Is there any way to adjust my piano keys, they weigh a ton?

[chopin2256]

Hi everyone,

I own a Weinbach upright.  Its a very good piano, sturdy, stays in tune for the most part, and sounds very nice.  I received it when I was 15, and I was just learning the piano at that age, so I didn't even notice that the keys were pretty stiff to push down.  Actually just recently, I started to notice it is almost impossible to play anything on that piano with fast speed, and impossible to play a "soft" part...its either all or nothing.  My hands used to get tired.  They don't get tired anymore because I am pretty used to the piano, however it still seems tough playing something like a Scherzo.

Is there any way to make the keys much easier to press down?  I was watching these videos https://www.valentinalisitsa.com/valhome.html and the videos made me realize that my technique is so ungraceful compared to hers.

She uses all of her fingers with no problem to play any chord, trills, thirds, etc...something I never do, (i always use my 1st, 2nd or 3rd for trills or for thirds)  But there probably is no way for me to use my fingers the way she does on my Weinbach piano...Even if I could play like her, I dont think it would be possible to use my fingers gracefully on this piano...as the keys feel like they weigh a ton when playing full chords fast, or playing fast in general.  They keys feel easy to push when playing slowly, which was why I never noticed this until now.  The piano that girl plays, the keys look like they are very easy to push down.

Is there an easy solution for this problem, besides buying a new piano?

[jlh]

You could hire a piano technician to come and adjust your front rail pins so they offer less resistance -- thereby lightening the action.  There are various other things a qualified technician can do to most pianos to improve the action, such as lessening the tension on certain springs in the whippen, for example.

[faulty_damper]

You should hire a technician for this job.  But here are some suggestions for yourself to check to determine what could be the problem:

1.  Measure the depth the keys dip when they are pressed down.  It should be at the standard of 3/8 inch when measured at the edge.  Any addition depth and the keys will feel much heavier even if it is just 1/8th of an inch more.  Also, this slows down your playing significantly as you have more distance to travel with your fingers.

2.  Slowly press down the keys and listen very carefully if there is some rubing noise.  If there is, the action may be sticking and need lubricating.  Even if there is no sound, lubricating the action pins will reduce the friction, thereby lightening the touch, although barely noticeable.  You could do this yourself but only if you really want to know how your piano works and are not afraid to accidentally break something.

3.  Heavy touch is usually because the keys are not sufficiently weighted.  If you want to see how just a few grams change the touch, take two quarters and put them on the white key, the flat side.  This way when you play the note you are touching the quarters and not the ivory.  The additional weight of the quarters lightens the touch up just like that.  I don't recommend permanently gluing the quarters of the keys, though.

4.  Where is your piano located? If it is located near a window or heater or other place where the climate is in constant flux this will affect the wood by either swelling or drying up.  If it swells, it makes the action difficult to move as there is more pressure on the action pins.

[xvimbi]

Is there any way to make the keys much easier to press down?  I was watching these videos https://www.valentinalisitsa.com/valhome.html and the videos made me realize that my technique is so ungraceful compared to hers.

The process of adjusting the action of your piano to your liking is called "regulation", and any qualified technician can do that as already mentioned. I would not mess with the weights of the keys myself, because it's not as simple as shaving of some wood here or adding some weight there. The entire action mechanisms needs to be balanced very well.

Concerning Valentina Lisitska, it could easily be that the Steinways she is used to play on have an even heavier action. I would recommend going to a piano dealer to play on different models and see for yourself how other pianos do. You need to find out how light or heavy you want the action of your piano to be anyway to tell the technician. If you have the chance, check out a good Steinway (will likely have a very stiff action) and a Boesendorfer (will likely have a medium, well-balanced and smooth action).

Finally, it is very rare that the action of a piano is too stiff to play properly, unless there is something outright wrong with the piano and/or the pianist. You may have to evaluate your technique. Using more arm/torso weight and less finger might already alleviate a lot of your problems.