[pianotech] Striving for the "wow" factor...

[John Formsma]

Same opinion here, Dale.

Yes, we should always do our best. But...even when we do our best, there
are pianos that will never turn out well.

We must be aware of the pianos whose strings touch the adjacent tuning
pins, causing them to move after being tuned properly. Not only are the
crappy pianos hard to hear, they often don't stay in the right place during
tuning. Why waste time on that???

My best on some pianos is to make them sound less bad.

-- 
John Formsma, RPT
Blue Mountain, MS


On Tue, May 15, 2012 at 10:40 AM, Dale Erwin <erwinspiano at aol.com> wrote:

>
> zzzzactly
>
>  I have said it often that these pianos were an awful waste of natural
> resources.  In fact the joke at my Dads shop was that the rookie was the
> new Kimball expert!!
>
>  Gordon said
>
> is it really worth risking one's sanity on some truly awful specimen?
> (A "Grand" brand spinet comes to mind, along with some of the worst
> Kimballs.) So cheaply made that it severely twists with each pass of the
> pins???
>
>  I'd rather save my sanity and tell the customer the piano will only sound
> so-so, regardless of how much of my life-force I expend on it, charge them
> accordingly, and offer to help them find a better one.
>
>
> *Dale Erwin... RPT
> ** Mason & Hamlin/Steinway/U.S pianos
> www.Erwinspiano.com
> 209-577-8397
> *
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Euphonious Thumpe <lclgcnp at yahoo.com>
> To: pianotech <pianotech at ptg.org>
> Sent: Tue, May 15, 2012 8:16 am
> Subject: Re: [pianotech] Striving for the "wow" factor...
>
>  "Spinets" did not exist while William Braid White was alive. (Ha! Ha!)
> But seriously, folks.......
>
>      Almost every piano made when he lived was made with a "God is
> watching us" type ethos of craftsmanship. ( Which we see in nearly all
> 1880-1915 era pianos, and just about everything else made then.) While I
> agree we should strive to do the best job possible, is it really worth
> risking one's sanity on some truly awful specimen? (A "Grand" brand
> spinet comes to mind, along with some of the worst Kimballs.) So cheaply
> made that it severely twists with each pass of the pins??? I'd rather save
> my sanity and tell the customer the piano will only sound so-so, regardless
> of how much of my life-force I expend on it, charge them accordingly, and
> offer to help them find a better one.
>      Regarding vintage playerpianos, though: I have never enjoyed being
> with the sort of customer who WANTS it to sound "tinny", out-of-tune and
> "rinky-tink". The popular music of the era pneumatic players reigned in
> (IMHO) was the most advanced ever produced, and deserves a
> wonderful-sounding instrument to bring its harmonic richness out from all
> of those little holes.
>
> Euphonious Thumpe
>    *From:* Terry Beckingham <t46xd8jb at xplornet.com>
> *To:* pianotech at ptg.org
> *Sent:* Monday, May 14, 2012 3:20 PM
> *Subject:* Re: [pianotech] Striving for the "wow" factor, was Re: Exams
> discussion - Odd?
>
> I'm not sure, but I think it was William Braid White who said that every
> tuning should be a concert tuning. That is to say that every tuning should
> be done as well as possible. That's the way I do it.
>
> Terry Beckingham RPT
>
> At 02:43 PM 5/14/2012 -0400, you wrote:
>
> > If you're not striving for a "wow" factor when you tune even a Winter
> spinet or a beat up old upright, then you're not doing your job. As Will
> said, I tune pianos for my satisfaction. If it makes the customer happy,
> that's a side benefit. And hopefully she will recommend me to her friends
> and relatives, because that's how I built my customer base. But if the
> piano doesn't satisfy my ear, then I've not done a good job. And it's
> amazing how well even the Winter spinet can sound when it's in tune.
> >
> > Now, if you don't care about building a tuning clientele, and all you're
> interested in is repairing player pianos and pump organs, then that's your
> choice. But don't degrade those of us for whom tuning is an honored and
> respected profession, and who take pride in our work.
> >
> > Speaking of players and pump organs. I'm glad you're still interested in
> doing this kind of work, because there are fewer and fewer old player
> pianos left, and it is a dying profession. As much as the PTG would like to
> offer more classes and articles on those instruments, like any other
> product, if there is limited demand, it's not going to get featured. By the
> same token, while we respect your abilities to do your work, and don't
> question your reasons for doing it, please respect the work aural tuners
> do, and don't question, much less degrade, their work.
> > Wim
> >
>
>
>
>


-- 
John Formsma, RPT
Blue Mountain, MS
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