[CAUT] Building humidity now, GREAT!

[Ron Nossaman]

On 1/8/2011 1:14 PM, Gerald Groot wrote:
> Supposedly, at least that's the impression I was given, problems with
> humidity and piano tuning changes were a major concern and would be
> addressed with a new HVAC system.

Yup, that was the story I got too.


>Maybe the person that told me this doesn't really know which is
> probably closer to the real truth.

Nobody I could find to talk to after the damage was done knew anything 
about it. They were all under the vague impression it was "fixed".


> I am doing further research on it.  Last night, I sent the powers that be,
> including many of the music professors' a nice lengthy email regarding
> humidity, its effects on pianos and a lot of other information about it in
> the hopes that it helps them to understand why they are going out of tune
> like they are.

I did this too as a final attempt to make the point, just before the 
decisions were made and construction started.


>We all tire of having to constantly explain to one person at
> a time the causes and effects of humidity changes.  And then, in the
> meantime having to continually listen to the complaining about it instead.
> I find Often while explaining it to them that their eyes become glossed
> over.  Maybe a letter form will do more.

It sure didn't help in my case.


> I also asked for contact information to the person responsible for caring
> for the HVAC system.  We'll see what happens next week I guess...

Take him to lunch. Maybe he'll buy, but he sure won't be able to turn on 
a humidifier that isn't installed.


>My point being; that
> they expect pianos to stay in tune for much longer periods of time than they
> were built and designed for.  Sheer ignorance.  But yet, it becomes our
> responsibility to educate them because no one else will.

Right. No one else will, and it's highly unlikely that we can. We do 
have to continue to try. This is a particularly pernicious and tenacious 
ignorance, typically resisting all attempts to correct. I spent likely 
15+ hours over the years with these folks, going over and over the 
humidity thing, and even giving short quizzes afterward to make sure 
they understood. Really simple and basic stuff. Some months later, they 
had reset to zero and I had to do it all over again. After years and 
years of this, with the same folks, when it came time for the new HVAC 
they'd never heard of humidity and had no idea it might be a factor.


> It becomes a frustrating venture.

Yes, it's frustrating. These are smart people, and I like every one of 
them, but they just never got it. Now, they've spent their chance for 
essentially nothing, and it will be another 60 years before another one 
comes up on the wheel.
Ron N