[CAUT] Steinway school info

[Porritt, David]

Alan:

I had tried to get a document like the one you sent a year or more ago
and they didn't seem to have one.  I talked to Kent Webb and Sally
Kavaleski (I know I'm murdering the spelling of her name - Sorry) and
they couldn't seem to find a document with those details.  The one you
send was dated January 2008 so it could be a new one.  

On item #3 I asked if there actually were a school that had that
technician ratio and they thought that Oklahoma City University had
achieved that benchmark.  None others were mentioned.  

I didn't read in #8 that all pianos had to be rebuilt in NY.  Was that
something that they said in the meeting you attended?  I had asked that
specifically when I talked to them and was told that this would be their
preference.  Perhaps they have now made this a requirement.  

Thanks for sending this!

dave


David M. Porritt, RPT
dporritt at smu.edu

-----Original Message-----
From: caut-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf Of
Alan McCoy
Sent: Monday, May 05, 2008 3:00 PM
To: College and University Technicians <caut at ptg.org>
Subject: Re: [CAUT] Steinway school info

I just went to a presentation by S&S about the program. Attached is a
document from that presentation that defines or stipulates what it means
to be an All-Steinway school.

Of particular interest is #3. BTW, if you haven't read the S&S
equivalent of the CAUT Guidelines, it is worth looking over. The version
I have was written by Gary Green in 2005. Its recommendations for number
of technicians (one full-time technician per 40 S&S, or one full-time
tech per 60
Boston/Essex) and parts inventory look to be more demanding than the
CAUT Guidelines. They apparently have a spreadsheet for this purpose. No
doubt this hooks into their initial inventory of your instruments.

Another consideration is #8 wherein any rebuilding will be done at the
S&S restoration center in NY. This effectively removes any
decision-making about rebuilding from you, other than choosing which
piano is up for rebuilding.

By becoming an All-Steinway School (I was about to use an acronym but
decided against it. :-] ) you are accepting the brand, being branded as
it were, and must live up to their expectations. They want to protect
their name, and you, as an All-Steinway School, are representing their
name, same as a dealer.

It's a choice. It may be a good one for the school and students. But it
is not without its trade-offs.

FWIW,

Alan


-- Alan McCoy, RPT
Eastern Washington University
amccoy at mail.ewu.edu
509-359-4627
509-999-9512


> From: Fred Sturm <fssturm at unm.edu>
> Reply-To: "College and University Technicians <caut at ptg.org>" 
> <caut at ptg.org>
> Date: Mon, 05 May 2008 08:13:42 -0600
> To: "College and University Technicians <caut at ptg.org>" <caut at ptg.org>
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] Steinway school info
> 
> Hi Chris,
> You might be surprised about raising money. A case in point from UNM:
> a guy who had been a violin student at UNM but changed to math. Became

> a math teacher at a university (some other state), but kept up his 
> interest in music, performing as section violinist in regional 
> orchestras and doing chamber music. He got interested in collecting 
> instruments, and ended up with a "matching" string quartet. In his 
> 80s, he decided to donate them, and approached our music department, 
> because of fond feelings about his violin prof. We had been in the 
> process of dedicating our rehearsal hall to the memory of this prof, 
> so maybe he heard about that, and it got him thinking.
> So for the last ten years, we have had a graduate string quartet (they

> get to use the instruments, and get a scholarship), underwritten by 
> him, and he is (now in his 90s) finishing paperwork to endow $500,000 
> in scholarships for string students. All from a very unassuming guy 
> who doesn't have children and wants to do something meaningful with 
> what is probably the accumulation of TIAA/CREF retirement account 
> money.
> The point being that you don't have to have a BIll Gates among your 
> alums to raise substantial sums of money. But it does take some effort

> and communication.
> Regards,
> Fred Sturm
> University of New Mexico
> fssturm at unm.edu
> 
> 
> 
> On May 2, 2008, at 1:55 PM, Christopher Purdy wrote:
> 
>> Thanks to everyone that has responded to my questions, on list and 
>> off.  I have received a lot of great insight and ideas.
>> Realistically, I don't see how this is ever going to happen here.
>> We would basically have to buy some 100 new Steinways and I just 
>> don't see us raising 3-4 million dollars.  However, I have really 
>> been enlightened with ideas of using this to get the ball rolling and

>> start discussion.  Plus, the new director knows the program and is 
>> very interested in pursuing it.  If he's got the experience and the 
>> energy, I'd love to see where it takes us.
>> 
>> Thanks again to everyone.  I've saved all the responses and I will 
>> really be able to use the info you provided.
>> 
>> Chris
>