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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Oh Bruce, Guess we just have to hang in with
them. I think a lot of technicians are correct when they tell us to "just
say no"! Guess I'm to young and stupid for that! I love concert work
to. That don't help, and with concert work a person is a glutton for
punishment. Any how, thanks for being in the club with me!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Shawn Brock, RPT</FONT></DIV>
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style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=bppiano@aol.com href="mailto:bppiano@aol.com">bppiano@aol.com</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=pianotech@ptg.org
href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, July 09, 2008 9:22
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: World Piano competition
</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Boy, do I hear you. I've tuned for the recently
established Amatuer Pianist International here in Colorado Springs for 5 years
now. We have a nice Hamburg Steinway D for the stage. However, the
practice rooms<BR>are not scheduled for any attention this summer. I get
about an hour prior to the first event, and 15 minutes for lunch and other
breaks to touch up the piano. Usually, a russian pianist comes in for
the final masterclass and recital. Usually, a few requests for
regulation adjustments. Of course, everything must come within their
budgetary limits. I guess misery loves company. Nice to know I'm
not the only one doing this dance.
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Bruce Pennington<BR>
<DIV><BR>-----Original Message-----<BR>From: Shawn Brock
<shawnbrock@fuse.net><BR>To: Pianotech List
<pianotech@ptg.org><BR>Sent: Wed, 9 Jul 2008 6:04 pm<BR>Subject: World
Piano competition <BR><BR>
<DIV id=AOLMsgPart_2_3f8ac9c1-cf85-46a0-b144-fc274a79e7e6>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Yes, I said the World Piano Competition. So
for anyone who might have been the technician at this event in years past, you
can laugh at me this year! I'm the sucker, OOPS, I mean technician for
this years competition. I can't say that no one warned me about how it
has played out in years past. This year is much the same, except I got
paid for my first week of work. That's a step in the direction of
improvement I would say. For those who are lucky enough to have never
come across this event I will give you a short run down of what its
like. Its a 2 week affair with the first week being devoted to juniors
under the age of 16. They are all vary good and are thrilling to listen
to. The next week is the more competitive portion of this event, with
everyone battling it out on 1 S&S d. Man can they pound the hell out
of a piano! I have been lucky enough to come in each morning and find
the piano in decent shape as far as the tuning goes. My time allotment
is getting shorter how ever. When we started I could be in the hall at
7a.m, and they wanted me off the stage by 830. Keep in mind that was for
2 pianos which were in use for up to 10 hours. This week I only have 1
piano to worry about. So with less worries they decided to cut my time
back. I was informed that I shouldn't inter the hall and start before
9a.m. "Oh, and could you be off the stage by 930?" What the hell
are these people thinking? Don't get me wrong, often I can clean up/tune
a piano in 30 or 40 minutes. I would not want said piano used for a
performance though. If a piano is on pitch, I like to have about 1 hour
or 75 minutes to do what I need to do, and that is not for a 10 hour concert
where the performers are possibly some of the best new talent on the
planet. So... Guess I'l l just go and do what I can do. If
the piano maintains its stability as it has I should not have a problem.
Guess I'm just complaining on principle here... Not to mention the fact
that they cheated me out of a tuning... They don't want any of the
practice room pianos tuned. Man, these things are so badly out I don't
see how anyone could stand to play them. I had to fix a sticking key for
one of the players, did that one for free as well. Well, he needed the
note! It should be against the law for someone to bring these people in
and charge them all this money to inter a contest where everything is so
messed up! I hate the lack of accommodations for the contestants.
That bothers me more than anything. Once I told someone that the reason
I chose to pick up the guitar as a kid was because every piano I was around
was out of tune and was unplayable. Oh, well, what do ya
do?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Shawn Brock, RPT</FONT></DIV></DIV><!-- end of AOLMsgPart_2_3f8ac9c1-cf85-46a0-b144-fc274a79e7e6 --></DIV></DIV>
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