Prepared Pianos question

[Delwin D Fandrich]

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  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: LHudicek@AOL.COM=20
  To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
  Sent: February 17, 2002 5:49 AM
  Subject: Re: Prepared Pianos question


  In a message dated 2/16/2002 7:08:38 PM Eastern Standard Time, =
cedel@supernet.com writes:



    A pianist came in while the piano technician was tuning for a =
concert and insisted that the piano be tuned to A-442.


  I don't suppose my next life's dissertation on microtonal tuning will =
be warmly received either! :). =20

Technicians tend to get worked up over this quite often. I think as =
often as not it boils down to money. It takes extra time and effort to =
make these pitch changes in a piano and somebody has to pay the bill. =
The piano owner--the hall, university, etc.--rarely has the money to pay =
anything extra and it is often the tuner who ends up on the short end of =
the food chain.=20

This can be alleviated, though not entirely solved, by prior agreements =
with the piano owner about who should pay the additional charges. Most =
of us who worked out arrangements such that the artist or orchestra or =
whoever was requesting the special pitch found that when money entered =
the picture the pitch change became somewhat less important. So the =
question then becomes, was it ever really important? or just somebody's =
ego speaking out? And I'll not be at all ashamed to tell you that often =
the piano is actually tuned to A=3D440 and the artist told it is at =
A=3D442 (or whatever) and no one besides the tuner really knows the =
truth. And then there is the blind tuner I once knew who had a set of =
five tuning forks made up all tuned to A=3D440 but marked A=3D440, =
A=3D441, A=3D442, etc., and asked the artist to choose the correct one =
for him. In some years of tuning for concerts and recordings he was =
never found out and the pianos he maintained remained stable and tuned =
to A=3D440.

Regards,

Del

Delwin D Fandrich
Piano Designer & Builder
Hoquiam, Washington  USA
E.mail:  pianobuilders@olynet.com
Web Site:  www.pianobuilders.com

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