Rob and all, Cleveland is a great music town, and we get to tune for pianists of every caliber. I find the the really great ones tend to be really great people, period (wish this was true 100% of the time). The tricky ones are the ones who have training and a limited career, enough to make them professional pianists but not enough to rise clear to the top. But in general they love the pianos. I agree, they can make you want to throw them across the room, but I also try to remember that one of the perks and joys of this business is that it is rarely dull. These eccentrics make for good stories later. While I'm dealing with them, I remind myself that I am the servant -- which is true -- and I do a cheerful yes,ma'am, no sir, routine. They're happy. And you know what? Often a person who thinks you do great work really means, you cater to them. I have one woman teacher, whom I like a lot, who has her Steinway L serviced regularly. After every tuning, she checks the lowest octave, one note at a time, slowly. She's listening to single strings, one at a time, and saying, that's in tune, that's not in tune. Or she'll play two and say, that's not a half step. She is a bona fide musician, too. So I stand there, wiggle the hammer on the pin, changing nothing, and she smiles and likes it. It's a ritual by now. The real "professionals" don't have to tell you they're professionals -- at least not more than once. Mark Graham Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music Berea, Ohio
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