<HTML>In a message dated 6/6/02 7:52:27 AM Central Daylight Time, mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">Any suggestions on how I can show her that the piano is as good as it is reasonably going to get? I don't play. I could possibly drag my wife over there and get her to play Amazing Grace. Thanks for any suggestions. Terry Farrell </BLOCKQUOTE> This is a tricky one. Obviously, the piano is not "flat." But she is complaining about something, and she describes it as flat. Her playing is one of the problems, but I suspect that it has more to do with a lack of hearing, than the condition of the piano.  Older people loose the upper partials in their hearing. That is why it is difficult for them to hear people speak. It also makes pianos sound flat, because the upper partials are not heard.   I had a similar situation with an older lady from church, who was an excellent player with a Baldwin L. I had been tuning her piano for many years, and one day she complained the piano was flat. Because we were such good friends, I was able to talk to her, and explain what was happening. She accepted my explanation. But...., she was a friend. I don't know what you can do, other than ask her to explain what she means. Ask her to identify the notes that are bothering her. Actually try to correct some of the notes that she hears as being "flat." Maybe when she realizes that there is nothing wrong with the piano, she'll accept that it is her problem, not the piano. Although it is going to take some time, for which you are not going to get paid, sometimes we need to do that to satisfy the customer. Not because she's going to keep paying you to tune her piano for many years, but because we owe that to our "elders." Wim </HTML>