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COMPILED BY
ARGABRIGHT
Scale Drawing
Trade Secret
The World's
Greatest Scale
Draughtsman
and
His Puufl
Death of Original
Chickerings
A Piano Trust
Chapter 1 The Scale
The Scale is the conception of the Piano, and bears the same relation to its
developement that the plans of a building bear to its construction.
Briefly it is a mathematical division of the semi-tones from one end of the key
board to the other, and determines the length, size and direction of the strings, as
well as the proper striking point of the hammers.
Scale-drawing requires a thorough knowledge of the acoustics of every part of
the sounding board, so that the bridges may be set in their proper position for
distributing the balance of power and vibration evenly throughout the piano.
It can be drawn so accurately that when a chromatic run is played, from one
end of the keyboard to the other, each tone follows in perfect sympathy with no
perceptible "break." But while this desirable condition is possible, the pianos
that possess a perfect scale are comparatively few.
The scale is the secret of a great piano maker. It cannot be successfully imi
tated. A good piano may be duplicated to all intents and purposes, excepting
the scale. You may not be able to see the difference, but you will hear it.
This is a fact of musical mathematics.
Mr. C. Frank Chickcring of Boston, while alive, was considered the foremost
scale draughtsman of his day, and at the Paris Exposiiion in I 867 was deco
rated with the Cross of the Legion of Honor.
To prepare a "CHECKERING" lo follow in his footsteps, and having no sons
of his own, he selected a young cousin, C. C. Chickering, who after seven years
labor in the various departments of their Boston factory, was taken into the
private workshop, in New York City, of this recognized master of the art and
taught scale-drawing. C. C. Chickering is the only pupil of the "old master;"
is today a recognized expert in scale-drawing, and makes the scales for CHICK
BRING BROTHERS9 PIANOS,
C. Frank Chickering died in 1891, and since the death of his
brother George in 1899, there has been no male Chickering1
connected with "Chickering & Sons" of Boston.
The only Chickerings actively engaged in the manufacture
of pianos are
CHICKERING BROTHERS of CHICAGO.
The Boston concern is now a member of a combine known as
the 'American Piano Co.'5 Mr. Ernest J. Knabe is president
witli headquarters in Baltimore. DO NOT CONFUSE the
present day Boston "Chickering" with the ideally artistic
piano made by CHICKERING BROTHERS of CHICAGO,
and sold in Red Cloud, Nebraska by
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