pitch raise

[Vanderhoofven]

Hi Bob,

I am in the same boat.  I charge for pitch corrections with my private 
clients, but don't at the college.  A 16 cent change of pitch is a pretty 
big change, but I see that all the time at the college here.

Here are some simplistic answers for you, but they won't do any good unless 
the college agrees with you and makes these things happen (or authorizes 
you and pays you to do these things).

1.  Complete Dampp-Chaser systems on all pianos.  They must be the systems 
with the Smart Heater Bar.  Back covers work great also.  The humidifier 
pads should be changed 3 times during the winter.  The systems must be 
plugged in all the time, and the humdifiers kept full of water all the 
time.  Use of humidifier treatment helps keep the moisture pads free of 
chemical and mineral build-up.

If the system does not have a Smart Heater Bar and the humdiifier is 
allowed to go dry, the humidifier bar acts as a dehumidifier and actually 
lowers humidity further.  If the humdifiers aren't going to be kept full of 
water and the system does not have a Smart Heater Bar, you will be better 
off unplugging the humidifier from the humidistat and only using the 
dehumidifier portion.

2.  The pianos need more frequent tuning.  4 to 6 tunings per year would be 
better for practice rooms.  For class rooms, 4 to 6 tunings per year would 
be better.  For teacher's studios, tuning 8 to 12 times per year would be 
excellent.  For the concert pianos, tuning at least every month is minimal, 
it would be better if they were tuned each time they were used.

However, unless the administration is convinced of the need for more 
tunings, and is willing to fund the budget to make it happen, it won't 
happen and the frustration will continue.

I would like to hear what other technicians have to say on this matter, 
because it interests me greatly.

Sincerely,

David A. Vanderhoofven
Joplin, MO USA


At 12:44 AM 2/5/03, you wrote:

>At the university where I provide service for fee work, I have just 
>started my round of tunings for the upcoming second semester.  I am 
>finding the pitch has dropped an unusual amount since the last tuning.
>
>Bob Hull, RPT
>Technician for Union University
>Jackson, TN