>Hello all, > >I just downloaded an interesting file from my server (America >On-Line). I >found a file labeled piantung.zip which contains the text (minus >pictures) of >a book called "Strictly Tuning" by Ron Van Hoose (who I don't find >in the PTG >directory.) This "course" says that it includes everything that one >needs to >know in order to learn to tune any piano or start your own piano >tuning >business. Now maybe I'm just a slow learner, but as a second >generation >technician, a member of the Guild for a number of years and a >perpetual >student, the process seems just a little bit more complicated than >can be >contained in one book (even Professor Jorgenson's "Tuning"). Any >thoughts? > >Also, if you register with the author, you can receive a certificate >of >completion upon completing the course. > >Just thought y'all might want to know. >Allan Gilreath >Gilreath Piano & Organ Co. >Berry College I am sending this to the pianotech mailing list because of the number of replies that I got requesting this review. I WARNED you it was long! ;-) ------------------------------------- I saw this posting and thought I would reply. About five years ago I was interested in piano tuning, and I saw an ad in the back of some music magazine that I got from my local music store. The ad was for the above mentioned course, entitled "Strictly Tuning the Acoustic Piano", by Ron Van Hoose, in Virginia Beach, VA. I ordered the course for the princely sum of $105.00, and I eagerly awaited arrival of the course. When it came, the box held two 60 minute cassete tapes, a spiral bound 45 page book called "Strictly Tuning the Acoustic Piano", a gooseneck student tuning lever, a C-523.3 tuning fork, some rubber stick mutes and a red felt temperament strip. The two 60 minute cassette tapes illustrated the various intervals, beats, and procedures to tune the temperament and the rest of the piano. To me the tapes were the most helpful thing about the course. The book had a lot of good things in it, but being able to listen to what the piano was supposed to sound like was most helpful. Chapter One of the book had some basic discussion of tuning theory, including beats, the piano keyboard (note names and numbers), intervals, equal temperament, the series of partials, and the ratios of the different intervals. Chapter Two had basic discussion of piano tools, piano parts, muting the strings, BASIC discussion of tuning hammer technique, how to listen for beats, how to set the pin, how to use the tuning fork, and how to tune unisons and octaves. (By the way, just by reading the course I had no real idea of what he meant by "setting the pin". I tuned for almost three years after finishing this course before someone showed me how to set a tuning pin so it would stay. There really is no substitute for hands-on training!) Chapter Three covered setting the temperament octave, including some tests to prove that it was actually equal temperament. The temperament that Mr. Van Hoose taught involved setting C-52 to the tuning fork C-523.3. The next step was to tune C-40 from C-52 "so there are no audible beats". Then tune C-28 from C-40 "the same way". The temperament octave was from C-28 to C-40 because he said that the beats of the intervals were slower and therefore easier to hear in that section of the piano. The temperament was set by tuning up a major third from C-28 to E-32, up another major third from E-32 to G#-36, and then down a major fifth from G#-36 to C#-29. It was continued by tuning up a third, up a third, down a fifth several times until you arrived back at C-40. There were illustrations of musical notes on a staff showing which notes to tune and also which tests to use to check the tuning. One test he mentions is that when you play a minor third (say, from C#-29 to E-32), and then play a major third on top of that (say from E-32 up to G#-36), the minor third beats slightly faster than the major third. Another good test he taught was that the parallel major thirds should increase in speed as you go up through the temperament octave. Also, he said that the beats in parallel ascending fourths and fifths should gradually increase in speed. HOWEVER, no mention was made of how to check and see how close that C-52 was set to the tuning fork. No mention was made of any tests to see whether the octaves had the appropriate amount of stretch or not, and no mention was made of what tests you would use to test a fourth or a fifth. He did say in this chapter that I had learned "All 'tests' needed to check your work as you go." You can use your own judgment to decide whether he really did teach "All tests necessary"! Chapter Four taught tuning the remaining 75 notes of the piano by "tuning beatless octaves". Here he did teach several tests to check the octaves, including the minor third-major sixth test, the major third-major tenth test, the double octave test. Another test he taught in the extreme bass was to use the Octave/Minor seventh