I have been interested in the discussion of sustain pedals.  As a
pianist and piano teacher I have been appalled at the lack of teaching
regarding this incredibly valuable pedal.  I feel certain that, if
Mozart had had our modern piano (I'm talking the good ones) he would
have jumped at the chance.  As it was, he made do with the primitive
fortepiano and tried everything that came along to enhance his
ideas -- he just wasn't born late enough to get in on the gorgeous
pianos made during the turn of the century.

The sustain pedal takes a lot of effort to learn to bring out all the
nuances of this fantastic instrument; it is not just for connecting to
notes together without a break in the sound.

Now I am interested in the pedal mechanism of a Weber Duo-Art .  I had
hoped to use the ones I have in my teaching studio (I like having my
cake and eating it too) and have just started taking mine apart so I
can get the piano part working properly, and find that I have no
Una-Corda action because of the tubing going through the keyboard.

Is the soft produced then like on an upright with the hammers being
moved closer to the strings?  (Haven't gotten that far as I'm taking
everybody's advice and over-documenting everything.)  I would guess
then that the sostenuto pedal is also like the upright kind, only
holding the bass notes.  This piano is 5' 11-1/2".

By the way, I would like to share the info on this particular piano
because it is such a great story.  I bought this piano as a parts
piano, sight unseen, for another Duo-Art I had but have not touched.
I traveled all the way to Denver (I'm in Vermont), walked into the room
and here is this almost pristine Weber on its side on the floor where
it had stayed for 20 years!  The man I bought it from assured me that
it probably did not play.

We did get it loaded into a truck and moved the piano back here, where
it sat until I had room to start working on it.  I finally turned it
upright, and played the first note!  Not only did it play but it was
at A-439.3!  And, the strings and pins were not only original but there
was _no_ corrosion, rust, etc., and when it was tuned the pins were
solid.

The only thing I will have to do is replace the hammers (somebody had
a ball with the player and wore _deep_ grooves into the felts) and make
sure the action is fully regulated.  Then I'll have a go at the Duo-Art
mechanism.  After some of the horror stories I have read and the one
that happened to me (but that's another story) I am so delighted with
this Weber!

Ana Gerard