Steinway’s accelerated action was introduced in 1934 amid
some fanfare. It was reported in the Nov.-Dec. Presto –Times publication of
1934 that Polish born concert pianist Josef Hofmann (1876-1957) once came to
Steinway Hall in 1932 to ask if they could make their actions “more sensitive”
and even “more responsive”. Well that
request was supposed to have given the impetus to the creation of what we know
as the Accelerated Action. That
little story may have been put together after the fact though, because the
half-round key bearing, which is an integral part of the Accelerated Action was patented in 1931. The idea apparently had
been worked on well before Hofmann’s request was received.
Be that as it may, the Accelerated
Action was created by Frederick Vietor to improve the response of the piano
action. Times were not good for the sale of pianos during the early thirties.
Times were not good for the sale of much of anything during that time.
Something that could create a renewed interest in the piano would be welcomed,
however small it might be. Perhaps this
was the impetus for the invention.
Here are the claims:
1) The new Accelerated
Action is quicker by an average of .02 of a second at a fortissimo blow.
This was measured from the time the finger begins to depress the key to the
time the key and hammer returns at rest. The total time that they used from the
beginning to the end of playing the key was approximately .15 of a second. The
tests were done using high-speed photography and they determined that the
return of the key was .02 of a second quicker.
2) Because the key and hammer return is that much
quicker, the hammer drops completely away from the strings after contact by the
same .02 of a second faster.
3)
Less force is required to play pianissimo
because the inertia is less in the key, due to the placements of the key leads closer to
the key’s fulcrum. Placing the leads closer to the fulcrum requires more lead, but
decreases inertia in the key by 15% on average.
4)
Measurements of internal friction with the Accelerated system averages 11% less
friction and friction is more uniform, which makes fortissimo playing slightly speedier
(less friction) and more precise (more uniform friction).
Testimonials of the new Accelerated
Action from some artists:
1)
Vladimir Horowitz: “The new Steinway accelerated
action is a marked improvement on the action of a Steinway piano. It makes a
perfect action still more perfect.”
2)
Josef Hofmann: “The seemingly impossible has
been achieved. The Steinway piano has been improved upon. The new Steinway
accelerated action has done it. The invention not only facilitates and enhances
tone production but also permits greater precision and speed. I, therefore,
take pleasure in recommending this new creation to all who are interested in
the art of piano playing.”
3)
Sergei Rachmaninoff: “This is to tell you that I
consider the new Steinway accelerated action a great improvement, and that I
have found your pianos more perfect during the past two seasons than ever
before.”
4)
Mischa Levitzki: “I consider your new Steinway
accelerated action the greatest improvement achieved by the piano industry in
many, many years. I venture to predict that it will have a far-reaching
beneficial effect upon the whole of piano playing, both professional and
amateur. For, with greater smoothness and responsiveness of your new action,
the player will not only be able to carry out difficult passages with greater
ease, but will also be able to produce a more beautiful tone, thereby getting
even more inspiration from the matchless Steinway tone than ever before. I
rejoice with you in your new achievement.”
What is the Accelerated
Action that Vietor invented? It consists of two parts. One, the
aforementioned half round key bearing found under each key’s fulcrum, slightly less
than one-half inch in width and about one-quarter of an inch high (made by
cutting a half-inch dowel in half length-wise, and then cutting the lengths
into pieces which fit under each separate key), and the curved portion covered
with fairly thin white wool cloth for noise reduction. These take the place of
the traditional round flat felt punchings normally found under piano keys.
The other part of the Accelerated
Action design is the placement of the key leads. The
accelerated system called for a specific way of leading the keys. The first key
lead was to be placed as close to the key’s fulcrum as possible and then as
more leads were needed, they would be added as close to the previously placed
key lead as possible, and so on until the desired touch weight was achieved,
rather than the traditional method of adding the first lead as far away from the fulcrum as possible,
and then adding leads (as needed) as close to the previously placed lead as
possible, and so on until the desired touch weight was reached. Either
way, they would have to weigh off each key of the action to the same touch
weight specifications. The Accelerated Action lead placement gave slightly less
inertia for the player to overcome at the key because, as was mentioned, the
weight was positioned closest to the fulcrum. This lead placement was
scientifically deemed to have enough of an effect on lessening the inertia at
the key to be included in the design. The hammer accounts for most of the
inertia in the action, but decreasing the inertia at the key did have an
overall advantage of a slightly lighter feel when playing fortissimo.
