Dave Davis wrote: > My point is, in MY opinion, there is a future in the > piano business. Find the need in your neighborhood > and provide honest, quality, reliable, and friendly > work. > > Even if my level of expertise isn't nearly so advanced > as Richard or David, there still is a market for my > work and I'm thinking there's one for each one of us. > > Dave Davis > Renton, WA Well hey Dave, we all have our opinions and experiences, and hopefully by sharing these we all benifit. I know most techs think as you do on this matter. But I believe there is very good reason to be think otherwise. For example sales of pianos in Europe are at about 10 % of the level they were 25 years ago. Several major Factories are on the brink of having to close now. As Cheaper alternatives come out with accompaning loss of general quality, coupled with yearly advances in electronics I think we will see that electronic pianos will in the end be more attractive then the low end acoustics. They will be portable, never need tuning, much less expensive, and will be percieved by many as having equal if not better performance characteristics. We are already seeing more and more of this now. As this tendency continues and expands, fewer and fewer manufacturers will find it profitable enough to continue production. And as this happens the basic knowledge and skills pool from which manufacturers draw on will become too shallow. In the end there will be only a few folks in the buisness making relatively expensive instruments for a rather exclusive group. Thats how I see it, and I personally dont have any real problem with that. Music instruments have come and gone through the centuries, and normally when one fades out its because something new takes over. I see no real reason why the piano should neccessarilly be immune to this fate. As for your own level of expertise.... me thinks you underestimate yourself, or perhaps overestimate others. Best of luck to you, and as long as you keep learning, and are happy... then what could be better then that... eh ? -- Richard Brekne RPT, N.P.T.F. UiB, Bergen, Norway mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no http://home.broadpark.no/~rbrekne/ricmain.html
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