‘With voicing you determine character, colour, sonority, sustain, dynamic range and orchestral balance within a piano,’ says Ulrich Gerhartz. ‘Through proper voicing, it is possible to make a harsh, uneven piano feel and sound utterly different and come alive.’
Gerhartz has served as the director of concert and artist services with Steinway & Sons for the past 36 years. He enjoys close working relationships with many of the world’s top pianists, including Alfred Brendel, Sir András Schiff and Mitsuko Uchida, as well as overseeing the Steinway instruments at venues like London’s Wigmore Hall. ‘I am one of the people at Steinway & Sons who helps carry forward the pedigree of the Steinway sound, created by family and craftsmen for 170 years,’ he explains. ‘The construction of the Steinway is such that the piano sounds very orchestral with a huge dynamic range. It projects its sound extremely well in both soft playing and against an orchestra in a big venue like the Royal Albert Hall.’
Context, says Gerhartz, is crucial when it comes to voicing: ‘The main skill of voicing a piano is an instinctive feel for balance of sound and touch, to understand the individual instrument and make
