<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">In a message dated 12/17/02 3:07:26 AM Pacific Standard Time, tadams2@satx.rr.com writes:<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">Hello list, </FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0"><BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">As an new list member and aspiring tuner, I have one question, (actually many, but one for now). Do most of you tune by ear, or with an electronic tuner, or a combination of both? Thanks,</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0"><BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">Tom</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0"><BR>
</BLOCKQUOTE><BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0"><BR>
A question like this is always welcome. Most of the people who subscribe to this list are professionals of many years, even multiple decades. Sometimes we run out of things to talk about and start talking about each other. So, ask away, you'll get lots of answers. One thing I expect you'll see as I have is that for every very strongly held opinion you read, you'll eventually read one that seems to (or even obviously) contradicts it. The ultimate irony you'll find is that *both* opinions will be valid.<BR>
<BR>
I have read the other responses and do not disagree with any opinion so far but I do lean in the direction of aural tuning first. I read lots of claims by Electronic Tuning Device (ETD) users who say that they can hardly improve on the tuning the ETD produces. Yet, aural tuners consider what an ETD produces as only a starting place, a "rough" tuning which should be refined by ear to be truly excellent.<BR>
<BR>
If you truly want to be a piano technician who is a master of his trade, you must learn to tune aurally and be able to please a concert artist with an aural tuning. You must also learn how to clean piano interiors, repair, align and regulate actions and voice hammers. You do not need to become a rebuilder but it will benefit your skills if you work somehow in the rebuilding end of the business for a while.<BR>
<BR>
When I was a youngster, I wanted to learn to be a piano tuner and never wanted to do anything more than tune. I found out the hard way that many other skills are necessary in order to make a business of it. There are some people who are simply hobbyists. Professional piano technicians most often frown upon and discourage that.<BR>
<BR>
Let us hear more from you.<BR>
Bill Bremmer RPT<BR>
Madison, Wisconsin<BR>
<A HREF="http://www.billbremmer.com/">Click here: -=w w w . b i l l b r e m m e r . c o m =-</A></FONT></HTML>