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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Don't kill yourself repairing this piano before the
next rehersal performance. If the piano is out of commission, let it be
known why! to all. If you fix it immediately, it must have been just a
minor adjustment needed for prepared piano. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>You! wouldn't do that?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>All good piano technicians gain reality and
retire. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Loren</FONT></DIV>
<DIV>----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
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style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=pwilliams4@unlnotes.unl.edu
href="mailto:pwilliams4@unlnotes.unl.edu">Paul T Williams</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=caut@ptg.org
href="mailto:caut@ptg.org">caut@ptg.org</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Saturday, April 12, 2008 10:26
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [CAUT] Unauthorized "prepared
pianos"</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>Hi List,</FONT> <BR><BR><FONT
face=sans-serif size=2>In the last two weeks, our best Steinway D has been
damaged by unauthorized "prepared" piano use twice! The first occurrence
was three weeks ago during our "Clarifest Day" where a guest artist, without
permission started banging on the right cheekblock and side of the rim with
his fist. He pounded so hard it knocked loose the cheek screw and was
causing a clicking in the upper regesters. I was called from home to
come down to fix it, and fortunately it was indeed only the loose
screw.</FONT> <BR><BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>The second time was this
week; a student composer used a mallet and banged on the plate and severely
bent up several bass damper heads AND strumming the strings with a wire brush.
The stage manager, the professor of composition, and I were not told
this was going to take place and this student beleives he is going to
demonstrate it again in the same hall and in our smaller recital room that
also has a "D". The assistant stage manager (in charge that evening)
SHOULD have stopped the pre-performance rehersal and swapped out the Steinway
for our semi- decent Yamaha C-3. I'm not sure how to prevent the abuse
of prepared pianos. The faculty doesn't seem to care or think about it,
except for the piano faculty, of course. </FONT> <BR><BR><FONT
face=sans-serif size=2>Do I have a right to prevent such use/abuse?
Could I actually step in and stop a performance? Should I?
How do you all get faculty and students to get this in their fat heads
that this behaviour is not OK? He could have cracked the plate!!!</FONT>
<BR><BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>Concerned</FONT> <BR><BR><FONT
face=sans-serif size=2>Paul T. Williams </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>