|
|
HOW TO RATE/REVIEW PIANOS
How do dealers, musicians, piano tuners and technicians rate pianos? What criteria do they use to review them? Here we evaluate individual pianos based on criteria placed in order of importance from the performer's and teacher's point of view.
These ratings are for individual pianos, and we've made it a rule to spend at least 5 minutes with each one, in most cases tuning the whole piano before rating it. Professionals can often tell almost immediately whether they like a piano or not, but here we have tried to see what are the strengths and weaknesses of each piano. We have mixed new with secondhand, the comments column refering amongst other things to any restoration work done. This may sometimes include hammer toning or adjustments on new pianos too. In the comments column we mention any work that needs to be done on a piano, and in some cases the pianos are rated before and after work has been done.
PRIORITIES for rating/reviewing pianos
Mid range tone. From C3 (note 28) to C6 (note 64) is the area of the piano that you play the most. To figure high on the ratings, it should sing melodically, the sound should not die away quickly, and there be plenty of depth of tone and dynamic range. We've given this criteria 30% of the overall score. This is the area that shows up cheaply made pianos the most, because it relies largely on the piano having a well shaped soundboard, and this requires skilled technicians spending a lot of time honing it and giving it a good "crown". It also shows up digital pianos because, of course, they don't have a soundboard at all!
Bass tone. From A0 to B2 (1 to 27). For classical music, this should be deep and sonorous. For Jazz perhaps a bit punchier with dry damping(!) - ie, immediate cut-off. We've given bass tone 15% of the overall score.
High treble. From C#6 to A8 (65 to 88). Should be powerful, medium bright but not piercingly so. 10% of overall score.
Damping. This refers to the cut off of the sound after the finger or pedal is released. On a grand this will be rated 4 if it is working well. If an upright is underdamped then normal rating is 4 but if it is overdamped (dampers over the top of the hammers) then the normal rating will be 3 or 2, as this system, even in the best overdampers by Bluthner or Ibach, will still show some delay in cutting out on the top five or six notes damped. If you play mainly romantic classical music, then this may not bother you, but if you play mainly jazz it most likely will.
Touch and dynamic range. This should be smooth, even and weighted to about 50 grams downweight and 30 grams upweight (see restoration page) Older people and occasional players often prefer a lighter touch. This rules out most new pianos. On the other hand, serious students need a relatively heavy touch to develop finger muscles. Digital keyboards are graded for dynamic range but are not as subtle as a real piano.
Dynamic range is the ability to play very softly (for grands see also Una Corda toning on the restoration page) and also get a fortissimo when required. We've given touch and dynamic range 30% of the overall score.
Build. How long will the piano last before needing reconditioning? How stable will the tuning be? Here there is a vast difference. Older pianos made by second or third generation top quality factories were originally immeasurably better made than cheap or mid-range modern ones. (See the Uprights and Grands pages for more information). Badly made modern ones often develop faults early on.
NOTES ON NEW PIANOS:
New pianos. All new pianos need playing in. If the factory, such as Kemble in the UK, has invested in a machine for playing-in the piano, then this is a start. Kemble currently (2006) play all their pianos in for 15 minutes, which they say is equivalent to 2 month's normal playing. This is a start, but the piano really reaches it's best tone after at least 3 years of normal playing. Many factories don't own one at all! This means that a new piano will sound harsher, less even and the tone plainer than a played-in one.
Secondly, if you buy a piano made in a good factory with an established track record, such as Steinway in Hamburg or Kemble in the UK, then you should be able to guarantee that the piano will last a lifetime. The problem today is that many of the new pianos on the market are made hastily in factories with a track record of less than a generation, which in piano terms is no time at all! We cannot threfore be sure of their durability.
Used pianos. Second-hand pianos from a good maker are a secure investment, provided they have been chosen by a good dealer and well reconditioned.
BENCHMARK PIANOS. We've chosen as a benchmark the Yamaha C7 concert grand, G3E boudour grand, G2E baby grand and the Yamaha U1H upright, all from the 1970s. This is because these are the probably most common good quality pianos available in the world at the moment (2006).
IMPORTANT: SERIAL NUMBERS, etc. All pianos rated are specific pianos with individual serial numbers whenever these are marked on the piano. All ratings are undertaken by qualified piano tuners and technicians. We realise that opinions on ratings may vary, but it is our hope that as the database builds, so an average rating will be clear for each piano. If you are a qualified tuner and would like to collaborate with us by rating the pianos you tune, please e-mail: pianorating@gmail.com
Concert grands, boudoir grands, baby grands and uprights are on separate lists. An upright rated 70 will of course not be the same quality as a concert grand rated 70, but the comparison is made within the category.
QUICK GUIDE:
90+ = Dream piano
80+ = Special
70+ = excellent
60+ = Good
50+ = Acceptable
40+ = poor or needs reconditioning
less than 40 = Considered inadequate for learning purposes or needs reconditioning
|
|
