Job proposal & Job Description

Vanderhoofven dkvander@clandjop.com
Mon Dec 29 01:17 MST 1997


Dear Friends,

I have been asked to make a proposal to our local college for the tuning
and maintenance of the pianos in the music department.  I have been tuning
on an as needed basis for the past year and a half.  The head of the music
department has asked for my input so that he will know how much to request
for a tuning/maintenance budget.  There is a good chance that eventually
the budget will increase to a reasonable level.  Recently several new
pianos have been purchased.  About 2/3 to 3/4 of the pianos now have
complete Dampp-Chaser Systems installed and functioning.

I need to write a proposal for the tuning/maintenance of 24 pianos...

3 concert grands (1 used very infrequently, older - needs regulation; 1
used infrequently - about 5 or 6 times a year; and 1 used heavily - about
10 concerts per year, plus about 35 to 50 student and faculty recitals,
also used for weekly practice of advanced students, faculty trio, etc.)

3 larger classroom grands - used daily, moderate to heavy use (2 need
COMPLETE regulation; 1 needs new soundboard and pinblock and action)

3 smaller grands - (2 used daily by piano teachers with fairly heavy use,
both need regulation/hammer filing; 1 untunable, needs new pinblock, not
used at all)

4 studio uprights in practice rooms - (2 brand new and now getting heavy
use; 2 older and need full regulation)

10 studio uprights and 1 spinet in faculty studios - (1 brand new, but most
about 20 to 30 years old in need of hammer filing/voicing and regulation)


*******************************
My goals for the Piano Department

I. Every Useable Piano in Tune
   Suggested Tuning Schedule  (Pianos should be tuned often enough to
prevent ANY complaints     
     A.  Concert Pianos tuned every major concert (before rehearsal and
before concert) 
           Concert pianos tuned as needed for recitals
     B.  Other Grands and pianos used in teachers studios - Tuned 3 or 4
times per year as needed
           (Before Fall Semester; After weather change in Fall; in January
and again in April/May)
     C.  Practice room pianos tuned 3 times per year or as needed
           (Before Fall Semester, after Weather change in fall, again in
spring)

II.  Every piano playing up to its potential
      A.  Concert Grands completely regulated and voiced before each
concert season begins in the fall
      B.   Other pianos regulated and voiced according to their usage -
every 2 to five years
      C.  String, key and action repairs being done immediately on every
piano to prevent further damage

III.  Every Piano protected from humidity extremes 
     (to prevent the need for additional tuning and to prevent premature
failure and the need for replacement)
      A.  Every piano should have a complete five part Dampp-Chaser
Humidity Control System installed
      B.  Every Dampp-Chaser system should be plugged in and fully
operating at all times
      C.  Every piano should be checked regularly to make sure the D-C
system is plugged in and water is in the humidifier (at least every week
and more often in the winter)
      D.   Every Dampp-Chaser system should have the humidifier pads
changed annually or twice a year

IV.   Pianos in poor shape to be repaired, regulated, rebuilt or replaced
as necessary
      A.  Good quality pianos attract good students and teachers
      B.  Poor quality pianos should be replaced
             When old pianos reach the end of their life span, replace them
instead of rebuilding them
      C.  Good Quality pianos in poor shape should be completely rebuilt or
remanufactured with a new soundboard, a new pinblock and a new action as
necessary
      D.  Better quality pianos can be regulated as needed or rebuilt with
a new pinblock and a new action
*************************************************

The above items are an ideal situation that I would propose for the music
department.  Based on the booklet from the CAUT, I estimate that about 15
to 20 hours every week could easily be spent to bring the pianos in the
music department up to good playing condition.  It is unlikely at this
point that a position would be created with any benefits.  The position
would still be on a subcontracting basis.  

If you were in charge of maintaining these pianos, what would you do?  Does
my list of Goals sound reasonable?  Would you suggest any changes?

I also would like to write a job description that would outline the ideal
situation where a piano technician would be allowed to do everything the
pianos need.  Does anyone have a job description that you would care to
forward to me that I could use for a guideline when writing my own job
description?

Many thanks in advance,

David


David A. Vanderhoofven, RPT
Joplin, Missouri, USA        
e-mail:  dkvander@clandjop.com

web page:  http://www.clandjop.com/~dkvander/
#pianotech page:  http://www.clandjop.com/~dkvander/ircpiano.html




This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC