Visit to Adams - timpani mechanics

Just returned from a great day out at Adams in Ittervoort. Here's a report of a very educational and inspiring day (click on the pictures to enlarge them; click here to see all pictures of my visit).



Timpani mechanics
Albert Straten started with a presentation about the mechanics of timpani, common problems that you might encounter, possible solutions and a step-by-step description of how to replace a timpani head. He also busted some popular myths about not turning the spring at the bottom, and explained how pedal tension and skin tension interact.



One thing to look for in Adams timpani, is the position of the spring in relation to the pedal rod: the screw at the end of the rod, the beginning of the spring housing and the end should be in the same horizontal plane (the angle doesn't matter, as long as its horizontal). Unfortunately, this only goes for Adams timpani. Ludwig uses another system, so I guess I need to convince my orchestra to either buy Adams, or send me off to Ludwig for a similar clinic, whichever is cheaper :-)

Factory tour
After that, we went for a tour through the woodworking place where keys for marimbas and xylophones are manufactured. It's a pity that we weren't allowed to take pictures, because the sights were amazing: crates and crates of rosewood left to dry, the fine tuner who manually tunes every key until it's spot on, chests full of keys... But the most memorable, without doubt, was the smell in the hall. No wonder that everybody there smiled all the time.

Next, we continued to the actual timpani factory. The views in there defy belief: everything is huge, and there's timpani bowls in every shape and state of manufacturing everywhere, along with loads of other percussion instruments. And one of the sweetest paradoxes: a company that presents new ideas and concepts that are so innovative that they have invented their own machinery; yet, when the company timpani tuner cannot attend because his car broke down, the company managing director comes down himself to demonstrate how to replace a timpani head.

After lunch, I took some photos in the showroom:





Spot the anomaly :-) The pictures on the left are genuine baroque timpani. Those on the right are modern Adams baroque timpani, built according to 18th century tradition, but with some 21th century benefits like a central tuning screw.