Claude Montal

He lost his sight at a young age and helped to establish the career of piano technician as a profession well suited for blind people.

Born in La Palisse, in central France, Claude Montal lost his sight at the age of five because of typhoid fever, but he continued to play actively with his friends and attend school.

[3] Montal was a successful student, and by the age of 20 he had become a teacher at the institute, covering such subjects as grammar, geography, music, and mathematics.

[12] Montal received recognition as official supplier of pianos to the Institute for Blind Youth of Paris, as the result of a competition in which the names of the makers were concealed.

[16] Montal's patented inventions included double escapement (repetition) action designs for both grands and upright; a grand piano with inverted soundboard (the soundboard above the strings); a transposition system whereby the piano keyboard could be shifted sharp or flat by several semitones; a system of adjustable iron bars (contre-tirage/counter-tension) to allow for adjustment of the case to match environmental condition; a soft pedal (pédale d'expression) that moved the hammers closer to the string and reduced key dip proportionally; and others.

Its full title is very descriptive: "l'Art d'accorder soi-même son piano, d'après une méthode sure, simple et facile, déduite des principes exacts de l'acoustique et de l'harmonie" (The Art of Tuning Your Own Piano Yourself, by a Sure, Simple and Easy Method, Deduced from Precise Principles of Acoustics and Harmony).

He also included a detailed chapter on acoustics, in which he laid out the mathematics behind equal temperament, demonstrating how his own system for tuning was in keeping with science.

In addition, he appended a "History of the Piano", in which he traced its origins, and wrote in detail of the changes and developments during the early 19th century.

He worked closely with the Institute for the Young Blind in establishing a training program that has continued up to the present day and has been imitated around the world.

[2] Montal was tireless in promoting the employment of the program's graduates by his fellow manufacturers, noting that they were the only tuners who had actually been trained to understand the theory behind the practice.