Petrof V at home - Yamaha C3 at rehearsals.
I have a Yamaha G1 Grand that I am delighted with. The only thing that is a bit annoying is that the light touch prevents me from being able to adapt very well to other pianos. I would love to have a Steinway & Sons, or a Fazioli. I would love to try a Fazioli one day.
Mmmh. Is it touch or is it action? Some posted that Yamaha has heavy action, you say it has a light touch. What's the difference? And who is right? From a piano technician I understood recently (revelation!) that you can get a piano to sound as soft as you want, but it seems to me that this affects the touch, not the action.
My Petrof grand Model V has ivory keys, so it is older than 1960, but I do not know how old. I bought it in 1986. I love its looks, but I was never happy with the sound that much, though it probably comes from the fact that it was already old when I bought it and it was never well kept. It sounds uneven and it seems not to stay tuned. I found the action/touch always really heavy: this, however, enabled me to play on whatever piano after practicing on it. And adjusting to other pianos matters to me a lot.
Every week at rehearsals I play a Yamaha C3. I have been practicing on this piano quite a lot in the last year and not on the Petrof because I split up and the Petrof is still at my ex's place. The action of the Yamaha is irritatingly light, the trebles are shrill, the overall feel far too brilliant - almost as plastified as the keys. We got it restored recently: it was a kind of Boolean machine, you know, you could play either forte or piano and that was it. Now it is much better, smoother and much more expressive. But its personality did not change.
The Petrof is old, but its trebles sound much nicer, the action I prefer, and perhaps after restoration it's gonna be quite nice sounding if it ever was.
Now: I am considering buying a Yamaha Silent Grand and sell the Petrof because of my neighbours (I posted recently on this). But now I am wondering whether it does not feel a little like trading a piece of history for some plastic. And the fact that it's gonna be light worries me. I take the action does not change from piano to piano of the same maker.
Or do Silent Petrofs exist?
aribe