Music Trade Review

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other, thus forming an enharmonic
change.
Remarks
C sharp when equalized between A
and F will also give you a D flat.
These intervals when tempered prop-
erly will tremolo something like a quiv-
ering or "beats."
But in order not to be too confused
at first, be sure to bring the intervals
FIRST AID IN PIANO REPAIRS
By ALEXANDER
HART
Instructor in Piano Tuning,
Teachers College, Columbia University, New York
EDITOR'S NOTE : Dealers and tuners who have a fair work-
ing knowledge of this art, can pick up some extra practical
training by Mr. Hart, c/o Music TRADE REVIEW, 1270 Sixth
Avenue, New York 20, N. Y.
The Elementary Phases of Piano
Tuning in its Relation to Music
Method No. 1
This method includes but two inter-
vals, viz., the octave and fifth. The
open notes white indicate those tunes;
the black notes those to be tuned.
We will try and give this method in
full, that it may be thoroughly under-
stood.
General Suggestions
Begin by holding tuning fork to the
"ear," not sideways otherwise its tone
will be faint.
pitch note.
3- Tune G above middle "C" flat so
that three beats in five seconds
could be heard.
4. Tune G, octave below, then equal-
ize the G's between the C's after
you tune the C below middle "C."
Then, tune up the three C's that
should sound perfect.
5. Tune D a fifth above from G as
you can see the white note show-
ing that you had just finished tun-
ing G.
6. Then t u n e A
from
D
a
fourth below D
that s h o u l d
sound flat about
one beat in one
s e c o n d or as
near as the ear
can detect.
7. Then t u n e A
o c t a v e above
middle "C."
8. Tune E a fifth
a b o v e A flat
near three
b e a t s in five
seconds.
Do not raise pitch if too low.
For the beginner it would be advis-
able to use a continuous felt wedge.
Don't remove it until you have prac-
ticed trying to eliminate h "wolf" or
the imperfections, i.e., distributing
"beats" with sufficient accuracy to war-
rant results. This will take lots of
practice.
Don't get discouraged if you do not
come out of the tangle. And this locat-
ing the "wolf," as we have just men-
tioned. The temperament is based on
a fifth and octave foundation.
This is one of the easiest methods
to follow.
1. Tune "C" to tuning fork and be
very careful about raising the
pitch too much at one time.
2. Then tune middle "C" from the
28
Suggestions
A. Equalize the D's between the G's.
B. Equalize the E's between the A's.
Note: Tune B below E a fourth
about one beat in one second.
9. Tune B octave above perfect. Tune
F sharp, a perfect fifth, above
middle "C" flat without being too
noticeable. Then octave below per-
fect.
10. Then tune C sharp a fifth from F
sharp flat. This will give you a
test between A below middle C and
F above.
Test
As C sharp stands between C and F
the "beats" should be equalized as near
as possible. As an example, it will
be noticed that C sharp is sharp to A
as it is flat to F. This gives the differ-
ence of "beats" from one side to the
it is not possible to give a full detail
about temperament in one article, and
remember, practice is the thing.
11. Tune G sharp from C sharp. An-
other fifth likewise as flat as you
can.
Suggestions
Distributing the "beats" can also be
compared to other intervals through
various trials and tests. For example,
should the beats between A and C
sharp sound too rough, there would be
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, JUNE, 1945