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Grigory Sokolov and Heinz Becker in Basel
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- Äas pĹidĂĄn 9. 06. 2022
- About piano tuner Heinz Becker and his work with pianist Grigory Sokolov. (Would be great if someone who speaks German can kindly offer translation of any sort!)
9 November 2016, Telebasel
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Thanks a lot for uploading! Very fascinating to see how studious Grigory Sokolov is about the mechanics and the physical part of piano playing. I think this is one very crucial aspect of his superb playing.
I translated the clip into English. Even as a German native speaker it's sometimes almost impossible to understand the strong Swiss accent :-). Enjoy!
[0:15-0:48]
This is Grigory Sokolov - a world class pianist. But today itâs not about him - itâs about HIM - Heinz Becker is a professional piano tuner and in charge of practically all classical concerts in Basel. How he does it, what tuning is about, and why Grigory Sokolov of all pianists is the most demanding, is showed in this film.
Title: The piano whisperer - concert tuner Becker at work
[0:50-1:20]
Heinz Becker: âGood morning. Today we have a nice challenge - Maestro Sokolov is here for a recital.â
Itâs 8 am when Heinz Becker arrives at the Music Theatre. We're set for a long day, because Maestro Sokolov is not only one of the most famous pianists in the world, but also one of the most demanding. The huge expectation that the audience has of him, he also has of the piano. To live up to those expectations is Beckerâs task.
[1:21-2:03]
H.B.: âIâm responsible for seeing that the pianist has a top instrument, that means Iâm responsible for tuning, technical maintenance of the instrument and tonal maintenance, i.e. tuning, regulation of the musical mechanism and intonation.â
Tuning, regulation and intonation - those are the three components that need to be balanced. Until 10 am, a good hour and a half left, Heinz Becker has time to prepare both concert grands in the Musical Theatre. Then Maestro Sokolov steps by for the first time to test both pianos and decide which one he wants to play the concert with. Heinz Becker starts with the mechanical maintenance of the musical mechanism - the regulation.
[2:04-2:55]
Interviewer: âWhat do you see there?â H.B.: âThis one I set up a bit, it was a tad too deep. The hammerhead will be hold after being pushed.â
In his Dreispitz-based workshop [Dreispitz is a district of Basel] he demonstrates the meaning of this with a model of the piano mechanics.
H.B.: âThis on here is the little part responsible for holding the hammerhead. Up to this degree would be ideal. Setting it down the hammerhead would be caught too far which means the hammerhead wouldnât be ready for restriking fast enough. And thatâs exactly what Mr. Sokolov needs with his fast trills that are drawn like a rope of pearls. To me at least this is a unique specialty that no other pinanist is able to achieve. And he is utterly pedantic with it.
[2:56-3:54]
With this grand over there we have the same issue - Iâm gonna show it to you quickly. There you see it, the second one to the left ist deeper, so the falling distance is higher. Also the spring stiffness is of high value to Mr. Sokolov, since it is important for repeting the push on the key. The spring stiffness can be recognised by how fast the hammerhead comes back upwards. Now I push - takk - ⌠- this is still very tardy. And now I get the spring out - it is simply paced underneath - and I tighten it. Now it moves. Thatâs nice and good.â
[3:55-5:00]
As soon as everything is set right mechanically, the acoustic colours are dealt with. Depending on the age of the hammerheads, humidity and air moisture they can be too hard, too soft or a bit odd. Something that even a spectator would recognise immediately.
H.B.: âOh, there is something wrong with the intonation. It sounds âerrrerrrerrâ, other than this one, which still sounds rather full, not like âerrrrerrrâ, there is an inclined hammerhead. Normally all three strings are supposed to be blocked, here the left one is blocked and the right one is completely free. That means the peak of the hammerhead is inclined. Now we need to slim this left side of the felt. And now we hear a full and good sound.â
[5:02-5:40]
Inclined hammerheads normally appear only with new instruments or when they are waxed. The grand pianos of the Musical Theatre for example sometimes have hardened felt heads.
Interviewer: âHow do you fix this?â H.B.: âHere I have a so called âintonation forkâ. It consists of three needles with a 12mm length (depending on the need and the individual piano tuner). With it the little hammers, the felts are being loosened. Made more elastic. You just have to know where to sting.â
[5:45-6:05]
In the meanwhile itâs 10.15 am. Mechanics and sounds are right, the pianos are ready to be examined by the critical fingers of Grigory Sokolov. Both instruments are being transferred to the stage, a quick clean with the rag, and now itâs show time. The moment of truth for Heinz Becker.
H.B.: âWell, weâre ready now. He may enter.â [G.S. practises from 6:05]
[6:40-7:16]
At 2.45 pm the Maestro finished his first rehearsal and informed Heinz Becker about his alteration wishes.
Interviewer: âThe first reahearsal is over - how did he like it?â H.B.: âYeah, very good, heâs very pleased, nothing to complain about except the natural usage, there were some changes. Some keys were played more often and intensely than others, so their adjustment changed a bit. Iâm gonna have to readjust those, and other than that thereâs only the tuning left, which of course has to be taken care of. But this, too, hold up pretty well.
