Humidity swing anecdote

[Clyde Hollinger]

As I drove to the client's house I read the time-worn service card. 
Piano last tuned September 1995.  Hm -- three years, too long -- but
since this is September I reckon it will be close enough to tune on one
pass.
	I parked my maroon Oldsmobile in the shade of the big trees, grabbed my
indispensables, went into the house, and exchanged pleasantries as I
opened the 1970ish Kimball console.  
	"Oh," I remarked, "did you know you have a torn string?"  No, she
didn't know, so I pointed out that C16 had only one of the two strings
and removed the broken string from the bottom of the piano.  Well, she
HAD noticed that the note rang much longer than the others.
	I replaced the string and got ready to tune.  The piano was up to 39
cents sharp!  I was totally baffled and inquired if it was indeed three
years since I tuned the piano.  Yes, that's what she recalled. 
	"Well," I said, "this amount of sharpness in this area of the piano
would indicate that the piano was last tuned in the dead of winter,
maybe February or March.  But if it wasn't, I really have no explanation
what's going on here."  And I proceeded to lower the pitch.
	As I worked I thought, and thought, and thought some very deep
thoughts, which of course is what I do all the time, just like the rest
of you.  And then I had an inspiration.  One of her sons (and a former
student of mine) studied music in college, and do I remember that he
said something one time about tuning...?
	The next time she came into the room I said, "Do I remember correctly
that your son tuned this piano one time?"
	She thought for only a brief moment.  "No, but now that you mention it,
I remember a friend of his did tune it to return a favor we had done for
him.  He was here New Year's Eve, but I'm not sure that's when he tuned
it."  I'm on the right track, I thought with smug but of course humble
satisfaction.
	She keeps good records.  A few minutes later she returned to the room. 
"He tuned the piano February 26, 1997, and I think it was after that the
C kept ringing funny."
	Ah, the knowledge that comes with experience.  
	No, unfortunately I was unable to sell her a humidity control system. 
She thought the cost of the universal replacement string was plenty
high.  :-(

Clyde Hollinger