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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Fred, Jon, Avery, =
Alan........</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>It's the hall's piano and it's that =
Pops orchestra
out of Boston as part of a subscription series making a stop here in the =
corn
and soybean fields of Central Illinois. (A nice little =
Christmas-time gig
to bring out the families.) I already let the hall's director know =
that
there would be an additional charge for the pitch change, but haven't =
given her
an amount yet. Shucks, it's the first request I've had for =
anything
besides 440 since I started tuning 23 years ago. How could that
be? I attribute it to clean living.....ahem.
:-) I said I'd let her know how I would charge for the =
stand-by thing. The hall always pays me--how they collect or
cover for my services, as you said, is their business. =
Thanks
all, I appreciate the input.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>This is a learning experience for both =
the
management and me. In the past they used the university tech, =
who
didn't charge them (long story) and when he got fed up with the =
piano and
environs, he quit providing service to the =
hall. Then they used
anyone they could get their hands on. New management called on me =
and I
only agreed to do the job if I was allowed to make the piano sound and =
play
better. That's how I ended up rebuilding the action. =
I'm
training them about real piano care and getting professional
results. Silly me, I thought my previous experience as a =
university technician prepared me for this job (ha!). Oh =
yeah, well,
I suppose I did have to train the faculty back then, but things ran =
smoothly
after that. The rules were established and that was =
that. Here,
it seems every group that comes in has its own rules.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>You may ask, why, Barb, do you know the =
details
about this concert so far in advance? In trying to get the staff =
to
respect my time (making sure I'm available) and to put an end to those =
panicky
last minute requests, I asked that I be contacted every time a =
<contract>
came through that includes the use of our pianos. Golly, they're =
doing
it!!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Barbara </FONT> <FONT face=Arial =
size=2>Richmond, RPT</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
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<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=fssturm@unm.edu href="mailto:fssturm@unm.edu">Fred =
Sturm</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=caut@ptg.org
href="mailto:caut@ptg.org">caut</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, August 05, 2005 =
7:39
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [CAUT] stand-by =
& pitch
change charges</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face=Verdana>Hi =
Barbara,<BR> In
general, I agree with Jon: charge your hourly rate. But that could be
negotiable should the contract be amended to say “The tuner will =
return at X
o’clock (say an hour before the concert) to touch up and deal with =
any
problems.” Then it’s a service call. I would think that solution =
would meet
everyone’s approval.<BR> About charging for =
pitch
change back to 440, that’s a complex question. Whose piano? What’s =
the status
of the event? Is the orchestra renting the hall, or the hall =
presenting the
orchestra? I’d say the policy is the hall’s responsibility. I =
would advise
them, if this is a rental, to charge the orchestra an additional =
tuning to
bring it back (and for two tunings to get it to non-standard pitch and =
stable). Just tell them the next time they have it tuned, it will need =
two
tunings – that should be sufficient to persuade them. Of course if =
it is a
co-production, or the concert is produced by the venue, it becomes a =
different
kettle of fish. But make sure the folks in the hall know that non-440 =
means
extra tuning in both directions. And leave it to them as to who pays =
(as long
as it isn’t the tuner working for free).<BR><BR>Regards,<BR>Fred
Sturm<BR>University of New Mexico <BR><BR> <BR>On 8/5/05 2:36 PM, =
"Barbara Richmond" <piano57@insightbb.com> wrote:<BR><BR></FONT>
<BLOCKQUOTE><FONT size=2><FONT face=Arial>Howdy =
all,<BR> <BR>Just had a
note from the director of the big auditorium. A contract from =
a big
orchestra has come through specifying that the piano be tuned not =
more than
6 hours before the concert and "The piano tuner should remain
available and on stand-by until concert start =
time."<BR> <BR>What's a
fair charge for stand-by? Would it be my normal hourly fee, =
even if
I'm sitting in the tech office reading a book? =
:-)<BR> <BR>Unless
I'm planning on staying for the concert for my own enjoyment, I =
usually stay
until I get the OK from whomever, but it usually isn't long after =
I've
finished working. At this point I haven't been informed what =
the
afternoon schedule is. This is the first time I've had this in =
a
contract ('tis only my second season). Just wondering how you =
all
handle these things.<BR> <BR>Also, this orchestra has requested =
something other than 440, so I'm thinking they should not only pay =
for
bringing the piano up in pitch, but also taking it back down again.
Comments??<BR> <BR>I realize a lot of you on this list =
are
salaried techs, but someone out there must be servicing additional =
concert
facilities. (Oh, yeah, I'll be getting to that report after =
"going to
the lake" season........)<BR> <BR>Thanks,<BR> <BR>Barbara
Richmond, RPT<BR></FONT></FONT><FONT
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