Over 300 people participated in six ‘Piano Contrast’ audience survey concerts presented at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

The audiences’ perceptions of tonal qualities in both piano sounds varied from concert to concert, as many other elements varied, though overall perceptions of tone were deduced from the responses and these perceptions did correspond generally with the distinctive characteristics identified in chapter four. Too many variables are at play, acoustically, stylistically and psycho-acoustically in this type of survey to collectively produce concise evidence of the tonal characteristics to match the findings of chapter four, though the simple objective of involving the general public in the process of evaluating the Stuart and Steinway piano sounds was met with great success.

The Stuart and Steinway pianos used in the audience surveys were the same pianos tested in chapter four. The pianos were positioned in each concert with the piano lids opened towards the audience, so the maximum range of tonal quality was intentionally directed towards the audience. The directivity of the sound radiation from the pianos however was found in the tests of chapter four, to be strongest at the 180° directions 3m from the piano, and closer to the pianist at 45°. See ‘Directivity’ chapter four.