy to play (and take its serial number as Barrie suggests). Salesp...

chrisw

I believe Cavendish pianos use Renner hammers but wouldn't like to say if they use Renner actions. I would be surprised if they did. The other makes that Yorkshire pianos stock are Yamaha (I have seen the B series on the shop floor and the owner was describing to me how much work he puts in to make ...

chrisw

I would imagine that although individual Yamaha and Kawai upright pianos will have different "personalities" they will be consistent on having a pretty good build quality. Although I haven't any experience on Kawai uprights I have played a couple of Kawai grands and I like both of them. I also know ...

chrisw

Hello George, Ideally pianos should be chosen because of the way they play, how they sound and the feel of the keys under the fingers. The specification can be used as an aid to judgement. Not always possible, it wasn't in my case, nor in the case of a friend who has just exchanged her piano. I do c...

chrisw

I am sorry to learn that your experiences with the Feurich 125 didn't work out. I don't have playing experience on the Yamaha U1/U3 or on any Kawai upright model but I would be concerned that they could produce too much sound. Even my little Kemble upright can produce too many decibels. Could you co...

chrisw

Thank you, Fiona

chrisw

Thank you Barrie.
C

chrisw

Herrburger Brookes were the people that made the action inside your piano. There is an article about them here.
https://www.piano-tuners.org/herrburger ... index.html

chrisw

A friend has just upgraded his piano and is enquiring how best to keep a grand piano soundboard free of dust. Are there any tools designed to manoeuvre a duster below the strings and where might they be available from ? I have had a look in this website's piano accessory shop but if something was th...

chrisw

Lovely city. Once made the mistake of being taken to a Heurigen before having a proper meal.

chrisw

Nice to hear Jerusalem with the full might of the organ.

chrisw

I believe that Hanon is ok for strengthening fingers and basic techniques but it is a method meant for pianos rather than keyboards. If you want to strengthen your fingers it would be best to use an acoustic piano with a down weight of at least 50grams. Also if you start to use Hanon I would recomme...

chrisw

Are those two pieces being omitted as a temporary measure because there will be few people in the hall to sing along ? The rowdiness of the last night has in my opinion got too much in recent years so I won't miss the car hooters.

chrisw

Thanks Barrie.

Have you started tuning again ?

chrisw

I am sorry that I am too unfamiliar with keyboards to make any recommendation of a particular brand or model. However I guess I would be looking for one with 88 weighted keys perhaps produced by Yamaha, Kawai or Nord.

chrisw

If you are now considering a keyboard with weighted keys then go on line if you want. I would go to a real shop but that is my choice in wanting to see something before I buy.

chrisw

It has a lovely oak case.

chrisw

Visit has many piano shops as you can to try out many different pianos that fit your budget and the size of room you have available. Choose the one you like the sound of and the touch to your fingers. Get a guarantee from a shop. If you end up buying a second hand piano privately ask a piano tuner t...

chrisw

Suggest contacting Roberts Pianos in Oxford to ask if they are interested. They like small Bluthners and also restore older pianos.

chrisw

Hello Treguard, I can't get your photographs to enlarge so not able to see much of the string on the leg of the first piano. The first piano looks to have an attractive case but this doesn't say anything about its ability to tune, stay in tune, the condition of the hammer felts, all the other felts ...

chrisw

Judging by what I am reading in other forums from piano teachers wishing to clean keys between pupils there is going to be a lot of work for tuner/technicians in replacing keytop surfaces.

chrisw

Hello Andrew, Welcome to this forum and good luck with your piano search. I returned to piano lessons at the age of forty years after having a gap of more than twenty five years. However I had been trying to teach myself for say five years before approaching my first adult teacher. The mistake that ...

chrisw

Copied from Barrie's reply to a similar question. You have to be careful with some of the commercial antiseptic wipes as they have alcohol and hydrogen peroxide which can damage the keys if used incorrectly Plastic can go soft ivory keys are porous and the alcohol can affect the glue underneath. CH ...

chrisw

Thank you Barrie. The CH wipes look like a good option for modern pianos, perhaps not for pianos with ivory keys. If we are able to resume piano groups before the release of a vaccine I might buy a large container of hand gel as well. In the meantime we are meeting using Zoom.

chrisw

As one might expect at this time decontamination refers to cleaning of keys so that the risk of transmitting the Covid virus by touch between a group of people playing the same piano is reduced as much as possible. I ask the question because when lockdown restrictions are partially lifted it might b...

chrisw

I buy my music at Promenade Music in Morecambe to give them the custom rather than anyone on line. There is a good music shop on line called Presto Classical located in Leamington Spa. I try to avoid Amazon.

chrisw

If Dawson's in Leeds does disappear there will be nowhere in the city centre that you can buy music apart from Hobgoblin which I guess won't have piano music. There remains a couple of places that you can buy a piano, one being Besbrode's but they are not in the shopping centre. When I was a teenage...

chrisw

That is a pity especially for the staff. The Manchester store is quite large but in recent years seems to have stocked mostly electronic instruments. It is many years since I ventured in and was put off by notices on the pianos saying please do not touch. Dawson's Manchester didn't stock much in the...

chrisw

I have the same model bought new in 1994. Enjoy your piano.

chrisw

My first thoughts were that this is a Kemble and the serial number suggests 1963.

chrisw

There is a 2010 Kemble 121 for sale at the Piano Gallery. Asking price about £4.2 k. I believe the silent system will affect the touch but you need to try the piano to see if you like it or not.

chrisw

Hello Barrie and Richard, I hope we can all get back to normal before not too long. It is getting time that I should be contacting my tuner technician. Some of the piano meetup groups are inviting people to join virtual meetings where video recordings are played instead of doing a live performance. ...

chrisw

Hello Richard, Somewhere on this website I think I have seen a history of Bentley Pianos but I can't find it this morning. When I was shopping for my very first piano in 1983 I remember going into a piano shop in my wife's home town and it seemed full of new Bentley pianos. I wasn't sure how long I ...

chrisw

Sorry but I have not heard of this make and can only recommend that you ask an experienced piano technician or tuner to assess the condition of the piano before you decide to buy it. If this is an old piano the make or brand means very little and its condition means everything. Warning signs (for me...