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Kawai’s Grand Pianos In Depth

With approximately 9,000 moving parts, the piano may be the most complicated acoustic instrument ever built.  There are dozens of components that must work in harmony with each other just to produce a single sound.  Even subtle changes in beam construction can have a large impact on a piano’s dynamic range.  The length of a key stick can profoundly affect a piano’s touch.  The type and quality of wood in the soundboard can be the difference between a harsh or heavenly tone.  Kawai’s grand pianos have many distinguishing features.  Here are some of them and why they matter.

TOUCH

The action of a piano is extremely vital as it is the conduit through which a pianist shapes the music they are playing. It controls how the keys and hammers mechanically operate. Unlike a violinist who can control the strings with their fingers, a pianist must rely on the precision of the action to create subtle differences in how the hammers strike the strings leading ultimately to how the piano sounds. Kawai’s exclusive Millennium III Action utilizes 21st century materials and innovative designs to create a piano action worthy of the finest pianists. Here are some of the reasons why.
ABS-Carbon Fibre
Kawai’s Millennium III Action features components made of ABS-Carbon Fibre. These components are more than twice as strong as, half the weight of, and 32 times more resistant to change in humidity than their wooden counterparts. These three factors result in an action that is: faster, transfers power more efficiently, offers better dynamic control, and maintains greater regulation stability than conventional all-wood actions.
Kawai's Exclusive Carbon Jack
The jack in a piano’s action is the pivotal link between the key and the hammer that controls the power and repetition of each keystroke. Made of carbon and polyacetal, Kawai’s exclusive carbon jack is molded as a single piece. It is incredibly durable, won’t warp due to humidity, and requires no lubrication – all of which reduce the need for maintenance. Additionally, a microscopic surface texture at the top of the jack better grips the hammer knuckle to increase control during pianissimo passages.
Die-Cast Aluminum Action Brackets
Made from custom molds, die-cast parts can be formed more precisely than their sand-cast counterparts. This uniformity helps ensure a piano has a straight action. Kawai’s grand pianos feature a minimum of five die-cast aluminum action brackets for an added measure of strength and stability (many other piano brands only use four on their smaller grands). Both the hammer rail and wiper rails are permanently locked in place by the action brackets to maintain the exacting tolerances of the action design and ensure long-term regulation stability.
Dual Beam Hammer Rail


The hammer rail plays a vital, yet often overlooked, role in a piano’s action. It maintains the extremely precise geometry of the hammers in relation to the strings that is need for a consistent touch. Kawai’s hammer rail is in the shape of an “F” instead of an “L”. This adds significant additional resistance to twisting or warping over time. Also, the top surface, where the hammers are mounted, is serrated (some piano makers glue sandpaper here). The serrated surface will not wear away over time like sandpaper and will keep the hammers properly aligned over a longer period of time. Lastly, Kawai has put an “insuliner” along the length of the hammer rail. This helps prevent the hammers from loosening over time due to vibration and reduces the mechanical sound of the action when played.

NEOTEX Key Surfaces
Kawai’s exclusive NEOTEX™ key surface material offers the smooth, understated texture of natural ivory and ebony and a semi-porous surface to absorb the hand’s natural oils and perspiration. Since NEOTEX resists cracking and fading over years of use and is static-resistant to help prevent the build-up of unwanted dust. The result is a beautiful, long-lasting key surface with exceptional playability.
Extended-Length Keysticks
Spruce is the ideal material for piano keys – light, yet extremely strong. It responds with minimal flex and great consistency, transmitting the subtle nuances of the pianist’s performance while remaining stable through years of heavy use. Kawai has extended the length of each key to provide a more even response from the front to the back of the playing surface. This gives the pianist more control while playing softly. The key sticks are also designed with a taller profile for added rigidity which helps deliver greater power.
Concert-Length Key Buttons
The use of hardwood maple key buttons adds stiffness to the keysticks for improved energy transfer. Additionally, the key buttons on Kawai’s GL and GX Series grand pianos have been double in length. This additional length helps ensure the keys move back and forth instead of side to side, improving energy transfer.

TONE

If the touch of a piano is like a steering wheel, then the tone of a piano would be the engine. Without the engine, a car is of little practical value. It is the same with pianos. If a piano has a good tone, it is a joy to play. If it has a superb tone… you’re off to the races. Materials and design have an enormous impact on the quality of a piano’s tone. Kawai’s grand pianos are renowned worldwide for their expressive tone and expansive dynamic range. Here are some of the reasons why.
Konsei-Katagi Rim
Kawai’s exclusive Konsei-Katagi rim uses a blend of distinctive hardwoods to achieve an ideal balance of tone. The inner rim is constructed using inter-laminated hardwoods. One has small pores and provides superior brightness and tonal projection. The other has large pores and offers warmth and fullness. This combination of structurally divergent hardwoods produces a powerful, well-rounded richness of tone that is the hallmark of Kawai pianos.

found on all GX-Series grand pianos
Kawai's CORE System
CORE is an acronym what stands for “Convergence for Optimum Reflected Energy.” Convergence refers to the way the piano’s strength gathers – the rim, plate and underside beams – all focus on one central point at the heart of the instrument. This focus creates an incredibly strong “core” foundation that maximizes the reflective capabilities of the inner rim for outstanding tonal power and sustain.

found on the GL-40, GL-50 and all GX-Series grand pianos
Tapered Solid Spruce Soundboard
The soundboard is the heart of a piano’s tone. Kawai uses only straight-grained, quarter-sawn solid spruce for its grand piano soundboards. Each one is strategically tapered to better distribute the string vibrations throughout the entire soundboard. This results in a piano with a richer and more consistent resonant tone. Only lumber that meets Kawai’s demanding standards is selected for use in their soundboards.
Dual Duplex Scaling
Dual duplex scaling provides an additional “whisper” of high harmonics when a note is played. It adds clarity to the thunderous bass notes and a shine to the treble section. Duplex scaling works by allowing the extreme ends of the piano’s strings to vibrate and produce harmonics that enhance tone. Kawai’s dual duplex design combines a front duplex region with a similar rear duplex region for an added measure of harmonic richness, brilliance, complexity and sustain.

found on all Kawai grand pianos except the GL-10
Bridge Design
The bridge performs the vital task of transferring the vibrations of the strings to the soundboard. GX bass bridges are made of the highest quality hard maple or beech. The treble bridges on the GX-Series are vertically laminated with 13 layers of maple and mahogany for additional strength to better transfer sound energy to the soundboard. The GX-6 and GX-7 feature a single, continuous bridge that helps to smooth the transitions between bass and treble registers (shown in picture).
Hammer Mouldings
Kawai constructs its grand piano hammer moulding using premium wool felt with a second layer of dense underfelt for added tonal stability. The GL-Series grand pianos use hard maple hammers, which are industry standard. The GX-Series grand pianos use mahogany hammers. Their lighter weight lets them release faster after striking the string, which allows the string to vibrate longer. This results in a more robust tone with greater sustain.
Agraffes
Hard brass agraffes, positioned through precise CNC drilling of the iron plate, ensure accuracy of string alignment, spacing and down-bearing pressure for the greatest uniformity of tone. They also allow the most precise measurement of “speaking length” for the strings and provide smooth string movement for ease of tuning.

