speedy gonzales

antares antares@EURONET.NL
Sun, 21 Apr 2002 00:09:17 +0200


> In a message dated 4/20/02 4:03:48 PM Central Daylight Time,
> Richard.Brekne@grieg.uib.no (Richard Brekne) writes:

 
> I would love to see someone do, say, a 20 cent
> pitch raise in under 15 minutes leaving the entire piano with no string
> more than 3 cents off pitch. That would impress me.

There are those......

> I kind of have to believe there are at least a few fellows / gals out there
> who 
> can thus impress, but wonder I do, sorely if there aren't also significant
> numbers of folk out there pushing unduly the limits of what they are capable
> of, rooted in some perception of these acts of demonic speed as virtuous goals
> in themselves.

I am one of those but I consider it a 'demonic sport'.
 
> I  think no one need feel that their skills are somehow found in wont for lack
> of ability to raise pitch acurately in 15 minutes... or even in 30. Nor do I
> feel such derogorous self assesment need be precipatated over the time it
> takes 
> to tune a piano at all.
 
> If one leaves the piano only after your work is accomplished satisfactorilly,
> then what matter really the time it takes ??

It depends on the length of time. If a tuner needs 2 hours for a tuning then
I feel sorry for him/her.
 
 
> This isn't the only thing bothering me about the discussion, but it will do
> for the moment. I'll get to the rest eventually.

I think I can understand what you are saying.
However, some people on this planet have devilish speed. They can't help it,
it just so happens.
I think it is because of them that these stories come into being.

On the other hand, it helps tremendously if you can do a complete hammer
change plus - regulation / tuning /1st voicing within - 8 hours.
Why?
Because you can charge the going price which is usually based on two or even
three days (not to mention the STW folks who even may take a - full week -
(happens here in Olanda))
So you work speedy one day, you repeat the same work soon afterwards on
another grand, you get the feel and the experience, after having done a
number of these same jobs it begins to feel normal (after all, at Yamaha
they do it in much less than 8 hours).

Especially in the US this can be quite beneficial because the free-lance
technician then hopefully has a fat bank account and can take much longer
vacations than usual and at the same time broadens his/her horizon by seeing
other interesting parts of the world.

It is like living in a faster lane and the art of surviving this in a
pleasant way lies in finding your personal speed on a scale of painfully
slow to "demonic speed"
 
> grin... I cant wait for the rest

said the alligator... (:>))


friendly greetings
from

Antares,

Amsterdam, Holland

"where music is, no harm can be"

visit my website at :  http://www.concertpianoservice.nl/



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