<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1226" name=GENERATOR></HEAD> <BODY> <DIV>I second your thoughts 200%.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Marcel Carey, RPT</DIV> <DIV>Sherbrooke QC</DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px = solid">Michael, I beg to differ with you on this issue about ETD's. I know actually = many tuners here in Holland, but also abroad, who are highly experienced = aural tuners and who, nevertheless, now tune with an ETD. In Holland I = was among the first members of the then new Dutch Piano Technicians Association = (the VvPN) and I was also among the small group of these new VvPN members = who created the very first tuning test in Europe where you could test the = tuning electronically with the aid of an ETD (at the time a SAT) and a = computer program, just like they have been done (and do) for a long time in the = USA. Let me tell you, it was not an easy task to do a tuning = test and walk away with a high enough score, and I have seen many colleagues = who, after they had proved their professional ability, were very proud that they = had dared to do this risky test. They had shown that they were able to = make a very good tuning, and we all know that there are many colleagues out = there who are not capable of making a tuning at that same level I just described. Many of these 'tested' tuners now use a tuning = device, myself included. I have tuned too many piano's aurally, and = I thank the electronic tuning Deities for my beloved 'box'. You know why? Because my box creates for me a tuning of such high quality = that it will take me at least a Month's training of steady high-trapeze-tuning = to reach the same accuracy. But I would never be able to make money = with it, because such a fabulous concert tuning would take me hours, and = afterwards I would be exhausted, whereas my ETD allows me to do the very same but within one hour, hello! So my customers are happy because = they can count on a very high quality tuning, and I am very happy because I = don't get exhausted, don't have a lot of tuning stress, and I can, instead, = concentrate on making beautiful and strong unisons. Especially somewhat = older tuners, who have paid their tuning dues so to speak, go into their = second tuning wind when they discover the ease and joy of a good = ETD. Because they have already tuned piano's aurally for many years, they know very well = how to tune a piano when the battery of their ETD is low. Some time ago, I = came back from a short trip abroad, and I had forgotten to charge the = battery of my box, so the next day I had to tune this very difficult Steinway = belonging to this very difficult customer. To be honest with you, I got = chagrined because it was late in the afternoon and my energy level was down, and = I was not looking forward to having to do it again 'by ear'. However, I = of course tuned the thing and after only a few uncertain minutes I was back full = swing and was having fun, trying to do the puzzle again for the zillionth time. I can tell you something else : Just because my ears = have been sharpened by the superior ETD tuning, my musical hearing wants to = duplicate the refined regularity that I have been hearing for years through the = use of my sophisticated ETD. So my tuning ability has not gone away and has = not lessened at all. I feel very good that I can make a real good = tuning even after having used an ETD for years. Again : there are many many = excellent aural tuners in the world who, at a certain moment, just = like me, have made a switch from aural to electronic. I think most of these = will testify that they have an easier life now and that they enjoy making a = superb tuning. I am all for learning to tune aurally and then tune aurally = for years, just to become well trained. After that goal has been = reached I would say : get yourself a Cadillac, and enjoy the = ride. friendly greetings from André Oorebeek Amsterdam - The = Netherlands 0031-20-6237357 0645-492389 0031-75-6226878 w= ww.concertpianoservice.nl www.grandpiano.nl </BLOCKQUOT= E></BODY></HTML>