[CAUT] Overlap of CAUT with churches?

[Chris Solliday]

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My opinion and experience is that churches have similar (to schools) =
institutional maintenance needs and the "Guidelines" work very well. I =
know I'm treading on sacred ground here but we might have been better =
off with IT (Institutional Technicians) than CAUT. Hey we get certified =
then we'd be CITs and could get summer jobs easily.  But seriously, with =
the new revision of the Guidelines, which I use with churches, =
especially the contract and regular maintenance recommendations =
sections, I find the music director and the funding committee get =
educated and I get the work. I also sometimes use the "Special Care of =
the Teaching Piano"  brochure if someone is giving lessons there. Have a =
little faith in those Guidelines, they go before us and we and our =
clients reap the rewards.=20
Chris Solliday=20
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Elwood Doss=20
  To: Cy Shuster ; College and University Technicians=20
  Sent: Tuesday, January 24, 2006 11:28 PM
  Subject: RE: [CAUT] Overlap of CAUT with churches?


  Good question!  I service a number of churches and try to get them to =
tune on a regular basis.  I'd be interested in some type of guideline =
for churches...something I could show the senior pastor or music =
minister/organ master/choir director.  At one church the lay person who =
arranged for me to come by and tune their pianos had passed along the =
message to have the air conditioning set at the temperature it is set =
when they worship.  While I was tuning, the lady minister walked in the =
sanctuary and asked me if I was comfortable.  It took me a minute or so =
to understand what she was talking about and I finally commented that =
the temperature needed to be set for the tuning, not for my comfort.  =
She exclaimed that she thought I just wanted to be comfortable when I =
tuned.  I assured her that it was a bit cool for me, but just right for =
the piano!

  =20

  I tuned a piano in a small rural church a couple of weeks before =
Christmas several years ago.  They turn their heating way down during =
the week and turn it back up for their service only on Sunday morning.  =
I received a call from the mother of the pianist in January that the =
piano was out of tune.  She said her son said it sounded terrible the =
previous Sunday.  I arranged to meet with him later in the week and when =
I walked in, the temperature was cool, but comfortable-about what it was =
when I tuned the piano-and the piano sounded great!  I thought either my =
hearing is going or that piano sounds just fine.  About halfway down the =
aisle the pianist heard me and exclaimed that the piano sounded great!  =
He said it sounded terrible Sunday.  I asked him what the temperature in =
the sanctuary was like on the previous Sunday and he said it was about =
like it was then, but when the "old folks" came in they turned the =
thermostat way up!  Problem solved!  It's amazing what a small =
increase/decrease in the temperature and resulting humidity makes as far =
as a piano being in tune.

  =20

  Joy!

  Elwood

  =20

  Elwood Doss, Jr., RPT

  Piano Technician/Technical Director

  Department of Music

  145 Fine Arts Building

  The University of Tennessee at Martin

  Martin, TN  38238

  731/881-1852

  FAX: 731/881-7415

  HOME: 731/587-5700


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  From: caut-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of =
Cy Shuster
  Sent: Tuesday, January 24, 2006 9:17 PM
  To: CAUT
  Subject: [CAUT] Overlap of CAUT with churches?

  =20

  It seems that the mission of CAUT overlaps substantially with the =
requirements of churches: maintaining pianos in an institutional setting =
(rather than individually owned) -- although I doubt many churches have =
a full-time tech.

  =20

  Churches have been a big part of my business.  They have performance =
and rehearsal pianos, and have unusual environmental problems, going =
through seasonal heating/cooling cycles twice a week or more rather than =
twice a year.

  =20

  Are there specific guidelines for churches?

  =20

  --Cy Shuster--
  Boston, MA

  www.shusterpiano.com
  North Bennet Street School
  Class of '06

  =20

  =20

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