The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1882-05-09 00:00:00

PRINCE LEOPOLD'S PIANO.

The marked disposition in Prince Leopold to cultivate
musical taste will naturally attract much attention to
the =stater of the pea which has ben presents:4 to
him. The astronaut was ois view yes•erday •t the
makers', Messrs. Britannia and S#ll., Wider-we-street.
London. and is to-day to be f awarded to Winnor Ceche
Its stenised cal. is designed to accord weal the other
furniture of the Pruner Resin's boudoir. It is di c crated
us Adam s style, with diagonal figures end garlands of
flowers. The qualities of me Briaansead piano have been
rapidly gaining ground of late. They have been testtfied
to within the past few years by Rubiesten end Gonad,
the letter of whom remarks upon their unused capacity
for permitting the finest gradation of sound. Numbers of
other less di/darn-bed pianists anti compeers have come
to recognise the exoelleace of the contrivances introduced
by the taken, and no one having any methanol skill
caa fail to perceive the great power and precision which
the simplicity of the autos gives over all the other more
comma methods. Tee gMiDts gained by Messrs. Bras-
siest We unique. In the first plea, the stroke of the
hammer is more sudden, and its rettrement at ter striking
more Complete; and in the second place, the medialem
is so arr doged that the depression of the key to the smelled
appreciable went will nuke the note sound. Further,
however, in this connection, the arrangement permits of
• most velment, addition to the possibiiities of execution,
In ordinary pianos, if the key be depressed and the note
snuck lime imp Amble to repeat the stroke withoot first
permitting to+ key to return to its normal place. In
Brinsmead's pianos iii. necessary oily to wort tee key
to return onirrigtith of en inch to enable the operator to
repast the snots. This queltly avec-daily permits the
pianist to repeat snot, with unusual rapidity sad precision
without any extraordinary effort; and since the result
hae been *ceded not only without say additional incase-
tem, but by simplifying and reducing the complexity of
that commonly in use, th• Wendt= may be regarded as
an unmixed good.
It is somewhat difficult to describe this no-wheel.=
without diagrams, but we may say that its chief point
consists in the hammer being held firmly by the check
after it has snack the blow as the striae. When this
has been even partially attained previously, the repeti-
tion has been acrificed, as it was necessary when the
hemmer was held "in duck " to raise the finger emir
Piously off the key, allowing it to rise to • level with
the others, before the action woe completely reinstated
ad ready tor a second blow. In this wain, however, as
we have stated, • repetition of the note con be obtained
even when the key is pressed down to within an eighth •
of an inch of it. utmost limit. The top of the "hopper "
. being bevelled allow, it to " escape • freely, and assists
. in reajustopent of the dtion. This al.o obviates the
necessity of having • spice between the hopper and
hammer, which, termite striking against the leather
on the butt of the hemmer, in • very short time produces
that " rattling " so dissereeibld to pianoforte players.
This ac-don having no mice between the hopper and
hemmer, the hopper simply premiss against the butt,
and hieing no ebsrp corners to serape against it, the
fnctioe is reduced to • minimum, the blow it rendered
direct and uniform, and lutermediate percussion
between the finger on the key sod the blow of the
hemmer on the string is entirely avoided, whilst the
almost entire absence of friction of working surfaces
ensures good wear even with the hardest wok. The
spring is at one end Instated into the bottom of the
hopper, and at the top is hal by a silk loop which
pee= through • sld in the top ci the hopper, where it
ts attached to the upper Pat of the hammer butt. Its
peculiar panto's, with the all of • bevel, canoes the
hemmer and hopper to be drawn into their respective
poutioes, serving all tbe porp ised that throe, sometimes
four, strings are often used tor. This renders the use of
• complicateon of peas and centres quite unnecessary.
The stroke of the hammer on the string is so direct front
the key, end the escapement so instanutesous, that • far
More powerful blow, and consequently greater volume and
names of tine, Is produced than in the ordinary Plano.
It is unposube foe the hammer to remain against the
dries and dee the tone after the blow his been struck, as
the button against which the arm at the bottom of the
holster pneeee. forego the sticker quite clear of the hammer
hate This Ia ea important improvement, 55th. ordinary
adios has many hinges and coverage of vellum, cloth, and
leather welch attract moisture, and ins damp room soon
Name stiff mad swollen- By this notion the blow is so
certain and easily regulated in *eying that the amen,
delioacy oe unmet power and brilliancy can immediately
be produced without the Practice and effort that have
hitherto been absolutely necessary. Tee absence of
could adios in sprints and enema mechanism causes the
touch to be extremely light, and gives it an eleaticity that
leads • new charm to it, •• well as siring it • firm, equal
erasure. It can be raelated to any degree of lightness,
and still retains its firm elastic reshaped to the finger,
without Um, the player. The extreme simplicity of the
mashie., amused with the absence of friction, insures
this satins keeping In Order, and wearing fat longer than
the or ilaary one.
Another improvement in this plasm consists in •
inechanicel seam for IlligilaWaj the speed of
dzasidven
'how Of LAW The deetrosollw of • SAM nodal the
U.uks,lsMrL*.lesuoLM aft