I don't know whether or not David would rebuild it, but I would (and have). Not only was it an often distained Howard grand, it was less than 4' 7" in length. And then I ended up giving an all-day seminar on the project because it ended up sounding so, well, musical is the word that comes to mind. At least that was the word the 30 or so technicians used after being given the opportunity to play it and compare it with the half-dozen or so new and well respected grands surrounding it. Yes, the owners understood that they would never be able to sell the piano for anything like what they were putting into it. But, still, it had been grandma's piano and then mom's and now daughter's. They did not want a new and supposedly "better" grand, they wanted that grand. The just wanted it to perform and sound as good as possible. I believe it is our responsibility to tell our customers (and potential customers) the truth about their pianos. Present all of the facts including the hard, economic realities. And then, if the owner so chooses, do the work and do the best you can do. Regardless of the perceived or pre-conceived value of the brand. Some of the best and most successful pianos--in musical terms--that I have rebuilt over the years have been pianos others have dismissed as junk pianos. But, if we are to be the craftsmen (and women) we claim to be, that is our job. It is also our exciting challenge. It is relatively easy to start with a piano like a worn out Steinway B and remake it into a Steinway B that performs on par with a new Steinway B. It is both professionally and technically challenging to start with a sub-five foot grand of questionable vintage and turn it into a great little piano, even when its performance is judged directly against new and larger grands by a highly regarded maker. It is also highly satisfying when one can pull this off and see the tears of joy welling up in the eyes of the owner when she sits down to play the newly rebuilt piano for the first time. Would I have rebuilt this piano for myself? No, of course not. But I certainly do not regret having done the job for this owner. Nor does this owner regret having spent the money on a piano that is worth about one-fourth to one-third the amount they put into the job. We owe it to our customers to be honest and give them all the facts about their piano. Including the fact the we, and probably most others in the profession, may not regard their particular brand an/or type of piano highly. But once the owner has considered this and weighed the alternatives and still decide to go forward with the project it becomes our responsibility to act like the professionals we claim to be and work our particular form of magic to the best of our ability. ddf _____ From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf Of wimblees at aol.com Sent: April 10, 2009 7:09 PM To: pianotech at ptg.org Subject: Re: [pianotech] Commercial value vs. sentimental value David Same scenario as you just stated, but it's a same vintage Howard grand. Would you rebuild it, even if the customer begged? Same scenario, (except for the soundboard)*, but it's a 1920 Settergrin explayer upright. Wim -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech_ptg.org/attachments/20090411/12f5e341/attachment.html>
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