[pianotech] CONCERT PITCH 440/442?

[Pianoman]

tricky, tricky, tricky
James
James Grebe
Since 1962
Piano Tuning & Repair
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----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Delwin D Fandrich" <del at fandrichpiano.com>
To: "'David Ilvedson'" <ilvey at sbcglobal.net>; <pianotech at ptg.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 29, 2009 8:06 PM
Subject: Re: [pianotech] CONCERT PITCH 440/442?


> Or do what a visually impaired friend of mine did. Have a few forks made 
> up with
> identical pitches (A=440 Hz) but marked A=440, A=441, A=442, etc. I seem 
> to
> recall they went up to A=445. Then ask the person making the request to 
> pick out
> the appropriate fork. Claimed he never had a problem.
>
> ddf
> Delwin D Fandrich
> Piano Design & Manufacturing Consultant
> 620 South Tower Avenue
> Centralia, Washington 98531  USA
> Phone  360.736.7563
> Cell  360.388.6525
> Fax  360.736.5239
> E-mail 1: del at fandrichpiano.com
> E-mail 2: ddfandrich at gmail.com
>
>
>
>
>
> | -----Original Message-----
> | From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org
> | [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf Of David Ilvedson
> | Sent: April 29, 2009 5:04 PM
> | To: pianotech at ptg.org
> | Subject: Re: [pianotech] CONCERT PITCH 440/442?
> |
> | I am beginning to like the idea of leaving the piano at 441.
> | Close enough to 440 and 442...
> |
> | David Ilvedson, RPT
> | Pacifica, CA  94044
> |
> | ----- Original message ----------------------------------------
> | From: "Delwin D Fandrich" <del at fandrichpiano.com>
> | To: pianotech at ptg.org
> | Received: 4/29/2009 5:01:06 PM
> | Subject: Re: [pianotech] CONCERT PITCH 440/442?
> |
> |
> | >Probably me. This was the approach I took some years back when I was
> | >faced with a similar problem. I had (have) no problem tuning
> | pianos to
> | >whatever pitch the artist/orchestra wanted as long as they
> | were willing to pay for the extra work.
> | >I didn't think it was fair for them to expect me to absorb
> | the cost nor
> | >did I think it fair to pass it on to the piano owner (the
> | auditorium).
> | >
> | >Once we (I and the auditorium) adopted this policy it became a rare
> | >thing to tune to any pitch other than the Internationally recognized
> | >pitch standard of A=440 Hz.
> | >
> | >I took the same approach with requests for voicing changes that were
> | >(in my
> | >opinion) outside the norm. I would accommodate what I
> | considered to be
> | >reasonable requests without comment. Some requests, however,
> | would have
> | >required extensive lacquering and/or radical sanding to accommodate.
> | >When faced with the potential cost of replacing the hammers
> | after their
> | >one-night performance the demands for radical voicing changes
> | >diminished substantially.
> | >
> | >"Artists" also tended to take more care in setting up and performing
> | >their "prepared" piano pieces when they realized--per a signed
> | >document--that they would be held financially responsible for any
> | >damage their "preparations" did to the auditorium's pianos.
> | >
> | >This approach saved everyone a lot of argument and
> | misunderstanding. It
> | >was all fairly simple; we would accommodate any reasonable request
> | >without discussion but when the request cost the owner
> | additional money
> | >(or had the potential for doing so) the financial obligation fell to
> | >the person or organization making the request.
> | >
> | >ddf
> | >Delwin D Fandrich
> | >Piano Design & Manufacturing Consultant 620 South Tower Avenue
> | >Centralia, Washington 98531  USA Phone  360.736.7563 Cell
> | 360.388.6525
> | >Fax  360.736.5239  <mailto:E-maildel at fandrichpiano.com> E-mail 1:
> | >del at fandrichpiano.com E-mail 2:  <mailto:ddfandrich at gmail.com>
> | >ddfandrich at gmail.com
> |
> | >
> |
> |
> |
> |
> | >  _____
> |
> | >From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org
> | [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On
> | >Behalf Of RON MAY, RPT
> | >Sent: April 29, 2009 5:38 PM
> | >To: Pianotech
> | >Subject: [pianotech] CONCERT PITCH 440/442?
> |
> |
> | >
> | > . . . I thank sombody on this list that made this
> | suggestion some time ago
> | >which we now use.
> | >
> | >I wrote a form letter from the Symphonic Association Piano
> | Technician that
> | >merely states that, "We will be happy to tune the piano to
> | A442 for you,
> | >however, This fine piano is maintained at A440 to satisfy
> | the  majority of the
> | >artists as well as the church. If you wish the piano tuned
> | to A442 we will be
> | >happy to do so, however, it will require that the piano be
> | retuned back to A440
> | >immediately after the concert and we will have no choice but
> | to charge you
> | >$500.00 for the several tunings it will take to bring it
> | back to 440..
> | >
> | >Since then we have had no problems---that is until about 2
> | weeks ago.  We had an
> | >orchestra,(no pianist) coming in demanding a piano and for
> | it to be tuned A442.
> | >When we informed them of our situation they said fine, we
> | will bring our own
> | >piano which they did.  It was some kind of an electric
> | keyboard that I would bet
> | >was maybe 439.
> | >
> | >Ron May
> | >Vero Beach
> |
> |
> |
>
>
>
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