THE MODERN PIANO-FORTE. 697 



man piano-fortes are generally rough and unfinished in mechanical 

 details when compared with the French, although the tones are 

 stronger. 



Yet neither bear comparison with those of America. These 

 also, among themselves, present marked characteristics. One maker 

 prides himself on the magnitude and power of his instruments, and 

 their fitness to be employed with the orchestra in large halls ; another 

 on the delicacy and extreme purity of the tone, which he deems can 

 only be attained from instruments intended for the drawing-room or 

 halls of moderate size ; a third may try to obtain a " traveling-power," 

 which quality is so markedly deficient in many upright pianos and in 

 free-reed organs, as compared with grand piano-fortes and pipe-organs, 

 that always sound better when at some distance. Great attention is 

 always paid to the material and form of the hammer, which is found 

 to produce the best tone when covered with soft felt, made of the wool 

 of the merino sheep. This Saxony wool is worked here by Germans. 

 Great care is also paid to the spinning of the covei-ed wii-es, and the 

 consistency of all the others to avoid defects that would lead to beats, 

 and deceive the tuner. 



Much experience and practical skill are required in the designing 

 of the scales, or elaborate balancing of. length, weight, thickness, 

 material, and tension of the strings, to secure uniformity from bass 

 to treble, while conforming to a given length of case, although the 

 design may be planned in accordance with the mathematical the- 

 ories of stretched strings. Then, again, the point where the blow 

 is to be delivered is carefully chosen, that objectionable nodes may 

 be destroyed. For the same reason wedge-like dampers are em- 

 ployed to check vibrations, and are made to act at a point where 

 subsequent dissonant overtones may be rendered impossible. For 

 the want of this last precaution, an otherwise valuable upright 

 piano-forte, by a prominent firm in Germany, was pronounced a failure 

 in London, some years ago. On striking any one of the bass notes, 

 and then raising the key, after a short interval of silence, the harmonic 

 seventh was generated ; and this was no Aveak, vanishing tone, but a 

 strong, continuous sound resembling that of a musical glass. 



On studying the detailed accounts of new patents for improve- 

 ments real or imaginary on comparing the statements of rival 

 makers, or on being persistently contradicted by interested experts, 

 one learns the difficulty of forming an opinion on points at issue, hav- 

 ing reference to the advantages gained by alterations in the mode of 

 constructing piano-fortes. It demands considerable special knowledge 

 even to fully comprehend these points. One should carefully avoid 

 expressing opinions that might tend to affect values, and be content 

 with the reflection that the public at large is well enough informed to 

 know that only. those firms possessing the requisite capital, intelligence, 

 and experience, can produce an intrinsically valuable instrument. 



