Tap Check Action

How does Wornum’s tape-check action work:

The tape is tied to a set of wires on the intermediate lever, which also holds the jack, the check head and the damper wire. When a key is depressed, the lever will push upwards, in return pulling down the jack’s escapement and pushing the hammer forwards to hit the strings. While the balance on the lever lies towards the front, the check head will follow and push forwards. This positions the hammer butt as close as possible to the strings. The wire of the tape will start stretching because of its length. It holds back the hammer to avoid it bouncing on the strings again. On the other hand, the movement of the damper wire will release the damper, allowing the strings to vibrate. As the damper is placed above the hammer, the term over-damper action is resulted.

The Master Cat of Piano

The Upright Action

According to Williams, the “sticker” action is the earliest example of an upright piano’s action. It comes from Germany in 1739 by Don Domenico del Mela di Gagliano.

How does upright action work:
The upright pianoforte action is made of two long sections joined at a right angle and resting on a woven pad. The sticker is placed vertically at the resting place of the key and shares the same pivot with the hammer. The damper rests on the strings to avoid vibration while a cord with the hammer’s pivot also links it. When the key is depressed, the sticker will push upwards and this makes the pivot turn clockwise. The hammers are thrown towards the string while the damper releases its resting position allow the strings to vibrate. After the striking momentum, the hammer head is lifted from the strings. It bounces backwards, rests on a woven pad because of gravity, and makes the pivot to turn anti-clockwise. The chord’s tension direction is reversed and the damper will rest on the strings again to stop vibration.

After about a hundred years of construction development, the upright action’s development reached its fullest realisation. According to Williams, by 1842, Robert Wornum’s tape-check action had become the basis of the present upright piano action. This action, adapted from a patent of Hermann Lichtenthal’s, can prevent the strings from being struck by the hammer again from its re-bounce. This was an important achievement, since it helped each key to produce a clearer tone when struck.

About action

There have been three types of actions in the history of pianoforte construction development: the square, the grand, and the upright. However, only two types of action remain in use, the upright, and the grand action. According to McCombie, the old square piano action has disappeared. This was caused by the emergence of concert tours featuring grand pianos, together with further developments to the upright alternative by the 1870s. In this section, I will introduce some of the main type actions from the past, as well as some from modern times. I will begin with the upright actions, and later the grand actions.

Composer comp. vs International place comp

The debate between why composer competitions are more important than the international place competition is purely decide by the influence it can create. It is the same logic as people in 'Place A' like fruits while people in 'Place B' like meat.
The standard of the inter-school competitions, as one may argue, is higher than some of the local competitions. It is absolutely correct, but why it is placed in a lower ladder than the local competitions? The main reason is that it lacks the openness that a competition needs and the expectations are more academically than professionally.

Piano competitions

The piano competitions in the world can be divided into 3 categories.
According to the difficulties and influences of the competitions, it is structured as followed:

1. International competition, usually once a year to a couple of years;
2. Nation competition;
3. Local competition, few times a year or once a year;
4. Inter-school competition, once a year with qualifying round.
   

The composer competitions are usually regarded as the highest level of competitions because of its in depth influences. However, not all winners can become famous and have their world tour concerts. On the other hand, be aware that some composer competition is not held in the composer nation country, and those competitions are, and will continue to be not recognized as in the highest standard.

Academy in the U.K.

The myth of the ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) is NOT a music academy / music college. It is an examination board build up by 4 of the royal music colleges in the U.K. These include:

• RCM (Royal College of Music);
• RAM (Royal Academy of Music);
• RNCM (Royal Northern College of Music);
• RSAMD (Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama).

Other music colleges in U.K. including:

TCM (Trinity College of Music); GSMD (Guildhall School of Music and Drama); LCM (Leeds College of Music); RWCMD (Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama); Finally, London College of Music, it is a registered music college but not well recognized by the music circle.

Introduction

I always want to write a weblog on pianoforte – one of my strength. Though, I am just too lazy and not bother writing one. Now, I am fortunate enough to have one with the help by Gary Tam, one of my long time old friends, to fulfill this aim. This weblog will be spread into a few sections: history, composers, pianists, recording, techniques, genres, competitive, academy, brand, and the instrument. So, just feel free to find the pages that you are interested.
Hopefully, I can show you a piano world that you will never forget. Enjoy!!