She explained that he came in, opened up the piano, set an old brown Conn >(tube-type) Strobo-Tuner on the top, plugged it in and swung open the >front. The dial started gyrating, he played a few notes, and said he >would take that cup of coffee she offered now. Then he sat with her in >the kitchen and talked for about 20 minutes. Then he went back out into >the living room, played a few notes and chords, looked at the tuner dial >gyrate around for aminute or two as he did, and pronounced "its done". >He had given it "the lifetime tune". Perhaps irrelevant, but I once was called back to correct the tuning I had just done. The gal told me over the phone one of the notes was "low". Upon arrival, she played middle c and then d above it. She told me that d was lower than c, and shouldn't it be higher? I realised a music lesson was in order. I asked her to sing do re mi fa so la ti do in its familiar ascending pattern. I played the c as a starting note. After she had done it correctly, I was able to point out that the pattern on the piano matched it. She was grateful. her husband thrust a book in my hands as I left with $10 for the music lesson. "Changed my life!" he said. She sounds like a candidate for the hands-off strobe approach. Incidentally, the guy with the strobe may have been a great tuner! Just disillusioned perhaps. Great story. Sam Grossner, Chicago.
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