[7:17-7:57]
And as is well known, tuning is a bit tricky, also Heinz Becker doesnât play the piano himself. Two to three years of piano lessons and single notes is all he can. Some say you cannot tune a piano properly that way, others even think of it as an advantage. Like Heinz Becker does.
H.B.: âThere are tuners who play the piano very well, but they put their own taste into the tuning. For example the literature they play or certain keys they prefer. This detunes an otherwise clean tuning. I observed that in certain piano tuners.â
[7:58-8:34]
The success proves him right. For over 25 years Heinz Becker is engaged as piano tuner for the Stadtcasino Basel [a concert house]. If he does so successfully or not can be determined by the feedback of the pianists, says Thomas Koeb, director of the Casinogesellschaft.
T.K.: âThe feedback of the pianists is crucial for us, since we ourselves donât have the know how, so I cannot evaluate at all if the piano sounds right or if it is maintained properly or not. That means weâre dependant on the feedback of the pianists and world stars, and it is consistently positive feedback. People really enjoy to turn up and play on our concert grands.â
[8:35-9:23]
H.B.: âSo every tuning starts with the standard pitch [Kammerton âaâ], this one here is at 442 Hz (in line with the voice pitch of the orchestra), and Iâm going to check this now. It seems pretty accurate according to the tuning device. Exact. And now I build a circle of intervals with thirds, fifths and fourths between one âaâ and the other âaâ [one octave higher]. I build it in a way that I can reach every single note and tune it exactly using different control mechanisms. And then I go up and down in octaves and reach every tone. In the end we have a perfect tuning.â
[9:24-10:22]
Interviewer: âBut for that you need the device, donât you?â H.B.: âNo, only for the initial a. And the human ear - a trained ear - is better than any tuning device, especially in the lower and higher registers, itâs far better there, because you can disable ambient noises. --- You have the âaâ, you take the second âaâ, and then you build a framework of thirds, one third, the second one, the third third, then you add the sixth, compare it with the fourth, again a third, third, compare it with the fifth, sixth, sixth, -- and then weâre on the âaâ again, and I reached every note.â
[10:23-10:44]
Two hours of monotonous piano jingle later Heinz deserved a cigarillo.
Interviewer: âAfter two hours of âbeeembeeembeeemâ you are right to have a puff.â
H.B.: âYeah, it can be very exhausting [laughs]. --- And that calms me down [laughs again].â
[10:45-11:29]
Shortly before the concert Heinz gets togged up, itâs only a few moments until the Maestro - in tails - marches in for the final rehearsal. The tuner, of course, mustn't stay absent. Then, one hour before the concert, itâs time for the final exam.
[G. S. plays the beginning of Mozartâs Sonata facile at 11:04]
[11:30-12:01]
Grigory Sokolov warms up again and captiously examines if everything is right. And indeed, a few minutes before the door opening, something seems to be bothering him.
Grigory Sokolov: âWell, where isâŚ, oh no, earlier it was notâŚ, look, a flat, g is better, a flat not.â
Now Heinz Becker gets nervous, too, the first spectators enter the hall and the tuner ist still jingling. Finally itâs done, the last semitone fits, and Sokolov's piano is ready for the audience.
[12:02-12:24]
H.B.: âWell, that was last minute.â Interviewer: 'Does it happen sometimes, when the audience is already in?â H.B.: âYeah, it happens sometimes, mainly with Mr. Sokolov. Well, with others it doesnât [laughs]. Interviewer: âAre you pleased now?â H.B.: âYes, he is pleased and everything is allright. Now I can enjoy the concert. Ciao.â
Thank you!!
Vielen Dank!
Thank you so much!
Admitted auto-translated subtitles are not good due to the german with dutch accent.
For the viewer moderately versed in german it is easier to just listen to what the piano engineer says...
The human mind is better at understanding than the auto-translator software.
I wrote a guide on how to use command line tools to download subtitled video copies in any language.
If you know Google Document share URL format you can use this string to obtain it:
1nXmXEn3y1gQsObmsef9zvm0bkddfh2lEpctQAmAK7SE
love hearing this Swiss-German...
I wish I spoke German. Found the video fascinating even though I have no idea what was said.
Translations are now available in the comments section!
11:48 "As nicht, AS NICHT!!" :-D
Sehr interessant. Vielen Dank!
Sokolov playing Mozart 6:06
đ Enjoy other performances by *Grigory Sokolov* đ
⢠Chopin Etude Op.25 No.12 âOceanâ: czcams.com/video/9vA8qX_p11w/video.html
⢠Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.2: czcams.com/video/FRX5uM9cEos/video.html
⢠Brahms Piano Concerto No.2 + Encores: czcams.com/video/Rr4yH25qNdA/video.html
⢠Grigory Sokolov - The God of Piano: czcams.com/video/NH_n6R37sSw/video.html
⢠Collection of Grigory Sokolovâs recordings: czcams.com/play/PLfqPPQ0lIUgH_Y4pJOp8wwOJstWsKrm9-.html
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9:00 Er sagt, dass jede Stimmung mit dem Kammerton anfängt und dass der hier A=442Hz hat, spielt aber das 442Hz-A garnicht, sondern das darunter (mßssten dann 221 Hz sein). Gibs eine Erklärung dafßr? Scheint ihm selbst garnicht aufzufallen.