<HTML>To my esteemed colleagues Yesterday, at our faculty meeting/luncheon, our chair informed the faculty we are in the process of looking into becoming an all Steinway School. One of the faculty members asked if spending all this money will be worth it. He wondered if we should be spending all this money when there is a big need to buy some other instruments, like timpani, bassoons, contra bassoons, Celeste, etc. Although the money will come from private donations, the question is, is it really worth close to a million dollars to become an all Steinway School? I would like to ask some questions for any of you are an all Steinway school, or if any of you have considered becoming an all Steinway school. Those who are all Steinway schools, 1. Have you found there to be a significant increase in the quality of students attracted to your school since you became an all Steinway School? 2. Has it made a difference in the quality of faculty the school has recruited since you became an all Steinway school? 3. Are faculty other than those who are directly related to pianos, (history, applied instruments, etc.) satisfied that the school spent all that money on pianos? Or was money spent also on other instruments? For those of you who are in schools where you thought of becoming an all Steinway school, but decided against it, what were some of your reasons for deciding not to become an all Steinway school? Is there anything else any one can add, both positive and negative, to this thought. Thanks Wim Willem Blees University of Alabama </HTML>