poll

[Maxpiano]

List -

I might as well jump in, too.  I do not exactly fit in any of the categories,
being neither school-trained nor self-taught but neither do I fit exactly into
an "apprenticed" category.  Could I suggest "limited oversight?"

In the 1950's I was studying piano at a small Bible College in New England and
sent out regularly on weekends to accompany singing groups to various area
churches on the weekends.  I ran into some awful pianos that didn't look all
that bad.  Our practice instruments, on the other hand, were old and worn but
sounded wonderful to my ears after their regular attention from Mr. S. H.
Perron.  I became possessed with the desire to learn how to make junk sound
great.

Mr. Perron was not genial like Larry Crabb.  He did have the background of
factory tuning for Chickering and Mason & Hamlin (turn of the century?) as
well as a penchant for exactitude.  He wasn't interested in fooling around,
and I had to show him I was serious about learning.  With the cooperation and
encouragement of the music department head (who feared he might be retiring
soon) I was given an unused Mathushek upright to practice on.  I was infirmed
right at the start that the hardest part of tuning was setting the unisons.
Over the course of  the 4 years I was given the job of making repairs and
eventually tuning the practice pianos.  He invited me to his shop Saturdays to
learn how to restring a grand.  I somehow earned the nickname, "Tete de
mateau" (hammerhead).

I gained additional experience tuning near the college and near home summers,
getting work by newspaper ads and by word of mouth.  I became quite confident
of my abilities, but as I look back on some of the repair jobs I recognize how
immature I was.  I gradually accepted the truth of what Mr. Perron told me,
"by the time you have tuned a thousand pianos, you will realize that you can't
tune so well after all!"

The final compliment came when my senior recital approached.  Mr. Perron
informed me that he was going on vacation, and I would have to tune the
Steinway B myself.  That was my first concert tuning.

My plans to combine piano teaching with tuning were interrupted by the draft
in 1957.  I took my tools with me when our unit was sent to Germany, and did
an occasional tuning both on and off base.  One job was to tune a Steinway
spinet at the Officers Club; I have never seen one of those animals since.
One of the off base tuning opportunities was a Bible School.  After discharge
from the Army, I took more college work and returned there to teach music.
Tuning continued to be a sometime thing.  A  few months before leaving Germany
the second time, I offered my services to the Bechstein dealer in Heidelberg
one day a week, and was welcomed with open arms.  I was surprised at how well
accepted I was with professors and professional musicians, and wished I could
have stayed servicing their pianos, but other considerations drew us back
home.  (No one told me that I could have been prosecuted for making repairs
without official sanction!)   For a year, I took graduate work and continued
to teach music.

I eventually recognized that teaching was "not my bag" and that I was much
happier servicing pianos.  We settled in Columbia, SC and after two years
employed by a dealer, I have been building my own piano service business --
full time.  Early in our stay in South Carolina, I was able to establish a
consulting relationship with the S&S dealer's service manager.  Much later, I
learned the value of association with the PTG and have been a member for about
ten years.

Bill Maxim, RPT
Simpsonville, SC