<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; "><BR><DIV><DIV>On Oct 15, 2007, at 11:28 PM, David Ilvedson wrote:</DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><P>Jeff, I think you should have left it where it was...what about the Symphony, Opera, Ballet companies we all tune for? None, I believe, have anything to do with universities, but surely they are the cream of the music world? </P><P>You should get out more...there is more to music than the university by a long shot...<BR><BR>David Ilvedson, RPT<BR>Pacifica, CA 94044<BR></P></SPAN></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV>I do get out. In fact I have to do so much private sector work to make ends meet that it compromises what I can do at the university. I think that is precisely my point.<DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>First, I'm not sure where anyone got the impression I implied that the "cream of the music world" was not in the private sector. What I wrote had absolutely nothing to do with where the talent level is.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Second, we don't all tune for the Symphony, Opera and Ballet, and they simply don't exist everywhere. Even here where there are local companies, performances that require piano are not particularly frequent. And preparing pianos for professional performance is the exception of the private sector work, rather than the rule. "Not as necessary" implies that some portion or percentage of private sector work "is absolutely necessary". One should be easily able to ascertain that that comparison could be let's say 80:20=necessary:unnecessary in the private sector, whereas CAUT work might be weighed at 90:10, respectively. That is just conjecture - not my actual estimates, so don't go attacking those numbers. But such an assessment would agree with the statement "as necessary". I mean, guys, come on. You all knew exactly what I meant. Let's quit putting words in my mouth that were never there.<BR><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>But let's get real: the Symphony, Opera and Ballet are luxuries. Funding comes from benevolent corporate donations, wealthy independent donors and government entitlements and many still operate in the red. Certainly you don't think these art forms are sustained on ticket sales do you? These companies live off of the crumbs from the tables of others. If these art forms were forced to survive on their market value they would soon cease to exist. The only reason these organizations survive is that the IRS allows tax deductions for donations and we have to legislate government funding for them.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>If they were "necessary" that would not need to be so.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>I mean we really need to face reality here. </DIV></DIV><BR><DIV> <SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><DIV>Jeff Tanner, RPT</DIV><DIV>University of South Carolina</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"></SPAN> </DIV><BR></BODY></HTML>