Judge and Jury

[David Renaud]

    Do the Job. When done and asked for judgment
just say, there is the piano, you judge. 
If they persist say that you don't know how big a
pitch change it underwent before, it may have settled,
 but you have heard it over the years, there it is.
you judge. Also be sure to tell them about the piano, 
not about the other technician.

    Chances are it needs more then a tuning. 
When a technician shrugs from voicing and mechanical
problems the client may say the tuning is bad when it
has nothing to do with tuning. Fully communicate with
the client the whole status of the piano. Likely this
was not the other technicians fault.

Example..
    At an institution with 24 pianos I do, I was 
surprised to get a call back on a piano I tuned 
a week before. "it needs tuning". Well I don't
get road call backs, and rushed over.
   "Oh thats fine.....its this and this and this,
this note is dead...."
Well there is no aftertouch on this grand, the 
hammers have 5mm and more contact with strings,
the top octave has no sound for the hammers are so
worn they hit the wrong side of the pressure bar, 
there are bridge cracks, regulation problems, 
rattling keys. The tuning was fine, they recognized
this.
    I had tightened all the action screws when I 
had tuned it, eliminating much rattle, and made 
a mental note to make a report on this piano.
So I spoke with the teacher one on one, wrote a
report, the office wants to start with a full day
8hrs work....no hammers yet. The point is they know,
they know that they know, and they want to work with 
a person that is letting them know and not shrugging
it off like has happened before.
    People are weary of sales jobs, but they like
solid information they can understand. There is so
much work to be had if we become not sales people, 
but effective communicators and educators. Shrugging
off problem pianos invited assumptions and
misunderstanding. People like a comprehensive
approach, 
even if it for understanding only, not to fix
everything.

                              2 cents
                              Dave Renaud
                              RPT
                              Canada                  
   
                







 
 

     

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