test. This chapter also gave tips on treble and bass tuning, and causes of false beats and buzzing bass strings. Chapter Five discussed pitch raising, why pianos go out of tune, and discussion of electronic vs. aural tuning. There was a small section on humidity control, but not really any details. He discussed using a "Sight-O-Tuner" (no mention of any other tuning devices), but recommended not becoming dependent on an electronic tuning device. Chapter Six covered repairs, such as string replacement in the bass and treble sections, loose tuning pins, and spinet action removal. He mentioned that "in the beginning stage of your Piano Service Business, you may want to concentrate on tuning and farm out repair work to other technicians in your area". On bass string replacement he taught that it is possible to send in the old bass string to a supply house to get an exact replacement, "however, usually it is preferable to use one of the universal strings." Appendix A was a table of equivalent beat rates. Appendix B was the theoretical fundamental pitches of all 88 notes. Appendix C covered musical notation. Along with the cassette tapes and book, Mr. Van Hoose offered phone consultation with his students at no extra cost, other than the student's long distance phone bill. He was available for only about two evenings for two hours each week to talk to his students. I ended up calling him only twice while I was studying his course, because it wasn't really convenient to call. The phone consultation might have been more helpful to me if I had called more often. There was only one exam for the course. When I felt ready to take the exam, I sent in a blank cassette tape and fifteen dollars. When the cassette tape was returned, side A had twenty questions to be answered. The answers were to be recorded on side B. Half of the questions were to be answered orally, and these questions covered some of the various intervals, about some of the math involved, about names and numbers of various keys on the keyboard, etc. For the other half of the questions I was to record what my tuning of the temperament octave sounded like (center strings only). (The exam did not test my unison or octave tuning ability, or whether or not I knew how to get the right amount of stretch for the piano.) And, Yes, I did get a certificate upon completion of the course. The certificate actually looks pretty impressive, stating that "David A. Vanderhoofven has satisfactorly [sic] completed the prescribed course of study in PROFESSIONAL PIANO TUNING." (In my opinion, the certificate should have said "Beginning Piano Tuning", but then that doesn't sound as important!) In my opinion, this course was fairly good as far as it went, but it was VERY basic. There were numerous things that weren't even mentioned in this course, even in passing. Many repairs were not discussed at all, and there was no discussion of regulating or voicing. The problem was, when I got my certificate, I thought I knew what I needed to know to tune pianos. (Boy was I in for a rude awakening!) The course didn't mention the Piano Technicians Guild, and I am fairly certain that Ron Van Hoose is not a member of the PTG. To his credit, let me say that I got the impression that he had a genuine interest in teaching others to tune pianos. I also felt that Mr. Van Hoose understood that his information was of a very basic level to teach beginning tuners. However, he didn't make it clear to me that I should continue seeking continuing education. For a basic course it was okay, but very limited in scope. This course was a beginning point for me, and since then I have studied every book I can find about piano tuning and servicing in my attempt to learn "all that I need to know to tune a piano". I have been tuning for five years now, and I finally feel that I am at around the Intermediate level in this field. It is a mistake to think that such a short course could completely cover everything. Later I received a 5.25" IBM computer disk containing the text of the spiral bound book. I paid an additional $29.95 and received a second computer disk that covered business practices and minor repairs. Several pages of illustrations and diagrams were included, showing different piano actions and parts. His book and the computer disks were easy to read. If anyone is considering purchasing this course, let me say that you get what you pay for. Let me recommend instead the Randy Potter School of Piano Technology. It is a lot more expensive, but then again it is MUCH more comprehensive. (No that was not a paid advertisement! I am a current student of Randy Potter's course, and I think that it is much better!) Thanks for paying attention all of the way through my long letter! If anyone has any more questions, I will do my best to answer them. Sincerely, David A. Vanderhoofven DAVander@aol.com Joplin, Missouri Associate Member PTG, Kansas City Chapter
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