Regulation

Pianos are highly complex instruments, made up of a whole host of different components and materials, with all of them having to act in harmony so as to provide the pianist with the desired playability.

The ratio between key travel and hammer travel is of paramount importance, with a series of events taking place in the interim – the key is pressed, causing the damper to lift when the hammer has moved to a specified distance from the strings, the jack moving out from the hammer butt at another specified distance, and the hammer rebounding and being caught by the backcheck at yet another specified distance. If these individual events do not occur in perfect synchronicity, problems will occur, such as ‘double-strikes’ of the hammer.

Regulation is the operation undertaken to adjust the movement of the striking mechanism in order to perform the desired movement. By ensuring that moving distances are correct, components aren’t damaged, and soft materials such as baizes and felts, aren’t worn down, the piano will play as desired, with dynamic sensitivity and good repetition.