[CAUT] bid savvy

[Fred Sturm]

Hi Ed, Wim,
    I agree this would be a great thing to do and might prove useful and
influential. Is the caut committee currently working on it? No. If there are
some people who would like to take on this idea, by all means speak up and
we'll try to get something organized. An ad hoc emailing list can fairly
easily be created for the purpose.
    Something a bit along those lines that _has_ been done is pasted at the
bottom of this post. It is a "brochure" created to pass out at our exhibit
table at CMS and elsewhere, and possibly to be mass mailed to
administrators. It doesn't address the bid problem directly, but it does
discuss the qualifications needed. This was nicely formatted and printed by
home office staff this past fall, along with one on humidity control.
Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico


On 2/1/07 7:18 PM, "Willem Blees" <wblees at bama.ua.edu> wrote:

> Quoting ed440 at mindspring.com:
> 
>> I think CAUT might be able to do something worthwhile here.
>> 
>> Most of the Universities in my area are saddled with low bid
>> requirements.  Some accept bids from anyone with no attempt to
>> establish standards.  Others have tried to establish standards and
>> found that clever tooners can sneak under the radar.  I know of
>> colleges that are pretty much stuck with a self-trained,
>> self-certified low bid tooner.
>> 
>> If CAUT could produce a document "Bid Requirements for Piano
>> Maintenance" it might gain acceptance in university circles, and
>> would give the music department a reference and a description of
>> minimum competancy for the bidding wars.
>> 
>> Ed Sutton 
>> 
> 
> Isn't this what the CAUT Committee is already working on? If it isn't,
> can we get a group of us together to do that? (Fred??)
> 
> Wim
> Willem Blees, RPT
> Piano Tuner/Technician
> School of Music
> University of Alabama
> Tuscaloosa, AL USA
> 
> 
Hiring a Piano Technician

 

            A music department in a college or university, especially a
relatively large or busy one, requires a piano technician with a specialized
set of skills. The ability to produce quality tunings and to perform routine
repairs and maintenance is a given, and these skills are shared by a large
number of piano technicians. But a music department needs more than this. It
needs pianos that are not only in reasonable tune and functioning
adequately. The pianos need to be made into musical instruments.

            We often call that final, detailed work which transforms a piano
from adequate to beautiful ³concert prep.² This meticulous work includes
fine regulation and voicing, but also a large number of very finicky steps
involving cleaning, brushing, lubricating, aligning, leveling, shimming,
twisting, filing, etc. Concert prep skills are not nearly as common as
tuning and basic maintenance skills.

            In addition, a music department¹s piano technician should have
specialized skills in organization, scheduling, and inventory assessment and
management; efficient techniques for tuning and maintenance under high use
conditions; experience and knowledge in the area of humidity change and how
to deal with it; possibly the ability to service harpsichords and/or
fortepianos; and others.

            So how can a music department find the right piano technician?
It may be possible to hire someone with experience from a previous job in
higher education. But in many cases, the best course of action may be to
hire or contract with someone who is available and has good basic skills,
and work together with that person to develop his or her skills.

            A good starting point is a Registered Piano Technician (RPT)
member of the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG). The RPT designation is based on
skills testing in the areas of tuning, regulation and basic repairs, and is
the only accreditation in the field currently available in North America. If
your present technician is not already an RPT member of PTG, he or she
should be encouraged to join and to take the tests.

            Beyond RPT, the piano technician should be encouraged and helped
to obtain additional training, by attending regional and national seminars
sponsored by PTG, and by taking advantage of factory training opportunities.
Steinway, Yamaha, and Kawai all offer intensive training programs in the
United States, and others are available in Europe and Asia.

            There are many resources available from the PTG specifically
aimed at the college and university piano technician. The college and
university technicians (CAUT) committee of PTG has prepared and published a
comprehensive Guidelines for Effective Institutional Piano Maintenance.
There is a listserv discussion group devoted specifically to CAUT concerns,
and its discussions are archived and available for research. Classes aimed
specifically at skills needed in higher education are offered each year at
the PTG Annual Institute. There is a CAUT web page, www.ptg.org/caut
<http://www.ptg.org/caut> , devoted to resources for college and university
piano technicians.

            The CAUT committee is currently working toward some form of
certification or credential, which would demonstrate a commitment to
on-going training in areas pertinent to work in a college or university
environment. As a first step in this process, a ³Continuing Education Log²
has been developed, allowing a technician to document classes and training
sessions. 

            In short, the ideal piano technician for a music department is
an RPT member of PTG who is actively taking advantage of training
opportunities, is subscribed to the CAUT listserv, and is dedicated to
transforming pianos into wonderful musical instruments.