two off topics.............. Off- being operative.

Leslie Bartlett l-bartlett at sbcglobal.net
Fri Feb 22 19:28:29 MST 2008


There is no legitimate reason to continue the Guild.  I met a man from a
place here locally "Everything piano".  Old pickup pulling a trailer. He
does "everything", is not associated with the Guild.   I asked him "What do
you do when you don't know something and need help?"     His response, "WHAT
IS IT I DON'T KNOW?" So obviously someone knows it all!  Thus if we simply
learn from the one who knows it all................. Truly scary.


I had a lovely experience today, sort of.  If any tuning of a 100 year old
piano can be a good experience, I had one.....   I groaned out loud when I
saw it- lovely case.... you know the kind.  Inside the hammers were all
filed very nicely over the entire surface. AHA, another piece of junk on
which these suckers put good money and have nothing in return......  Well,
not quite so. All original stuff, cracks all over the place, and obviously
an old piano which probably should be trashed, but it had been worked on by
one Dan McElrath in Anchorage, Alaska.  The guy had done a fair amount of
work, even to replacing the let-off button felts, but nothing frivolous.
Pins were awfully loose, but would hold a tune. The piano was actually a
couple cents sharp, but close throughout except in the very top.  The more I
sat, the more impressed I became that whoever this guy was, he was honest,
caring, and judicious in what he did. I asked for his address. They had no
address, but did have his phone number and called him, then put me on the
phone.   I simply complimented him on carefully selecting what he chose to
do and not do, seemingly trying to make something useable, actually useable
without claiming it was more than it was,  but bringing out the best which
could be reasonably done to an old upright.  He told the piano owner that he
seldom got calls from people wanting to thank him for good work- this made
his whole day.........     It's such an easy thing, easily forgotten, to
acknowledge another's good work, and lift their spirits.  It's something we
all can do, and in so doing might be working miracles, not knowing of course
what we're really contributing, except our little piece of praise for
something we see done well. But it certainly makes a big difference to
people who work week after week, year after year, often with little real
thanks.    Just wanted to share something we know- it's a very easy thing to
take a moment to appreciate a fellow technician or any person who simply has
done the quality of work we would like to see offered us, it always pays
richly to do so.
les bartlett
houston
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