6 Things to Know About the Touch Weight of a Piano
It is common that some pianos are easy to play while some are harder. Some are smooth while some require a little more effort. This is mainly because of the difference in the build of the pianos. The factors governing such ease of playing are called the touch weight and they are
What are the common touch weight problems?
Touch Weight problems are common even in a brand new piano. The hammers of the piano get loosened up as days pass by and give an ease of playing. Hence a piano with newly installed hammers are always difficult to play with.
- Hard hammers – Extra effort in lifting it and hence extra effort in pressing the keys
- Built – in Heavier or lighter action parts in a new piano is not a defect. But if the parts are not set according to the correct touch weight a person can put in, the quality life of a piano reduces. This may be due to following reasons
- The parts might rub against each other
- Tight key bushings
- Room acoustics
- Weather
- Design of the instrument
- Old parts vs New part
What are the common touch weight problems?
Touch Weight problems are common even in a brand new piano. The hammers of the piano get loosened up as days pass by and give an ease of playing. Hence a piano with newly installed hammers are always difficult to play with.
What is touch weight?
Touch weight is just the amount of pressure required to press a key of a piano. When you press a key in a piano, you are actually lifting a hammer to height of 3/8” minimum (is longer for a larger piano) against gravity.
Why is touch weight important?
If you are practicing on a lesser touch weight pianos, then the stronger touch weight ones or the heavier ones become difficult to play. On the other hand stiff pianos will cause muscle injuries and will lead to fatigue. Also, an inconsistent touch weight from note to note will make it difficult for the learner to play evenly and will also make it hard to play on other pianos besides his own.
Is it good to buy a piano without touch weight?
Nowadays, piano makers add a weight to the key end to overcome the touch weight problem, so that the player needs to put his least effort, almost zero touch weight is lifted in pressing the key. This however, creates an inertia problem in making notes. Hence it is advisable to avoid such pianos
Soft hammer pianos – an alternate for touch weight problem?
On the other hand, manufacturers have started to make pianos with soft weightless hammers to solve the problem of touch weight. It is always good to avoid such pianos too as they feel like cotton balls on the player’s hands. And they do not give a hard grip for playing repeating tones.
How to overcome touch weight problem?
In order to solve the problem, it is always good to learn and practice in a stiff piano. Reducing the effort to play a lesser touch weight piano is much easier and painless to adjust.
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Touch weight is just the amount of pressure required to press a key of a piano. When you press a key in a piano, you are actually lifting a hammer to height of 3/8” minimum (is longer for a larger piano) against gravity.
Why is touch weight important?
If you are practicing on a lesser touch weight pianos, then the stronger touch weight ones or the heavier ones become difficult to play. On the other hand stiff pianos will cause muscle injuries and will lead to fatigue. Also, an inconsistent touch weight from note to note will make it difficult for the learner to play evenly and will also make it hard to play on other pianos besides his own.
Is it good to buy a piano without touch weight?
Nowadays, piano makers add a weight to the key end to overcome the touch weight problem, so that the player needs to put his least effort, almost zero touch weight is lifted in pressing the key. This however, creates an inertia problem in making notes. Hence it is advisable to avoid such pianos
Soft hammer pianos – an alternate for touch weight problem?
On the other hand, manufacturers have started to make pianos with soft weightless hammers to solve the problem of touch weight. It is always good to avoid such pianos too as they feel like cotton balls on the player’s hands. And they do not give a hard grip for playing repeating tones.
How to overcome touch weight problem?
In order to solve the problem, it is always good to learn and practice in a stiff piano. Reducing the effort to play a lesser touch weight piano is much easier and painless to adjust.
External Links:
Official Website
Tumblr
Blogger
Google Site
About.me