STRENGTH

The strength of a well-crafted piano is one of the most impressive examples of the union between engineering and art in the world today. Kawai’s series of grand pianos are designed and crafted with great care to ensure each piano has the strength to produce and maintain their superb touch and tone over time.
Stretcher-Over-Lap Integrated Design
Kawai’s Stretcher Over-Lap Integrated Design (SOLID) creates an exceptionally rigid frame to support the enormous amount of string tension (roughly 36,000 pounds). The design integrates the pin block with an extraordinarily thick stretcher bar into a single structure which is solidly anchored to the rim. This design allows the piano to better resonate as well as help stabilize turning. The result is a fuller-sounding, more powerful tone.
Rim and Beam Construction
Kawai rims are built using cross-binding and lamination techniques to form a structure that is, pound for pound, stronger than steel. The beams are made of select hardwood laminates, glued together under pressure, making them virtually isotropic (equally strong in all directions) and impervious to weather changes and warpage. The strength of this construction reduces the absorption of string vibration by the frame of the piano, rather reflecting it back into the soundboard resulting in improved tone and dynamic range.
Four-Way Joinery
The structural beams on the underside of a grand piano are joined to the inner rim using four independent joinery techniques. Each beam is: (1) fitted with a hardwood dowel, (2) mortised into the inner rim for a precise fit, (3) glued, and (4) secured with hardened screws for complete bonding through the entire thickness of the inner rim for a tremendously secure rim-to-beam connection. The strength of this joinery ensures that the piano will retain its tonal power over time.
V-Pro Plate
The plate on a grand piano is the framework of the piano on which the strings are applied. As the “backbone” of the piano, the plate must be designed and built to ensure stability while enduring up to 18 tons of string tension. At the same time, it must be molded with sufficient precision to ensure exact string lengths. Kawai’s V-Pro process produces a sturdy plate that is dimensionally accurate and consistent with added strength provided by the “crossbones” design of the plate struts. The result is a plate that is strong, stable and beautiful.
Pin. Block and Tuning Pins
The multi-grip pinblock on Kawai’s GX and GL Series grand pianos is fully laminated with a minimum of eleven cross-banded layers of North American hard maple for maximum strength and balanced torque. The tuning pins are made from carbon steel, machine-threaded for maximum continuous torque and nickel plated to enhance beauty and provide long-term protection.
Steel-Reinforced Keyslip
A piano’s keyslip is the long, horizontal piece of wood that covers the front faces of the keys. Because it is made of wood, a keyslip can warp or bend with changes in humidity causing keys to stick. Kawai GL and GX Series grand pianos have keyslips that are reinforced with a steel inside line that prevents warping or bending in any direction. Keys move freely as the keyslip remains straight and evenly distanced from the key faces throughout the life of the piano.
Steel-Reinforced Keybed
The rigidity of the keybed helps maintain the efficient energy transfer from finger to key to hammer to string. Kawai’s grand piano keybeds are made of extremely strong, laminated hardwoods. Additionally, they are reinforced with an underside steel support beam to provide additional strength and maximum stability.
Machine Screws
It may seem a bit underwhelming to tout a machine screw as a feature of a piano, but it is worth noting that many of the part tolerances in a piano action are sub-millimetre. Kawai uses machine screws instead of self-tapping screws to secure action components such as the hammers and action rails. Machine screws have more thread and don’t lose strength when repeatedly loosened and tightened, unlike self-tapping screws. Machine screws cost more and add time to the piano building process, which is why many piano makers choose not to use them.

machine screw on left, self-tapping screw on right

CHARACTER

Though the essence of a grand piano is its tone and touch, it is the little details that add a level of sophistication. From utility-based details such as the composer’s desk to aesthetic details such as solid brass castors, Kawai continues to provide grand pianos with character.
Composer's Desk
Special metal supports on the music desk allow the rack to be positioned at an angle ideal for composers. Felt pads underneath the music desk allow it to be placed on top of the piano with the lid closed for late night composing where volume may be a factor.
"Soft Fall" Fallboard
The fallboard is designed with a dual-damping mechanism so sensitive that it was dubbed “soft fall”. The ultra-slow closing system protects hands, fingers and the piano’s finish from the harm that a jarring close might cause.
Lid Props
Three separate lid props (two on smaller grands) allow the piano to adapt to various musical and acoustical requirements. The GX-Series grands use brass for the smallest prop, adding that extra bit of flair.
Solid Brass Casters
With a mirror-like polish, solid brass casters add to the beauty of the Kawai grand pianos.
Solid Brass Pedals
Solid brass pedals are built for strength, but their beauty will last the lifetime of the piano.
Exclusive GX-Series Details
Kawai offers a few additional refinements on their GX-Series grand pianos. The music desk has an extra-hard finish to better protect from scratches. The legs have a spaded shape and the topboard is bevelled to accentuate the stunning visual lines of a grand piano. Black felt is used throughout the piano for added visual continuity. Lastly, finials adorn the v-pro plate as a royal flourish.

Kawai’s Grand Pianos In Depth

October 28, 2024 No Comments

With approximately 9,000 moving parts, the piano may be the most complicated acoustic instrument ever built.  There are dozens of components that must work in

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