Removing the Action

Question 1

Fallboard

Answer 1

The fallboard covers the keys and “falls” closed.

Question 2

Fallboard Tray

Answer 2

The flat surface where the music rests, also known as the music desk.

Question 3

Cheek block

Answer 3

Small, flat panels on either end of the keyboard

Question 4

Key slip

Answer 4

Vertical board holding the keys in place, touches the player’s torso.

Question 5

Kickboard

Answer 5

Vertical panel covering the lower side of the cabinet where the strings and pedals are located.

Question 6

When removing the action from an upright piano, the first step is to…

Answer 6

open the top panel and remove the front board and the fall board/fallboard tray.

Question 7

After removing the front board and the fallboard and fallboard tray, you must next do what to remove the upright action?

Answer 7

Open the kickboard and disconnect the pedal rods.

Question 8

Action bracket nuts

Answer 8

Nuts that hold the action to the action brackets.

Question 9

What is the most important consideration while physically removing the action from an upright?

Answer 9

Use caution to ensure that the action brackets do not damage the dampers.

Question 10

When removing the action from a grand, the first step is to…

Answer 10

unfasten the cheek blocks by unscrewing them from the underside of the piano.

Question 11

After removing the cheek blocks in a grand piano, what is the next step in removing the action?

Answer 11

Remove the fallboard either by pulling gently (no screws) or removing the hinges and lifting it out (screws/hinges)

Question 12

Some grand pianos use brackets to attach the fallboard to the cheek blocks. In this instance, instead of removing the fall board and cheek blocks separately, you should remove this to pull them out together.

Answer 12

Key slip, vertical board that runs along the front of the keys and touches the player’s torso.

Question 13

What is the most important consideration when removing the action from a grand piano?

Answer 13

Check to see that all of the hammers are in the fallen position and are not sticking up.

Question 14

What are the main differences between a Sticker Spinet and a non-sticker Spinet?

Answer 14

The sticker rod is pulled up in a Sticker spinet rather than pushed. A non-sticker Spinet holds the stickers with a mechanism that is attached directly to the action.

Question 15

After opening the cabinet, what is the first step in removing the action of a Sticker Spinet?

Answer 15

Remove all the rubber/cork grommets from the sticker rod and secure them to the action so that they do not catch on the keys during removal.

Question 16

After removing the cabinet, what is the first step in removing the action of a Non-sticker spinet?

Answer 16

Using a damper, fasten the mechanism keeping the stickers on at the beginning and end of each section. This keeps the stickers from coming dislodged as a whole.

Question 17

Noise

Answer 17

Scrambled vibrations sent out across the air that cause the eardrum to vibrate in an unorganized way.

Question 18

Tone

Answer 18

Organized vibrations sent out across the air that the ear mimics, measured in Hertz

Question 19

Hertz

Answer 19

Cycles per second, or measurement of frequency of a vibration.

Question 20

Constructive interferance

Answer 20

When two strings are tuned to the exact same pitch, causing them to reinforce each other and produce a louder tone.

Question 21

Deconstructive interferance

Answer 21

Two strings that are not tuned to the exact same pitch and thus subtract from each other’s overall volume by producing a louder and then rapidly softer, producing a beat.

Question 22

Beat

Answer 22

When two strings are not tuned to the exact same pitch and play loud and then rapidly softer.

Question 23

Bass

Answer 23

Left-most section of strings under the lid of a grand or in the upper cabinet of an upright.

Question 24

Middle/Tenor

Answer 24

Center section of strings under the lid of a grand or in the upper cabinet of an upright.

Question 25

Treble

Answer 25

Right-most section of strings under the lid of a grand or in the upper cabinet of an upright.

Question 26

Unison

Answer 26

Groups of two or three strings that are tuned to the same pitch.