Piano 'detuning'

[JIMRPT@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 7/06/1999 3:27:44 AM, Christopher wrote:

<<"She - that's how the story goes - would slightly detune 1 string of a 
unison, 
restoring the charm and strength of voice of the instrument that somehow was 
lost in the tuning!
Has anyone EVER heard of this???  I'm actually thinking of trying it on her; 
she's crazy enough to love it!!!">>

Chris;
 Yes I have heard of this.................. and no it is not crazy :-)  My 
Uncle told me that I would run across a few people that could not "stand" to 
hear their piano in tune.  He said that it probably was a result of years of 
listening/ear familiarity to one that was not tuned.
  I tuned for one very nice old lady for over ten years, until she passed 
away..hopefully not from my tuning, and faithfully "detuned" one string of 
each bichord/trichord after tuning it in my normal fashion.  I have a 
"current" customer who has her piano tuned every four years whether it needs 
it or not :-)
 She plays mostly Chopin or music of that genre and though I have tried 
various HTs on her piano, a S&S 'L',  The sound she prefers is what she grew 
up with, i.e. "out of tune domestic"!
  The customers are happy, I'm happy, the "tuning" stinks but they love it.  
Both of these ladies understood what was going to happen because I explained 
to them what I thought the problem was.......they didn't care. They just 
didn't want the sound of their piano "ruined" by being 'tuned' :-)
Jim Bryant (FL)